NEWPORT BEACH : Restaurant-Bar Wins OK for Changes

With a roomful of supporters that included a country-Western dance instructor, the owner of a restaurant-nightclub that has grown in popularity among young adults won City Council approval to offer breakfast, weekend patio dining and more room to dance and play pool.

Lucy’s Bayside Bar and Grill, formerly Ellis Island restaurant, had been prompted complaints by neighbors about overcrowding and noise. But after owner Lucy Luhan outlined the steps she has taken to minimize problems, the City Council on Monday agreed unanimously with a Planning Commission recommendation that the business can open at 6 a.m. for breakfast, add a patio and four pool tables and open a second dance floor.

The council also added a condition that gives the city authority to require changes in operation if any problems occur.

Located in the old Bobby McGee’s restaurant building at 353 E. Coast Highway, Lucy’s Bayside Bar and Grill/Club BBG opened in June as an eatery that turns into a nightclub with dancing and pool after 9 p.m.

While its predecessor, Ellis Island, failed financially, Club BBG has drawn crowds of young adults who line up 20 to 30 deep on weekends. The grand opening party June 5 drew 700 people, some of whom were turned away because the business only holds 400, Luhan said.

But the club’s success has been accompanied by complaints from a few neighboring residents and the scrutiny of the Newport Beach Police Department. Police Chief Arb Campbell reported in letters to city leaders that nearby business owners have complained of club customers littering and urinating on their property, while a few residents have complained of noise.

Campbell also reported that 600 people were crammed inside the business on the club’s grand opening night, and that officers have found several underage drinkers with fake identifications in the bar.

But Luhan and club employees said that grand opening night was the only time such a crowding problem occurred and that a full staff of 14 doormen and security guards has been hired to count customers and minimize problems.

Luhan said she has also hired “undercover minors” to roam the club and report underage drinkers and instituted an incentive program that rewards employees who turn in underage customers.

As for the noise complaints, Luhan said she and police officers have walked the perimeter of the building on several occasions and have determined that the music wasn’t audible outside.

“Never have I been so impressed with an organization in all my life,” said Gayle Brandon, a country-Western dance instructor who recently began teaching at BBG on weekday nights. “This is a nice, clean, decent place where people can go and dance and be able to leave and feel safe.”

One neighbor complained to the council that the business’s limited parking has forced club-goers to park in his neighborhood two blocks away. “I find beer bottles all over my front lawn,” said Brian Fargo, a Harbor Island Drive resident.

But Councilman John C. Cox Jr. lauded Luhan’s efforts and persuaded his colleagues to “give this operation an opportunity to operate.”

“This happens with a new product . . . you’ve got to work out the bugs,” Cox said.