LA HABRA : El Azteca Nightclub License Renewed

The Planning Commission voted unanimously this week to renew the business license of El Azteca Nightclub and Restaurant, a popular dance establishment that has been battling to stay open after complaints by neighbors.

In allowing El Azteca to stay in business, the Planning Commission ordered the owner to close the nightclub at midnight instead of 1 a.m. Monday through Saturday and at 10 p.m. on Sundays, to hire two security guards, and to come before the commission again in 90 days for a review.

“I see this opportunity as something to give my family,” Jorge Rocha, owner of the nightclub, said in a plea to keep the club open.

During a public hearing, several residents said they did not want to see El Azteca close because it provides a family atmosphere, where people gather to dance and have fun.

A 16-year-old resident, Joey Mireles, told commissioners that he heads a dance club made up of 75 youngsters, many of whom are former taggers, who go to El Azteca to dance instead of “writing on walls.”

“That’s why we want Azteca to stay open,” he said. “It’s the only place to dance in La Habra, and it’s good for the young people.”

Rocha said that after some neighbors complained about the nightclub’s loud music two months ago, he installed sound walls and opened a telephone hot line for people to request that music be turned down.

“After all of this, there isn’t anyone speaking against (El Azteca) and that confuses me,” Planning Commissioner William E. Reeves said about Rocha’s efforts to renew his business license.

After the meeting, nightclub patrons, residents and Rocha said they were pleased with the Planning Commission’s decision.