Rules Might Bring Down Colorful Umbrellas
Sugar Shack owner Michele Turner paid $1,000 three months ago for nine forest green umbrellas to shade the outdoor tables in front of her Main Street eatery.
Neighboring Rock-N-Java Cafe has four umbrellas, custom-made for $200 apiece, with the name of the coffeehouse on off-white canvas.
But those and another dozen downtown businesses with tabletop umbrellas may have to ditch them and buy new ones, according to the city’s latest design guidelines, approved in February.
The guidelines, which apply to street furniture, encourage a uniform look and color scheme that is low-key, suggesting the use of light colors and discouraging bright hues.
“It’s not fair,” Turner told City Council members. “I don’t think they should tell us what color we should have. We should be able to be unique.”
Turner said the color of her umbrellas distinguishes the restaurant from the others: “With the green umbrellas out front, that’s the way customers know the Sugar Shack.”
The goal, according to the guidelines, is to achieve a “clean, contemporary look.” Planning Director Howard Zelefsky said the city wants umbrellas to match or blend with a restaurant’s exterior, rather than stand out.
Business owners and managers, however, maintain that variety gives the downtown area its character.
“We want to keep our individuality. We want to keep the character, otherwise it will look like every other mall and food court,” said Jay Liddicote, manager of Rock-N-Java.
Bruce Milliken, a partner in the Longboard Restaurant and Pub, also advocates variety. The dining tables in front of his establishment have marine-blue umbrellas with “Longboard” spelled out in white letters.
“This is Huntington Beach, not Irvine,” he said, referring to the other city’s strict color restrictions.
Zelefsky said the design guidelines will be reviewed but that the city will ultimately be the arbiter.
“A lot of people would agree on what is garish and what is not garish,” Zelefsky said, “but good taste is hard to regulate.”
