Restaurateur Medina Back in Good Health, Back in Business

On Aug. 1, when Joe Medina reopens his modest Mexican restaurant on Santa Fe Avenue in the city’s old downtown, he will savor two victories.

He will be returning to the business he had operated for 27 years until he became ill in early 1996 and was forced to close. And he will be clearing a hurdle that might have blocked him from reopening at all.

Because Medina’s was closed for more than 12 months, his operating license expired, and some residents challenged its renewal, arguing that his plan to sell alcohol, as he had in the past, would not be in the best interest of the neighborhood.

But, with the blessing of a City Council majority, Medina’s will soon be serving customers again.

“I feel good again, so I’m going to give it a try,” said Medina, who has lived in Placentia for 55 of his 74 years.

Mary Lou Medina, 71, said that her husband of almost 52 years has always worked hard and that the restaurant will keep him busy. “He’s never been the type to sit around and do nothing,” she said. “As long as he’s in good health, he’ll just keep going.”

When Medina’s request for a new operating license came before city officials this year, some residents came forward to raise objections, saying they feel the neighborhood already has 10 establishments that sell alcoholic beverages.

Lifelong Santa Fe Avenue resident Margarita Duncan objected to licensing yet another. “We’re not against the restaurant. We’re against him selling alcohol because it’s over saturated,” Duncan said.

Lois Raffel, co-chair of the Regional Advisory Board for the North Orange County Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs agency, said that the community had an opportunity to eliminate alcohol sales in the area.

“One of the risk factors that addresses the use and abuse of alcohol is availability,” Raffel wrote in a letter to the council. “So why this use permit was allowed when we had a chance to lower the availability is a mystery to me. We missed a prime opportunity to reduce the probability of use for the neighborhood.”

Medina addressed the City Council personally last week and said his restaurant has never been a problem for police or the city.

“I feel I have taken very good care of my business,” said Medina, who worked six days a week at the family eatery before he became ill.

The council agreed and granted him a use permit that allows sale of alcohol in conjunction with food.

“If it were a new business, I’d probably vote against it,” Mayor Norman Z. Eckenrode said.

But Councilman Michael L. Maertzweiler added that Medina has proved himself as the operator of a well-run business and that he should not be penalized because of his illness.

Medina, who has four children, nine grandchildren and five great-grandchildren, said that he is not ready to retire.

“I enjoy the business,” he said. “It’s been my life.”