By Jorge Casuso

July 26, 2010 -- The Santa Monica City Council will take up measures Tuesday to allow drop-down curtains in outdoor dining areas along Ocean Avenue and make Santa Monica Place more welcoming when the remodeled mall opens its doors August 6.

Among the dozen contracts the council will take up is a short term interim agreement with Macerich that would allow the mall owner to use 143 parking spaces in the North Civic Center Lot, across from City Hall, for a public valet program.

The council, which would cast the vote as the City's Redevelopment Agency, would lease the spaces for three months with three one-month renewal options at the rate of $6,101.50 per month.

The contract would be in place while Macerich and the City plan for public valet operations that includes dedicated space in Parking Structure 8, one of the mall's two structures, and the Civic Center Lot and the installation of a parking guidance system.

"In review of the proposed deal points, staff has identified several regulatory issues, including the need for California Coastal Commission approval and municipal code changes," staff wrote in its report to the council.

The mall will open next month after an extensive renovation that will create an open air center court, an entrance connecting the mall directly to Third Street Promenade and a third-floor food court with sweeping ocean views.

In an unrelated action, the council will take up a measure modifying the Ocean Avenue Outdoor Dining Standards to allow drop-down curtains during certain times of the year and under specified weather conditions.

The action comes after the City cited two Ocean Avenue restaurants--Boa and Makai--for using drop-down curtains to enclose their outdoor dining areas. The restaurants said they would challenge the enforcement actions through administrative appeals and in court.

After holding a public hearing and consulting with restaurant owners and the Bayside District Corporation, which runs the Downtown, City staff came up with the proposed recommendation, which must be reasonably enforceable, maintain the Ocean Avenue pedestrian environment, and consider weather conditions on Ocean Avenue.

"Staff believes these standards take into account both the colder temperatures during or after sunset throughout the year as well as the local rainy season," according to the report to council.

"In addition, once the curtains are rolled down, the standards require that the outdoor dining areas be internally lit," the report states. "This is intended to engage the dining area with Ocean Avenue’s pedestrian environment by providing visibility into the enclosed outdoor dining space.

In separate measures on the consent calendar, the council will take up the following:

• A $205,460 contract with 1st California Construction, Inc., to build an embalming room at Woodlawn Cemetery. The embalming room, as well as the addition of a mortuary, is part of a plan approved by the council in April that will help the Cemetery become financially sustainable.
• A contract with John S. Meek Company, Inc. for $133,540 to replace broken deck boards at the Santa Monica Pier adjacent to the Carousel Building to prepare for Soda Jerks' tenant improvement.
• A contract with Valley Slurry Seal, Inc., in the amount of $1,062,658 to bring the runway at Santa Monica Airport up to current Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) guidelines and prepare it for planned airport operations.
• An agreement with EcoMotion, for an annual cost of $150,000, to provide project development and implementation services to the Solar Santa Monica program.
• An agreement with Beavens Systems Incorporated for $805,788 for three years to renew, upgrade, install, maintain, and provide training on the proposed system for water and wastewater facilities.

The council also is expected at approve on consent the purchase of a fully automated 4x4 load refuse packer for $315,577 and three regenerative air sweepers for the Solid Waste Division for $892,881.