New Grande Terrace Wedding Venue Permit Hearing Set

Above: This existing tent and supporting structure at 915 and 1007 Deschutes Parkway must be removed by May 11, says the City of Olympia. The tent is not permitted under International Fire Codes.

The city has recommended to a hearing examiner, among other conditions, that the 915 Deschutes Parkway residence and a proposed covered porch have sprinklers if required access for fire trucks cannot be provided to these structures. This shall be determined prior to issuance of building permits, says the city.

By Janine Unsoeld

www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

A new hearing date for the Grande Terrace on Capitol Lake has been set for Thursday, July 30, 9:00 a.m., at Olympia City Hall, says Cari Hornbein, City of Olympia interim principal planner who is handling the land use case.

Hornbein will send out a formal notice for the wedding and event venue’s conditional use permit hearing in late June, “so it doesn’t fall off people’s radar,” she said on Friday morning.

The venue had several weddings scheduled throughout spring and summer, but was directed by the city to cancel those events and take down a large, plastic tent because it does not conform to fire codes and other regulations.

The business, located at 915 and 1007 Deschutes Parkway SW near downtown Olympia, does not have a permit to operate. The operator, Bart Zier, requested a conditional use permit from the city for the rental of a residence for wedding and social events. The property is located in an area zoned single family residential and the city has recommended denial of the conditional use permit application to a hearing examiner.

Right Business, Wrong Location

Little Hollywood has contacted three brides-to-be with upcoming weddings scheduled at Grande Terrace, including one scheduled for August.

One is glad that she is out of the contract she signed with Grande Terrace, and just received a full refund from venue operator Bart Zier for her September wedding. The young bride-to-be, already informed of the Grande Terrace debacle, was contacted by Zier two days ago to see if she would like to switch her wedding to his other venue, Grand Holiday Ballroom, on Fourth Avenue.

She did not.

“I feel like I was tricked….I never would have signed the contract if I had known about these code violations. I was not happy to hear the extent of it. I told him I had no faith that he would be open by September and now that I know about all these violations, I’d be embarrassed to have my wedding in the wrong location,” said the life-long Olympia resident, who did not want to be identified.

Another young bride-to-be wasn’t so lucky. Her wedding was scheduled to occur at Grande Terrace at the end of this month, and thanked Little Hollywood for contacting her. She said Zier contacted her on May 5 and was unclear about why she needed to move her wedding location.

She allowed Little Hollywood to share her story, if she wasn’t identified, in hopes that it helps others who may have their weddings or events scheduled there.

“Thank you for reaching out to me regarding this issue. Bart has just contacted me about the news. I actually did some research and found your articles….They were much more informative than Bart was, however he has offered to have the wedding take place at the Grand Holiday Ballroom with discounts and compensation for the inconvenience. This matter has been completely unprofessional and I wish I had been notified more than 26 days before the wedding takes place - that way, I could have researched my own venues and booked another. I was able to negotiate discounts with Bart but I never would have selected the Grande Terrace if I had known this was occurring.

“Thank you so much for taking it in your hands to reach out to others concerning this issue, especially for those who may not have been notified yet.”

Little Hollywood wishes all brides-to-be and their families the very best in life and believes everyone loves a wedding.

For previous articles about the Grande Terrace on Capitol Lake, go to Little Hollywood, www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com and use the search button to type in key words.

Former South Pacific Restaurant Finds New Owners

Tumwater Restaurant Will Become a Filipino-American Eatery

Above: The former South Pacific restaurant on the corner of Custer Way and Capitol Boulevard will become Florante's Restaurant and Sports Bar.

 

By Janine Unsoeld

www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

The Tumwater Brewery District will be seeing new life with the recent purchase of the former South Pacific Restaurant at 3507 Capitol Boulevard.

New building owners Norma and Florante Allarde will soon bring good food to the corner of Custer Way and Capitol Boulevard near the closed brewery. They are renovating the dilapidated space into a new Filipino-American eatery.  

The name of the new restaurant is Florante's Restaurant and Sports Bar.

Norma Allarde says the restaurant will feature traditional Filipino foods and some American foods. A few common Filipino dishes include Adobo, Pancit, Lumpia, Sinigang, Kare-Kare, Kaldereta, Menudo, and Asado.

“Our goal is to open by Spring 2015,” said Allarde in a telephone interview today. “We’re working with the city, the health department – everyone’s so excited.”

Above: Demolition by J&D Contracting, LLC has already begun inside the building.

The Allarde’s bought the restaurant, built in 1964, on December 16 for $300,000 from Ng Ping. The restaurant has two floors - the first floor is just over 4,500 square feet, and the top floor is a 528 square foot loft.

According to Thurston County property records, the market value of the restaurant has fluctuated: currently it has a market value of $504,200.  In 2011-21012, it peaked at $843,850.

Allarde admitted that it will be a lot of work to bring the restaurant up to date.

“It needs a lot of TLC - the whole building is not up to code – everything’s been grandfathered in for the last 30 years and held together with Band-Aids with no permits, so we’re going to take it to the basics and renovate it. We’re in no rush – we’re going to do it right.”

The Allarde’s have many years of experience of ‘doing it right.’ The Allarde’s own and operate three local adult family homes, Norflor Manor, two in Olympia, and one in Lacey.

Norma's husband, Florante, is a certified dietary manager, and currently cooks for the family homes. Coming to the United States in 1992, Florante learned to cook, and until recently, cooked for Panorama in Lacey.

“After opening the first one in 2004, I asked Florante to resign from his position as dietary manager at Panorama to help me run the home. We've worked together ever since, side by side for almost 10 years now.  He has supported me in my dream to have one adult family home and now it's turned into three homes. It's my turn to give him support in following his dream of becoming a restaurant owner,” Norma says.

A nurse for 24 years with an eight year military background, Norma Allarde says she and her husband met at Panorama when they both worked there.  Norma is proud of what she and her husband have accomplished so far.

"We're not political people. We work hard, live a quiet life and thank God for everything we have….Florante’s dream has always been to open a restaurant,” said Norma. “He’s just been looking for the right place. The South Pacific (location) felt right to him….I fully support him, just as he’s supported me in my business decisions all these years. It’ll be a lot of work, but he’s going into it with his eyes wide open. He’s excited – so very excited!”

“Our hope is to provide people with good affordable food in a place that provides good hospitality and makes people feel at home...just like back home in the Philippines.”

Above: Capitol Boulevard is a gateway from Tumwater to Olympia. Picture is taken from the corner of the restaurant's parking lot.

The Brewery District Planning Project

The Brewery District, located near the Deschutes River, includes the former Olympia Brewery and the triangle of roads formed by Custer Way, Cleveland Avenue, and Capitol Boulevard. The district extends north to the Sunset Life property and south to "E" Street.

Planning for the area is a priority of the City of Tumwater Strategic Plan. The former South Pacific Restaurant is located at the crossroads of this major gateway between Tumwater, Olympia, and I-5.

The Brewery District Planning Project involves the city of Tumwater, the Thurston Regional Planning Council, and public input to develop a vision and transformation of the area around the former brewery. Three community meetings held in 2013 have helped to gather input on how the area would be revitalized around the brewery, which closed in 2003.

In 2014, efforts will move toward plan adoption, along with more open houses and public hearings involving code and zoning amendments.

Upcoming Brewery District Events:

January 15, 2014, at 5:30 p.m.: Focus Group Meeting #8 (Fire Station on Israel Road)

January 28, 2014, at 5:30 p.m.: Joint Planning Council/City Council briefing on Brewery District Plan (Fire Station)

February 18, 2014, at 7 p.m.: Joint Planning/City Council hearing on Brewery District Plan (Open House at 5:30 p.m.)

For more information about the Brewery District, go to the Thurston Regional Planning Council, www.tcrp.org or contact Tim Smith, Planning Manager for the City of Tumwater, tsmith@ci.tumwater.wa.us, (360) 754-4212.

 

Above: The triangle of roads of Cleveland Avenue, Custer Way, and Capitol Boulevard as seen from the parking lot of Baskin and Robbins ice cream shop in Tumwater. The former brewery is in the distance, behind Florante's Restaurant and Sports Bar.