i don't know if that will lead to anything. anyway, i will make that motion. >> it would have to be january 19th. >> the public hearing will remain closed. >> and lester is new material introduced, we will keep this closed. >> this opens the public hearing. >> on the motion for continuance to january 26th.

>> this item is continue to january 26th. the public hearing is closed. >> sorry. >> commissioners, you are now on item -- we need a 10-minute recess. >> the commission is taking a 10-minute recess.

>> good afternoon, president and the rest of the planning commission. this item before you is a request for discretionary review to change the use of an existing small service restaurant to a full-service restaurant. the restaurant space was approximately 950 square feet in floor area. that is approximately a 49- person service area. they want to convert from a self service type of restaurant to a full-service type of restaurant. the restaurant specializes in eastern european cuisine, they can serve beer and wine and has been in operation since 2009. the current hours of operation are until 10:00 p.m. thursday

through wednesday. the discretionary review was filed by tang and the residents directly to the east and west. there is a concern that bistro gambrinus is a high-volume sports bar. high volume of traffic constantly box the driveway of neighbors. during late night, patrons at constantly smoking on the sidewalk. they encourage smokers el loiterers to congregate on the sidewalk. the proposal to turn the hours of operations to reduce noise and night and to change the signs to keep patrons indoors. the project sponsors are represented by victor marquez,

and they will provide a response. under the sun in code, the full- service restaurant is on the first floor. this establishment is operating within the permit hours of operation. although the eating and drinking establishment has a service area, the bar area is considered a full-service restaurant. it serves beer and/or wine.from the department of a alcoholic beverage control -- the planning department recommends that the planning commission and take discretionary review. this concludes our presentation. we will be happy to answer any questions. >> thank you.

d.r. requestors. >> good afternoon, commissioners. i live at 1831 fall in the street immediately adjacent to bistro gambrinus. it is not a self-service restaurant or a full-service restaurant. it is a sports bar that draws people from throughout the bay area. it lets patrons lose on to our neighborhood after they become drunk and unruly. the evidence proves this point. the name gambrinos is the patron saint of beer and beer making. 1.3 pages of different types of

beer. only two-thirds of a page of food. the patrons are frequently drunk. may i have the overhead, please? on august 26, my neighbor and i were attacked by patrons of gambrinos. i am convinced that the attacks were coordinated by the owner to take our cameras, with which we were photographing numerous violations. we were a photograph ingot drunk people assembling on the sidewalks after 10:00 p.m. the police was called. the employees told police that they can be opened 24 hours a day. the decor is that of a sports

bar. since these pictures were taken, they have added another big screen tv, making it clear, its intent to continue being a sports bar. boys level and patronage on game nights are extremely high. it is a nuisance to the neighborhood. with regards to petitions, natalia and i submit the letter signed by 47 residents within the area. these are the same neighbors that were notified for this hearing. they are true neighbors. if i offered beers to signatories, i would easily have 1000 signatures or if i included family and friends.

only five signatures of people in the same area. 1 of the 5 signed twice. another person in this room has interest in gambrinos. there are no more than three signatures from our neighbors. the rest are from all over the bay area. this supports our claim that bistro gambrinus is a high- volume sports bar drawing undesirables from all over. it has become a nuisance and a threat to the neighborhood. prior to sergei buying reestablishment it was a coffee shop that occasionally served a glass of wine or a bowl of soup. since last fall, bistro

gambrinus extended its hours of operation under questionable circumstances without notifying neighbors. it is creating a nuisance and making the neighborhood on saved. blocked driveways, and graffiti, and people urinating in public are frequent. we request that the commission do not grant the petition to change to a full-service restaurant. gambrino's is not a full-service restaurant, it is a sports bar. at least require the establishment to close earlier to modify its architecture, to keep its patrons from flowing out to the sidewalk and to make the building soundproof. thank you for your consideration. >> speakers in support of the d.r. requestor.

>> can you speak into the microphone? >> good afternoon, commissioners. my name is natalia. it is right next door to bistro gambrinus. i lived here 12 years. i lived there with my daughter. ever since bistro gambrinus opened its doors, my apartment has become practically unliva ble. it is extremely loud and the neighborhood has become unsafe. my daughter is a graduate student. she could not stand the loud

yelling and screaming. that is the reason why i move my daughter out. our neighborhood has become very unsafe. on august 26 that i was badly beaten by customers of the bar. it happened after midnight. when they were outside on the streets and i was trying to take pictures, i was attacked by gambrinus customers. i know who was behind this, the owner. they attacked us. they beat us. they wanted to destroy evidence of what was going on in this

area. i am very sorry. because of my work schedule, i have to do my laundry at night. it was very convenient to me. i frequently seek customers drunk and smoking. one time i saw the drunk couple having sex. drug customers that were smoking in front of the laundromat were blocking my way and were making jokes about me in russian. i could not understand what they were saying. they harassed me by yelling at me not to report this to the police. another day, i walked around the neighborhood. sergei followed me taking

pictures with his camera. a large number of our neighbors -- >> thank you, ma'am. are there any additional speakers in support of the d.r. request third? seeing none, a project sponsore? >> victor on behalf of bistro gambrinus. the permits seeks to change from a small service restaurant to a full-service restaurant of the eastern european cuisine and beer and wine. there is something i across the

street from my place that is not that different. i enjoy a nice meal. it is very appropriate that this is coming after the mirkarimi legislation earlier today. it is in line with that type of small, international cuisine. it was smart -- started by a young immigrant couple from eastern europe. i have been there a number of times. it is clean, well lit, entered generational in terms of clientele. i have seen families, i have seen students, i have seen a diversity amount of people. this is not a motley crew. this is an intergenerational family pressure not that happens to serve beer and wine to go along with meals. there is no hard liquor being

served. the owners do not have any intent of pursuing a full liquor license. the d.r. applicants make representations as sympathetic as i am to some of the allegations they are making, it is not within the purview of these allegations. we disagree with those allegations. i will address a couple of those in response to the allegations. you look at the photo that was submitted. it was someone saying, please do not take a photo of me. it showed the individual taking the photographs being the aggressor, not the individuals being the aggressors. i did it asked my client to take photos of the area. as he was taking photos, one of

the neighbors did come out. he thought that maybe he was pursuing her. he was following my instruction to take photographs. it is a 950-square-foot establishment. there is nowhere to grow. the only sign that is there on the premises within the square footage of the restaurant. they are adding to the safety of the neighborhood. this is a very diverse intersection. and has a liquor store, and has a bus stop, folks congregate there. there are a lot of delivery trucks that go in and out of the liquor store. my clients have tailored their delivery to one day a week for about 15-20 minutes.

i am going to pause. they have limited their delivery hours to accommodate the neighbors. neighbors from the hague wandered down. it is a very busy intersection. that being said, ever since the allegations of this incident, they have installed two cameras. they have a security person in the evening. it during the night hours, somebody is designated to take security. they have literally hundreds of supporters. you are going to hear from the neighbor that lives in the same building. you also have over 125 letters

of support, both from the local neighborhood as well as from patrons around the city. it is a destination because it serves a unique menu. a contributing member of our business community that provide seven full-time jobs. it is an immigrant business that has been very successful. we are happy with the staff recommendation of the conditions that are being proposed. they are normal for any other restaurant. we appreciate your support and for the d.r. application to be denied. >> we have several speaker cards. we would ask if people would rather stand up to support the project sponsor, that is acceptable. >> i wanted to ask, we do have a

lot of speakers. i wanted to ask if the speakers could stand up so that you could have all of the supporters of the restaurant. if you could try to limit your comments to one minute. i know you have more than one minute, but try to be brief. >> at this point, i will say that anyone who would like to make a public comment can start coming up to the mic at this time. >> good afternoon, commissioners. i am a patron. mark. and i know the owners. they started this business in 2009 at the depth of the recession when businesses and restaurants were going out of

business all over town. they put their hearts and souls into this business. the neighbor who has bought the building next door in new that he was buying next to a restaurant. knew full well. and probably was able to buy at a lesser price, knowing it was next to a restaurant as opposed to next to a house. now that he has his discount, he has cause significant hardship on ready to not only the patrons and the owners, but to the city. i would like you to confirm that he has filed three complaints to the health department, one to the fire department, five complaints to the abc, 3 to the planning commission, and three or four to the police. every single complaint has been unfounded and abated. it is a sham.

it is a sham on the city, spending your resources for unsubstantiated claims. then he goes on and talks about people urinating in front and throwing up in front. if you are in a restaurant and you have to use a restroom, are you going to go out front and pee or use the restroom? if you have to throw up, where you go outside or will you use the restroom? it is a sham. they are shamming you. he is causing more harm by going on and talking about this -- do not let a few disgruntled neighbors cause unnecessary hardship and pain to the owners

and patrons and the city of san francisco. i will say this, those people generate revenue for the people of san francisco. the neighbor is not. he wants to put them out of business. they operate on a shoestring budget and this might break them. >> are there any additional speakers in support of the project sponsored? >> good afternoon, commissioners. my name is jack. i am a friend of the owners. i know them to be very hard- working, well-respected, and contributing members of the community. i also have a small business. i frequently eat out. bistro gambrinus is one of the restaurants i like to go to. i go with a friend of mine that

is 88 years old. it is operating as a full- service restaurant. i also a frequent eastern european food restaurants that primarily serve beer. i believe that most of the comments thta the d.r. people are making are not something that i have experienced at bambrinus. i do not live directly in the neighborhood. i live on knob hill and travel because that is where i like to eat. i believe the restaurant and the owners are run a very well- respected business.

>> good afternoon, commissioners. i live at 1833 fulton street. i have lived there for about three years. i know everything about the bistro gambrinus restaurant. there is no negligence regarding this restaurant, regarding drunken patrons and peeing or whatever you want to call it on that street. there are a lot of college students and homeless people around the neighborhood. you cannot combine the community over the restaurant's saying it is the restaurant's fault for what is going on on the streets. safety and health-wise, it is a very safe environment.

i was there on august 26. if the issue is going to continue, i saw what happened. it had nothing to do with the restaurant. >> i am charles. my wife and i, we are some of the neighbors that do not live in the area. we go there to eat. the food is absolutely outstanding. i recommend it to all of you. it is a neighborhood type of restaurant. i have never seen any -- we go there quite frequently, at least twice a month. i have never seen any of the activity described by the individuals that are complaining about this restaurant. it is a fine facility.

it is a wonderful american example of a couple coming and building an american dream. i am very proud of them for doing best. the food is outstanding. thank you. >> hello. i have been to the restaurant quite a fewi times. am not a beer drinker, but i drink beer every once in awhile. they have good beer there. i go there for the football game. the food is good. very gracious hosts. good service. i have never noticed any things mentioned by the other people. i admire the owners.

they came to this country and they work very hard and they do a good job at this. they are lucky to have a restaurant like this. it proves that you can come to this country and make it a success if you work as hard as they do. >> i am brian. i live right across the street. i did not know there was a petition. i did not sign it. i did want to come and voice my support. bistro gambrinus is one of the things i really like about my neighborhood. i have never seen anything on the street. it has got great food and great beer. i can see by the people here

supporting it, it brings together all kinds of people. it is a unique place in the city. urination and vomiting, i have not seen any of those things in front. i walk by all the time. my apartment is 100 yards away. that is all that i have to say. thank you. >> good afternoon. i live right around the corner. i have lived there for 26 years. i have seen that neighborhood to go from a frightening place.

since i have moved here, the neighborhood has just gotten better. the people that own this are fantastic. the ethnic diversity of the merchants in the neighborhood is evident. they just opened a french restaurant on my corner. it is a wonderful neighborhood. it has long been a wonderful their bread. i have not seen any of the things that have been alleged. i have never seen it too crowded. i have not seen anybody drunk. the people i know that go there regularly note not to have people to close to the door. it is a busy intersection. it is a great neighborhood. these people are