Residents Make Voices Heard in Opposition to Settlement With Billiard Hall

In correspondence to the City Council, local residents said they disagreed with the City’s decision to settle with a local billiard hall.

The lawsuit arose over the billiard hall’s nonconforming status. Per the settlement, Jerry’s Billiards would be open from 11 to 12:15 a.m. and until 1 a.m. on the weekend.

The correspondence came ahead of Monday’s City Council meeting. At that meeting the City Council decided to  hold another closed session to discuss the settlement agreement which would allow Crown City Billiards & Lounge, LLC, (Crown City), formerly Jerry’s Billiards, to resume operating beyond 10 p.m. 

The City Council approved a settlement agreement with Crown City “to avoid expenditure of public resources on further litigation” in last week’s meeting.

The City Council received about a dozen letters. 

“The larger legal issue is at what point does the fundamental vested rights of a single business owner—which might include an exception to submitting a Conditional Use Permit if the use were nonconforming, as the petitioner claims–supersede the right of citizens to participate in governmental decision-making for its health, safety, and welfare?” wrote Julianna Delgado, past president of Bungalow Heaven Neighborhood Association.

The City Council unanimously upheld the earlier Board of Zoning Appeals’ decision to limit the hours of operation of a long-time local billiards hall, requiring it to close at 10 p.m.. 

In September 2022, the City’s Zoning Administrator determined that Crown City Billiards & Lounge, formerly and popularly known as Jerry’s Family Billiards, should operate between 7 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. as required by the Zoning Code Section 17.40.070 which states that commercial uses on a site located within 150 feet of a residential zoning district may only operate between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m.

“What a disappointment the City Council is about to rule in favor of ignoring the passionate testimony and pleas of its own citizens kept awake by noise and other erratic behavior and of also ignoring two failed appeals by a pool hall owner from El Monte to stay open past midnight destroying the peace and quiet of the neighborhood while lowering the value of all adjacent properties,” wrote Neil Larson. “Intead the City Council is leaning toward allowing this pool hall to stay open as late as 1 a.m. in the morning despite all arguments against it because, as the result of a lawsuit from Jerry’s Billiards, ‘the Council agreed to avoid expenditure of public resources on further litigation.’”

The Zoning Administrator’s determination was initiated after the City’s Code Compliance Division issuance of a citation in April 2022, indicating that the business was operating beyond 10 p.m., in violation of the Zoning Code. 

A Conditional Use Permit, known as a CUP, is needed in order for the establishment to operate beyond 10 p.m.

This offers little to no assurances that disturbances will be prevented and only offers protection to Jerry’s in that they ‘may refuse to allow and serve customers who violate the policy’ what is left out of this portion of the settlement is what responsibility Jerry’s has in assuring their customers will not cause disturbances,” said Lindsay McFarlane. 

If the original settlement holds, management will be required to post policy on the backdoor prohibiting customers from loitering, causing disturbances or making loud noises in the parking lot after 10 p.m.

Management is also required to keep the back door locked and not allow customers to congregate after 10 p.m.

Neighbors complained about the loitering and noise concerns at the business. 

The City Council was scheduled to receive a status report on the settlement at Monday’s meeting. 

Also known as Crown City Billiards & Lounge, Jerry’s Billiards  has been operating since January 1985.