Aloha Passes Muster

The City of Goleta’s newly formed Planning Commission made its first official ruling on 6/12, allowing the old Aloha drive-up food stand on Storke Road to continue to operate. Neighbor Sandy Roberts’s attorney, Gordon Bell. argued that the restaurant’s closure for just over a year during refurbishment meant that its drive-up window could no longer be grandfathered in as a legal use. Instead, said Bell, owner John Price would have to re-apply under current zoning laws in order to operate a drive-through restaurant. Price’s attorney, Peter Brown, countered that his client never abandoned the business but had been busily seeking permits with every intention of continuing it. Planner Patricia Miller added that the staff worked with the owner to ensure that the improvements did not cross the threshold that would require new permitting. For example, the staff had nixed an outdoor speaker system, a drive-through lane defined by traffic barriers, and other accoutrements typically used for drive-throughs. Planner Eric Hansen even objected to use of the term “drive-through” to describe the Aloha, describing it as more of a “drive-up.” Several neighbors favored the expeditious completion of the improvements, calling the food stand in its present dilapidated state “an eyesore.” The stand first opened in 1966 as a Dairy Delight franchise. The Planning Commission unanimously approved the improvements.