Proposed changes for Woody’s Wharf could end restaurant’s legal dispute with Newport Beach

The roughly two-year legal dispute between Woody’s Wharf and the city of Newport Beach could be coming to an end.

On Tuesday night, the City Council is expected to consider changes to the Balboa Peninsula restaurant’s conditional use permit that would allow it to open a half-hour earlier each day and enable patrons to use the adjacent boat dock ramp to drink, eat and smoke until 8 p.m., which was previously not permitted.

Also among the suggested changes: On Thursday nights and up to 12 additional nights per year, dancing would be allowed inside the restaurant and the closing time of the outdoor dining area would be extended from 11 p.m. to 2 a.m.

Woody’s currently is allowed to have dancing inside the restaurant on Fridays and Saturdays and use the patio until 2 a.m. on those nights. The council’s decision on the permit would not affect that.

Woody’s also would be able to remove the outdoor patio covering that the city required to help control noise from people congregating on the water side of the restaurant.

“It’s a good thing for both Woody’s and the city to settle this thing,” said Mark Serventi, one of the restaurant’s owners. “We’re not asking for more than has been granted to neighboring businesses.”

Woody’s Wharf and the city went to court in 2013 after the council — which included four members who are no longer on the panel — denied permits for the restaurant to offer dancing and extended patio hours.

In September that year, the city Planning Commission approved extending the hours and issued a permit for dancing. However, the City Council overturned that decision a month later on appeal by then-Councilman Mike Henn.

Woody’s Wharf sought to overturn the council action in Orange County Superior Court but was denied by Judge Derek Hunt in May 2014.

Woody’s attorney, Roger Diamond, appealed Hunt’s decision, and in January, a three-judge panel of California’s 4th District Court of Appeal reversed the ruling, allowing patrons to dance at the restaurant.

The appeals panel determined that the council had violated city code by allowing Henn to appeal the Planning Commission decision without paying a filing fee or submitting an appeal form.

According to the code, an “interested party” could appeal to the City Council a decision of a subordinate commission. However, it didn’t specify that a council member was considered an “interested party” or did not have to pay the filing fee, according to court documents.

The council initially voted in March to petition the state Supreme Court to review the appeals court decision, but a week later, it withdrew the request for unspecified reasons.

Serventi said shortly afterward that city leaders had approached him about a settlement of a second lawsuit the business had filed against Newport Beach, alleging infringement of the owners’ rights.

Mayor Ed Selich and Mayor Pro Tem Diane Dixon made Serventi an offer, and after two meetings, the group reached an agreement, Serventi said. The potential changes to the restaurant’s use permit are part of the agreement, Serventi said.

The City Council is expected to vote on the possible settlement during a closed session Tuesday night. Serventi declined to discuss any money Woody’s may receive from the city if the council approves the agreement.

Newport Beach has spent about $110,000 on the Woody’s case since 2013, according to city officials.

The council is scheduled to hold a public hearing on the proposed permit changes during its regular meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 100 Civic Center Drive.