Quail Canyon Inn has issues as owners attempt to rebuild bar
that burned in 2005
Gilroy – The Quail Canyon Inn has hit a snag in its attempt to rise from the ashes of a fire that burned the watering hole to the ground and devastated loyal patrons.
The Aug. 31, 2005 fire has been been deemed “suspicious” by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Prevention because the fire looks to have been purposely set.
But since the owners, Ray and Georgia Jeffers, have said they wanted to rebuild and land owner Tony Medeiros has applied for a pre-application, no movement has been made, Santa Clara County Planning Manager Bill Shoe said.
“We’re pursuing the avenues it will take to try to get the (Quail) built,” Medeiros said. “I know there’s a lot of people out there who want to see the thing built.”
The land that the Quail called home falls under the Williamson Act – a state law that provides tax credits to people who preserve agricultural land – and is an issue since a structure such as a bar would be considered illegal under Williamson rules. The Quail was built in the 1940s, but the land was not put under the Williamson Act until 1971, Shoe said.
Shoe said the fact that the property is under the act creates an interesting problem, but should not stop Medeiros from applying for a use permit.
“I don’t know what they’re doing,” Shoe said. “We’re aware there’s a lot of interest (from the public) but there hasn’t been any movement forward yet.”
Medeiros said his attorney is currently in negotiations with the county to try to sift through the issues that have arisen, however he would not go into further detail about the problems or status of the negotiations with the county.
Since the fire, longtime patrons of the Quail have expressed a sense of loss of their old stomping ground, saying it was a family-friendly joint, not a ruckus-filled biker bar. The watering hole has even given rise to a Web site dedicated to displaying old pictures and articles of the Quail and giving up-to-date news on the attempts to rebuild the bar.
“I’m pursuing this to the maximum,” Medeiros said.
