GILROY
– A controversial Gilroy furniture store due to close its doors
to the general public this week because of a city ruling apparently
won’t do so for at least two more weeks – and perhaps longer,
depending on how the City Council feels about a new proposal.
GILROY – A controversial Gilroy furniture store due to close its doors to the general public this week because of a city ruling apparently won’t do so for at least two more weeks – and perhaps longer, depending on how the City Council feels about a new proposal.
An attorney for 5-Day Furniture Warehouse asked the city Monday to alter its industrial zoning regulations in a way that would allow his client to apply for a use permit for the store at 500 E. Luchessa Ave. He also asked officials to delay a procedural action that would close the store’s retail operations until at least August so his request could be processed and considered.
The request – which drew mixed reactions from the City Council – may hinge on whether the company plans to pursue a second location in Gilroy. Instead of approving a months-long delay to hash out the zoning request, Council voted unanimously Monday to grant the store two weeks to return with more information on whether it’s pursuing a second site in Gilroy.
And to least one Councilmember, the rezoning proposal is apparently dead on arrival.
“What part of ‘wrong location’ don’t you understand?” Mayor Tom Springer asked store officials during the meeting.
5-Day’s request comes after the City Council unanimously rejected an appeal of city staff’s ruling that the new store is functioning primarily as a retail business in violation of city regulations and its business license. Under the city’s decision, the store would be able to open to the general public for just 12 days a year.
But while Councilmembers shot down the store’s appeal, several said there’s a place for the store in Gilroy, either through a new location or – as one Councilmember suggested – by redefining its existing one.
Monday, Baker proposed the city alter its regulations to allow retail displays and sales to cover 15 to 25 percent of building space in light industrial areas. That would allow the store to apply for a conditional permit for its operations, he said.
“We were encouraged that several Councilmembers expressed they want 5-Day to remain as an operating business in Gilroy,” Baker said.
5-Day co-owner Hai Tran has threatened in the past to sue the city if the store is shut down, and Baker’s proposal Monday also came with subtle legal threats.
“Voting to delay … the City Administrator’s decision rather than our requesting a court to stay the decision would also eliminate costly litigation expenses …” he wrote in a letter outlining the proposal.
Councilmembers had mixed reactions.
Councilman Peter Arellano made a motion – seconded by Councilman Charlie Morales – to grant a months-long extension that would allow officials to consider the zoning issues, saying there’s little harm in delaying the matter.
But others weren’t as comfortable.
Councilman Al Pinheiro said he’s heard that 5-Day Furniture is leasing another location, and wondered why the city should go through the trouble of considering a zoning change if 5-Day Furniture is considering a second store here. “If that retail space is going to be used, are we going to have two retail spaces for the same company?” he asked.
Tran – who was not present Monday – has said in the past that his company may end up supplying a new furniture store at 10th and Monterey streets – across the street from competitor Rosso’s Furniture – but it would be run by a friend.
Baker told the Council he wasn’t aware of an actual lease for another 5-Day retail space, but said it’s reasonable for a business that faces closure to explore several options.
“The question is, ‘Are we forcing them into that situation?’ ” Arellano said. “What if they have three locations in Gilroy? I don’t mind.” There’s no guarantee that 5-Day would get the zoning change or new permit, he said.
But Springer – who was uneasy about conflicting sales estimates quoted in the store’s business license application and presented during its appeal hearing – said he was “troubled” by Monday’s request.
“I’m becoming extremely convinced that 5-Day has not been honest with us from the beginning,” he said.
Springer also raised concerns about precedent, likening the store’s zoning request to a driver asking the state to raise the speed limit to 85 mph after he gets caught speeding by the Highway Patrol. He said he’d grant the two-week extension so that the store could find another location, but would not be willing to go beyond that.
But Morales said the store’s request isn’t that unusual.
“I don’t believe we are here to lecture any applicant … ” he said. “I’m not going to label them as liars.
“I think they’re trying to fit with our ordinances.”
Jaime Rosso, the owner of Rosso’s Furniture who has followed the proceedings closely, was not present Monday.
“If the city chooses to change its position and they go through the process, that’s a decision for the city to make,” he said in an interview. “My main objection is when (5-Day) just outright disobeys the rules and regulations we’re all expected to follow.”
He wondered when the city’s rules will actually be enforced.
“I understand due process, but we either play by the rules or we don’t,” he said. “If they don’t have to, then the question is why should we?”
