City Commission OKs Cantina Diablo's Second Floor Plan, Approves 3 Police Hires

The Royal Oak City Commission took three hours to work through a long agenda at Monday night’s regular meeting at .

Madrid Hotel, Travelodge get more time

Commissioners heard from the owners of the  (doing business as Sagamore Motor Lodge) during scheduled hearings for each. , have unpaid water bills and were facing their licenses being suspended or revoked.

Sam Pallis, owner of the Madrid Hotel, told commissioners the Madrid Hotel is taking on investors and that “paperwork is being drawn up as we speak.”

“By the first of the month we should have everything taken care of,” Pallis said. “The city will have their money. The county will have their money. The building will remain in our possession and hopefully we will be able to continue to conduct business.”

Commissioners voted to hold overthe item until April 16 to give the Pallis family time to finish the deal and pay the taxes owed.

Similarly, Elmer Roller, an attorney representing the , indicated to commissioners the owner entered into a purchase agreement last Friday for the sale of the motel. “The condition of the sale is that all the taxes will be paid in full,” Roller said. “The prospective purchaser has 90 days to do due diligence.”

Roller indicated the purchaser might develop the property, rather than continue to operate the motel.

The City Commission voted to give the Travelodge a continuance of 90 days to close its deal.

Cantina Diablo's to open rooftop soon

Commissioners approved new hours of operation as well as new floor plans for .

In addition, the City Commission went against the and approved full operation of the second floor, including music in the enclosed area. The restaurant was given a six-month review period, at which time the police chief has the discretion to pull the plug on the sound if it becomes a nuisance. 

Owners Kevin Downey and Brian Kramer expect to open the rooftop deck in three weeks.

Sidewalk café ordinance repealed

After City Manager Don Johnson recommended revisions to the sidewalk café ordinance, which was established in 2010 and is limited to the Central Business District, Mayor Jim Ellison suggested the ordinance be dropped and replaced with a sidewalk café policy.

Current problems with the ordinance include issues with the minimum clearance of five feet between all obstructions and the proposed café railing.

“As a City Commission you can make an exception to a policy at any time,” Johnson said. “You can’t make an exception to an ordinance.”

Commissioners voted unanimously to repeal the ordinance to give the city more flexibility in dealing with unique situations.

Additionally, Johnson told commissioners the nice weather has prompted some to ask “Why can't we start the sidewalk cafés early?”

The city manager said he wouldn’t recommend changing the dates of operation. “There is still no guarantee that we won’t see snow before April 15,” Johnson said. “We did see snow in March and April last year.”

Sidewalks must be clear of railings and furniture if snow removal is necessary.

3 new police officers OK'd

Commissioners approved hiring three new police officers after the police chief explained two officers intend to retire in October and it’s likely another eight more will retire by July 2013.

“This is an issue that needs to be addressed,” Police Chief Corrigan O’Donohue said. “This is a crisis.”

O’Donohue said his department couldn’t wait until the officers actually leave to work on replacements. “We need to have officers in the pipeline,” he said.