OUTDOOR GRILLING AT RESTAURANTS IN GLENDALE A HOT TOPIC
By Eugene Tong, Staff Writer

Los Angeles Daily News
Article Last Updated: 09/18/2006 10:47:47 PM PDT

GLENDALE – The City Council could be sitting on hot coals tonight as
it holds a hearing on a proposed ordinance to allow outdoor grilling
at local restaurants.

Current laws require all commercial cooking to be done indoors.

But the prohibition has proved too restrictive for some
businesses, especially operators of local banquet halls that cater
to Armenian-Americans and use outdoor grills to prepare meals for
large parties.

Add residents who are leery of more smoke if commercial cookouts
are legalized, and the council could be ripe for a skewering from
all sides.

For Councilman Rafi Manoukian, it’s a chance to resolve the issue
by balancing the needs of local businesses with residents’ quality
of life.

"The ordinance is not anything new," Manoukian said Monday, noting
that it’s a chance for businesses to abide by regulations of the
South Coast Air Quality Management District.

The proposed ordinance requires grill operators to register with the
agency. Also, businesses with grills larger than 10 square feet and
used within 200 feet of homes need to apply for a conditional-use
permit.

Planners also recommend allowing grills to operate from 10 a.m. to 11
p.m. if they are more than 200 feet from homes, with extended hours
for weekends as requested by the banquet hall owners association.

The group could not be reached for comment Monday. But Glendale
resident Margaret Hammond, who has been critical of noise and smoke
from such halls, said she believes that the council is legalizing
grilling at homeowners’ expense.

"Why should the law be broken just to suit a few people’s tastes?" she
said.

Grilling and barbecue – "khorovats" in Armenian – has been an
established part of the culture for centuries, said Irina Petrosian,
co-author of a book on Armenian cooking.

"It’s a part of joy," she said. "They go out and talk, and the
way they fan the grill – all that is part of a ritual. It’s also
nostalgia. … It’s the taste of home."