ZPizza on Santa Monica Boulevard got the green light Tuesday night from the West Hollywood Business License Commission to stay open until 4:00 a.m. seven days a week, for now the plan is to stay open until 3a Sat-Sun only for a test run. For owner David Fanarof, getting the security guard requirement waived was just as big a win.
The vote was unanimous to approve the application filed by Fanarof, owner of the ZPizza, which has been a staple of the Rainbow District for a generation – 27 years to be exact. The business currently runs from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. daily, but as Fanarof told WEHOonline, “the day business has really been diminished and the only thing left is the night – the later business.”
The item had been continued from a February 3 hearing to allow Commissioners to consider extending hours beyond the Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays that Staff had recommended. Tuesday night they went further, approving 4:00 a.m. daily and waiving the security guard requirement entirely. Fanarof told WEHOonline, “the process of application to approval took about a month or so but I had been thinking of this for 15 years.”
The Case for the Waiver
Fanarof made his case directly. ZPizza isn’t a nightclub. On a typical late night shift, the place runs with one or two cooks and a cashier — two to four employees total. A guard card, he argued, is a regulated security license requiring training in powers of arrest, use of force, and terrorism awareness. “None of that really applies to a six seat restaurant with a little teeny tiny patio,” he told Commissioners.
He also raised the insurance issue. His premiums increased 103% this year with zero claims, solely because of broader market conditions and wildfire impacts. Adding a security designation to any employee would push costs even further.
The business has been in West Hollywood for 27 years with a clean late-night record. Staff reported seven calls for service over the past year, most originating outside the business rather than inside. The one incident that may have occurred inside — someone pushing over a glass display — was handled via police report the following day.
The Precedent Question
Commissioner Colin Labran-Boyd raised the precedent concern. Greenwich Village Pizzeria next door carries a security guard requirement, and the Commission had a lengthy discussion about McDonald’s security requirements not long ago. Waiving the requirement for ZPizza, he noted, could invite similar requests. Commissioner Joshua Christian pushed back, saying ZPizza is materially distinguishable because of its size. “How much contribution does a security guard really make when the establishment is a size where you can almost stretch your arms out?” he said.
Commissioner Elyse Eisenberg made the motion, approving 4:00 a.m. seven days a week with the security requirement waived. She underscored a point that carried weight with the full Commission — ZPizza has been in business and in good standing with the City for 27 years. “There aren’t that many food businesses that have been around that long,” Eisenberg said. “I think that’s a testament to his business.”
Leonard Lanzi, president of the West Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, spoke in support. “Running a small business today is very, very difficult,” he said. “The constraints that we’ve put on businesses make it even more difficult.”
One written public comment in opposition came from Ken Goldman, owner of a four-unit apartment building on Keith Avenue, a short block away. Goldman objected to the 4:00 a.m. extension and asked that the business not be allowed live or loud music after 11:00 p.m.
The vote was unanimous in support of. Alcohol service remains prohibited after 2:00 a.m. as required by State law.
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Go home people!
All the bars will now follow. Also hoping they crack down on the street vendors….have heard they are also serving alcohol illegally?
The surrounding neighborhood keeps getting f*cked.
The illegal street vendors will steal all of their business anyway.
Honestly, this feels like a practical decision – a small, long-standing spot like ZPizza staying open later isn’t the same as adding another late-night club. As long as they keep their clean track record and respect the neighborhood, the 4 a.m. hours could be a win for late-night food lovers.
Great, now there’s a late-night place for all the nightly immigrants from the provinces to hang out for two more hours as they pollute our once-fair hamlet with the bad behavior. When will the city bureaucracy prioritize quality of life for the people who actually live here?
Yup. So true. The city won’t be happy until everything is open until 4am…cause you know only good things happen at that hour. And we have everything under control now. lol. They’ll keep pushing for bars to stay open until 4am…which I’m sure at some point will finally get pushed through. Residents be damned. Quality of life down the drain.