Tension at a downtown Palm Springs coffee shop is brewing over a letter from the city telling the owners to close early — a move prompted by a stabbing that took place outside the business last month.
Ignition Coffee Lounge owners Amy and Moussa Raei say that if they have to close at 11 p.m. each night, they will be forced to close the shop they've owned since November 2006. Typically, Ignition (123 N. Palm Canyon Drive) remains open until 2 a.m. on weekends.
“I don't believe it,” Moussa Raei said. “They want to make us shut down our business.”
About 50 percent of his income comes on weekend nights, he said, when young adults and teens come for open-mic nights, Bible study, the hookah bar, battle of the bands and to just hang out.
“Parents feel comfortable leaving their kids here,” Amy Raei, a former police dispatcher, said.
Permit only good until 11 p.m.
Palm Springs Director of Planning Services Craig Ewing shakes his head at this. He said he has nothing against the business and supports life in downtown.
But Ignition's Land Use Permit is only good until 11 p.m. each night, he said. That means they are allowed to remain open only until that time, he said.
Ewing said the details are fuzzy, but following a stabbing that took place around 2:30 a.m. Feb. 15 in front of the shop, it came to the city's attention that Ignition was operating past the time stated on its permit.
“They can't stay open based on their current approval,” Ewing said.
Amy Raei said she was told in November 2006 by Planning Department staff that it would be fine if she stayed open later on weekends. She laments she never got that in writing.
When Ewing told her she needed to close at 11 p.m., she appealed and asked to remain open until 4 a.m. Ewing said he sent the request to the Palm Springs Police Department for consideration and after learning about calls for service at the location, he denied the request.
The Raeis have appealed again — to stay open until 1:30 a.m. Ewing said that request is being forwarded to the Planning Commission because he feels there should be public discussion and input from the police department.
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“This is not a case of staff trying to stop business,” Ewing said. “This is about trying to protect downtown.”
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Calls for police action
Since November 2006, there have been about 50 calls for police service at 123 N. Palm Canyon Drive, according to records from the police department. Some are traffic and bicycle stops, others are for battery, public intoxication (Ignition does not serve alcohol) and patrol checks.
About a dozen of the calls came between the hours of 11 p.m. and 4 a.m. Those calls include patrol checks, a traffic stop and the attempted homicide on Feb. 15, which resulted in three of the approximately one dozen calls during that time period, records show.
Down the street, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf is open until 9 p.m. most nights and until 10:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday. Starbucks Coffee is open until 11 p.m. on Thursdays, 11:30 p.m. Saturdays and 10 p.m. the rest of the week.
In April 2007, two people were stabbed in front of Starbucks just before 10 p.m. during VillageFest, the weekly city-sponsored arts and crafts fair on Palm Canyon Drive.
So far, the Raeis have collected more than 1,000 signatures in support of staying open past 11 p.m. Lorraine Giliberto, who was in downtown on a recent weekday morning having her hair done, said she doesn't see what the big deal is.
“I would hate to see this all go away,” she said. “People need a place to go after a night out.”
stefanie.frith@thedesertsun.com.
Coffee shop owners not happy
