Polly’s to move to Boardwalk
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Beloved restaurant Polly’s on the Pier will move to the International Boardwalk to accommodate for the closure and eventual reconstruction of the deteriorating Sportfishing Pier. File photo
Polly’s on the Pier will be moving from its nest on King Harbor’s Sportfishing Pier to a new location on the International Boardwalk, following agreements approved by the Redondo Beach City Council on Tuesday.
The Council unanimously approved the City’s $80,000 business purchase agreement of the Corner Pub, a restaurant at 160 International Boardwalk, then subsequently agreed to lease the space to Polly’s. The approvals established a future for the locally-beloved restaurant after months of uncertainty raised by a deteriorating Sportfishing Pier.
“You’ve all individually encouraged us and the city staff couldn’t have been nicer,” said JoAnn Turk, an owner of Polly’s on the Pier. “It’ll be different for us. We hope we can live up to your expectations.”
On August 1, the City Council learned that the Sportfishing Pier, built in the 1960s, was in “serious condition” due to severely damaged timber support piles and lateral braces. The council then voted to rebuild the pier as a modern, concrete structure. Staff was also directed to find new homes for the pier’s tenants, Redondo Sportfishing and Polly’s.
According to Harbor and Economic Development Director Stephen Proud, the city learned that the owner of the Corner Pub, located between Naja’s Place and the Paddle House along the International Boardwalk, was interested in selling the business.
After learning that Polly’s was willing to relocate to the new location, the City moved forward on purchasing the Corner Pub as a whole, including furniture, fixtures, and equipment.
Polly’s will pay a minimum monthly rent of $2,250 a month, though its existing percentage rent, eight percent of gross sales, will remain in place. The City is waiving the first two months of Polly’s rent, as well, to ease the transition into the new space.
The space is approximately 1,000 square feet, slightly larger than Polly’s current location, though it lacks outdoor seating. However, as Councilman Nils Nehrenheim indicated, there are preliminary talks to place take-out seating on the pedestrian deck above the International Boardwalk.
The City plans to close the Sportfishing Pier in December, prior to the winter storm season. Staff plans to begin the outreach for the new pier design in early 2018.
“People tell us there’s no other place like [the Sportfishing Pier]. You could go to the big pier, but it’s not quite the same,” Turk said. “Our intent is to get Polly’s back onto the new pier; that’s our goal.”
In the meantime, Polly’s is going to attempt to open as soon as possible, so as to ensure that employees will continue to get paid and to keep customers abreast of the coming location change.
“I think [the City] recognized what a unique place Polly’s is,” Turk said. “When the people of Redondo get a hold of something they love, they want to keep it.”