"Redondo has a vibrant village. Their downtown, their heartbeat is on fire." Hilary Condren, co-owner of Martha's, said that to What Now Los Angeles this spring while his team got ready to open a second location at 1810 S. Catalina Ave. The space was previously home to Gabi James, which closed in late April after eight years. He tied part of that energy to one specific decision. Redondo Beach chose to keep the outdoor dining it allowed restaurants during COVID, and that same month the City Council extended the Riviera Village dining deck program for five more years.
Martha's is now open for breakfast and lunch from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. and for dinner from 5 to 9 p.m. daily. A Hermosa Beach restaurant that opened in 1984 expanded south partly because of how Catalina Avenue uses its curb. That shows what the decks really are. They are a narrow, rented strip of public street. A merchant association looks after them, and they run on a clock.
Seven Decks, 47 Parking Spaces, and Hard Limits
The council adopted Resolution CC-2605-033 at its May 19, 2026 meeting. The permit is set up as a five-year continuation that ends May 19, 2031. The city's presentation mapped seven existing decks. Four are on S. Catalina Avenue, two are on Avenue I, and one is on S. Elena Avenue. Together they take up 47 public parking spaces.
The approval is generous with time and strict about size. Its revised first condition spells out the limits:
- No new dining decks.
- No larger deck footprints.
- No growth past the 47 on-street spaces the program already uses.
- Decks can be relocated or reconfigured, but only if the total stays at or under 47 spaces and the change goes through city review.
The city also kept the right to shrink the total deck area later and to modify, revoke, or rescind its right-of-way approvals. Each operator still needs its own approvals, insurance, and indemnity. Every deck also has to meet rules on accessibility, fire and life safety, emergency access, noise, operating hours, alcohol, and health.
So the outdoor tables along Catalina will stay through May 2031. The total number of them is effectively frozen.
Three Beach Cities, Three Answers to the Same Question
Every Beach City came out of the pandemic with the same choice about its street decks. Each one answered differently, and the differences show up in the price per square foot.
| City | What happened | Cost to restaurants |
|---|---|---|
| Redondo Beach, Riviera Village | Seven existing decks kept through May 19, 2031, capped at 47 parking spaces | $2 per square foot per month, in place since July 1, 2022 |
| Hermosa Beach | Permanent, fee-based program finalized June 13, 2023 | Phased in over three years, from $1 to $2.50 for most businesses up to $4 to $6 for late-closing Pier Plaza businesses that serve alcohol |
| Manhattan Beach | Temporary street decks ended February 28, 2023, with removal required by March 10 | Not applicable to street decks. New outdoor dining rules were adopted December 2, 2025 |
Manhattan Beach's program was bigger than Riviera Village's is now. When the council voted on January 17, 2023, 26 restaurants were using 57 public parking spaces. The city pointed to impacts on downtown residents, congestion, sanitation, and postponed street maintenance. Sidewalk dining and dining on private property continued. The outdoor dining rules Manhattan Beach adopted on December 2, 2025 apply outside the Coastal Zone. The city's program page says California Coastal Commission certification for the coastal portion is still pending.
Hermosa kept its decks and wrote detailed rules around them. Those include a 1,000-square-foot maximum per parcel and a 12:30 a.m. closing time for decks.
Redondo landed between the two. It kept fewer decks than Manhattan Beach once had, on a single flat rate, inside a fixed number of parking spaces. The city adopted that $2 monthly rate on June 21, 2022 and has not changed it. That puts it in the same range as Hermosa's middle tiers.
The Merchants Collect the Rent and Fix the Floors
The setup in Riviera Village that gets the least attention is who runs the decks day to day. The Riviera Village Business Improvement District collects the $2 fee and sends it to the city. The BID also pays for parklet maintenance and repairs. In practice, the Riviera Village Association board handles the decks the way a building manager handles shared space.
Its meeting minutes show what that looks like. At the October 21, 2025 meeting, the parklet report said Rockefeller had asked to have the white tops of its parklets repainted. It also noted minor wear and tear across the decks. The board then approved up to $5,000 for parklet repairs. By the March 17, 2026 meeting, the minutes reported that the painting was done, the cracks were repaired, and a hole in a deck floor near Rebel/Hennessey's had been fixed.
Because the number of decks is capped, newcomers have to negotiate for space. The same October 2025 report said Ugo, a gelato, coffee, and dessert café planning to open October 31, 2025, wanted a share of Hook & Plow's parklet. It also covered how the Association had approved a deck for Il Posto, the Italian restaurant, in front of Hook & Plow. With the 47-space cap now set into the five-year permit, deals like these are the only way a new café can get curbside seating. The street cannot add more.
Earlier Association minutes connect other Village names to parklets as well. In January 2022, during a discussion of a proposed parklet program revision, the board recommended invoicing Little Sister, Mi Burrito Junior, and Kalaveras to cover maintenance, cleaning, insurance, and pest control costs. In November 2022, the minutes reported that refurbishment of the Good Stuff parklet would start November 17. The city's 2026 map shows where the seven decks are. It does not list which restaurant holds each permit today. The best way to know whether a favorite spot still has its deck is to walk Catalina and Avenue I.
On Halloween, the Whole Block Becomes a Deck
For one evening this fall, the 47-space limit stops mattering. The Riviera Village Halloween Trick or Treat runs Saturday, October 31, from 3 to 8 p.m. Catalina Avenue will be closed to traffic from Avenue I to S. Elena Street. Shops hand out candy outdoors until 6 p.m. or until supplies run out. The street stays closed until 8 p.m., two hours after the candy ends. The Association's own event page suggests staying for dinner at a Village restaurant. That makes the 6-to-8 p.m. window a car-free dinner hour on the same blocks where the decks normally sit.
The Association lists these parking options for the night:
- The "triangle parking lot" between Avenida Del Norte and S. Elena Street, plus street parking throughout the Village.
- Cashless paid parking at Plaza Riviera, 1611 S. Catalina Ave., at the corner of Catalina and Avenue I. The Association suggests Apple Pay or Google Pay to get through faster.
- A paid lot at Mira Mar Park, 201 Paseo de la Playa, about two blocks away.
The Association promoted the trick-or-treat event heavily on social media last year. Its October 2025 minutes said paid Instagram and Facebook advertising was mainly promoting it.
The next big Catalina evening is the 2026 Riviera Village Holiday Stroll on Thursday, December 3, from 5 to 9 p.m., based at 1799 S. Catalina Ave. Before then, there's a newer name to check out for a quieter afternoon. Moonstone & Mist Bookshop announced a location inside BlendzUP Acai & Coffee Bar at 1913 S. Catalina Ave., with a grand opening planned for September 26. The bookshop has a make-your-own book wings workshop listed at that address for Sunday, October 11, from 4 to 6 p.m.
Five Years Is a Study Period
The 2026 vote did more than extend a pandemic measure. The previous temporary approval was set to expire July 1, 2026, and the May permit carried the program past that date. The city described the five-year term as time to study changes to sidewalks, pedestrian space, and parking in the Village. Staff described the decks as supporting business vitality and visitor-serving dining. Staff also acknowledged the 47 parking spaces they take up and chose to keep the current layout without adding new parking impacts.
The coastal findings noted that the program continues an existing use in an already developed commercial district. They also found that it supports the pedestrian-oriented character of Riviera Village. The resolution does not set an early removal date. It does let the city order corrections, removal, suspension, or revocation if there are violations or legal or safety concerns.
So for now, the tables on Catalina, Avenue I, and S. Elena have a fixed number of spaces, a $2 monthly rate per square foot, a merchant group paying for upkeep, and an expiration date of May 19, 2031. Whatever the city decides about sidewalks and parking in the Village will need a new decision before then.
Riviera Village is one of our favorite places for a weekday breakfast or a Saturday-night dinner. We pay close attention to changes like this because they shape what our neighbors' blocks look and feel like. If you have questions about how the Village's streets and storefronts are changing, or you'd like to talk over coffee on one of those decks, Deborah Naumovski and the DnG team would love to hear from you. Let's Connect.
