Christy Food Service, a Ruby’s Diner franchisee, has withdrawn the only proposal submitted so far to provide a new restaurant on the Seal Beach Pier.
The plan would have returned a Ruby’s Diner to the space that was vacated by Ruby’s corporate earlier this year.
The announcement that the proposal was being withdrawn came in the form of an advertisement on page 16 of the Thursday, March 7, print edition of the Sun Newspaper.
However, neither the city nor the manager of the property at the end of the pier has been officially notified.
“I have checked with the city and Ruby’s has not informed the city or the property manager handling the lease that they wish to withdraw their proposal. We look forward to reviewing their proposal when the bids are closed,” said Councilwoman Ellery Deaton in a Monday, March 11 e-mail to the Sun.
Deaton represents District One, which includes the pier.
Jim Basham, Seal Beach director of Community Development, only learned of the ad when he was asked to comment.
“They didn’t notify the city, but they don’t have to,” Basham said in a Thursday, March 7 interview.
Basham said Ruby’s has the right to withdraw the proposal.
According to the ad, the franchisee withdrew the proposal to bring a Ruby’s Diner back to the Seal Beach Pier because the city had extended the deadline for submitting proposals.
“Our franchisee, Christy Food Service, had submitted a comprehensive proposal to re-open a Ruby’s Diner at the Seal Beach Pier,” said the ad.
“Their proposal was the only submittal. The city decided to extend the deadline for the RFP (request for proposals) on the actual due date for submittals,” the ad said.
Basham said the reference to the “actual date” made no sense to him. “I don’t know what they are referring to,” Basham said.
The original deadline for submitting proposals to replace Ruby’s Diner, which closed in January, with another family-friendly restaurant, was Friday, Feb. 22. Seal Beach only received one. Basham had said prior to that date that the city wanted to receive at least five proposals and would extend the deadline if necessary. The deadline has been extended to 4:30 p.m., Friday, April 12.
Basham said Seal Beach extended the deadline for submitting proposals because the city had received calls from other vendors requesting an extension.
However, according to the advertisement, the extension will prevent a restaurant from opening on the pier before summer.
“Our franchisee’s proposal was submitted on time, offered competitive rents, and provided the improvements needed on the pier,” the ad said.
Ruby’s corporate and city officials have disagreed about whether the Seal Beach Ruby’s Diner that closed earlier this year had in fact made an estimated $400,000 in required improvements to the site.
“Because this delay will make it unlikely for anyone to open the restaurant in time for the summer season, Christy Food Service sadly is forced to rescind their proposal. They will revisit their projections and proposal and hope to resubmit,” the ad said.
The head of the Ruby’s chain cited Seal Beach’s plans to request proposals for the site as the reason for the decision to leave the pier in the Dec. 10, 2012 letter canceling the rental agreement with the city.
“We understand that the city has decided to put the lease for the Seal Beach Pier out for RFP (requests for proposals,” wrote Dough Cavanaugh, chairman and CEO of the Ruby Restaurant Group, in the letter ending the relationship between Seal Beach and Ruby’s.
“At this point due to the RFP process, it appears that there may not be a desire to continue with a Ruby’s on the pier,” Cavanaugh wrote.
