The Manhattan Beach City Council has named 15 members to its Outdoor Dining Ad Hoc Task Force, charged with finding new solutions for outdoor dining.

The task force is comprised of community members and residents who will study and make recommendations to the City Council for a long-term outdoor dining and business use program for the city of Manhattan Beach.

“Manhattan Beach is a small beach town, and of course we all love enjoying the outdoors. We are home to some of the best restaurants and businesses in Southern California, and as a city we want to continue enjoying the beautiful outdoor space while still keeping our small town family feel,” said Mayor Richard Montgomery in a statement. “This task force will help us see what our community needs are and organically grow a program that is unique to us. I look forward to seeing their recommendations.”

The members - and alternates, where applicable - are: 

1. Planning Commissioner: Joseph Ungoco (Alternate: Kristin Sistos)

2. PPIC: Bob DaGiau (Alternate: Stephen D'Amico)

3. Chamber of Commerce: David Archer

4: Chamber of Commerce: Maureen McBride

5: Downtown (DBPA): Jill Lamkin

6: Downtown (resident): Jim Burton (Alternate: Carol Perrin)

7. North MB (BID): Mike Simms

8: North MB (resident): Kimberlee Kelly (Alternate: Michael Cohen)

9. Commercial (MVSC): Don Ziss (Alternate: Sher Willis)

10: Commercial (Non-MVSC): Harry Ashikian (Alternate: Peter Kim)

11. At-Large (resident): Paul Mullin (Alternate: Brenda O'Leary)

12. At-Large (resident): Bridgette Goodman (Alternate: Loretta Raftery)

13. At-Large (resident or business): Faith Lyons (Alternate: Rachel Vandenberg)

14. At-Large (resident or business): Peir Serota (Alternate: Gerry Morton)

15. At-Large (resident or business): Audrey Judson (Alternate: George Wright)

A total of 118 people had applied for those seats, an indication that the issue has generated strong opinions in Manhattan Beach.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the city had created an outdoor dining and business use program for public safety purposes. That temporary program concluded as California’s local emergency has expired.

The newly appointed task force will work on solutions for a permanent outdoor dining program that can balance various interests of stakeholders while complying with state and local laws.

The task force will hold meetings open to the public and give the broader community an opportunity to participate in the research and development of the program recommendations.