Wren's Garden loses permit

At their Oct. 9 meeting, the Tehachapi Planning Commission voted unanimously to revoke the Minor Use Permit (MUP) for Wren's Garden, the event space on Curry Street in downtown Tehachapi that was once known as Jennifer's Terrace. The space has had a history of controversy over noise abatement that lead to an agreement between the Planning Commission and the prior owners of Wren's Garden (Jennifer's Terrace), Guy and Jennifer Williams regarding the regulation of amplified music at the event space.

Originally used primarily for daytime events like bridal and baby showers, sound was not an issue until 2013 when the space began being used as a wedding venue with amplified music causing complaints about the evening events. In the 2016 agreement Williams agreed to keep music below certain sound levels and to take measurements of the sound levels, keep records and report them to the city.

Before purchasing the property in 2022, Emily Woods talked with the city's Development Services Department and was notified about the sound requirements and the need to send the data to the city. Although she made the claim that the seller did not disclose the conditions, she did not ask to modify the conditions of the permit. Over the last year, although the city did receive some sound measurements, some were over the agreed limit and were not always received in a timely manner and were in violation of the agreement. The MUP originally established a limit of three violations in a 12 month period as reason for revocation of the permit, however the city did not pursue action.

In addition to complaints by neighbors made directly to Wren's Garden, it was the six calls to the Tehachapi Police Department over the last year-and-a-half that resulted in the action of the Planning Commission. It is the city's understanding that Wren's Garden is in escrow and has three more events scheduled through the end of October. For that reason, the Planning Commission set the revocation of the MUP at November 1, 2023 and new owners will need to reapply for a new MUP from the city.

The Tehachapi Planning Commission meets on the second Monday of the month at 6 p.m. at the Tehachapi Police Department Community Room located at 220 W. C St.