A world-famous chef is rethinking plans to open a restaurant in the Bay Area.
Jose Andres signed a lease with Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto last May. The lease included the requirement for gas connections and the shopping center spent one-hundred-twenty-thousand-dollars to install a gas line.
This all happened before a new building code came out that prohibits natural gas connections in all new buildings as California tries to phase out natural gas. Andres’ lawyer says, “without a gas connection, the restaurant would be forced to alter its signature five-star menu” and if his restaurant can’t cook with gas, he doesn’t want to go through with the project.
The Palo Alto City Council adopted a building code late last year that requires new buildings to be all-electric and prevents gas infrastructure from being extended into appliances such as fireplaces and grills.
A recent decision from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which struck down a natural gas ban in Berkeley last month.