Internet cafés will be treated like Starbucks

Internet cafés will be treated like Starbucks

Businesses that offer computer Internet connections to customers will be treated like coffee shops by the city of Agoura Hills.

Internet cafés and arcades were discussed at length at a recent Agoura Hills City Council meeting. The city’s municipal code will be changed to accommodate Internet cafés in commercial shopping centers, commercial retail services and business park/office retail zones.

It was found that Internet cafés (including Virtual World Café in the Agoura Meadows Shopping Center), were "most like and similar to a coffee shop, regardless of the number of computer stations," said a staff report. Thirty percent of the floor area should be designated for computers, while 70 percent will be used for coffee shop patrons.

"By having over 70 percent of the floor area devoted to noncomputer uses and requiring that computers be located away from the front of the business, the business would outwardly retain the appearance of a coffeehouse and would less likely attract patrons seeking a place to play Internet games," said the staff report.

Internet arcades, however, will be limited to the same zones as electronic game arcades within commercial shopping areas and commercial retail/service and commercial recreation zones. Internet arcades will be subject to a conditional use permit (CUP) as required by traditional gaming arcades.

Agoura Hills City Councilman Denis Weber expressed concern over the possibility of inappropriate behavior on the sites of Internet arcades. Erika Bernath, an associate planner with the city, investigated Internet cafés and arcades and compiled a report. Each arcade operates differently, Bernath said. She added that a CUP would address each business separately.

Agoura Hills Mayor Dan Kuperberg said, "An arcade next to a couple of bars could be a different story."

––Stephanie Bertholdo