Mayor
City Council
Planning Commission
City of Santa Monica

To Whom It May Concern:

I write to urge that Chez Jay restaurant be preserved as an important site and restaurant in any plan for enriching the Civic Center area.

In a region that often “redevelops” sites of its own unique history out of existence, Chez Jay should be supported as a memorable center of our civic culture going back fifty years.

Chez Jay’s was a famed drinking and dining spot for national security figures like Henry Kissinger because of its proximity to the RAND Corporation during the Vietnam years. I myself will always remember being kicked out of Chez Jay’s because of my views opposing the Vietnam War and supporting Daniel Ellsberg and Tony Russo. Such moments and altercations should be remembered and preserved as part of our historic landscape in Santa Monica, not forgotten in the rush to new development.

Count me as a supporter of Chez Jay’s existence and please keep me posted as to any decisions concerning its fate.

Sincerely,

TOM HAYDEN

To the Santa Monica Landmarks Commission
From Tom Hayden
Re Preserving Chez Jay

April 18, 2012

Dear Commissioners,

Only folk with selective memories can say that Chez Jay is not historic. It needs to be preserved against those who would consign it to oblivion. In addition, the Commission should consider an oral history project soliciting memories for those on all sides who knew it as the center of convivial and informal military-industrial planning for people like Henry Kissinger and Dan Ellsberg. It would be a fine place to establish a memorial to the Pentagon Papers, which were both written and stolen from RAND next door.

Thank you for your consideration.

TOM HAYDEN