Richmond punk venue backers speak against eviction

In announcing the red-tagging of Burnt Ramen on Friday, Butt called the warehouse structure his city’s Ghost Ship, referring to the site of the deadly Oakland fire on 31st Avenue that triggered a nationwide wave of scrutiny on such so-called do-it-yourself spaces, often illegal or not up to city building codes, where artists reside.

At the meeting, other City Council members seemed surprised by the onslaught of 29 speakers during the public comment portion, almost all of whom spoke in support of Burnt Ramen.

Richmond’s city attorney, Bruce Goodmiller, said his office had received an appeal of the eviction notice from an attorney representing Burnt Ramen’s tenants on Tuesday.

The city manager, Bill Lindsay, said that “clearly there are different definitions of what a safe space is,” adding that Richmond was willing to work with Burnt Ramen’s landlord to resolve the code problems.

The half-dozen occupants of Burnt Ramen claim the city gave them little to no notice of the inspection that triggered their eviction, and they allege city officials gave them no direction as to what the code violations were — and how they could have fixed them.

Joel Shepard, 23, said he first frequented Burnt Ramen at 15, taking in a show, calling it “my dream place to hang out,” adding that, amidst the pool tables and skate ramps dragged inside the warehouse, he could “do whatever.”