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DeeDee's moves to Santa Clara
Indian store struggled with city permit process

by Daniel DeBolt

After getting the boot last December to make way for a housing project, the owners of DeeDee's spent thousands on city permits and rent in search of a new space locally. Eventually, however, it came down to what the Desai family feared most: leaving Mountain View.

The restaurant and Indian grocery store finally re-opened last week at 341 Lafayette St. in southern Santa Clara.

DeeDee's was slated to move into a space on Moffett Boulevard, but even after installing signs and spending $4,000 a month in rent for four months, the family was still waiting on a building permit a few weeks ago.

Though the new store will be miles away from its loyal Mountain View customers, Daksha Desai said she is very happy with the new location, situated a few blocks from Santa Clara University. To top it off, she said, she had the necessary permits in her hands within a month.

The Desai family arrived from India in 1991, and DeeDee's opened its doors in Mountain View in 1998. The restaurant soon became a destination for Indians, including executives at Hewlett Packard. Performances from local Indian musicians and speakers were also a draw.

For more, see www.mydeedees.com.

E-mail Daniel DeBolt at ddebolt@mv-voice.com

Posted by Elizabeth, a resident of another community, on Aug 5, 2008 at 9:11 am

There has got to be a way to streamline Mountain View's process in terms of getting a building permit so that much-needed businesses like this don't have to move out of town anymore in order to stay open.

Posted by Alex, a resident of the Old Mountain View neighborhood, on Sep 15, 2008 at 2:34 pm

Was this a permit for remodeling the interior of the building? When I remodeled my kitchen earlier this year, I submitted all my architectural drawings and application and got a building permit within a day. Granted, converting a former convenience store to a restaurant is probably more involved. I wonder how much of the delay was caused by their architect or contractor.