NEWSMAKER OF THE YEAR

Surf City’s dream of becoming a world-class vacation destination -- a

place where families come to bask in the sun and frolic in the ocean --

turned into a nightmare this summer when a mysterious bacteria kept the

shoreline off limits for months.

Health officials closed down more than four miles of shoreline when

levels of contamination in some areas soared 10 times above acceptable

standards.

With tourists staying away in droves during the peak season, Downtown

merchants pondered their sinking fortunes, and the city briefly

considered declaring Huntington Beach a local disaster area.

The closure “killed” swimsuit sales that usually “go off,” said Rick

Fignetti, owner of Rockin Fig surf shop.

“It really hurt our business,” said Jack Clapp, owner of Dwight’s

concession stand, who estimates 90% of his customers stayed away.

The source of contamination remains elusive, despite county, state and

federal officials joining the hunt.

To help see beneath the ground and in the deep ocean water, officials

brought out high-tech sonar and radar equipment. But with no luck, they

resorted to low-tech grapefruit and oranges to track the water flow,

which led many to suspect that urban runoff, possibly from the Talbert

Channel or the Santa Ana River, is to blame. The city and Orange County

Sanitation District ruled out their own sewage systems.

After frolicking around since July, the bacteria crept back into hiding

for the most part by September. As levels of pollution returned to normal

in October, the beaches were declared safe once again.

If runoff is to blame, then residents shouldn’t expect a quick fix. The

untreated waste water flows from lawns and streets into storm drains that

flow into the ocean. Officials have yet to figure out a better way to

dispose of this waste that runs in the millions of gallons.

Unless we find a solution for controlling urban runoff, residents should

expect more beach contamination in the future, Mayor Dave Garofalo said.

“It’s inevitable,” he said. “There’s no stopping it.”

The effect of runoff is already the focus of a UCI study due in October.

The city will help pay for the research as part of its plan to spend

almost $1 million to ensure that Surf City remains a vacation

destination.

That may sound like a lot of money, but the alternative may be more

costly.

“I don’t foresee anybody using Surf City [as a nickname for Huntington

Beach],” Fignetti said, “if nobody can surf and swim.”