THE RACE FOR HUNTINGTON BEACH CITY COUNCIL

Tariq Malik

Stephen Garcia has been a Surf City resident for 14 years, and he believes a shared vision is necessary to determine the city’s future.

While the city’s leaders want to change the character of Huntington

Beach, it is not always beneficial to residents to do that, Garcia said.

Garcia wants to put more control in residents’ hands if he serves on

the City Council. In addition to more resident representation, Garcia

said infrastructure repairs and urban runoff cleanup are the most

important issues facing the city.

“We need to make sure our beaches aren’t closed for weeks at a time,”

he said. “Surfing programs -- and the tourist dollars they bring -- will

stop coming to the city if these problems are left unaddressed.”

BIO

STEPHEN GARCIA

* Age: 44

* Family: Wife Robin, son Thomas and daughter Catherine

* Community Activism: Seven years of parental involvement at

Huntington Beach High School, and past president of the school’s Drill

Team Booster Club and Football Booster Club

* Contact: (714) 847-4705

STEPHEN GARCIA ON:

* REDEVELOPMENT

“We need to critically reexamine our redevelopment plans and the

future of Huntington Beach,” Garcia said, adding that there should be an

assessment as to how many hotels or resorts are actually needed along

Pacific Coast Highway. “Since these businesses generate large numbers of

low-wage jobs, it would make sense to build affordable housing relatively

nearby, yet no such plans have been forthcoming from developers.”

Garcia also said it’s important for new commercial and retail centers

to reflect the city’s ocean-side theme, rather than coming up with their

own.

* THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE FACING THE CITY

There are four major concerns on Garcia’s list that will have to be

addressed in the near future.

The topmost is the city’s infrastructure and the repairs required to

keep the city moving, he said.

Downtown redevelopment and the preservation of the Bolsa Chica mesa

are also major issues that will have to be tackled, as well as providing

an adequate location for a sports complex for youth activities, Garcia

added.