THE TOP STORIES OF 2000

Environmentalists trying to preserve the Bolsa Chica mesa in

Huntington Beach scored a big win by way of the California Coastal

Commission this year.

Last month, the commission voted unanimously to scale back development

on the Bolsa Chica mesa, holding developer Hearthside Homes down to 65

acres for a 1,235-unit residential project.

The commission’s decision marked the latest in the nearly 30-year

clash between environmentalists and developers over Bolsa Chica, which

comprises 1,588 unincorporated acres of wetlands and mesa. The state

first secured 300 acres of wetlands for preservation in 1973, and

development plans since then have ranged from a development-heavy design

for a marina, motel, residential neighborhoods, an ocean inlet and

roadways to Hearthside’s latest plan to build single-family units on 183

acres of the mesa.

Developers said they are looking at their options to continue their

project but fear the project may not be feasible because the smaller

building area may cause conflicts between housing density and height

restrictions. Hearthside was able to secure a water source for the

development in October, in a deal with the Southern California Water Co.

to build a 6.7-mile pipeline from Cypress, through Seal Beach and

Westminster, to the development.

-- TARIQ MALIK

Garofalo still under investigation

Throughout June and July, Huntington Beach City Atty. Gail Hutton, the

Fair Political Practices Commission, the Orange County district

attorney’s office and the Orange County Grand Jury began investigating

then-Mayor Dave Garofalo over alleged conflicts of interests. The

controversy stemmed from his business David P. Garofalo and Associates,

which owned publishing rights to the Huntington Beach Conference &

Visitors Bureau visitors guide and, at one time, the city’s Chamber of

Commerce Business Directory.

Garofalo, now out of his rotation as mayor and serving as a

councilman, allegedly cast council votes on projects put forth by

advertisers in his publications and may have profited from the visitors

guide publishing contract.

The visitors guide is distributed through the city’s Conference &

Visitors Bureau, an organization completely funded by the city, but it is

published with advertising revenue.

Garofalo has been abstaining regularly from voting in the months since

the investigation began and continues to deny any wrongdoing.

In October, a group of residents launched a recall effort against the

councilman to oust him from the dais. The group is ironing out a petition

to gather voter signatures in an attempt to hold a recall election in the

spring. Garofalo has said he looks forward to campaigning for himself

should an election take place.

Meanwhile, Tori Richard, spokeswoman for the district attorney’s

office, said the investigation is continuing with records and files on

the councilman under review to determine if Garofalo did have a conflict

of interest.

-- TARIQ MALIK

Residents, school lose Wal-Mart battle

A five-year battle ended in March with the defeat of Measure I,

securing the development of a Wal-Mart at Ocean View School District’s

closed Crest View Elementary School.

The measure would have rezoned the 14-acre site to a residential zone,

thwarting Wal-Mart’s plans to build a 135,000-square-foot store there.

Ocean View and the city of Huntington Beach will each reap an

estimated annual $400,000 from lease income and sales taxes,

respectively.

The district plans to use the initial income from the lease for

facility improvement projects on school campuses.

Crest View residents who opposed a Wal-Mart in their neighborhood put

the measure on the ballot, saying the retail giant and the accompanying

traffic, noise and congestion would strike a harsh blow to their standard

of living. Crest View United, as the group called itself, said the school

on Talbert Avenue was in the middle of a residential neighborhood and

would be better placed in a more commercial part of the city.

A coalition of city and school district officials campaigned to defeat

the measure. Calling themselves Save Our Schools, Save Our City, the

group received almost $400,000 in campaign money from Wal-Mart for their

bid to defeat Measure I.

The asbestos removal at the closed campus is finishing up, with

demolition to follow within two weeks. The store is scheduled to open by

August.

-- ANGELIQUE FLORES

When good stuff happens to good team

The Ocean View Little League All-Star team is a group of winners. In

August, the team of 12-year-olds came out on top when they made it all

the way to the Western Regional finals before losing a nail-biter to a

team from Vancouver, Wash.

The game was the last gateway to Williamsport, Pa., where the Little

League World Series is held every year.

Including its last showdown, the All-Star team ended with a postseason

record of 17-2, winning four of those games by 10 runs or more and

beating its first four opponents by the combined score of 3 to 4. One of

the squad’s players, Hank Conger, hit 33 home runs this season, and the

team won its district title for the third straight year.

-- MARY BETH P. ADOMAITIS

Sources of beach contamination narrowed down

After a yearlong study to find the source of bacteria in the waters of

Huntington Beach, which forced beach closures in the summer of 1999,

researchers pointed their fingers at three possible causes.

The study, released last month, pegged urban runoff, the Talbert Marsh

and the interaction of effluent from the Orange County Sanitation

District’s offshore effluent pipe and the AES Corp. power plant’s hot

water outflow as possible sources.

City officials have steadfastly pursued ways to curb urban runoff --

untreated waste water that flows through storm drains into the ocean --

which has largely been the prime suspect of beach closures. The runoff

was diverted through the Talbert Channel for treatment over the summer,

and the sanitation district offered to absorb the diversion costs up to

$450,000 a year, provided the flow doesn’t surpass 4 million gallons a

day.

The city has spent almost $2 million to find the source of

beach-closing bacteria.

-- TARIQ MALIK

Bickering and accusations and ‘RV rage,’, oh my

At the beginning of the year, the issue of recreational vehicle

parking, a hot topic in Fountain Valley throughout the 1980s, again

surfaced, prompting what many felt was a year of bickering, unproven

accusations and carpetbagging.

The dispute behind what people were calling “RV rage” stemmed from

city laws that state that RVs are subject to the same laws as cars and

must be moved every 72 hours.

Residents such as Perry Goldstein were still unhappy though, saying

that RVs create unsafe conditions for the neighborhood. Concerns were

also raised by those who said owners just had to move their vehicles a

few inches to comply with the law.

But advocates such as Betty Blank, a member of the Fountain Valley

Recreational Vehicle Assn., said RV owners had a right to park their

vehicles on city streets, which should not be used as a playground for

children anyway.

City officials began the task of updating the ordinance by choosing a

10-member ad hoc committee, which is still working on a plan.

In August, the situation took an unexpected turn when Councilman Chuck

Conlosh, who was the only council member in favor of not changing the

existing ordinance, wrote a letter to the community that appeared in a

four-page pamphlet for the new watchdog group, Concerned Citizens of

Fountain Valley. In it, Conlosh said the city had refused to investigate

wrongdoing by a “high level city official.” He was vehemently challenged

by colleagues and residents alike but has still not substantially proved

his accusations.

In November, Conlosh, along with now-Mayor Larry Crandall, won

reelection. The RV issue has still not been resolved.

-- TORUS TAMMER

Proposed auditoriums draw ire, joy from community

The Ocean View School District pulled both excitement and outcry from

the community in its proposal to build gymnasium-auditoriums at its four

middle schools.

The proposed gyms would complete the middle school campuses, providing

a cafeteria, locker rooms and a gym that would also serve as an

auditorium. District officials hope the structures will enhance physical

education and arts programs at Marine View, Mesa View, Spring View and

Vista View middle schools.

The district had been discussing the project for years. However, it

did not inform the community until earlier this year, a few months before

the board approved the proposed construction on Sept. 19.

“In hindsight, we should have notified the community way ahead of

time,” Supt. James Tarwater said.

Residents expressed concern about the $12-million project’s funding

plan, as well as the proposed two-story size, location, possible hours of

usage, facility rental, night lighting, noise and traffic. Many neighbors

are not opposed to the gyms, but they want to minimize the effect on the

surrounding neighborhoods.

Although the board shot down a motion to rescind the vote on the

proposed project, it responded to community uproar by calling for a

community advisory committee and an environmental study. Board members

also approved a moratorium on obtaining funds until the study is

complete.

Despite the district’s efforts, residents -- largely from the Spring

View neighborhood -- are still unsettled.

Final approval for the project will come only after the environmental

study is done and the community advisory committee makes recommendations.

The district expects the study and community input to continue for at

least another three months.

-- ANGELIQUE FLORES

TO EVICT OR NOT EVICT, THAT WAS THE QUESTION

The Huntington Beach City Council was split last month on whether to

use eminent domain to evict Burlington Coat Factory and Wards from the

30-year-old Huntington Center at Beach Boulevard and Edinger Avenue. And

because a two-thirds vote was needed by the council for the issue to be

approved, it died somewhere around 2 a.m., when the council finally voted

on the matter.

The mall, which is expected to be redeveloped into a high-scale,

Italian village-style shopping center called The Crossings at Huntington,

was expected to include high-end restaurants, shops, a multiscreen movie

theater and even a Krispy Kreme doughnut shop.

However, the developer, Ezralow Retail Property LLC, didn’t think

Burlington and Wards would fit into its new design and wanted them ousted

from the project.

Now, the Irvine-based company wants to sell the mall as a “power

center” with a multiscreen movie theater. City officials are still hoping

to reach an agreement with Burlington and Wards or find other homes for

them in the city. But they know for sure eminent domain will not be used.

-- MARY BETH P. ADOMAITIS

CITY SCRAPS IDEA FOR HALFWAY HOUSE

Fountain Valley officials and residents were riled up at the prospect

of having an apartment complex at 12192 Edinger Ave., on the city’s

border, converted into a halfway house that would hold 50 inmates

convicted of such lesser crimes as drunk driving, writing bad checks or

failing to pay child support.

The conversion plans, which were approved by the Orange County

Planning Commission in late February, were fought rigorously by city

officials on behalf of residents who did not want the facility in their

neighborhood.

The city cited several major concerns in presenting their protest to

the county’s Planning Commission. The city claimed the facility would not

have what they felt would be considered adequate supervision. They also

said the project would not only generate 2 1/2 times more traffic, but

that the halfway house would pose problems inconsistent with zoning plans

and would displace 13 families who live there in affordable housing.

The constant pressure from the city, as well as the opposition of some

227 homeowners, eventually led to a meeting between the city and the

Planning Commission on May 2, where a resolution in favor of Fountain

Valley was reached and the project was scrapped.

-- TORUS TAMMER

SURF CITY NUDE DANCERS NOW FACE RESTRICTIONS

In July, the Flamingo Theater, a juice bar featuring nude dancers,

opened its doors at 18121 Beach Blvd., Huntington Beach, becoming the

city’s only sex-oriented business.

City officials had fought since 1996 to keep the business out of

Huntington Beach, only to concede to the business’ constitutional rights.

But that didn’t stop the city from trying to make business as difficult

as possible for the theater.

Throughout the summer, city officials dabbled with a proposed ban on

nudity in public places. The ordinance drew protests from naturists and

nudists, as well as the theater, and the City Council tabled the item in

September. Officials with the city attorney’s office said they plan to

bring the issue back to the council for instruction sometime next month.

The city also had a sex-oriented business ordinance mandating a 6-foot

buffer zone between nude dancers and patrons, to which the Flamingo

Theater complied. In October, the City Council amended the ordinance with

more restrictions, requiring fully clothed dancers, waitresses and other

employees to follow the 6-foot buffer rule.

To comply, the Flamingo Theater shut down Nov. 15, but reopened Dec.

20 after obtaining an emergency injunction from the 9th Circuit Court of

Appeals, which may rule on thelegality of the restrictive ordinance by

March.

-- TARIQ MALIK