Ballot postponement catches heat

A superior court judge will hear initial arguments today in a

lawsuit filed against the Huntington Beach City Council and City

Clerk Tuesday by a signature gatherer seeking to have a council

district initiative placed on the November ballot.

Resident Joseph Jeffrey said he was appalled when the City

Council, in a 6-1 vote last week, decided to put the initiative, that

would divide the city into five districts and eliminate two council

positions, off until March 2004. And his attorney contends the

council’s action was illegal.

“This is not what the voters wanted when we went out and gathered

those 22,000 signatures,” said Jeffrey, who immediately following the

vote sought legal help to force the City Council to place the measure

on the November ballot.

Jeffrey said all he wants is for the council to let the voters

decide.

City council members, who were told by City Atty. Gail Hutton that

they could put off the vote, said at the time that they did so to

give residents more time to study the issue and did not want voters

distracted from the business of electing new council members.

Bruce Peotter, Jeffrey’s attorney, contends the council was

required by law to put the initiative on the November ballot.

When called for comment, Hutton refused to return calls and

instead issued a statement through the city’s public information

office saying that she would not comment on the lawsuit or if the

city’s actions to postpone the vote were legal.

But Peotter believes the law is clear.

“The City Council was mandated by state law to put it on the

election and violated it by putting it on a special election ballot,”

he said. “It must be on a regularly scheduled election.”

The council did not have the discretion to put it on when ever it

wanted, he added.

--Danette Goulet

OCSD begins waste water bleaching

The Orange County Sanitation District began bleaching its waste

water Monday as a controversial first-step effort to clean up

millions of gallons of daily discharge off the city’s shores.

“Chlorine bleach and the de-chlorination chemical are being used

as a short-term option to reduce bacteria,” said Lisa Murphy, the

district’s spokeswoman. “The community called out for an immediate

improvement to the quality of the [waste water]. This is the

sanitation district’s answer to that call.”

By implementing the treatment, the sanitation district met a

Monday deadline, set by the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control

Board at a July 19 meeting.

District officials say the bleaching should remove their sewage

plume from the lineup of potential offenders bringing bacteria into

the surf zone.

Sanitation district managers are using an industrial-strength

bleach that’s about three times as powerful as the type found tucked

beneath most kitchen sinks. They’ll use between 18,000 to 20,000 gallons per day, Murphy said.

Every day, the district releases 234-million gallons of partially

treated waste water into the ocean from an outfall pipe on the ocean

floor 4 1/2 miles out to sea off Huntington Beach.

On July 17, the district’s board approved stepped-up treatment for

the discharge on a 13-12 vote after months of debate and discussion

over a federal waiver the district had that allowed it to skirt Clean

Water Act rules. Chlorination is an extra measure.

Murphy said the district bleaches the sewage with the powerful

agent, then uses a de-chlorination chemical to remove the substance,

which is extremely harmful to sea life.

The district has promised to continue chlorinating the waste water

for the next three years.

Some environmentalists have questioned the chlorination process.

Doug Korthof, a founder of the activist committee Ocean Outfall

Group, said bleaching leaves potentially harmful chemical compounds

in the waste water.

Korthof said there are still nagging questions about how to manage

the waste water over the longer term.

“Chlorination is only a short-term answer,” Korthof said. “It’s

going to create a lot of bad [chemical] compounds in the water.”

-- Paul Clinton

Conflict of interest bill passes on to Governor

A bill introduced by Surf City Assemblyman Tom Harman that will

strengthen conflict of interest laws for public officials was

approved by the Senate on Monday.

Harman, a former Huntington Beach councilman, proposed the bill

following the disgrace of former Mayor Dave Garofalo who was

convicted of one felony and 15 misdemeanor conflict of interest

charges in January.

Assembly Bill 1797 specifies that any public official who has a

financial stake in a decision that goes before them for a vote, must

completely disclose the exact nature of the conflict. After the

conflict is disclosed, that official must recuse themselves from

either discussing or voting on the matter. Public officials would

also be required to leave the room when the matter is being discussed

or voted on.

Possible conflicts of interest include stock holdings, real estate

ownership or personal income generated from a business operated by a

public official.

The bill was previously approved by the assembly and it will now

be sent to Governor Gray Davis for consideration.

While Harman was successful getting one bill passed he was

unsuccessful with another.

Assembly Bill 1861, which was designed to protect crime victims

from frivolous lawsuits, made its way through the state assembly but

was killed by the Senate Public Safety Committee.

The bill would have prevented prison inmates from filing frivolous

lawsuits against victims who testify at their parole hearings. The

legislation would have allowed a judge to throw the lawsuit out of

court and dismiss the case in a speedy manner.

Harman introduced the bill after hearing the story of a woman who

was sued by the man convicted of murdering her fiancee and shooting

her in the face. The felon claimed that her testimony at his parole

hearing caused him “great pain ... ridicule and deprivation of

liberty.”

“A crime victim shouldn’t have to deal with that,” said David

Weaver, Harman’s legislative assistant.

While Harman cannot introduce the bill again next year he is

currently deciding what type of action to take. He may ask a fellow

assemblyman to introduce the bill on his behalf, Weaver said.

--Jose Paul Corona

Peter’s Landing to host benefit concerts

Surf City residents can attend free concerts and help keep

Huntington Harbour clean by showing up at Peter’s Landing every

Wednesday night through the end of the month.

Orange County Coastkeeper hopes that while residents are there

enjoying the free music, they will also make a small donation to the

cause.

Offering free concerts, provided by the merchants at Peter’s

Landing Marina, is the environmental group’s latest fund-raising

effort to supplement the water quality testing it has been doing in

the harbor, said Orange County Coastkeeper Development Director Ellen

Brown.

“What [merchants] want to do is to get to know their neighbors and

[they] also want to give back to the community,” Brown said.

Since the concerts began last month the group has raised $1,150.

The ultimate goal is to raise $3,000 to help pay for the cost of

water testing and other programs in Huntington Harbour. Eventually

the group hopes to raise enough money to purchase a skimmer boat.

A skimmer boat “helps clean up the water” by picking up trash and

other debris, Brown said.

“It’s like a vacuum,” she added.

Shopping centers in both Newport Beach and Long Beach hold similar

concerts, and merchants thought that it might be a good way to

connect with the community, Brown said.

Residents have reacted well to the concerts, said Orange County

Coastkeeper Executive Director Garry Brown.

“The response has been better than expected, a lot of people are

interested in the harbor,” he said.

Both Orange County Coastkeeper and merchants seem to be happy with

the way the fund-raiser has brought people to Peter’s Landing.

Marvene Huss, who owns Marvene and Becky’s Real Estate is thrilled

to see so much activity coming back to a place she loves.

“My passion is in that area, I want to see it thrive again,” said

the Harbour resident.

Huss recalls a time when Huntington Harbour saw a booming

business.

“Everyone wants to see the center thrive again,” she said. “You

can’t get a better place then Peter’s Landing.”

Peter’s Landing is at the corner of Pacific Coast Highway and

Anderson Street. The free summer concerts will be held every

Wednesday, from 6 to 8 p.m. until Aug. 28. For more information logon

to www.coastkeeper.org or call (949) 723-5424.

--Jose Paul Corona

Award nominations being accepted

It’s nomination time. The Huntington Beach Allied Arts Board is

asking Surf City residents to nominate individuals for its annual

arts award program. For the past 12 years the city has recognized

individuals who have made a significant contribution to the arts.

The annual arts award program has eight categories this year which

are; Distinguished Visual Artist, Distinguished Performing Artist,

Distinguished Arts Educator, Distinguished Arts Administrator,

Distinguished Volunteer Service to the Arts, Distinguished Business

Supporter for the Arts, Exceptional Youth in Arts and Public Art

Project of the Year.

Any individual or group may submit nominations. Those wanting more

information on the awards program or anyone who would like a

nomination form can call the city of Huntington Beach Community

Services Department, Cultural Series Division at (714) 536-5258.

Nominations will be accepted through Sept. 3.

Award winners will be announced at a special reception slated to

take place in October.

--Jose Paul Corona