Parkside Estates gains initial approval

--Jose Paul Corona

Despite the objections and concerns of more than a dozen

residents, the Planning Commission gave initial approval to the

Parkside Estates project, that would build 171 new homes on Graham

Avenue, south of Kenilworth Drive.

Traffic congestion and the noise and inconvenience associated with

the long duration of construction were just some of the concerns

cited by residents who want to see the area saved and restored as

wetlands.

Developer Shea Homes contends the project will benefit the city

and will solve several infrastructure problems, including upgrades to

the existing sewer system. The city can not afford to make those

improvements, said Ronald C. Metzler, vice president of planning and

development for Shea Homes.

Commissioners approved the project’s Environmental Impact Report

and tentative tract map by votes of 6-1 and gave unanimous approval

to annex a 2.8-acre parcel to be added to an existing park.

Commissioner Jill Hardy cast the sole dissenting votes.

“I’m glad they realized the good it brings to Huntington Beach,”

Metzler said.

Area residents, which include a group that has formed to save the

area as wetlands, called Neighbors for Wintersburg Wetlands Recovery,

said they will continue to fight the project, which goes before the

City Council on Oct. 21.

The Bolsa Chica Land Trust is helping the group with grant

proposals and additional funds.

The project still requires final approval by both the City Council

and the California Coastal Commission.

Final appeal in council district lawsuit denied

The 4th District Court of Appeals denied Huntington Beach resident

Joseph Jeffrey’s appeal of a Santa Ana Superior Court ruling that the

City Council acted within its rights in delaying a vote on council

districts until March 2004.

“It’s not very good,” Jeffrey said. “It’s not very good at all.”

Jeffrey filed the suit in August to force the council to put on

the November ballot an initiative that would divide the city into

five city council districts and eliminate two council positions.

“They’ve spent a lot of money to defend this when all they really

had to do was put it on the November ballot and let the voters

decide,” Jeffrey said.

Council members said they expected no less from the courts.

“I was not surprised because I looked at the elections code and it

[stated] that we had the right to set the date,” Councilman Peter

Green said.

Green voted against putting the measure on the November ballot

because it would have distracted the newly elected council from more

pressing matters.

“The city is in a really difficult time,” he said adding that

budget problems are what the newly elected council need to focus on,

Green said.

Jeffrey, a supporter and signature gatherer for the redistricting

measure, contended that the council’s decision to put the measure off

for a year and a half was illegal.

City Council candidate forum set to be held

Residents will have an opportunity to meet City Council candidates

and hear their views during a town hall meeting on Oct. 7.

The forum, hosted by the Huntington Beach Coordinating Council,

which was started in 1969 to give community groups the chance to meet

and share information, will provide residents a chance to hear

candidate statements and will offer a question and answer session.

The town hall meeting and luncheon will be held at the Murdy Park

Community Center, at Goldenwest Street and Norma Drive.

It is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Latter Day Saints and costs

$4 per person.

For more information and to make reservations, please call Carolyn

Allen at (714) 847-3803.

El Pollo Loco grease sparks beach closures

A grease blockage at an El Pollo Loco on Harbor Boulevard in Costa

Mesa set off a chain of events that eventually caused the closure of

parts of Huntington State Beach and Newport Beach’s coastline.

The grease started piling up on Sept. 17, blocking a pipe and

causing an overflow into the storm drain, said Monica Mazur,

spokeswoman for the Orange County Health Care Agency.

From the storm drain, the greasy goo flowed into the Greenville

Banning channel and then into the Santa Ana River and the ocean, she

said.

By the next afternoon, the county’s Environmental Health Division

posted a swimming and surfing closure 300 feet up-coast and 300 feet

down coast of the Santa Ana River as a precautionary measure.

The agency began taking water samples on Thursday. Once it records

two consecutive days of cleanliness, the closures will be removed,

Mazur said.

It’s up to the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board to

decide whether to issue a citation against El Pollo Loco, Mazur said.

Quiksilver buys out Beach Street Inc.

Quiksilver, Inc. announced Monday that it acquired Beach Street,

Inc., the owner and operator of several Quiksilver outlet stores, for

$7. 5 million.

The purchase of the 26-store chain is expected to add about $12

million in revenues to Quiksilver’s 2003 fiscal results, Quiksilver

announced.

The stores will be integrated into Quiksilver’s retail division

and will give the company more control over its name brand.

With 1,950 employees at its Graham Street headquarters, Quiksilver

is the city’s second-largest employer after Boeing. It makes clothing

for young men and women under the Quiksilver, Roxy, Raisins, Radio

Fiji, Hawk Clothing and Gotcha labels.

It also makes snowboards, boots and bindings under various

subsidiaries. Quiksilver owns and operates the Board Riders Club surf

shop in Downtown, as well as two others in Irvine and Laguna Beach.

Surf City sewer fees will see a rate hike

Residents will start paying higher sewer fee rates as of Oct. 10

to pay for maintenance of the city-owned sewer system.

Single family residents will soon pay $6.12 a month instead of the

$5.30 a month paid now.

The hike comes just a year after the City Council voted to charge

residents the usage fee to raise about $5.6 million annually, with

$1.1 million of that slated for maintenance such as cleaning,

videotaping and operating life stations.

The fee increase will generate an additional $700,000 in annual

revenue. In the past that amount had been transferred from the city’s

general fund into the sewer service fund. Due to budget constraints,

city officials decided not to transfer that money this year, said

Paul Emery, deputy director of public works.

The charges were adjusted in accordance with the municipal code,

Emery said.

Surf City’s Ace Hardware on TV

Ace Hardware’s Huntington Beach store will soon be seen on TV sets

across the country.

The first of the Ace Hardware Orange County chain’s 11 stores will

be featured in a new national advertising campaign that will show the

store’s dedication to helpful service and advice.

A production crew will film several 30-second spots at the Surf

City store. The sports will begin airing in late October on national

TV and cable networks.

Chair elected for Fourth of July event

Patricia Steir has been elected to chair the city’s 2002-03 Fourth

of July Executive Board.

As chair of the seven member board she will oversee all

preparations for the city’s 2003 parade series.

Bringing the fireworks show back to the beach and having the 5K

run take place along part of Pacific Coast Highway are her main

goals, Steir said.

“If we can do those two things, it would be great,” she said.

Steir has been a member of the board for the past nine years and

served as chair in 1999 and 2000. She was vice-chair of this year’s

parade.

She is the president of Streetscape, Inc., a custom mailbox and

street lighting company based in Huntington Beach.