Strand gains council approval

Jose Paul Corona

The Strand project, slated to revamp Downtown Huntington Beach,

was given the green light by the City Council Monday night by a 4-2

vote.

Unless an appeal of plans for the 226,500-square-foot project is

filed with the California Coastal Commission, it will be built.

James A. Lane, spokesman for the project’s main opposition, a

group called Citizens Against Redevelopment, said they have not yet

decided if they will mount opposition.

“We’re just trying to determine what our next step will be,” he

said.

By approving the project, Lane says, the current council has left

a potential problem for the four council members who will be elected

next month.

“The lame duck members on the council were determined to pass this

thing as their legacy,” he said, he said of the four outgoing council

members who voted in favor of the project.

Plans call for a 152-room hotel, several major retail stores and

an underground parking lot.

It is a plan that is touted by many and despised by an arguably

commensurate faction.

“The project doesn’t seem right for Downtown,” said Mayor Debbie

Cook, who opposed the project. “It’s just not right.”

Cook said she disagrees with the way that the city uses

redevelopment and feels that the project will break up Main Street.

“It creates two Main Streets,” she said. “I feel like we’re

turning our back on Main Street.”

Rather than the small shops and restaurants, the new plaza will

offer major retail stores such as Victoria’s Secret, Express and

Johnny Rockets.

But many redevelopment advocates say it is just what the Downtown,

and the city coffers, needs.

“With the Hyatt we need a Downtown with shopping and dining,” said

Councilwoman Shirely Dettloff, who supported the project. “If we

don’t get something built there, the future of Downtown is in

jeopardy.”

The Strand project has met with some serious opposition in the

past. Last November the Citizens Against Redevelopment challenged the

deal between the city and developer, CIM on three legal points, which

forced the city to scale back the project.

Last year’s suit prompted the developer to file its own appeal of

the Planning Commission’s Oct. 1 decision this year, to force the

project to go before the council now, said Gustavo A. Duran, housing

and redevelopment manager for the city.

By doing so, the developer hopes to avoid any future problems or

litigation, he said.

Although the new plans have elicited far fewer objections from

Downtown residents than in the past, there are some who are

concerned, saying the project does not offer adequate parking.

A total of 405 spaces will be available in the underground lot.

“The parking is inadequate,” Lane said. “If this was really a good

project I would be there supporting it, but this is not a good

project.”

The Strand is slated for the area bounded by Main Street, Pacific

Coast Highway and Walnut and 5th avenues. It will be made up of six

building on two city blocks.

The two-level underground parking structure will include a valet

service and an attendant ticket booth.