City may join in suing state

Huntington Beach will decide today whether to join other California

cities in suing the state for withholding its share of the car tax.

The city stands to lose $7.2 million a year under Gov. Arnold

Schwarzenegger’s plan to reimburse drivers who paid the higher

license fee before he rolled it back.

The car tax makes up about 8% of the revenue in the city’s general

fund and pays for core services such as roadwork, traffic signals,

street lighting and police patrols.

Orange County has already joined the counties of San Diego, Los

Angeles and Santa Barbara in directing attorneys to prepare lawsuits.

Losing the money could mean more employee layoffs and program

cuts, Councilwoman Connie Boardman said.

“I’m disappointed in both the government and the state legislative

bodies that they would choose to balance the budget on our backs,”

Boardman said.

The governor’s action runs counter to his campaign vow that car

tax refunds would not hurt local governments.

“During the election, the governor promised to keep cities whole,

and now he’s backing away from that promise,” Boardman said. “It’s a

very frustrating position to be in, being financed by an agency you

have no control over.”

The City Council will vote in closed session at 4 p.m. today.

Neighbors take to dirty streets themselves

A group of Downtown property owners have taken on funding their

own neighborhood improvement projects and hope to inspire others to

do the same.

The 28 homeowners who live along 18th and 19th streets in Downtown

have pride in their neighborhood, want to keep it in good, clean

condition and know the city lacks the revenue to fund minor

improvements.

So the residents pooled $3,800 to repave an alley behind their

homes.

“They went in and did an up to one inch asphalt overlay and they

got rid of all the potholes,” Huntington Beach resident John de Witt

said. “They got rid of all the unevenness where the wear and tear was

occurring. ... Now it’s brand new. It’s really nice.”

This wasn’t their first team project. Three years ago, the

neighbors all began to pitch in for a street sweeper to rid the alley

of trash, glass and other debris once a month.

Future projects could include new lighting and landscaping.

“This is a model project,” DeWitt said. “We’re showing that when

everyone contributes something for something that’s needed in the

neighborhood, you can expedite these things, you can still get these

things done. In our case, we needed to get that alley repaved before

it got worse. We knew that the city wouldn’t be able to do it, so we

got together.”

More than $11 million was trimmed from the city’s budget this

year. Of all departments, public works suffered the most . The

department lost 25 city employees and had 15%, or $2.7 million, cut

from its operating budget.

DeWitt hopes other Huntington Beach communities will look to his

homeowners’ group as an example of what can be accomplished when

residents pool their resources.

“Our neighborhood would really love to see other people invest in

their own neighborhood a little bit,” DeWitt said. “When you

collectively pool together, you can get a really nice project.”

Group wants federal funds used at civic center

A residents’ group wants the city to use federal funding to make

the civic center more handicap accessible.

The Citizen’s Participation Advisory Board makes recommendations

to the City Council on how it should spend Community Development

Block Grant funds.

The group has recommended that $250,000 of the funds be used to

bring the Civic Center in compliance with Americans with Disabilities

Act standards. Improvements could include better access from disabled

parking spots to the council chambers and the Police Department and

upgrades handicap stalls in restrooms.

The City Council will consider the request at a public hearing in

January. If approved, construction is expected to be complete by

2005.

Memory tree honors family and friends

Surf City residents are invited to honor a loved one by purchasing

a light on a neighborhood tree.

The Memory Tree has been designed by Huntington Beach-based Adult

Day Services of Orange County, a nonprofit center devoted to caring

for those with Alzheimer’s disease.

The two-story tree is at the corner of Bushard Street and

Indianapolis Avenue.

“The idea is that for a gift of $50, the individual can purchase a

light in honor or in memory of someone,” said Cordula Dick-Muehlke,

executive director of Adult Day Services.

By buying lights, people will both honor loved ones and help

support those who are struggling with Alzheimer’s disease or similar

dementias.

The Memory Tree will be set aglow at a holiday tree lighting

ceremony Friday from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. It will be lighted throughout

the holidays.

The organization is about halfway to its goal of raising $10,000.

“Christmas is a time of reflection, when we often think back to

people who are no longer in our lives or people who are really

special to us,” Dick-Muehlke said. “It gives us a way to remember

someone and to do something good for members of our community.”

For more information, call (714) 593-9630.