Council race swells to 16

The list of Surf City residents running for one of three spots on the

City Council nearly doubled last Wednesday with five candidates

handing in their paperwork moments before the filing deadline.

The normally nonpartisan event has taken on a new ideological

significance this year with the entrance of five Libertarian

candidates in the race.

Many of the entrants were inspired to run by perennial candidate

Norm “Firecracker” Westwell, a vocal member of the third largest

political party in the country.

Westwell met many of the candidates while campaigning for his

three political races this year: the City Council, Ocean View School

District Board of Trustees and the California Assembly, he said.

“When I went out to get signatures, I knocked on a lot of

Libertarian doors and many people expressed an interest in running

for office,” he said. “I gave them all the encouragement I could.”

This year’s libertarian candidates include Hyman Crippen, Tim

Reilly, Knife manufacturer Robert Kliewer and Realtor Robert Mellema,

although they won’t be described by party affiliation on the city

ballot. Party affiliations for city contests cannot be listed on

official election material, Deputy City Clerk Kelly Mandic said.

Some other last-minute filers include former council candidate and

Planning Commissioner Steve Ray, who said he plans to make a serious

run for office this year, campaigning on a platform of integrity and

government transparency; Green-party candidate John Earl, a freelance

labor writer and organizer said he wants the city to introduce a

living wage and halt efforts to privatize water; and Rex Ricks, an

outspoken opponent of the Long Beach Airport expansion.

“I’m a big advocate for open government,” said Ray, who took

eighth place during the 2002 contest. “This time I know that I can

win, and I expect to win.”

The additions bring this year’s race to a field of 16, including

Councilwoman Debbie Cook, who is running for reelection. Also on this

year’s ticket is Realtor Keith Bohr, executive Donald Hansen, health

care administrator and former candidate Jim Moreno, environmentalist

Joey Racano, restaurant-owner Joe Carchio, minister Andrew Blair

Farley and electrical designer and former candidate Peter Albini.

Wildlife board approves Bolsa Chica buy

The lower portion of the Bolsa Chica mesa is one step closer to

coming into state hands after the California Wildlife Conservation

Board approved its purchase from landowner Hearthside Homes last

week.

The deal still needs the green light from landowner Signal

Landmark’s shareholders, which CEO Ray Pacini said will only happen

if the California Coastal Commission approves a development on the

upper portion of the Bolsa Chica mesa. Commission staff members are

recommending denial of the project, arguing it doesn’t conform to the

Coastal Act. Developer Hearthside Homes is working on its rebuttal.

“We believe our plan for the upper bench is more in line with the

coastal act [now than before,]” Pacini said.

Despite the uncertainty of the sale, members of the Bolsa Chica

land trust were elated by Thursday’s news.

The board will purchase the land with $65 million from Proposition

50, the Clean Water and Coastal Protection Bond of 2002.

The Land Trust plans to begin restoration on the state-owned land,

which could swell to more than 1,300 acres if the 103-acre purchase

is approved by Hearthside, President Gerald Chapman said.

Huntington karaoke bar is singing the blues

The Moulin Rouge restaurant and nightclub lost its entertainment

permit on Monday during a heated hearing in front of the City

Council.

After listening to complaints of violence and loud noise from six

neighbors, the City Council unanimously approved Police Chief Ken

Small’s recommendation that the club not be allowed to host karaoke

or other amplified music for a least one year.

Councilwoman Debbie Cook felt no pity for Moulin Rouge owner Bill

Pham, who’s club had racked up 63 police complaints from January to

June and over $6,000 in unpaid fines.

“My son had to live above a bar in Scotland and he was miserable,”

she said. “I’m really pleased tonight that I can help somebody out.

“You know what the rules are, and you didn’t follow the rules, so

we are revoking your permit,” Cook told Pham.

Pham can still serve alcohol at his restaurant, which operates as

a French Bistro during the day. The Moulin Rouge is undergoing a

major renovation and remodel, and Pham said that without karaoke, he

would lose his mostly Asian clientele.

In an articulate, unapologetic presentation to the City Council,

Pham said he had hired a sound engineer to look at the building and

discovered that the problem was not noise coming from outside of the

bar, but from patrons entering and leaving the parking lot.

“If we would have known this months ago, we could have taken care

of this months ago,” he said.

Pham also told the council that he believed he had a

constitutional right to obtain an entertainment permit.

The council heard from a handful of neighbors, who said noise and

fighting late at night at the club was ruining their lives.

Dai Phung said he was on the verge of selling his house because

things had gotten so bad, and his wife Alyssa said she feared for her

family’s safety.

“From my window I can see people getting beaten by people who are

drunk, others screaming out of the parking lot,” she said. “This is

out of control.”

City’s credit rating falls short of neighbors

Standard & Poor’s Public Finance division has given the city of

Huntington Beach a bond rating of A+, a measurement that reflects a

strong capacity to meet financial obligations.

The new rating, however, is lower than it has been in previous

years. As recently as 1997, Huntington Beach had a AAA rating with

the company, the highest possible issuer credit rating assigned by

the Wall Street financial machine.

But coming off an unfavorable judgment from the appellate court

last year in regard to the retirement system and having been placed

on a Credit Watch by Standard & Poor’s, Assistant City Administrator

Bill Workman said the new A+ rating shows not only improvement, but

improvement to come.

“We’re doing the revenue enhancements that were necessary to bring

us back into balance,” he said. “We were successful in going back to

Standard & Poor’s and made a presentation on our current state of

finances. We showed them what we’ve been doing to solidify our rating

going forward.”

Comparatively, surrounding cities measure up at double- and

triple-A ratings in their most recent measuring by Standard & Poor’s.

Santa Ana, Tustin, Irvine, Costa Mesa and Westminster all received

AAA ratings. Newport and Laguna Beach were most recently given AA.