A possible change of plans

Dave Brooks

If Steve Ray and Bob Dingwall have their way, the Planning Commission

of 2005 will be much different from the Planning Commission of 2004.

Resignations and term limits mean three new commissioners -- Randy

Fuhrman, Devin Dwyer and Elizabeth Burnett -- on the dais, and

veteran members plan to push through reforms they hope will increase

public participation.

That includes a recently approved ordinance allowing the public

more time to make presentations. With Ray as its new chairman and

Dingwall as vice-chairman, the pair hope to enact a larger reform

package that would lengthen public hearings to give applicants a

better understanding of the process and create a forum for the public

to directly ask questions about new developments.

“How does the public take part in deliberations if deliberations

are in the back room?” Dingwall asked.

Commissioner Tom Livengood said he supports the changes, but added

that the commission needs to first work to bring the new members up

to speed.

“My goal is that we have a good working team,” he said. “This is a

great opportunity. The last two years have been difficult for a

variety of reasons and that’s not going to be simply corrected by

three people getting off. We need to have a corrective tone and

environment.”

The Planning Commission that was appointed in 2002 dealt with some

of the largest commercial projects in Huntington Beach’s history,

including the ocean-side Pacific City and The Strand mixed-use

developments as well as a failed attempt to build a desalination

plant near the AES facility.

It also dealt with its share of turmoil. In May of 2003, Keith

Bohr resigned from the commission after a city worker accused him of

using his position to push through a project. Almost exactly one year

later, Realtor Jan Shomaker resigned following allegations about her

involvement in a scandal with former Mayor Pam Houchen to illegally

convert apartments into condominiums without the proper permits.

In September 2003, commissioner Randy Kokal was also asked to

resign for not adhering to commission bylaws.

By the end of 2004, chairperson Ron Davis, often at odds with

Dingwall, announced his early resignation as did rookie commissioner

Kristen Stilton, calling the group dysfunctional in a fiery

resignation letter.

“Over the last couple of years, the Planning Commission has been

maligned unfairly,” Ray said. “By and large, most of the attention

that was paid to it was negative, but we have accomplished a lot in

the last few years.”

To avoid future turmoil and misunderstanding, Ray plans to hold an

orientation for new members on Tuesday at 6 p.m. at City Hall.

“That hasn’t been done in years,” Livengood said.

The new commissioners aren’t new to city hall. Dwyer, a

conservative business owner appointed by Councilman Don Hansen,

unsuccessfully ran for City Council in 2000, and again in 2002, but

dropped out early for personal reasons. Fuhrman served on the city’s

environmental board, worked as the treasurer for councilwoman Debbie

Cook’s reelection campaign and was an architect of a controversial

failed ordinance restricting development on some hillside homes. He

was appointed to the commission by Cook.

Dwyer, 41, describes himself as pro-property rights commissioner

who will work to help developers and homeowners through the planning

process.

“My No. 1 priority will be to help people with their projects,” he

said. “Once they come to us, they’re pretty frustrated and I hope to

help them further things along.”

Fuhrman, 51, is a retired air traffic controller who said he plans

to thoroughly research and understand projects that go before the

Planning Commission.

“You have to be clear on the concepts, not just the facts,” he

said. “It’s important to get your facts correct always, but you have

to understand the issues.”

He said he brings a perspective to the commission that looks at

how development affects the entire community as opposed to just the

individual property owner.

Finally Burnett, 37, comes to the dais after an appointment by

recently elected Councilman Bohr. An aerospace engineer, Burnett said

she was introduced to the planning process when she and her husband

built their “dream home” in Downtown Huntington Beach.

“It had its ups and downs,” she said. “I realized that the city

has some very intelligent people working for it, but from the user

standpoint, I have a lot of suggestions.”