City aims to keep downtown farmer’s market afloat

After more than two months of the widely popular downtown street fair Surf City Nights, nearly everyone has something good to say about the festival.

Boosters say it helps make downtown a shopping and dining destination, restaurant owners say it gives sales a shot in the arm on a slow night, and the roughly 2,000 attendees each week say they love the entertainment.

But when the city-funded trial period runs out after May 22, a tricky monetary situation makes an extension easier to talk about than to put into practice. Downtown businesses, city staff and the current farmer’s market vendor are deep into negotiations to find a solution, but no one expects easy answers.

Getting extended permits from the California Coastal Commission and the city zoning administrator isn’t likely to be a problem, said the Economic Development Department’s assistant project manager Nova Punongbayan, who has been heavily involved in the festival and current negotiations. The bigger obstacle is finding a way to fund and run the popular street fair without the redevelopment agency money the council set aside for the trial, she said.

“Funds are limited,” she said. “They can only be used for the pilot project. But we’re negotiating with the farmer’s market operator and the Business Improvement District, and we’re trying to find sponsorships as a short-term measure.”

The well-attended farmer’s market booths still take $8,000 to $10,000 a week in subsidies to turn a profit, said Ron McLin, owner of the Longboard restaurant and a board member of the Downtown Business Improvement District. That’s not something local businesses can handle, he said, so they hope to expand the festival one more block so the vendor can turn a profit on its own.

“It’s actually very successful,” he said. “But the vendor’s still saying he’s not making enough money; he’s telling us he needs three blocks. We’re trying to get it so it’s not subsidized at all.”

But closing more blocks could take approval from several government agencies, said City Councilman Joe Carchio..

“They’re going to need cooperation from the city and maybe even the Coastal Commission,” he said.

Making it affordable is the big goal now, said Connie Pedenko, executive director of the Huntington Beach Downtown Business Improvement District. “At this point we’re working on ways of lessening the cost.” Everyone is working hard to keep the successful festival going, Carchio said.

“I think it’s been really successful,” he said. “We would have been happy with just half of what we got. I guess the people of Huntington Beach have been waiting for this a long time. At this point you just can’t let people down and pull it after the trial runs out.”