CITY COUNCIL WRAP-UP

Here are some items the council considered at its meeting Monday:

GRAFFITI REWARD CHANGES

Council members voted 7-0 to have city staff rewrite their recently passed ordinance rewarding graffiti tipsters. The new rule will have staff give out rewards to anyone who gives police information leading to the apprehension of vandals in Huntington Beach, rather than just those whose tips lead to a conviction.

WHAT IT MEANS

A report by Councilman Keith Bohr and Mayor Gil Coerper says the new reward program is not working as intended. Many who use graffiti are minors, and those minors when caught are often sent to a diversion program — meant to rehabilitate them — that doesn’t technically count as a conviction. As a result, those who help cops catch vandals are often still not eligible for a reward. The vote orders city staff to start issuing rewards for anyone whose tip leads to the apprehension of someone who applies graffiti, as well as having staff draft an ordinance allowing the council to offer such a reward.

DOWNTOWN SPECIFIC PLAN UPDATE

The council voted unanimously to hire consultant groups the RRM Design Group and Kimley-Horn and Associates to update the city’s Downtown Specific Plan and Downtown Parking Master Plan. Both plans, which regulate the level of development and land use in the downtown area, as well as parking, would be the first change in the plan since 2002. RRM Design Group is charged with supporting mixed-use development in the area, while Kimley-Horn and Associates will study ways to share parking spots among multiple uses, like business and residential.

WHAT IT MEANS

The city is planning to encourage a mix of residential and retail in the downtown area, but that’s not the only issue being considered. The controversial proposed closing of Main Street for a pedestrian mall will be studied as well.