CITYSCAPES ROUNDUP:

Tickets are on sale for the annual Taste of Huntington Beach food festival, which raises money for the Huntington Beach Children’s Library as well as Project Self-Sufficiency.

More than 45 restaurants, 20 wineries and breweries will offer their foods at the event from noon to 4 p.m. April 20 at the Huntington Beach Sports Complex, 18100 Goldenwest St.

The Huntington Beach Restaurant Assn. coordinates the eighth-annual event.

For more information, call (714) 375-5023.

Tickets, which cost $60, are available at Huntington Beach Central Library, 7111 Talbert Ave., Duke’s Huntington Beach, 317 Pacific Coast Hwy., the Longboard Restaurant & Pub, 217 Main St., and at King’s Fish House, 7961 Edinger Ave.

They will also be available at the entrance if not sold out.

Restaurants participating in the event are making a real contribution to the city, said Matt Liffreing, a spokesman for the restaurant association.

“Restaurants are donating not just their time and their labor but of course their wonderful food to benefit those children who may need another book,” he said. “I’d like to formally recognize those businesses who are donating their time and money.”

Speakers to talk about drug abuse

A Huntington Beach High School student group and a county drug prevention coalition will hold an information night to inform the community about the dangers of prescription and over-the-counter drugs.

Student group Friday Night Live, which advocates a substance-free lifestyle, along with the Prevention Coalition of Orange County, have invited parents and students to hear several speakers on the abuse of these drugs.

Speakers will include a special agent with the California Department of Justice, an emergency room doctor, an assistant principal and several youths.

The meeting is scheduled for 6 to 8:30 p.m. April 17 at Huntington Beach High School’s student center, 1905 Main St.

Paintball tourney cleanup to finish soon

Paintballs are 95% cleaned up from Huntington City Beach following last weekend’s National Professional Paintball League Super 7 Series tournament, according to city officials.

City beach maintenance workers have been working morning to night to remove the detritus of the tournament, and removal of the visible paintballs has been followed by the use of rakes and sanitizers to finish the job.

The cleanup is expected to finish by the weekend, according to city reports.

Firefighters to have reusable shopping bags

The Huntington Beach Fire Department is going a little bit greener, according to city reports. From now on, firefighters will have reusable shopping bags, rather than paper or plastic bags, to use when shopping for food on duty. The bags are now being distributed to fire stations, and the initiative is an early move in a citywide push to be more environmentally friendly.