Pier getting changes

Huntington Beach Pier is scheduled for a makeover by the beginning of summer, with the aging trailers that hold its three stores set to be replaced with brand-new buildings. But the vendors housed inside are likely to remain the same.

The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to decide the look and design of the buildings that will replace the pier’s current trailers. They also directed city staff to give the current vendors — Kite Connection, the Surf City Store and Let’s Go Fishing — a first shot at new leases.

“We should give existing tenants first right of refusal, given the businesses they’ve built up over the years,” said Mayor Keith Bohr, who has been pushing for the pier changes over the past couple years.

The city is hoping to get the construction going by late spring, and the new buildings open by mid-June, Community Services Director Jim Engle said.

“It would be anywhere from four to six weeks where they wouldn’t be able to operate out of buildings,” he said. “The buildings would be open for summer.”

One idea that didn’t pass was a proposal to fit a snack bar into the same building with the bait and tackle shop. Restrictions on the idea included the city’s contract with Ruby’s Diner on the end of the pier, which required any such snack bar only serve pre-packaged food.

Some council members said it would raise revenues in the area, but while three — Bohr, Councilman Joe Carchio and Councilman Don Hansen — voted for the snack bar, the other four voted it down.

Kite Connection owner Dave Shenkman said he was in support of the changes ahead.

“I look forward to offering a higher level of service with the higher quality” of the pier, he said.

MICHAEL ALEXANDER may be reached at (714) 966-4618 or at michael.alexander@latimes.com.