City asks for more in park deal

A plan to save six ball fields in southeast Huntington Beach is back

on the drawing board, with the city asking for a little more land for

open space and parking.

The Fountain Valley School District had submitted a plan to hand

over 5.2 acres of parkland to Huntington Beach in exchange for

assistance developing 9 acres of remaining parkland into housing.

School district officials hope to invest the money from the sale of

the land, estimated to be worth approximately $25 million, and

collect money from the interest.

The offer made by Fountain Valley is insufficient, said City

Councilman Don Hansen, because it doesn’t fully protect all six ball

fields or allow for enough parking on the property. That could affect

plans to build on the site, he said.

“Even if we did try to squeeze a youth sports facility on there,

there’s no way we’re going to rectify the parking issue,” he said.

“Before they start putting up their open house signs, they should

realize that they’re going to have a stream of cars parked along

Pioneer Drive probably leading to the entrance of the million-dollar

homes they’re hoping to reap.”

Hansen’s comments come a week after the councilman held a town

hall forum at the library to discuss the potential deal. Many in

attendance at that meeting said they were happy the district was

offering them free land, but felt the proposed parkland was too small

to accommodate the fields used by Huntington Valley Little League.

“I definitely believe we are on the right track to coming up with

a compromise solution,” Hansen said Monday.

A donation of 6.8 to 7 acres would be more appropriate Hansen

said. If the negotiations collapse, the city should continue to

pursue its rights under state law to purchase part of the property at

a discounted rate, Hansen said.

Huntington Beach most right on Left Coast

Surf City is the most conservative beach town in California and

the 25th most conservative city in the U.S., a recent study by a

Berkeley-based think tank found.

Researchers at the bipartisan Bay Area Center for Voter Research

examined voting patterns for 237 cities with populations of more than

100,000, finding some of the nation’s most liberal were in the

northern part of the state, while a conservative core still existed

in Southern California.

“California’s political fault line runs straight through the

middle of the state, dividing north from south,” think tank director

Jason Alderman said. “State Route 152 has become California’s

Mason-Dixon line.”

The study found Huntington Beach to be the third most conservative

beach town nationwide, coming in just behind Cape Coral and

Clearwater, Fla., and the third most conservative city in Orange

County behind Orange and Garden Grove. Bakersfield was found to be

the most conservative city in California, while Provo, Utah was

ranked the most conservative city in the United States.

“Huntington Beach has multiple personalities and one is very

conservative and the other is very raucous and fun loving,”

Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher said.

Rohrabacher said Huntington Beach’s conservatism is rooted in its

strong church community and large population of defense contractors,

many of whom work at Boeing, which has a facility in Huntington

Beach.

“There’s also the people who say ‘Leave me alone, I want to live

my own life,’” Rohrabacher said. “Surfers, like me.”

Alderman said Huntington Beach’s conservative dominance is likely

tied to its lack of minorities living within city limits. Cities with

high liberal rankings often have large populations of black

residents, he said. In Huntington Beach, African-Americans make up

only one-eighth of one percent of the population, the 2000 census

found.

Ironically, the Huntington Beach City Council has a slight

democratic majority, although members aren’t supposed to discuss

political affiliation and votes rarely go down partisan lines.

Council members Debbie Cook, Keith Bohr, Jill Hardy and Gil Coerper

are all registered Democrats.

But the city’s treasurer, city attorney and city clerk are all

registered Republicans, as is City Administrator Penny

Culbreth-Graft.

“There’s a reason Arnold Schwarzenegger launched his campaign in

downtown Huntington Beach and later ended it on the pier,”

Rohrabacher said.

The study found that Detroit, Mich. was the most liberal city in

the United States and Berkeley was the most liberal city in

California. The northern California cities of Oakland and San

Francisco also made the top-10 list for most liberal towns in the

U.S., and Inglewood was ranked the most liberal city in Southern

California.

Rotary Club to host exchange students

The first Chinese students to ever participate in the

International Exchange program of Rotary International will be hosted

by the Rotary Club of Huntington Beach this week.

The students will arrive Aug. 16, and will stay with two local

families for several days before going to their host families. On

Aug. 18, they will be speaking at the luncheon meeting of the Rotary

Club of Huntington Beach about their experiences coming to the U.S.

The club’s International Service chairman Wally Buchanan has spent

the last year making arrangements for students to come to Southern

California for the 2005-06 school year. Twenty students were selected

from two middle schools in Beijing for consideration. Four girls were

finalists. They will be hosted by Rotary members in four different

locations: Rancho Cucamonga, Big Bear, Thousand Oaks and Laguna

Beach.

Rotary clubs across the world have hosted foreign students for

many years as part of their program of advancing international

understanding, goodwill and peace. This is the first time in the

100-year history of Rotary that Chinese students have participated.

Because there are no Rotary clubs in China, Buchanan offered his own

Huntington Beach club as the sponsor for these students.