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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Huntington Beach City Council Meeting - October 15, 2024: Twin City Partnership, Bolsa Chica Senior Care Project Approval, and Symphony of Flowers Feasibility Study

City Council — Tuesday, October 15, 2024

BodyHuntington Beach, California

SessionCity Council

DateTuesday, October 15, 2024

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 6:09:40

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:00

And the impounding of your motorcycle for up to 30 days to those of you who legal call the meeting of the city council public financing authority to order.

0:19

City Clerk, may you have the roll call, please?

0:23

Oh, yes, we've got some people missing.

0:25

Councilmember Mosier's not yet arrived.

0:27

Councilmember Bolton, not yet arrived.

0:29

Mayor Pro Tim Burns.

0:30

Here.

0:30

Mayor Vandermark?

0:32

Here.

0:32

Councilmember Strickland, not yet arrived.

0:34

Councilmember McCann?

0:36

Here.

0:36

Councilmember Kelmick.

0:38

Here.

0:38

Don't have a well go ahead.

0:41

Thank you.

0:42

Um City Council member comments.

0:44

Does anybody have a comment?

0:47

Yeah, still celebrate I'm still celebrating Cancer Awareness Month.

0:52

The shirt.

0:53

Uh air show, I thought was up pretty awesome.

0:56

I thought even though it was fogged out, I thought it was pretty good.

0:59

Cars and copters, if you were able to get close to it, it was probably pretty cool.

1:03

I got turned around.

1:04

I mean, it was a lot of people down there.

1:08

And uh there was something else, but I can't remember, so all's good.

1:14

Anyone else?

1:16

Okay, moving on to announcement of supplemental communications.

1:19

Do we have any supplemental communications?

1:22

Not for this portion, no.

1:24

Public comments.

1:25

Do we have anyone sign up to speak?

1:28

Just one.

1:29

Okay.

1:30

Maureen, you want to come up to the mic?

1:33

And just give me a sec.

1:35

I need to read a statement.

1:37

Proper decorum at city council meetings is imperative in order for the public to remain informed about issues pertaining to the city's business.

1:44

The public comments portion of the meeting is an opportunity for the public to be heard and address those issues in a public form.

1:51

Disrupted behavior impeding or delaying of our ability to conduct the council's business will not be tolerated.

1:57

California Penal Code Section 403 prohibits disrupting this meeting, and enforcement action will be taken for violation of this law.

2:04

At this time, the city council will receive comments from members of the public regarding any topic, including items on the closed session agendas.

2:11

Individuals reaching to speak.

2:13

Um need to fill out a speak uh speak form and deliver to the city clerk.

2:18

All clerks are encouraged but not required to identify themselves by name.

2:22

Each speaker may have up to three minutes unless the volume of speakers warrants reducing the time allowance.

2:27

Please note that the Brown Act does not allow discussion or action on topics that are not on the agenda.

2:32

Members of the public who would like to speak directly with the council member on an item not on the agenda may consider scheduling an appointment by contacting the city council's administrative assistant at 714 53653, or emailing the entire city council at city.council at serf city dash hb.org.

2:51

You can go ahead.

2:52

Yeah, I'd like to say something positive about one particular uh employee, city employee, and uh his name is John Newen, and uh he works with the engineering department with signs, and there was an issue with this one particular sign that uh some of the uh the old streets signs were painted with metallic paint and and they just kind of fell apart, I thought too soon.

3:24

So anyway, he he offered to go out and take a look at it at night when it was dark, and I thought, well, that's that's really neat to have uh I wouldn't want to do that.

3:35

I wouldn't want to go out of my free time and at night when I get off at five o'clock, and I'm already tired.

3:42

Um so he, you know, when you have outstanding employees, they should be recognized because there are some employees that need some assistance in their attitude.

3:54

One particular uh one a number of years ago was this one lady, and I uh expressed my concern about something, and she goes, Well, you know, you've called here a number of times, and I think if my husband had called, it would have been a much different reaction.

4:16

And having worked with a lot of women, women tend to berate other women unmercifully, and uh it's uh but you know, majority of um of employees are are decent, cordial, try to do good job.

4:40

But you know, some of them uh I don't know what the situation is, but they're uh not really into doing a good job.

4:50

And uh this e-bike thing is out of control.

4:53

Uh I almost hit a kid today uh a couple hours ago.

4:57

Uh I was driving.

5:00

The kid came from the side and went right in front of me.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Planning and Zoning████████████████████20%

Public Comments████████████████16%

Affordable Housing█████████████13%

Economic Development██████████10%

Elections Administration████4%

Public Engagement████4%

Charter City Collaboration████4%

Public Health████4%

Transportation Safety████4%

Summary of Proceedings

Huntington Beach City Council Meeting - October 15, 2024

The Huntington Beach City Council met on Tuesday, October 15, 2024, at 6:00 PM for a regular session (following a closed session at 4:30 PM). The meeting included a consent calendar, public comments, a city manager's report on the Economic Development Strategic Plan, a public hearing on the Bolsa Chica Senior Care Community Project, and a council member item to explore a Symphony of Flowers event. Key decisions included approval of a twin city partnership with Ramat Gan, Israel, approval of the Bolsa Chica Senior Care Community with added conditions, and direction to staff to study the feasibility of a temporary light and sound show at Central Park East.

Consent Calendar

Items 9-17 were approved, with item 15 (Chief Medical Officer contract) approved as amended by supplemental communication. Item 10 (Twin City Partnership with Ramat Gan, Israel) was pulled for separate discussion and later approved 5-0-2 (Councilmembers Moser and Kalmick abstained). The remaining consent items (9, 11-14, 16-17) were approved 7-0.

Public Comments & Testimony

Library and Measure U: Multiple speakers urged the council to reject Measure U, calling it misleading and harmful to local zoning and environmental review. Speakers supported library petitions to require voter approval before outsourcing library management and to remove a politically appointed book review committee. Others endorsed candidates for city council (Bolton, Kalmick, Moser) and city clerk (Regina Blankenhorn) based on experience and support for the library.
Election and City Clerk: Several speakers supported Regina Blankenhorn for city clerk, citing her municipal experience. Others voiced concerns about the qualifications of candidates backed by the council majority (Chad Williams, Don Kennedy, Butch Twining, and Lisa Lane Barnes).
Bolsa Chica Senior Care Project: A majority of public comment speakers opposed the project, citing incompatibility with the neighborhood, excessive height/density, parking and traffic concerns, and potential harm to the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve. Supporters argued the project meets a critical need for senior housing, has been reduced in size, and complies with zoning height limits. The applicant and project team provided a 15-minute presentation detailing community outreach and design changes.
Twin City Partnership: A few speakers supported the partnership with Ramat Gan, emphasizing cultural exchange and solidarity with Israel. One speaker opposed, citing concerns about the nascent status of the Israel Global Foundation and the lack of a formal nonprofit status.
Symphony of Flowers: Early speakers raised concerns about park privatization, environmental impacts, and disruption to wildlife and residents. The applicant later presented the show as a temporary, environmentally-conscious event that would enhance arts and culture.

Discussion Items

24-7287 – City Manager's Report: Economic Development Strategic Plan

Economic Development Manager Chris Casanova presented the plan, outlining four focus areas: business retention/attraction, tourism/culture, responsive government, and communication. Council members discussed the need for updated land use strategies, streamlining permits (highlighting the 23% increase in certificates of occupancy from the Streamline Surf City program), and better metrics for business visits. Councilmember Kalmick requested tools for attracting specific industries and evaluation of zoning code barriers.

24-7279 – Twin City Partnership with Ramat Gan, Israel (Item 10)

Councilmember Strickland and Mayor Van Der Mark sponsored the resolution. Staff noted Ramat Gan had already passed a resolution to partner with Huntington Beach. The Israel Global Foundation (IGF) would serve as the liaison; IGF's CEO stated they have filed for federal nonprofit status. Councilmember Kalmick expressed concerns about IGF's newness and lack of local offices, proposing a substitute motion to strike references to IGF and instead have an informal relationship, but the motion failed. The original resolution passed 5-0-2 (Moser and Kalmick abstained).

24-710 – Bolsa Chica Senior Care Community Project (Public Hearing)

This project proposed a 4-story, 159-unit assisted living and memory care facility at Warner and Bolsa Chica. The applicant requested a specific plan to allow a 10% increase in floor area ratio (FAR) from 1.5 to 1.68, citing case law that senior care facilities require additional space for support services. The revised EIR was certified. The Planning Commission had approved 4-3, and two appeals were filed. After extensive debate, Councilmember Strickland made a substitute motion to approve the staff recommendation with added conditions: a deed restriction limiting the use to assisted living and memory care only, and a requirement for Tier 4 diesel construction equipment. The motion passed 4-3 (Burns, Van Der Mark, McKeon opposed; Moser, Bolton, Strickland, Kalmick in favor).

24-750 – Symphony of Flowers Event (Councilmember/Mayor Item)

Councilmember Strickland introduced a proposal to host the Symphony of Flowers, a temporary nighttime light and sound show similar to Quebec's original, at Central Park East. The show would run approximately six months on 5.7 acres, with bleachers for up to 2,000 people, and an average ticket price of $35. The applicant emphasized environmental responsibility and community benefits, including potential library parking revenue. Councilmembers raised questions about environmental review, wildlife impacts, parking, and compatibility with park use. Staff will conduct an environmental checklist, biological survey, noise study, and traffic assessment. The council voted 7-0 to direct staff to study feasibility and bring back a potential agreement.

Key Outcomes

Twin City Resolution No. 2024-55 approved 5-0-2 (Moser and Kalmick abstained), authorizing a twin city partnership with Ramat Gan, Israel, with the Israel Global Foundation as the nonprofit liaison.
Bolsa Chica Senior Care Community Project approved 4-3 (Burns, Van Der Mark, McKeon opposed) with conditions: deed restriction for assisted living/memory care only and Tier 4 construction equipment. Council adopted Ordinance No. 4327 (zoning map amendment), Resolution No. 2024-51 (EIR certification), Resolution No. 2024-52 (General Plan Amendment), and Resolution No. 2024-53 (Zoning Text Amendment).
Symphony of Flowers Feasibility Study approved 7-0, directing staff to negotiate an agreement and conduct environmental review, with results to return to council.
Consent calendar items 9 and 11-17 approved 7-0; item 10 approved separately as above.
No report from closed session.

Meeting Transcript

And the impounding of your motorcycle for up to 30 days to those of you who legal call the meeting of the city council public financing authority to order. City Clerk, may you have the roll call, please? Oh, yes, we've got some people missing. Councilmember Mosier's not yet arrived. Councilmember Bolton, not yet arrived. Mayor Pro Tim Burns. Here. Mayor Vandermark? Here. Councilmember Strickland, not yet arrived. Councilmember McCann? Here. Councilmember Kelmick. Here. Don't have a well go ahead. Thank you. Um City Council member comments. Does anybody have a comment? Yeah, still celebrate I'm still celebrating Cancer Awareness Month. The shirt. Uh air show, I thought was up pretty awesome. I thought even though it was fogged out, I thought it was pretty good. Cars and copters, if you were able to get close to it, it was probably pretty cool. I got turned around. I mean, it was a lot of people down there. And uh there was something else, but I can't remember, so all's good. Anyone else? Okay, moving on to announcement of supplemental communications. Do we have any supplemental communications? Not for this portion, no. Public comments. Do we have anyone sign up to speak? Just one. Okay. Maureen, you want to come up to the mic? And just give me a sec. I need to read a statement. Proper decorum at city council meetings is imperative in order for the public to remain informed about issues pertaining to the city's business. The public comments portion of the meeting is an opportunity for the public to be heard and address those issues in a public form. Disrupted behavior impeding or delaying of our ability to conduct the council's business will not be tolerated. California Penal Code Section 403 prohibits disrupting this meeting, and enforcement action will be taken for violation of this law. At this time, the city council will receive comments from members of the public regarding any topic, including items on the closed session agendas. Individuals reaching to speak. Um need to fill out a speak uh speak form and deliver to the city clerk. All clerks are encouraged but not required to identify themselves by name. Each speaker may have up to three minutes unless the volume of speakers warrants reducing the time allowance. Please note that the Brown Act does not allow discussion or action on topics that are not on the agenda. Members of the public who would like to speak directly with the council member on an item not on the agenda may consider scheduling an appointment by contacting the city council's administrative assistant at 714 53653, or emailing the entire city council at city.council at serf city dash hb.org. You can go ahead. Yeah, I'd like to say something positive about one particular uh employee, city employee, and uh his name is John Newen, and uh he works with the engineering department with signs, and there was an issue with this one particular sign that uh some of the uh the old streets signs were painted with metallic paint and and they just kind of fell apart, I thought too soon.

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