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Huntington Beach braces for and embraces U.S. Open

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In 2013, as the U.S. Open of Surfing closed for another year in Huntington Beach, a fight broke out followed by a two-hour confrontation between police and unruly beachgoers that led to the arrests of eight people and injuries to several officers.

Officers fired pepper balls and nonlethal projectiles at rioters as they broke through glass storefronts and overturned portable toilets.

Since then, local officials have been keenly aware of the possibility that the nine-day event — which starts Saturday and continues from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily to July 31 — will draw violence again.

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Police Chief Robert Handy promised during a recent town hall meeting attended by about 30 residents and business owners that the downtown will see increased patrols duing the US Open, including more motorcycle officers, from the numbered streets to the hotels, though he declined to be specific about staffing. Security guards will check attendees’ bags before they enter the venue.

“People will have more interaction with security than they did before,” he said, adding that checkpoints may be installed in the area. “We did a little bit of bag checking before, but we’re controlling the entrance points more than we did in the past. It’s going to look different as you walk into the event.”

Additional surveillance cameras, on loan from the FBI and local agencies, will be installed on Pacific Coast Highway from the pier to Beach Boulevard, said Huntington Beach Police Lt. Kelly Rodriguez.

Violence, of course, isn’t inevitable — the years following the memorable U.S. Open of 2013 were peaceful — but as fatal shootings leave the country reeling and terrorists wreak havoc internationally, it’s not hard to picture people being on edge in anticipation of hundreds of thousands of visitors descending for the premier event.

Except that it’s hard to find people on edge.

Kim Kramer, the founder of the Facebook group HB Citizens for a Better Downtown, said he believes the event is good for Huntington Beach and that city officials and police do their best to keep things under control.

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“I think overall the problems are much less than they were years ago,” said the 11-year downtown resident. “I think the chief and police are on top of their game. It’s a lot of people. There are parking issues. There are trash issues. But this is just what we deal with when we’re a beach community. The events downtown are great for business and are great for branding. Who are we to complain?”

Susan Welfringer, manager of the HB Downtown Business Improvement District, said businesses downtown typically experience more customers and more positives than negatives during the weeklong event.

“You start to feel the buzz already,” she said.

Kelly Miller, president and CEO of Visit Huntington Beach, the marketing organization for the city, said that according to a 2010 study — the most recent one conducted — the U.S. Open brings in about $21.5 million annually, with more than 70% of that spending directly benefiting Huntington Beach hotels and businesses.

During the 2013 event, the Easyrider bike shop was at the center of the riotous behavior — a stop sign was plunged through the shop window and a looter grabbed a bike, though a second vehicle was saved by employees who wrested it from the would-be thief.

The shop’s owner, Jason Hilbert, is excited about this year’s event, no trepidation in evidence.

“Local pride was extremely present immediately following the riot and has continued ever since,” he said in an email.

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Indeed, following the riots, the store sold $20 shirts reading “Defend Huntington Beach” and “Riot Proof,” with a portion of the proceeds promised to the beach city’s downtown community.

“HBPD and event organizers have done a great job maintaining a police and security presence in the last couple years....,” he continued. “Now we just need to pray for surf.”

In the years following the riots, the live-music stages and public skate bowls were discontinued. Alcohol sales and consumption were also barred, organizers said. Businesses that want to host activities on the sidewalks now have to apply for a temporary activity permit, and police will patrol the area for unpermitted vending.

A representative of the Mitch Sneider Organization, the public relations firm assigned to the event, said she is happy to say that no violent incidents at the US Open since 2013.

Of course, there are still the nuisance infractions to deal with. Handy said an effort will be made to dissuade people from urinating on the streets by setting up more portable potties in the area.

“Drinking, parking, traffic and urination are our biggest problems [during the U.S. Open],” Handy told the small crowd that had gathered recently to hear the chief’s game plan.

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Additional dumpsters will be placed around the downtown and more street cleaners deployed in the mornings, he said.

Handy warned that people should expect a “posture change” among police officers, who may be more on guard, given the recent fatal shootings in Dallas, Louisana and Minnesota.

“It’s probably been the most difficult time in my career for officers to be police officers,” he said. “Our officers will probably be a little more on edge than they have been in the past.”

Handy also noted that two concerts at Huntington State Beach during the final weekend of the U.S. Open — an electronic festival on July 30 and a country music show on July 31 — could attract even more people downtown, but he said two security companies hired by the Open’s promoter, as well as units from nearby police departments, will assist in patroling the area.

When it comes to the US Open, the chief said:

“We’ve been working with the promoter and event planning staff to try to really plan a different style of event, so it attracts a family crowd and surfing crowd. We’re not looking to pack 100,000 [teenagers] down here without parental supervision, who want to come, listen to music and drink alcohol. We want to get back to the sports surfing, family-friendly environment.”

Anyone with a problem during the US Open is encouraged to call the police non-emergency line at (714) 960-8825, Handy said.

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Brittany Woolsey, brittany.woolsey@latimes.com

Twitter: @BrittanyWoolsey

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