HUNTINGTON BEACH : Food Seller Fights City Over Lease

For beachside concessionaire Tom Lewis, this is typically a quiet time of year. His six food stands won’t open until this weekend, and the peak season is still almost two months away.

But this year, these have been the toughest of months for Lewis. Just three weeks ago, he finally succeeded in collecting about $4,500 from the company whose tanker was responsible for the Huntington Beach oil spill. British Petroleum Co. damaged his leased parking lot during the cleanup effort, Lewis said.

And a week ago, Lewis was notified that in six months the city plans to terminate his lease on the 330-space parking lot, saying it needs the area to store equipment during its upcoming pier reconstruction project. He is challenging whether the city has legal right to take over the lot, a move that he says would force him out of business.

Without the income he gets from parking lot revenues--about $3 for every $4 ticket sold--he cannot afford to continue selling hot dogs, chips and sodas, he said.

“If they take the parking lot, they might as well take it all,” Lewis said. “I never would have gotten into this in the first place if it weren’t for the parking lot, because it’s such a moneymaker.”

City officials say a clause in the 20-year lease allows them to cancel it. But Lewis disputes that, saying “I’ve never signed anything with the city of Huntington Beach.”

He and his partners signed the original lease agreement in 1980 with the state, which owns the parking lot. The state leased the property to the city, which subleases it to Lewis.

Lewis says only the state has the power to cancel his lease; city officials say they now have that authority.

But City Administrator Michael T. Uberuaga, prompted by a letter from Lewis’ attorney, persuaded the City Council on Monday to delay its decision on the contract.

“This will give us a chance to review Mr. Lewis’ claim,” he said. “I certainly want to be fair, and see to it that he gets anything he’s due in relation to his leaseholder rights.”

Lewis said he believes Uberuaga is genuinely concerned about his plea.

“When I got into this thing, I never thought the state would deed that lot over to the city, or I never would have done this, because I don’t think they’re trustworthy,” Lewis said. “If they want to buy it from me for a fair price, that’s fine. I’m not opposed to selling it. But I’m not going to let them take it from me.”