HUNTINGTON BEACH : 2 Won’t Budge on Redevelopment Plan

Oscar Taylor is a downtown property owner and a lifelong Huntington Beach resident, but he is a stubborn opponent of the city’s plan to revamp his aging block with a $1.2-million redevelopment project.

“I’m kind of an anarchist,” said Taylor, 69. “I think anything to do with government is a bunch of nonsense.”

But Taylor and another resistant property owner, once part of an indignant front opposing the city’s efforts, now find themselves in the minority.

The city’s Redevelopment Agency has persuaded all of the other 10 property owners in the area to participate in the improvement project after nearly two decades of feuds and ever-changing plans to revitalize the area.

Those who participate are eligible to receive grants of $20,000 to $100,000 to spruce up their buildings and make them structurally sound. Some of the owners plan to give their properties a new facade. Many plan to use the money to overhaul their buildings, said Keith Bohr, the agency’s project manager. The project is bounded by Main and 5th streets and Olive and Walnut avenues.

But to receive a grant, owners are required to make improvements that conform to the agency’s guidelines. The agency determines the new color and style of the buildings, how they will be maintained, the size and type of signs used and what types of businesses can be tenants there.

Taylor and Douglas Langevin, the other owner who has rejected the city’s offers, argue that the compromises they would be required to make under the program are unreasonable.

“The city can make any color changes they want and can do other things that are very, very restrictive,” Langevin said. “The only options left for us are how to collect rent and pay taxes.”