HUNTINGTON BEACH : Council Lets Voters Decide on Park Plan

The City Council has decided not to seek a bond issue in the Nov. 6 election but instead to have a referendum on what voters want built in Central Park.

The council dropped the bond issue option this week after failing to agree on financing major projects proposed for the park, including a youth sports complex.

Councilman John Erskine had pushed for getting a bond issue on the Nov. 6 ballot. He contended the city has scores of building projects that should be financed by bonds, rather than the city’s hard-pressed general fund.

But after failing to get agreement from five of the City Council’s seven members--the minimum needed to put a bond issue on the ballot--Erskine instead opted for an advisory vote by residents on Nov. 6.

The council at its July 16 meeting will decide what proposals to submit to the voters in the Nov. 6 “wish list” referendum. The possible list includes improvements to the equestrian trail in Central Park, removal of methane gas from a landfill adjoining the park and financing for a youth sports complex.

A coalition of parents of gymnasts, Little League baseball players and soccer players has been urging the City Council to use some undeveloped Central Park land for a multi-use sports complex for youngsters. The proposed youth sports complex would have a building for the gymnasts and playing fields for baseball and soccer.

Councilmen Don MacAllister and Wes Bannister voiced strong support for the youth sports complex.

“Huntington Beach does less for its small kids than most other cities,” Bannister said. “We provide activities for the adults and teen-agers, but we don’t do much for the small kids.”

MacAllister said that in previous years, the City Council has voted to put baseball fields and other youth sports facilities into Central Park. But the city staff “has sat on its hands” and failed to implement the council’s instructions, MacAllister contended.

By a 4-3 vote, the council designated a portion of Central Park as the proposed site for a youth sports complex. The site is undeveloped park land on the west side of Golden West Street, at the intersection of Talbert Avenue.

Financing for the proposed youth sports complex remains unsettled, however, and the question is likely to be among the items in the Nov. 6 advisory vote.