Ventura Approves Lease for Surf Museum

The Ventura City Council agreed Monday to house a U.S. Surfing Hall of Fame and Museum in city-owned space near the Ventura Pier.

The council voted 7 to 0 to approve leasing the 800-square-foot space at 342 S. California St. to the nonprofit museum for $1 a year. The museum will test the local tourist market for a possible larger facility in the future.

Hall of Fame Vice President Jack Cantrell said he expects the museum will open within 60 days and will seek donations from visitors. Museum adviser Steve Boswell said, “We’ve got a 1929 Model-A ‘woody,’ we’ve got lots of surf memorabilia, old surfboards, old surf team coats and T-shirts and things like that from the old days.”

“People in Santa Barbara and Ventura have been coming out of the woodwork to supply artifacts for the museum,” Hall of Fame Vice President Richard Bredlau said. Assistant Treasurer Betty Elder said the Hall of Fame is seeking donations of surf memorabilia and volunteers to help ready the museum for opening.

Mayor Richard Francis encouraged the surfing officials to approach the Janss Corp., which is developing restaurant and store space for the renovation of the 119-year-old Ventura Pier, for a larger and more permanent space.