HUNTINGTON BEACH : Council to Decide on Pier Buildings

The City Council tonight is scheduled to decide whether to proceed with five buildings planned on the soon-to-open new Municipal Pier.

The meeting was not held Monday because of the Presidents’ Day holiday.

If council members agree to build the structures, they then must decide how to pay for them.

No funding has yet been found for the buildings, which will cost an estimated $1.3 million. Meanwhile, the city is about $2 million shy of paying for the new pier itself. The $12.4-million remodeled pier is scheduled to open in May.

Under a plan proposed by city staff members, construction of the pier buildings would be divided into two phases. The first phase includes the two most critical structures, the new lifeguard tower and restroom building. The second phase would add a restaurant, snack stand and bait-and-tackle shop.

The staff has recommended that the lifeguard tower and restroom be built immediately. Those buildings would cost $300,000, which could be paid for by extending a surcharge on beach parking for another year.

Council members will discuss plans for funding the second-phase buildings, which probably would be constructed next year. Staff members are studying a previous council suggestion that, to save money, the pier shop owners lease space on the pier and construct and own their buildings.

Until the new lifeguard tower is built, the existing one--now perched atop the pier construction trestle--will be placed on the new pier. That tower must be replaced, however, because it is not tall enough and has deteriorated, according to a report prepared by Louis Sandoval, the city’s public works director.

The council also will consider spending $50,000 to build a temporary entry to the pier until the pier plaza is constructed.

The proposed pier plaza, which is also unbudgeted and will require approval by city voters, would include landscaping, fountains and perhaps a new home for the International Surfing Museum. A city law requires voter approval before the council can build structures costing more than $100,000 on a city beach or parkland.