HUNTINGTON BEACH : Planners to Study 3 Alternate Park Sites

The Planning Commission has delayed selecting a site for a neighborhood park so it can study three alternative locations.

A five-acre site for the park, in an area north of Garfield Avenue, between Edwards and Golden West streets, was brought before commissioners for approval last month.

In 1991, the City Council analyzed park sites within the neighborhood, and directed staff to initiate a code amendment to designate that site for the park.

But instead of approving the amendment, commissioners asked staff to research three other nearby sites, including one next to a future school at the northwest corner of Garfield and a future street, Saddleback Lane.

All four proposed park sites are bounded by Garfield to the south, Ellis Avenue to the north, Edwards to the west and Golden West to the east.

One of the other two study sites is on the south side of Ellis, midway between Edwards and Golden West, and another other is on the west side of Golden West, midway between Garfield and Ellis.

Since the 1980s, homeowners here have sought a park in their neighborhood.

Residents urged commissioners to designate the centrally located five-acre parcel that was originally before them as the park site.

“It’s the safest and most likely place for a park within the neighborhood,” said Carrie Thomas, president of Country View Estates Homeowners’ Assn. Thomas also told the commissioners that the level topography of the land can accommodate amenities such as basketball and volleyball courts.

However, the individuals who own a majority of the five-acre site and operate two oil-producing wells, want to keep pumping oil there and oppose turning it into a park.