Around Town: Huntington Beach will host ISA World Surfing Games this September

The International Surfing Assn. has announced that Huntington Beach will host the year’s ISA World Surfing Games in September.

The event will return to Surf City for the first time in 16 years Sept. 17 through 24.

This year’s edition will see Olympic places up for grabs for Paris 2024. The winners of the men’s and women’s team events will each earn a quota spot for their country.

Last year’s World Surfing Games in El Salvador saw France claim the overall team points gold medal, topping Japan and Portugal.

Huntington Beach previously hosted the World Surfing Games in 1984, 1996 and 2006.

Ballots are due: Statewide Primary Election is Tuesday

Primary Election Day is almost here, with ballots due by 8 p.m. Tuesday. Readers who have not already cast their ballot can learn the location of their local vote center by visiting the Orange County Registrar of Voters’ site at ocvote.gov.

Vote-by-mail ballots must be postmarked on or before Election Day and received by June 14.

In Newport Beach the fate of Ballot Measure B: Direct Election of the Mayor by the Voter is in residents’ hands, while their counterparts in Huntington Beach will decide on Ballot Measure A, which would place a tax on commercial cannabis businesses within city limits.

Miss Huntington Beach to be honored with rose dedication ceremony

A ceremony dedicating a rose bush in honor of this year’s Miss Huntington Beach, Gisell Gochman, will take place on June 15 at 11:30 a.m. at the Huntington Beach Civic Center Rose Garden.

Since 1963, each newly crowned Miss Huntington Beach has been honored with the planting of a rose bush in a public location. That location has been City Hall since 1974, in an on-site garden for visitors to enjoy year-round.

Gochman, a Huntington Beach High School alumna, is current a student at UCLA. She was crowned Miss Huntington Beach at the annual scholarship competition sponsored by the Sand Dollars of Huntington Beach last October.

Steel seeks wounded warrior for fellowship program

Rep. Michelle Steel, who represents the 48th District, has announced that her congressional office in Huntington Beach is seeking a wounded warrior or medically retired veteran for a Wounded Warrior Fellowship Program position.

The Fellow would work with the district’s military and veteran community to help handle casework and act as a facilitator between constituents and agencies at the local, state and federal levels.

Veterans must have been honorably discharged, released from active duty within the last five years, have terminal pay grades at or below E-5 or O-3 and have 20% or greater service-connected disabilities to qualify. The last qualification is waived for Purple Heart recipients.

Veterans who are in receipt of a 20-year or Temporary Early Retirement Authorization retirement are not eligible for the program.

Interested veterans can go to www.usajobs.gov/ and search “Wounded Warrior Fellowship Program” for more information and application instructions.

KelpFest in Laguna Beach Saturday

Laguna Ocean Foundation will host KelpFest at the cobblestone area of Main Beach in Laguna Beach on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Residents and visitors will have a chance to explore nature at the festival, which promotes ocean literacy.

The free festival provides the public with access to information and educational resources about Laguna Beach’s coastal ecosystems. There will also be activities and exhibits on site.

For more information on this event, visit lagunaoceanfoundation.org.

Balboa Island Parade returns this Sunday

On Sunday, beginning at 11 a.m., the 27th Annual Balboa Island Parade and After-Party featuring the band Whiskey Hayride will get underway.

The parade begins on Marine Avenue, followed immediately afterward by the party in front of the Balboa Island Fire Station.

Organizers say this year’s event is themed “Island Rodeo — Boots, Chaps and Cowboy Hats,” so Western wear is in order. Also, visitors are invited to pack beach chairs for comfortable seating while they view the spectacle.

Sherman Library & Gardens presents ‘Freewaytopia’ author

Paul Haddad, author of “Freewaytopia: How Freeways Shaped Los Angeles,” is the featured speaker when Sherman Library & Gardens holds the next installment of its Lunch & Lecture Series on Wednesday, June 8.

In his book, Haddad provides an entertaining history of 527 miles of roadways that comprise the Los Angeles freeway system. He will include anecdotes about Orange County during his lecture, and selling and signing books after the talk.

Lunch starts at 11:30 a.m., followed by the noon lecture. The cost to attend both is $35 for Sherman members and $45 for nonmembers. To attend the lecture only, members are admitted free while the nonmember fee is $5. Advanced registration is required and can be made at thesherman.org.

The series is presented by South Coast Plaza. Sherman Library & Gardens is located at 2647 E. Coast Highway in Corona del Mar.

O.C. Board of Supervisors name new director of John Wayne Airport

Charlene Reynolds, chief commercial officer for the Houston Airport System, was selected May 24 to serve as director of John Wayne Airport by a vote of the Orange County Board of Supervisors.

An executive with more than 20 years of experience in the public and private sectors, Reynolds previously worked for the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, where she served as assistant aviation director and interim aviation services director.

Reynolds also previous served as president of the National Forum for Black Public Administrators’ Phoenix Chapter and was named by Phoenix Magazine in 2020 one of the 48 most influential people living in the area. She holds a bachelor’s degree in management from the University of Phoenix and an MBA from the Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University.

“After conducting a wide recruitment, we’re pleased to welcome Ms. Reynolds as the new director of the Orange County airport,” Board of Supervisors Chair Doug Chaffee said in a May 25 release. “Her passion and commitment to aviation services will help us continue to elevate our passenger experience.”

Arts O.C. appoints new vice president and chief operating officer

Officials with the nonprofit countywide arts council Arts Orange County announced Thursday Patrick Brien — executive director of the Riverside Arts Council for the past 17 years — has been appointed to serve as the organization’s vice president and chief operating officer, starting July 1.

In his Riverside position, Brien played a key role in connecting the regional arts and cultural infrastructure of the inland region. He has spearheaded multiple programs for underserved communities, including Indigenous people and people of color, adults with dementia and developmental disabilities and those in the prison system.

Brien serves on the board of directors of Californians for the Arts and California Art Advocates as well as the executive committee of the United States Urban Art Federation. In a news release issued Thursday, Brien described Orange County as a sort of training ground.

“Between having continued to follow artists and organizations and collaborating with [Chief Executive Richard Stein] and Arts Orange County, I’ve been able to witness the incredible growth the arts community has experienced,” he said. “Being able to be part of that now quite honestly feels like coming home.”

City of Costa Mesa to hold virtual June 16 meeting on stormwater management

Members of the public are invited to attend a virtual community meeting on June 16, from 6 to 8 p.m., to learn more about Costa Mesa’s effort to develop a citywide Stormwater Master Plan.

Community members can learn more about the scope and goals of the project, a recent evaluation of the city’s existing drainage system and the prioritization of future projects. The meeting will be the first of two designed to create an open dialogue about areas of concern and document issues pertaining to flooding.

The link to the Zoom webinar is https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89394753265. For more, contact senior engineer Bobby Fouladi at (714) 574-5222 or email bobby.fouladi@costamesaca.gov.

Costa Mesans have until June 13 to apply for Independence Day block party street closures

Any Costa Mesa residents wishing to request a street closure to accommodate a block party on the Fourth of July holiday must do so by 5 p.m. on June 13 by completing an application and showing proof of liability insurance for the event.

Applications are available online through the city’s website at costamesaca.gov or may be requested by calling (714) 754-5300 or emailing elena.martinez@costamesaca.gov. The application packet includes instructions, rules and regulations governing Independence Day block parties.

Completed applications can be mailed to “Attn. Block Parties” at P.O. Box 1200, Costa Mesa, CA, 92628 or delivered in person Monday through Thursday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., to the Parks & Community Services office on the third floor of City Hall, 77 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa.

Support our coverage by becoming a digital subscriber.