Bluff Top Park improvements complete in Huntington Beach
Bluff Top Park is one of the largest parks in Huntington Beach, with almost 20 acres of land adjacent to Pacific Coast Highway between 9th and Seapoint streets.
Some visit the park to walk or bike through it, and some just to enjoy the view. All can benefit from the $3.7 million in improvements the city has made there in recent months.
City officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Monday morning for the latest enhancements to the park, including a widening of the bicycle path, a new sidewalk and landscaping upgrades.
“We have been trying to do this for so long,” Mayor Barbara Delgleize said. “I’m just grateful that all of you could be here this morning to appreciate this ... This park is well-known for its diverse recreational opportunities, providing everything from multiuse pathways, beach access points and viewing areas. I’ve always been a big proponent of reinvestment in our parks and recreational areas. Recreational areas such as Bluff Top Park are the heart of the community, and indispensable areas that can benefit everyone.”
The city used $2 million budgeted through the Park Development Impact Fund, as well as $1.7 million of state funding appropriated by Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris (D-Irvine), for the upgrades.
The work was done in two phases. The first phase involved installing wooden lodge pole fencing along a nearly two-mile stretch of the bluff tops, replacing old and rusting metal railing.
Then, in December, the City Council accepted a bid from Green Giant Landscape for the Bluff Top Park Trail Improvements Project.
Huntington Beach Public Works Director Sean Crumby said the second phase of improvements, started in March and completed recently, included widening the bike path to 18 feet.
“It’s given us enough space to separate the faster traffic from the pedestrian traffic,” he said.
Additionally, a sidewalk was installed, making the space ADA-compliant and allowing for easier loading and unloading of beach gear. Previously, the grassy area stretched all the way to the curb.
Landscaping upgrades also played into the project.
California State Parks Supt. Kevin Pearsall, who spoke at Monday’s ceremony, said there are 279 state parks.
“In Huntington, the state parks have a large recreational focus,” he said. “This remodel or enhancement … is fantastic. Even the fence alone is long overdue and just such an enhancement aesthetically. The enhancements of the bike path, the multiuse trail, it just brings such a vital opportunity to really want to be outdoors and recreate. Post-COVID, the more we can have outdoors, the better.
“Every time I’ve driven by in the last four months, it just looks better and better. It’s kind of like a paint job. Once it’s done, you go, ‘Wow, that’s fantastic, it was worth the wait.’”
Crumby said the improvements were crucial for the city, which has its beach-loving residents but also draws an estimated 11 million-plus tourists each year, for big events including the recently completed U.S. Open of Surfing.
“This is one of the most critical components to our city, our beach,” he said. “Our tourism centers around this.”
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