Huntington Beach getting own version of ‘Monopoly’
Huntington Beach locals don’t have to pass “Go” and collect $200, or go to jail for that matter, for a chance to enjoy a new board game representation of their hometown.
Top Trumps USA Inc., a licensee of Hasbro, has announced that “Monopoly: Huntington Beach edition” is coming this fall.
The company brought iconic character Mr. Monopoly, also known as “Rich Uncle Pennybags,” to Surf City on Tuesday to help get the word out. He hung out at the pier and Pacific City during the day and strolled through the Surf City Nights street fair and farmers market as dusk approached.
Top Trumps sales representative Jennifer Tripsea said the company has been doing Monopoly city editions for nearly 25 years and has recently hit the West Coast with Palm Springs, Napa Valley and Sacramento editions.
Huntington Beach seemed like an iconic next spot to feature.
“I’ve grown up going to Huntington Beach all my life,” said Tripsea, who grew up in Rancho Cucamonga before moving to Orange County for a while. “I bought my first surfboard here at one of the stores when I was 18 years old. When we’re choosing these cities, we look for cities that are a beautiful location, as well as where there is a lot of local pride. We know Huntington Beach has tons of local pride, as well as community involvement.”
Top Trumps is also looking for community involvement to choose the Huntington Beach properties that will be on this Monopoly game board. Locals are asked to suggest locations they would like to see featured on the board by emailing huntingtonbeach@toptrumps.com by March 1.
“We want to hear what the community loves,” Tripsea said. “What are their favorite spots in this area? Where do locals go out to eat, maybe a park or an attraction? Or even, what is their favorite lifeguard tower to lay out next to? We want to hear what’s important to the community, no matter how big or how small.”
Mr. Monopoly posed with plenty of surfers and kids for social-media-worthy pictures throughout the day.
“We saw him on a skateboard earlier, so that was kind of cool,” said Brady Sweet, 20, of Anaheim. “But yeah, I think [the game] is a good idea.
His companion, Lyanh Barber, nodded.
“Main Street would make sense for one of the places, right?” she said.
The iconic location indeed would seem to make a lot of sense. Brianna JeanJacques, who lives in Seal Beach, had some other ideas as she strolled through Surf City Nights.
“The pier would be great, and the Bolsa Chica Wetlands,” she said. “I love that spot. I used to go as a kid, and they have a little conservatory there ... I think it’ll be pretty cool to see a little set that’s made of this town and what they pick as landmarks.”
Many aspects of the game, besides the property names, will remain unchanged, Tripsea said. The Chance and Community Chest cards will feature things like, “Get stuck in [Pacific Coast Highway] traffic.”
“That’s very relatable,” she said with a laugh. “I was definitely stuck in traffic earlier today.”
“Monopoly: Huntington Beach edition” is tentatively set to release in late September, she added. It will be sold at stores throughout the city, as well as on Amazon, at CVS and through the Top Trumps website.
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