City taking public comments on historic church site

The Huntington Beach Planning and Building Department is taking public comments until the end of September about a plan to demolish a group of historic Japanese church buildings.

Two documents, a notice of preparation and an initial study, are available for viewing through Sept. 30. The initial study concludes that the project requires a focused environmental impact report addressing the demolition’s impacts on historic resources and land use and planning issues, Senior Planner Ricky Ramos said.

The documents are available for viewing at the Planning and Building Department on the third floor and in the city clerk’s office on the second floor of City Hall at 2000 Main St.; at the Huntington Beach Central Library at 7111 Talbert Ave.; and online at https://www.huntingtonbeachca.gov/government/departments/planning/environmentalreports.cfmhttps://www.huntingtonbeachca.gov/government/departments/planning/environmentalreports.cfm.

The 3.7-acre property, which the Orange County Historical Society has called the most important Asian American extant site in the county, contains the former Wintersburg Japanese Presbyterian Church along with a historic house, mission and minister’s quarters. Rainbow Disposal, a Huntington Beach trash collection company, has owned the property since 2004.

Comments may be submitted to Ramos at P.O. Box 190, Huntington Beach, 92648 or rramos@surfcity-hb.org.

—Michael Miller