Huntington Beach's cable television station might be revived this
year into a regional programming package serving four north Orange
County communities.
Representatives from the Public Cable Television Authority will
present an initial proposal during the City Council's 4 p.m. study
session Monday, examining the practicability of developing TV shows
for the cities the cable authority serves: Huntington Beach, Stanton,
Westminster and Fountain Valley.
While still in it's earliest conceptual phase, the new programming
block would air on the city's public access channel, usually used to
televise public meetings such as those of the City Council or
Planning Commission.
That could mean a resurgence for HBTV-3, the City of Huntington
Beach's public information channel that was axed during a round of
budget cuts in 2003.
Cable Authority representative Mary Morales said the details of
the new station are part of ongoing negotiations with Time Warner
centered around the renewal of the media giant's cable television
franchise agreement with those four cities.
"During those negotiations, we're going to be looking at whether
Time Warner is responding to the community needs," she said.
The new regional programming would likely draw on resources from
all four cities, as well as Time Warner's own production
capabilities. The station would also work with community colleges and
broadcasting programs to add content.
A recent survey taken by the cable authority shows a strong demand
for increased regional programming, Morales said, adding that a local
channel would encourage customers to stick with cable instead of
switching over to satellite TV.
"This would be something unique to Time Warner that Time Warner
could build on," she said.
Hotels market
Orange Coast
Ten local resorts have formed a new marketing coalition to promote
Orange County's coastline.
Named The OCeanfront, the group plans to market its luxury hotels
to high-income families throughout the Western United States. The
goal is to increase the number of affluent overnight visitors to the
county, often regarded as a sleepy suburb of Los Angeles.
"We want to create our own identity," Hyatt Regency Huntington
Beach Resort and Spa General Manager Cormac O'Modrain said.
O'Modrain's hotel, along with the Hilton Waterfront Beach Resort are
the only two Huntington Beach resorts in the coalition, which also
includes hotels from Newport Beach, Laguna Beach and Dana Point.
Three golf courses and four shopping centers, including Fashion
