Annexation

A hearing on the annexation of Sunset Beach is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Aug. 8 in Orange County Superior Court, a court spokeswoman said. The Citizen's Assn. of Sunset Beach sued Huntington Beach and the Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission in December to stop the annexation from moving forward. The residents wanted the commission to either deny the city's application to annex Sunset Beach or hold an election to give the residents a say on whether they were willing to pay new taxes when their community becomes part of Huntington Beach.

An appellate court has rejected an appeal by a Sunset Beach residents' group of the coastal area's annexation by Huntington Beach, shooting down the group's argument that Sunset residents should not be forced to pay the same taxes as the rest of the city. The ruling, signed by three judges from the 4th District Court of Appeal, was issued Friday. The Citizen's Assn. of Sunset Beach filed a lawsuit in December 2010 demanding that the city and county negate the annexation or hold it until Sunset residents could vote on an added utility tax and retirement property tax. Orange County Superior Court Judge Frederick P. Horn ruled against the lawsuit in August, and Sunset has been part of Huntington ever since.

The county has made its final approvals to prepare for Huntington Beach's impending absorption of Sunset Beach. The Orange County Board of Supervisors on Nov. 23 approved a pre-annexation agreement with the city over the small beach community. The Huntington Beach City Council approved the agreement Nov. 15. The annexation now needs one final approval from the Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission, or LAFCO. The county agency can't deny Huntington's annexation application, only add terms or conditions, LAFCO officials have said.

A Sunset Beach citizens group has filed a lawsuit against Huntington Beach and a county commission, demanding that the city and county either negate the recent annexation of Sunset Beach or require a vote among the community's residents in favor of paying new taxes. The Citizen's Assn. of Sunset Beach, a nonprofit that formed in July to oppose the annexation, filed the lawsuit Thursday in Orange County Superior Court. The association seeks a court order directing the Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission to reject the annexation or require a favorable vote on taxes; another court order the group wants would direct the city to revise its application to annex Sunset or to hold an election on the tax issue.

Recent comments in the Independent by Jack Markovitz of the Citizen's Assn. of Sunset Beach give the impression that most of the residents of Sunset Beach are opposed to being annexed by Huntington Beach ( "Sunset annexation hearing postponed," March 3). Let me point out some important facts. What are the motivations of those opposing annexation? 1. Economic: Many property owners rent out their properties on a weekly basis, especially in the summer. Very often, the renters invite their friends to large parties right next to homes inhabited by families with children.

Stuck between John Wayne Airport and the cities of Costa Mesa and Newport Beach, Loren Olson is tired of having a Santa Ana ZIP Code. He and many of his neighbors in unincorporated West Santa Ana Heights wish officials would work things out, so their properties can be annexed to one of the two cities, preferably Newport Beach. "I would rather be annexed at some point soon by either [city] than remain in an unincorporated part of the county," Olson said.

Sunset Beach, the community slated for possible annexation by the city of Huntington Beach, will remain an independent entity unless the community or either of its neighboring cities files an application to the county, an official with the Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission said. Earlier this month, the commission voted to place Sunset Beach under Huntington’s sphere of influence, which is a prerequisite for a city annexing a community. However, according to Carolyn Emery, the commission’s senior project manager, the process of annexation can’t begin unless Huntington, Sunset Beach or Seal Beach makes the first move.

Kenneth Ma HUNTINGTON BEACH -- The city has hired a consulting firm to help it decide if it should annex an unincorporated part of the Bolsa Chica. Shea Homes is hoping to develop 27 single-family homes on the five-acre lot, part of a 50-acre, 208-home development the company has in the works. The proposed development is bordered by Graham Street and Kenilworth Drive. Last week, the City Council voted unanimously to pay McKinley, Nielsen and Associate Consulting of San Diego $22,375 to prepare a report comparing the city's cost analysis of the annexation with Shea's report.

Sunset Beach, the community slated for possible annexation by its neighbors, has been a burning issue for the last few weeks. And now there’s a new kind of smoke involved. Residents and city officials are puzzling over the fate of the West County Patient Collective Assn., a medical marijuana dispensary in Sunset Beach that opened in June. Huntington Beach and Seal Beach, the cities that stand to possibly annex the seaside community, do not permit medical marijuana, and trying to sort out the legalities of the dispensary if annexation takes place could be, well, a drag.

The Huntington Beach City Council gave city staff the green light Monday to update its report on the possible annexation of the remaining portions of the Bolsa Chica Wetlands and uplands. In a 5-1 vote, with Councilman Dave Sullivan dissenting and Councilman Jim Katapodis absent, the city agreed to spend around $5,000 to update the study. "We have a huge pension problem over our head. The magnitude is going to be massive," Sullivan said. "We cannot afford to take this on. It's protected by government agencies.

An appellate court has rejected an appeal by a Sunset Beach residents' group of the coastal area's annexation by Huntington Beach, shooting down the group's argument that Sunset residents should not be forced to pay the same taxes as the rest of the city. The ruling, signed by three judges from the 4th District Court of Appeal, was issued Friday. The Citizen's Assn. of Sunset Beach filed a lawsuit in December 2010 demanding that the city and county negate the annexation or hold it until Sunset residents could vote on an added utility tax and retirement property tax. Orange County Superior Court Judge Frederick P. Horn ruled against the lawsuit in August, and Sunset has been part of Huntington ever since.

Stacy Londo can see the annexation of Sunset Beach through two sets of eyes. One is that of a concerned resident who wants to preserve the pace of life in her tranquil seaside neighborhood. The other is a child's. Londo, who has lived in Sunset for 13 years, shares some of her neighbors' wariness about the area's August annexation by Huntington Beach. Like them, she worries that the long-unincorporated strip of Orange County will lose its offbeat vibe, and that the city may implement parking meters and other changes.

The Sunset Beach Community Assn., which has served for years as Sunset Beach's de facto governing board, has announced its candidates for this year's election. Scot Dodson, Rooney Daschbach, Michael Lyon, Caroline Caslin, Larry Crandall, Anthony Nobles and Debbie Culling have entered the running, according to Phyllis Maywhort, chair of the association's nominating committee. Crandall is not the Fountain Valley councilman of the same name. All candidates are running to be board members and will serve two-year terms if elected.

Sunset Beach recently became a part of Huntington Beach. As supervisor for the 2nd District, which includes Sunset Beach, and as chairman of the Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO), which governs the annexation of territory to cities, I have long supported annexation. I knew that in the long-term, the county would not be able to afford to provide the level of municipal services Sunset Beach residents enjoy. This process was controversial. Sunset Beach residents have a long history of independence and a passionate desire to protect the charm and character of their coastal community of nearly 1,000.

A political watchdog group has joined forces with the Citizen's Assn. of Sunset Beach in its appeal of a recent court decision regarding the community's annexation to Huntington Beach. The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn., which formed in 1978 to defend taxpayers' rights, plans to prepare the briefs and oral arguments for the association's appeal of Orange County Superior Court Judge Frederick P. Horn's August decision to allow Huntington to annex the neighboring seaside community.

Sunset Beach residents might notice quicker responses and more police presence in their community than in the past. That's because the Huntington Beach Police Department is now serving Sunset's residents. The switch from the Orange County Sheriff's Department, which previously had jurisdiction over the area, took place Aug. 29, which is the official day Sunset became part of Huntington, said Huntington police Lt. Russell Reinhart Before the annexation, a deputy from the Sheriff's Department used to patrol the area along with Rossmoor, an unincorporated area north of Sunset adjacent to Los Alamitos and Seal Beach.

Sunset Beach is now officially part of Huntington Beach, a spokesman for a county commission said Monday. Benjamin Legbandt, a policy analyst for the Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission, said his group had filed paperwork with the county earlier in the day. The state will have to approve the paperwork as well, but Legbandt called that an administrative formality and said the annexation can be considered complete. Orange County Superior Court Judge Frederick P. Horn ruled Thursday against the petition by the Citizen's Assn.

The fate of Huntington Beach's annexation of Sunset Beach is in the hands of a judge after attorneys for the city, a county commission and a residents' group squared off in court Thursday. Orange County Superior Court Judge Frederick P. Horn promised to come back with a ruling after hearing arguments for and against the annexation of the seaside community. Horn did not give a time frame for when he would make his decision. At the hearing, an attorney for the Citizen's Assn.

Recent comments in the Independent by Jack Markovitz of the Citizen's Assn. of Sunset Beach give the impression that most of the residents of Sunset Beach are opposed to being annexed by Huntington Beach ( "Sunset annexation hearing postponed," March 3). Let me point out some important facts. What are the motivations of those opposing annexation? 1. Economic: Many property owners rent out their properties on a weekly basis, especially in the summer. Very often, the renters invite their friends to large parties right next to homes inhabited by families with children.