This announcement came hours after the state announced a lawsuit to sue the city.

Huntington Beach has struck back. 

The city announced its own lawsuit against the state of California on March 9 regarding the number of housing units it is being forced to accommodate. The lawsuit was filed in federal court. This came just hours after California state officials announced their own plans to sue Huntington Beach over its own housing decisions. 

Huntington Beach Mayor Tony Strickland explained the state is attempting to “urbanize” the city. Strickland asserted mandating housing across affordability levels would transform Huntington Beach into something that looked more like Los Angeles or San Francisco.

“Our citizens don’t want to live in an urban coastal community,” said Strickland.

The city’s 60-page lawsuit hinges on two key arguments. First, the lawsuit points out Huntington Beach is a charter city. As a result, it claims the city has more autonomy than a typical city or town, thus making it immune to state housing laws. Secondly, the complaint asserts the mandate violates both the U.S. and state constitutions. 

It argues that if the mandate is permitted to proceed, California “will continue with an unbridled power play to control all aspects fo the City Council’s land use decisions in order to eliminate the suburban character of the city and replace it with a high-density mecca.” The suit says this crowded mecca would be attained through “forced rezoning.”

Huntington Beach City Councilman Casey McKeon blasted the mandate, saying the number of housing requested in the city was not realistic. 

“The (Regional Housing Needs Allocation) numbers are fraudulent,” he said, adding the city is not against reasonable development. “We want to be good neighbors and help housing needs.”

McKeon specifically pointed to the 8,000 units requested of San Bernardino City, which houses about the same population as Huntington Beach. Huntington Beach has been asked to allocate more than 13,000 units.  

“California is by far the most expensive state to build in,” McKeon continued. “The overreach is driving up the cost of housing. We want to work with the local economy and make the job market strong, so we can create an environment where people can live here. We want to do that through our own local economy.”

Meanwhile, Gov. Gavin Newsom and state Attorney General Rob Bonta blasted Huntington Beach officials, arguing they were violating laws intentionally.

“Huntington Beach is required to plan for 13,368 new housing units over the next eight years. They are also required to follow state housing law, just like every other place in California. They are refusing to do both of these things,” a governor’s office release said.

Will some cities lose control over housing development?

A number of cities in Orange County failed to meet the Oct. 15, 2021 deadline to have their housing element plans approved. For Orange County, the requirement to update comes every eight years and is part of the General Plan of the jurisdiction.

The state requires cities to have housing element plans that show how the city will plan for the future housing needs of its community. They should include plans for increased population, affordable housing for lower income brackets, and mixed-use housing options among other elements.

The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) which includes the counties of Imperial, Ventura, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Orange, was directed by the state Department of Housing and Community Development, to provide over 1.3 million new housing units between 2021 to 2029, of those, Orange County is required to build 10,406 units.

Sixty percent of Orange County’s cities failed to have an approved housing element plan by the deadline. Several cities submitted plans but had them repeatedly rejected by the state.

Although there is a grace period of 120 days after the deadline, that time has expired. The consequences for non-compliance vary. A city may be given a shorter period of time to develop residential zoning, the state can take legal action after giving warnings, the city can lose funding grants for housing development or the city can be subject to a builder’s remedy.

Under the builder’s remedy, housing developers get the greenlight to construct housing for moderate-income households or build dwellings that cater for low income families with twenty percent of the units designated as such. The builder gets the option to forego the city’s zoning and general plan as well.

Last year Santa Monica failed to get a state approved housing plan. Developers saw an opportunity to bypass a lengthy process of approvals and took it. Santa Monica City Council was caught off guard by the number of builder’s remedy applications which do not need city council approval to move forward. Fourteen Projects amounting to about 5,000 new units are making their way through the automatic approval process as a result.

The Orange County cities that met the deadline and have implemented their housing element plans are: Brea, Cypress, Dana Point, Fountain Valley, Irvine, Newport Beach, Rancho Santa Margarita, San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano, Santa Ana, Stanton, Tustin, and Yorba Linda.

A brief overview of the concerns of candidates running for Huntington Beach City Council.

Huntington Beach City Council seats seven members. Four seats are up for elections on Nov. 8 and eighteen candidates are running to fill those seats. When elected they will join Dan Kalmick, Natalie Moser and Rhonda Bolton on the council.

The candidates on the ballot span ages  22 to 75. Here’s their perspective on the city’s issues.

Gabrielle Samiy – The 22 year old Huntington Beach native said her top focus if elected would be homelessness and crime. She’s currently a student at Orange Coast College, and noted to the Daily Pilot that the city is “facing a homelessness crisis like never before.” She also noted an extreme lack of transparency on the current city council, vowing to be a “bridge of communication” to constituents.

Samiy noted that while her political experience may be limited due to her age, she has always risen to the occasion when it comes to being a leader. 

Amory Hanson  – He is one of the youngest to be elected by the city council to serve Huntington Beach. The 25 year old was nominated to Huntington Beach’s Historic Resources Board in 2021. If elected he would like to see more done to make mobile homes affordable. Park Maintenance and pollution are also on his list of priorities if elected as a councilmember. 

Oscar Rodriguez  – Growing up in the working-class Oak View neighborhood has taught this 28 year old the power of advocacy.  If elected his top priority is public safety. 

“I support all efforts focused on recruitment and retention of staff, advance disaster training and community preparedness, enhance and modernize our systems and equipment, and ensure adequate funding for all elements of our public safety services.”  Oscar supports the effort to update the City Charter to reflect evolving priorities and business operations. The 28 year old would like to see the efforts to address homelessness continue. “Addressing homelessness is a complex yet very human challenge.”

Brian Burley – Twenty-nine year old Burley holds a Master’s in Public Policy from USC. “I am running for the City Council because my passion in life is public service and that passion belongs here in Huntington Beach… I am running on a Pro-Public Safety, Pro-Fiscal Responsibility, and Pro-Business platform. This is a platform that everyone in our community can rally behind and I will bring our community together to solve the issues we currently face.”

David Clifford  – With the pressure to produce 13,000 new housing units in Huntington Beach, wild spaces may be under threat, and high rise housing would have to be built. “I will represent the people who do not want irresponsible development and fight to preserve Huntington Beach,” the 38 year old stated. Transparency is another big issue for Clifford.  “I am pro renewables and sustainability, however under no circumstance should citizens be forced into a new power supplier with the onus to opt-out on them. I understand the importance of integrity and transparency required for an elected official and will bring these ideals to City Hall.” 

Vera Fair – Fair is concerned about personal property thefts in Huntington Beach. She’d like to do more about auto break-ins, stolen bicycles and theft of deliveries from home porches. “I care about public safety and infrastructure maintenance.” The 43 year old resident is also concerned about homelessness and high density development and the impacts they have on her community. 

Casey McKeon – As a third generation Huntington Beach resident, 44 year old McKeon puts the preservation of Huntington Beach’s local control as a charter City at the top of his list. “We know what’s right for our City, what issues we face. It is up to us to decide how we fix our problems, not a one size fits all directive from Sacramento. Let’s maintain that the City is locally run by Huntington Beach residents that are invested in the well being of the community, not outside special interest groups.” When it comes to the homeless, McKeon would like to see collaboration among the community, church and city to address the root of the problem.  Transparency is important as well. “All government activities need to be out in the open and not done in Closed Session through Ad Hoc Committees.”

Gracey Van Der Mark  – The daughter of immigrants who came to America in search of a better life, the 48 year old is grateful for the Huntington Beach community she calls home. Having seen the disparity in education, from what she received, to those of her children growing and thriving in Huntington Beach, Van Der Mark knows the protection of the city charter is most important and instrumental in securing an improved quality of life. The rise in crime is another area she’d like to focus on if elected. Public Safety against petty theft, burglaries and other crimes is increasing in Huntington Beach.

Bobby Britton –  A 33 year military veteran, Britton sees growth and development as the most pressing issue facing Huntington Beach. “Before we build anymore high density housing, we need to ensure we have the infrastructure in place to support it; Police/Fire, medical services, mass transit, parking, and location, location location.” The 51 year old, would like to create a regional, comprehensive plan to address homelessness. Support for First Responders is high on his advocacy list. “ Maintaining the high standards and ethics displayed by our Police Department, ensuring they have the resources for personnel and equipment,” are areas he would focus on.

Gina Clayton-Tarvon – A teacher for 25 years, Clayton-Tarvon states public safety as her number one priority. “Emergencies come down to seconds, and we need experienced, well trained public safety officers in a time of emergency or crisis.” She would like to see the Green Leafy Tree Canopy Initiative enacted which requires that old trees be preserved on school sites while new trees are added to every modernized school.

Jill Hardy  – Hardy, 51, has served sixteen years as a Huntington Beach City Councilmember and was Mayor in 2005 and 2015. If elected she would like to preserve open spaces. “As the city grows, it is important to make sure that the character and culture is preserved.” Homelessness is another issue she would address, “Helping the homeless will ease the burden on many other priorities, such as public safety, infrastructure and the environment.” Increased citizen participation is a social aspect she’d emphasize. “I want to bring back some of the opportunities lost during COVID and increase citizen participation among all ages.”

Tony Strickland  – Currently the Vice-Chair of the Huntington Beach Finance Commission, Strickland is a former State Assemblyman and State Senator. Strickland 52, believes we can start addressing homelessness by using the Navigation Center to its fullest potential and “find regional solutions for any further needed capacity, and allow HBPD to take back our parks, streets and schools. Strickland would ensure Police and Fire Departments are fully funded as part of his push for prioritizing public safety.

William O’Connell – A former police officer, O’Connell puts public safety as his number one priority.  Expanding a uniformed presence and rebuilding specialized service are part of his plan on safety.  The 56 year old “Billy” would advocate for business development by encouraging more public/private partnerships and streamlining the permit processes. Beaches, parks and wetlands and their protection is important to Strickland as well.

Mike Volger – Volger has served as Captain – Judge Advocate in the California State Guard. Vulgar, 57, states “I’m troubled by the top-down approach coming from Sacramento that overrides local control. I am running for City Council to create common ground where every member of our community works together to solve the city’s most pressing problems. I am committed to preserving the unique character of our community, fully funding public safety, protecting our environment, and maintaining City government’s financial sustainability. Real local leadership is about service. With the help of all our residents, I will work to deliver common sense solutions to the issues faced by Huntington Beach.” 

Pat Burns – Council integrity and city autonomy are important to Burns. “Our current council majority undermined the ability of our City Attorney to fight the state’s overreach and violation of our City Charter to protect local control and zoning and fight High Density Development.  In my experience as Police Officer, Sergeant and Lieutenant in the City of Long Beach, I have seen first-hand the damage to quality of life, increased crime, traffic and parking issues when family neighborhoods are replaced with High Density Development.” The 60 year old is a retired police lieutenant.

Jeffrey Hansler  – As councilmember Hansler wants to prepare for the future. This means addressing the city’s unfunded liabilities. Hansler would promote improvements in infrastructure, technologies, social issues, and natural resources and preserve open spaces to ensure safety. “Once removed from the public it is gone forever,” the 65 year old commented.

Kenneth Inouye – A retired CPA, 75 year old Inouye would organize a city-wide task force to bring about a comprehensive, affordable housing plan for Huntington Beach, and use his forty-five years of experience as a CPA to create a cash flow projection that can determine Huntington Beach’s financial stability over a long period of time. He would also like to analyze ways to minimize the potential impact of earthquakes and liquefaction on Huntington Beach properties.