Tower Zero finds new home

Kenneth Ma

HUNTINGTON BEACH--A large crowd gathered at the pier Friday to watch a

Huntington Beach landmark be carted away. The old Tower Zero was moved by

flatbed truck to its new home at the American Legion Hall on Beach

Boulevard in Midway City.

The 40-year-old tower was replaced in May by a state-of-the-art

facility, complete with bathrooms, an emergency telephone, a first-aid

room, central air conditioner and heater, bigger windows, surveillance

cameras and a museum displaying sand from around the world.

Lifeguards moved into the new tower two weeks ago.

For the relocation last week, a giant crane hoisted a dangling portion

of the tower onto the truck in a slow, meticulous operation, as people in

the crowd snapped photographs.

“We are happy to see [the tower] go before the Fourth of July,”

Huntington Beach resident Monika Hennig said. “It has become an eyesore

even though it is nostalgic. It’s time.”

Resident and surfer Wally Harvel said he has many fond memories of

Tower Zero, as well as the people who manned it.

“There are lots of different stories behind [the tower],” Harvel said.

The tower “is a part of everybody. It’s gone, and we won’t see it again.”

Duane Wentworth, a city public works inspector, said that between its

lack of restrooms, plus the termites and rotting wood frame, the tower

was not in good condition.

Wentworth said the new $270,000 facility is not only more comfortable,

with its air-conditioning and indoor plumbing, it also offers lifeguards

better visibility.

“I think the new tower improves the image of Huntington Beach,” said

Harmann Hennig, who goes to the pier daily with his wife, Monika.

But Harvel believes the city is selling out by getting rid of the old

tower.

“I don’t think they should be selling to a private owner,” Harvel

said. “It has been here all those years. We’ve grown up with it.”

The old tower will be restored to its original state and placed on

display, said Pete Carolan, a former seasonal Huntington Beach lifeguard

who purchased the tower. Carolan hopes to have it complete by the end of

the year.

Money to refurbish the tower is coming from Carolan and the American

Legion.

The old tower will be renamed in honor of Vincent G. Morehouse, a

former Huntington Beach lifeguard chief, Carolan said.