Talks held on woes at center

Huntington Beach dentist Christopher Chen said he was optimistic when he took over a practice in the shopping mall at Brookhurst Street and Hamilton Avenue two years ago.

Yet when the Ralphs that anchored the shopping center moved out last summer, he noticed business dropped off and crime increased.

Now he and the nearly 200 other residents and tenants who crowded the cafeteria at Edison High School for a town hall meeting on the future of the shopping center fear a rumored 99-cent store may replace the Ralphs and contribute to the mall’s decay.

“It’s a nice neighborhood,” he said. “It would be tragic to see a discount store go in there.”

Residents and tenants said they saw drug deals in the parking lot, and they encountered graffiti all the time.

“We’ve had graffiti in back,” said Roger Hernandez, who owns a hair salon in the center. “You can’t just go outside alone at night. I’ve lost three hairdressers because they were scared to walk out there.”

City officials attending the meeting called by Councilman Don Hansen included City Administrator Penny Culbreth-Graft, Deputy City Administrator Paul Emery, Acting Director of Planning Scott Hess, and Councilman Joe Carchio.

To the frustration of many attendees, the message they heard was that government can only do so much.

“One thing the city can’t do is tell Business A to go to Location A,” Hansen said. “But we are proactively contacting other retailers to make them aware of the vacancy at the center.”

Also, the city will keep an eye on building code violations and crime in the area as a way to increase its negotiating power, officials added.

Ralphs has a 15-year lease with the option of two 5-year extensions, Emery said.

The landlord, the Ayres family, which also owns the Huntington Beach Hotel, is bound by the lease but would redevelop if it could, he said.

Though many residents said they wanted a boutique grocery store like Trader Joe’s or Bristol Farms to move in, supermarkets like Ralphs have a policy of not subleasing to potential competitors.

Other suggestions included restaurants, a tutoring center, a bookstore or a coffee shop.

The city took the public’s suggestions on potential retailers and was expected to send them to interested buyers, the Ayres family and Ralphs on Wednesday, Hansen said.

“Part of the good work here is hearing your frustration,” he said. “We care, we’re here, and we want to make it happen. Otherwise we wouldn’t be here.”