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Surf City's annexation of Sunset Beach put on hold
Sunset Beach is an unicorporated pocket of Orange County that stretches about one mile along Pacific Coast Highway and is only about three blocks wide.
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Surf City's annexation of Sunset Beach put on hold
Surf City's annexation of Sunset Beach put on hold
An Orange County Superior Court judge has temporarily halted Huntington Beach's annexation of Sunset Beach.
Judge Frederick P. Horn granted an injunction today to stop the annexation process until a lawsuit against the annexation can be heard in court.
He said there is a possibility that the Citizen's Association of Sunset Beach will prevail in their lawsuit against the annexation.
The group argues that the community has a right to vote on the annexation since Huntington Beach will charge Sunset Beach residents a city tax. Under annexation rules, if a new tax is charged, residents of the annexed area have a right to vote on annexation.
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But the judge pointed out that some of the arguments from Huntington Beach have merit, too. The city maintains that since it would apply an existing tax to the city's new borders - which includes Sunset Beach - it is not a new tax. That would mean they can move forward with "small island annexation" without a vote by the annexed area.
"Obviously, we’re very pleased with the ruling," said Citizen's Association of Sunset Beach attorney John McCarron after the hearing. "He [the judge] granted our application for a preliminary injunction, stopping the annexation from going forward until we have an opportunity to present our case in court."
No comment from the attorney for Huntington Beach, but she noted during court that she did not agree with the judge's decision.
The next hearing on the case will happen in early March.
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