San Clemente to Oppose Outlawing Fire Rings

The city of San Clemente will strongly oppose the South Coast Air Quality Management District's proposal to ban beach fire rings in Orange and Los Angeles counties.

San Clemente City Councilman Tim Brown was appointed to represent the city at the district's May 3 meeting in Diamond Bar. He railed against the proposal at the San Clemente Council meeting Tuesday.

"We should be taking a very strong stand against this," Brown said. "This will have a profound effect. I think this is absolutely bureaucratic overreach. I think this is exactly what's wrong with the State of California. I think our residents deserve more than this."

The rest of the council unanimously supported him and plans to craft a letter to the district.

San Clemente's Brown will join Huntington Beach officials arguing against Newport Beach officials, who want to rid beaches of the fire pits.

The agency oversees all of Orange County and most of Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, so if the district board in May upholds the staff's recommendation, fire pits throughout Orange County and most beaches in Los Angeles County would be outlawed.

Earlier this month, the California Coastal Commission postponed a decision on Newport Beach's request to remove fire pits from the city's beaches because that agency wanted to wait for feedback from the AQMD.

Huntington Beach Chamber of Commerce officials say the city would lose $1 million annually in parking income if fire pits are banned.

Huntington Beach Mayor Connie Boardman sent a letter to the AQMD last week opposing the proposed ban on fire pits.

"The city of Huntington Beach receives more than 11 million visitors annually," Boardman said. "While not all of those visitors participate in recreational fires on our beach areas, a large majority visit our beaches solely for that purpose. We estimate that these visitors generate more than $1 million annually in revenue through parking fees, sales tax from local shopping and transient occupancy tax from overnight stays."

The city, which has offered fire rings for six decades, has more than any other beach city in Orange and Los Angeles counties, Boardman said.

"The concept of a warm open fire evokes a sense of family and special memories for many generations," Boardman said in the letter. "A few years ago, as a way to reduce maintenance costs at the beach, the city considered removing some of the fire rings. Our residents were outraged. The proposal was dropped."

Newport Beach officials contend the fire pits pose a health hazard for beachgoers and neighbors. The AQMD staff agrees.

There are no homes near Huntington Beach's fire rings, Boardman said.

-City News Service Contributed to this report.

Correction: Because of a reporting error, the date of the AQMD meeting was mistaken in an earlier version of this article. Patch regrets the error.