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Council reverses December votes

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The Huntington Beach City Council reversed two December votes at its meeting Tuesday.

The council voted 6-0, with Jill Hardy absent, to reverse the Dec. 3 and 17 votes to review Pacific Mobile Home Park’s previously approved conversion application and direct City Attorney Jennifer McGrath to appeal the contempt charges the city was facing for those votes.

Representatives from the city and Pacific Mobile have agreed to meet before Orange County Superior Court Judge Luis Rodriguez on Feb. 8 to discuss the charges.

The city is accused of breaking a Dec. 10 court order that prohibited it from reconsidering the Pacific Mobile Home Park’s application. The council ultimately approved the application Nov. 19, but a newly seated council voted in December to review the application.

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“The city did not intentionally disregard or refuse in any way to follow a court order,” McGrath wrote in a statement last week. “Unfortunately, in attempting to cure, the city is now faced with this allegation.”

Pacific Mobile’s owners first submitted its application to convert the land at Huntington Street and Atlanta Avenue from rentals to for-sale property in April 2011. The council denied the application in June 2011, saying the conversion was partially on city land.

Rodriguez ruled July 3 that the city could not deny the application merely because some of the coaches were on city property.

Pacific Mobile attorney Mark Alpert argued to the court that the council’s Dec. 3 vote violated that ruling.

Rodriguez agreed with Alpert’s argument and issued a court order Dec. 10 barring the council from reconsidering the application. However, the council voted Dec. 17 to reaffirm its Dec. 3 vote, a violation of the court order, Alpert argued.

The Dec. 3 and 17 votes were 6-1 with Councilman Matthew Harper dissenting.

Council members did not return phone calls by press time.

anthonyclark.carpio@latimes.com

Twitter: @acocarpio

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