Could 800 homes be headed for this coastal stretch of Huntington Beach?

Wait, undeveloped land on the O.C. coast? Yep. The strip of land along Pacific Coast Highway between Goldenwest Street and Seapoint Street, just south of the Bolsa Chica wetlands, has been dedicated to oil and gas production for close to 100 years. Now, the company that owns the land wants to redevelop it.

The bigger picture: Huntington Beach, like many Southern California coastal cities, is under state pressure to help alleviate the housing crisis by zoning for more units. The conservative beach city is fighting those mandates in court. But last year, the previous City Council — in a rare unanimous vote — approved a plan to build 250 residential units plus a hotel and retail space on another piece of former oil land near the coast.

What’s the first step? The company, California Resources Corporation, has submitted an application to the city to have the land rezoned for residential as well as commercial uses. They say that would allow them to develop up to 800 homes on the property, plus up to 350 hotel rooms, and some 23 acres of parks and open space. To move forward, they’ll have to get approval from the city’s planning commission and then the City Council. They’ll also need the city to amend its Local Coastal Program, and they’ll need approval from the California Coastal Commission.

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