SEAL BEACH : City Pier Expected to Reopen Today

With temporary repairs underway, city officials expected the municipal pier to reopen late today.

City crews and private contractors are installing wood pilings used in the reconstruction of the Huntington Beach pier to cover the area of the pier burned in a fire last Friday. The $25,000 temporary repair will mean that the damaged portion of the pier will sit about 16 inches higher than the rest of the structure, but ramps will make the elevated section easily traversed, City Manager Jerry L. Bankston said.

The fire, which burned about 75 feet of the pier’s midsection and the walls of a lifeguard tower, is believed to have been started by an electrical short in the tower. Permanent repair of the damage is expected to cost about $125,000 to $200,000, Bankston said.

Officials began discussing the possibility of making temporary repairs earlier this week so that businesses on the end of the pier--Ruby’s Diner and a bait shop--would be able to resume operations. The city is hosting a women’s volleyball tournament this weekend, and officials said the pier and its businesses are an important attraction.

Permanent repairs will not begin for another month and are expected to take up to a week, during which time the pier will be closed.