With Centennial Committee in debt, council calls off carnival
The Manhattan Beach City Council decided on Tuesday to scrap the centennial carnival, which would have included a Ferris wheel, merry-go-round and an antique car show, and would have cost the city up to $80,000. “I cannot support this carnival idea,” Councilmember David Lesser said. “The parade was a perfect community event. There’s no need to try and supplement it. That was the climax of the celebration.” The carnival was originally intended to replace the ticketed Centennial Beach Ball, the logistics of which had divided the community and the council, with some residents calling it an “elitist affair.” Council members Nick Tell and Richard Montgomery, the two who initially headed the Centennial Committee and were proponents of the beach ball, were absent from Tuesday’s meeting, leaving Mayor Wayne Powell and Council members David Lesser and Amy Howorth to make the final decision. In May, Howorth replaced Montgomery on the committee. During a four-and-a-half hour April 30 meeting, the council had decided to cancel the contentious beach gala and instead host a more inclusive event – which was later dubbed the carnival – the scope of which would be contingent on the funds remaining…
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