Everybody loves a good rivalry, right? If you haven't followed the news reports of the battle between Huntington Beach and Santa Cruz over the claim to the "Surf City USA" name, here's the scoop.
Both have established use of the moniker, but the rivalry heated up when Huntington Beach applied for and was granted a federal trademark for the "Surf City USA" name. This wasn't happy news for many locals in Santa Cruz—some established businesses there use Surf City in their names—and it led city officials to consider formally challenging the ruling and to make efforts to officially trademark "Original Surf City USA."
So what's really in a name? Well, the local economies are dependent on tourism and merchandising revenue; Huntington Beach's trademark allows for the official use of "Surf City USA" on merchandise (T-shirts and more) and in advertising and marketing efforts (think tourism).
Although the suggestion of a surf competition to decide who gets ownership of the name might imply this is all much ado about nothing, think again. Lawyers, city council members, mayors, business owners, and fired up surfers are taking this North vs. South tug of war pretty seriously. Muscles were flexed when lawyers for Huntington Beach filed a cease and desist order in September against a surf shop owner in Santa Cruz for selling Surf City Santa Cruz USA T-shirts.
But does there have to be a one and only Surf City USA? For the record, both North Carolina and New Jersey have actual towns by the name "Surf City" and neither has entered the fray with objections. Could there be a compromise, with a Surf City North and Surf City South? Are TV execs looking into this for a reality TV series? Could this be the making of a major motion picture? Stay tuned.
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