News: Councilwoman Nancy Gardner

city council district 6 v corona del mar & newport coast

Nancy Gardner

councilwoman v newport beach, california

newsletter: SEPTEMBER 2009

MORE BEAUTIFICATION
The CdM Business Improvement District continues to up the curb appeal of the village. Now that the medians are done (except for a few palm trees that haven’t grown tall enough to be placed), they’re taking on the light standards that line PCH, replacing the cobra heads with a fixture with more personality. Installation is scheduled for late October and is not supposed to affect drive-through traffic. However, since it doesn’t take much to slow things down, you might want to check the City’s web site for traffic information or sign up for the City's News & Alerts at www.newportbeachca.gov.

LEAF BLOWERS
I don’t think I get a more consistent subject of complaint than leaf blowers. EQAC researched the issue and was going to present a proposal a number of months ago but decided to table it while the Styrofoam ban was going forward. At September’s meeting they will re-examine the proposal, and if they move it forward Council will have an opportunity to weigh in later this year.

LOWER BUCK GULLY
Increased run-off over the years has led to some significant erosion issues in Buck Gully south of PCH, so significant it is feared that if we ever get a wet winter again (and there are rumors of an El Nino) there could be slope failures which could jeopardize houses. Staff has developed an erosion-control plan and gotten a grant to pay for the plan, but right now we’re stymied because the City needs easements across the properties on the gully to do the work, and some of the property owners won’t grant them. We have had a couple of meetings and sent packets of information to try and answer any questions from those withholding permission, but we can’t seem to make headway. If we don’t get the easements, rather than lose the grant we will shift the funds to projects in other areas and keep our fingers crossed as to Buck Gully.

COASTAL COMMISSION
Last month I joined eleven other elected representatives from coastal cities and counties for a workshop with the Coastal Commission. The goal was to see if we could come up with ways to improve the Local Coastal Plan process (having a certified LCP means residents and businesses in the coastal zone get their approvals from the City instead of the Commission). Most of the cities had the same complaints–the process is slow and quixotic, and CCC staff gets unnecessarily fixated on minutiae that doesn’t seem to have much to do with the Coastal Act. As an example from our own LCP, there was a section on low-cost visitor accommodations – absolutely relevant to the Act – but in discussing the replacement of such accommodations, the CCC specified that the required in-lieu fees shall be deposited into an interest-bearing account, to be established and managed by one of the following entities approved by the Executive Director of the Coastal Commission: City of Newport Beach, Hostelling International, California Coastal Conservancy, California Department of Parks and Recreation or a similar entity. Why go into this kind of detail, especially when the complaint is how understaffed they are (they estimate that the current furloughs are the equivalent of losing 21 people)? It’s not like cities don’t deal with special funds all the time. Anyway, we were there not to complain – at least not too much – but to explore ideas, and there were good suggestions from both sides. If they are implemented it should make the process easier for both local governments and the Commission.

CAR SHOW
Anyone who has seen my car knows I’ll never qualify as a car buff. Nevertheless, I always find the Coastline Car Classic something fun to see. This year it’s promised to be bigger and better than ever with classics from Pebble Beach (apparently the ne plus ultra of car shows), a “land rocket” that established a world-record on the Bonneville Salt Flats, beach cruisers, muscle cars, and my personal favorites, all those elegant autos from the Thirties, especially the Packards. Big Corona, 10:00am – 5:00pm, Sunday, September 13. For more info: www.cdmchamber.com.

=> Return to Newsletters

FUTURE TOPIC SUGGESTIONS

This is a two-way process, so please don’t hesitate to contact me with your ideas and opinions.

Councilwoman Nancy Gardner

QUALITY OF LIFE Advocate FOR NEWPORT BEACH

City of Newport Beach - 3300 Newport Blvd - Newport Beach, CA 92663

Phone: 949.644.3004 - EMAIL: gardnerncy@aol.com