HomeMy WebLinkAbout03 - Water-Propelled Vessels Prohibition - CorrespondenceReceived After Agenda Printed
February 14, 2017
Item No. 3
From: Kiff, Dave
Sent: Saturday, February 11, 2017 8:24 AM
To: City Clerk's Office
Subject: Item #3 Correspondence
For the record.
From: Mike Glenn[mailto:michael.glenn@devion.com]
Sent: Friday, February 10, 2017 11:12 PM
To: Dept - City Council<CityCouncil@newportbeachca.gov>
Subject: Test of your fundamentals
Councilpeople,
On Tuesday, you will be faced with something that may seem like a relatively benign decision: Whether or not
to ban jetpacks in the harbor.
Easy decision, right? There are no companies who are offering the service, and plenty of residents who want it
banned... simple!
Except the problem goes far deeper than this. The real question before you is whether or not you believe in the
free market. The previous vendor had to leave the city because it was being taxed an absolutely crippling
amount of money-- that was abhorrent. Will you continue the policies of the previous council in'an attempt to
take the free market systems that have been proven to work, and instead allow government officials to only
allow the services that a small few people do not complain about?
Or will you buckle down and realize that the silent majority of this great city who do not regularly complain --
that those people do not regularly complain because they are happy-- not because they are unhappy.
If the majority of the city is actually happy but only a select few show up who are upset, is it really a fair
position to destroy segments of the free market system to please a small vocal minority? Or will you listen to
the silence-- and therefore acceptance-- of the silent majority.
This is a great test of your dedication to the principals of small government.
I look forward to seeing how each of you weigh in on this, as I believe it will foreshadow future decisions by
this new council composition.
Thanks, and have a great weekend!
Iu"T
Received After Agenda Printed
February 14, 2017
Item No. 3
From: City Clerk's Office
Sent: Monday, February 13, 2017 12:46 PM
To: Mulvey, Jennifer; Rieff, Kim
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From: Kiff, Dave
Sent: Monday, February 13, 2017 12:45:29 PM (UTC -08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada)
To: City Clerk's Office
Subject: FW: Operation of Vessels Propelled by Water Above the Surface of Newport Harbor
For the record.
From: Don & Judy Cole [mailto:lagunahouse@me.com]
Sent: Monday, February 13, 2017 12:06 PM
To: Dept - City Council <CityCouncil@newportbeachca.gov>
Subject: Operation of Vessels Propelled by Water Above the Surface of Newport Harbor
Honorable Mayor and City Council Members,
We urge you to approve Ordinance No. 2017-2, An Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Newport
Beach, California, Amending Newport Beach Municipal Code Subsection 17.20.060(B) and Repealing City
Council Policy H-6 to Prohibit the Operation of Vessels Propelled by Water Above the Surface of Newport
Harbor, and pass to second reading on February 28, 2017.
The restrictions and safeguards that were put in place with the permit that was granted to Jet Pack in
2015
were not enough to mitigate the issues that adversely affect the health, safety, welfare and quiet
enjoyment of those who use, enjoy or live near the harbor. The issues remain the same:
-There is no appropriate location in our harbor.
- The footprint is too large and interferes with other harbor users.
- The operation is a hazard to the safe navigation of other vessels.
- There are safety issues related to the need for having monitoring vessels, remote control,
communication.
- There is an issue with speed control- the flyers regularly operated above the harbor speed limit.
- The Jet Pack and the monitoring vessels create wakes.
- The noise is a nuisance- to homeowners, businesses, anchored vessels, beach goers, other
harbor users.
For the benefit of some of the new council members who were not privy to our previous feedback, we
have been boat owners and operators in the harbor since college in the 70's. We have owned property
and lived on the waterfront since the mid 90's. While the harbor has seen changes, and while there is
much more recreational traffic on the water today, the great character of our harbor has remained the
same. Newport Beach isn't Las Vegas, Miami or Waikiki- and hopefully never will be. The Jet Pack
business was not successful in our harbor- not because their permit was overly restrictive or that they
were over -regulated. The fact is that water propelled vessels above the surface of the water may be
suitable in other areas, but they are not compatible within our particular harbor. We hope this time around
that it will be clearer to the Council. Please listen to the Harbor Commission recommendation and prohibit
these operations. Sincerely,
Don & Judy Cole