HomeMy WebLinkAbout00 - Insider's GuideRecieved After Agenda Printed
July 11, 2017
Insider's Guide
Subject: FW: Newport Beach Insider's Guide - Tuesday, July 11, 2017
Hello Neighbors —
I hope you have a good summer weekend planned with lots of sun but equal amounts of hydration and
sunscreen. Should be a busy one in town given the nice weather.
Here's what's in store for the Newport Beach City Council meeting planned for Tuesday, July 11, 2017. It
again may be a short meeting. Remember that I don't summarize every item on the agenda, so make sure you
look at the City Clerk's agenda page to read the whole agenda if you'd like.
There is no study session. Therefore, the Council meeting will start at 6:00 p.m. for a brief presentation to
"Fast Eddie" (of Fast Eddie's Barbershop fame in CdM) on his 50th Anniversary of fast
haircuts. Congratulations, Eddie! I would still go there like I did 20 years ago if I still had hair. No, I'm not
bitter about that. Not at all. Really. What makes you think I'm bitter?
Following a few closed session items, the evening's Regular Session will start at 7:00 p.m. I basically have
almost nothing to call out of any interest (!). Maybe except for one item. Each year, the Council allocates a
certain amount of funding for various special events — like the Christmas Boat Parade, the Newport to
Ensenada race, and more. We have a long history of providing some City funding to these events, in the range
of about $300,000 per year. In some cases, the City Council grants enough funds to cover City support and
fees for the event. In other cases, we propose giving a bit more or a bit less. Generally, the event needs to
have a specific public benefit to the Newport Beach community or local economy or both. The staff report for
this item is here.
While it might be a light Council night, a few community notes are in order:
• The Balboa Trolley is going strong and had a gangbuster weekend as well as on Tuesday, July
4. Remember that you can park off of Hoag Drive for free and ride the Trolley from there to the Balboa
Village (and back) free of charge every Saturday and Sunday all the way through Labor Day (including that
Monday).
• Our first Concert on the Green is this coming Sunday, July 9th from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Come early and
bring dinner (though food trucks will be onsite) and beach chairs and/or blankets, but no alcohol
please. First up in the 4 -concert series sponsored by the City Arts Commission is Flashback Heart Attack,
which I first thought was a Heart cover band. But no, they're much more than that — it's all about the
80s. Sidebar: Remember Ryan Gosling in La La Land when he says to Emma Stone, .... requesting 'I Ran'
from a serious musician, it's just, it's too far. So - someone please request "I Ran" - I will be cheering you
on. An important warning: An 80s band to start off the Concerts on the Green means one thing — kids,
your parents are going to embarrass you. In public.
• Our second one is the following Sunday, July 16th. It's the Pacific Symphony's return to the Green after a
great performance last year. The show starts at 5:30 p.m. with a kids' element then the full Symphony's
concert starts at 7:00 p.m. and ends by 8:30 p.m. Again, buy food from the food trucks or bring your
own. No alcohol here either. More information is here.
• 1 am pleased (and thankful) to report that the City's endeavor to provide a stronger customer -service
experience on the Harbor seems to be going pretty well thus far. This began on July 1 under the good
leadership of Harbormaster Dennis Durgan — nothing like jumping right in on a weekend in the middle of
summer. But we did it, and Dennis and his crew did it (in part because that's also the start of the Fiscal
Year). For more information about this change, please look here. And remember to offer a wave or a
friendly hello to the folks in the vessels called Harbormaster 1, 2, or 3 as you see them on the water.
That's it for now. Please keep enjoying summer in Newport Beach (why would you be anywhere else?), and
thanks for reading. Please forward this Guide to family, friends and members of your HOA if you represent
one. I always like hearing from you, too, so please don't hesitate to ask a question or offer a comment.
Sincerely,
Dave Kiff
City Manager
dkiff@newportbeachca.gov
949-644-3001
City Council Meeting Information: The Newport Beach City Council meets on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of most
months (the exceptions are August and December). Typically, there is a Study Session that starts at 4:00
p.m. Study sessions are times for the Council to take a deeper look at a specific issue, or hear a presentation,
that might eventually lead to a specific and more formal action. A closed session often follows the Study
Session. Closed sessions are typically to address legal, personnel, and other matters where additional
confidentiality is important. The Regular (evening) Session typically starts at 7:00 p.m., and often has a
specific listing of 20-40 different items ready for formal votes. Items on the "Consent Calendar" are heard all
at once, unless a Council member has removed (aka "pulled") an item from the Consent Calendar for specific
discussion and separate vote. If an item on the agenda is recommended to be "continued", it means that the
item won't be heard nor voted on that evening, but will be pushed forward to another noticed meeting.
Public Comment is welcomed at both the Study Session and the Regular Session. The public can comment on
any item on the agenda. If you want to comment on a Consent Calendar item that was not pulled from the
Consent Calendar by a Council Member, you will want to do so at the time listed on the agenda — right before
the Council votes on the entire Consent Calendar (it's Roman Numeral XIII on the posted agenda). If an item is
pulled, the Mayor will offer that members of the public can comment as that specific item is heard
separately. Additionally, there is a specific section of Public Comment for items not on the agenda, but on a
subject of some relationship to the city government. If you cannot attend a meeting and/or want to
communicate with the City Council directly, this e-mail gets to all of
them: CityCouncil@newportbeachca.gov. Please know that I get a copy of that e-mail, too, because in almost
all cases it's something that the City Manager follows -up on. It's my head -start.
The Council meets in the Council Chambers at 100 Civic Center Drive, off of Avocado between San Miguel and
East Coast Highway. There is plenty of parking in the parking structure behind City Hall. You are always
welcome to attend in person, but you can also watch on TV Time Warner/ Spectrum 3 and Cox Channel 852 or
stream it on your computer.
This Insider's Guide is not an attempt to summarize every item on the Agenda —just the ones that seem of
specific interest to Dave. I encourage you to read the full agenda if you wish.
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