HomeMy WebLinkAbout00 - Insider's GuideAugust 9, 2016
Insider's Guide
From: Kiff, Dave
Sent: Friday, August 05, 2016 10:20 AM
Subject: Insider's Guide for Tuesday, August 9, 2016
A good Friday morning to you. Here's what's on the agenda for the Newport Beach City Council meeting of Tuesday,
August 9, 2016.
More detailed Council meeting information is at the end of this e-mail, and here is a link to the full Council agenda. I
don't summarize every item on the agenda. While I know I'm too wordy, I try to pare it down to not replicate what's in
the staff report with each agenda item. So please use that link to read the materials for an agenda item that might
interest you.
The afternoon study session begins at 5:00 p.m., and the evening's regular session will begin at 7:00 p.m.
The Study Session has these two items:
® A concept proposed by US Representative Ed Royce (R -Garden Grove) that would make a new National Monument
in Orange County. The land would be essentially the same as the National Natural Landmark lands that encompass
much of the former Irvine Ranch's remaining open space land. For Newport Beach, that means Buck Gully, Upper
Newport Bay, and Crystal Cove State Park. Anyway, the concept is to change all of the land to a National Monument
to possibly give it more recognition as a resource. All open space and use protections and ownership rules would
essentially be unchanged from the current status. Where an access or parking fee isn't charged today, the
Monument status wouldn't apply a new fee. On an unrelated note to the Monument issue, I did want to let folks
know that the California Department of Fish and Wildlife is working on applying its "Lands Pass" fee program to
aspects of Upper Newport Bay — it's still hard to determine how this will play out. The City and the Newport Bay
Conservancy have expressed concerns about the Lands Pass program coming to UNB.
® We'll update the Council on our recent workshops involving Short -Term Lodgings. Many members of the
community participated in these workshops, and we expect a good number of folks to come to the meeting Tuesday
to listen in and offer their thoughts. While we have a long history of short-term lodgings in certain neighborhoods,
we also have a growing number of neighborhoods affected by these lodgings that didn't have them in years
past. And while we have a long history of protecting folks' rights to do what they wish with their properties, we also
are seeing folks upset if their formerly quiet neighborhood becomes Vacation Central while they're trying to put the
kids to bed on a school night. This is one to listen in to. The staff report is worth reading as well.
Here are some items on the evening's Regular Session agenda:
® Parking around Cd HS. We've heard from a number of residents around CcIMHS that the off -campus parking
situation was tough during the last school year. Even while there are spaces to park on campus, a good number of
students are using the surrounding streets to park. It's the residents' hope that some more parking restrictions
(such as one-hour parking with residential permits) in the neighboring streets might encourage more students to use
the existing lots. At this meeting, we'll ask the Council for permission to move forward here. Mayor pro Tem
Muldoon requested the discussion on this. I can hear Balboa Peninsula residents asking right now—"Hey, if
Eastbluff can do this, why can't we?" The answer is: the Coastal Zone. CdMHS and Eastbluff are not in the Coastal
Zone, and a residential parking permit outside the Coastal Zone does not require approval of the California Coastal
Commission.
• Part of our efforts to improve safety around schools involves more stop signs around Newport Heights Elementary,
for starters. We've asked the Council for their OK to install stop signs on Gary Place, Powell Place, Aldean Place, and
Michael Place.
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• A new streetscape plan is envisioned for the "West Newport Mesa" area (roughly the area behind Hoag
Hospital). This has been through the Planning Commission and involves Monrovia, Placentia, Superior, 15tH 16th
Production, and Hospital Road.
• For those following the oft -discussed undergrounding in Newport Heights (#114 and #114b), a Council action
Tuesday would set up the voting process and timelines.
• A property owner at 119 Grand Canal (on the Balboa Island side) has asked for a waiver of our Council Policy, so that
they can build a raised patio and keep a fence next to the sidewalk in the public right-of-way.
• The City Arts Commission has asked the Council to authorize the start of Phases III and IV of the rotational Sculpture
Garden in the Civic Center Park. The intent of this 20 -piece public art project has been to have art "on loan" for 2
years, with 10 pieces rotating out every year and 10 new ones taking their place. The Council's recent questions
about this have primarily been about funding (public v. private v. a combination) and appropriate public involvement
in sculpture selection.
• There is an item that the Council discussed briefly last meeting that would formalize a Charter Amendment for the
November 2016 ballot. The measure would relate to tax increases and majority voter approval for issuances of
Certificates of Participation (COPS) and related Lease Revenue bonds (if the COP/Lease Revenue Bond issuance is
$10M or more). Additionally, placing a COP, a Lease Revenue bond, or any tax increase before the community's
voters would require a supermajority of the City Council to do so (in Newport Beach's case, 5 of 7).
Some notes:
• This is the only Insider's Guide for the month, as the Council only holds one meeting in August. So between now and
September 9th (the Friday before the next Council meeting), a lot happens in town. Like warm sticky weather,
summer ending and many families headed back to school. I hope that your August and early September is a safe
one regardless of if/where you travel. The upside of the end of summer is that traffic might get a little more
peaceful. The downside is that various construction efforts that took the summer off to mitigate traffic issues can
(and will) start up again. But (ahem, unless you live on Little Balboa Island or are in Cameo Shores - O) there will be
nothing like the last couple of years and the impacts to Mariners Mile, Dover, and Newport Boulevard. Remember
that we regularly notify you about upcoming traffic impacts here — and you can sign up for regular emails about
it.
• To see details about upcoming Council Candidate Forums (at least the ones we know about), click here.
• The remaining Concerts on the Green for 2016 (all concerts are held at the Civic Green here at the Civic Center) are:
o Newport Beach and Pacific Symphony's "Symphony in the Cities" - Sunday, August 14, 5:30-8:30 p.m. (with
musical activities for children at 5:30 p.m. and concert beginning at 7 p.m.)
o A Fleetwood Mac cover band — "Rumours" -Sunday, August 21, 6-7:30 p.m.; and
o The Springsteen Experience, Sunday, September 11, 6-7:30 p.m.
As always, thanks for reading. Feel free to forward this e-mail 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.Rov
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 (Channels 3/31) or 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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