By Grace Leung, Newport Beach City Manager
Our next City Council meeting is Tuesday, June 14. Items of interest are highlighted below. The entire agenda and reports can be viewed here: https://www.newportbeachca.gov/Home/Components/Calendar/Event/68239/72?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery.
A study session will begin at 4 p.m. Agenda items include:
- Wildland Fire Mitigation Overview. Newport Beach Fire Department staff will review the department’s ongoing efforts to educate homeowners on fire prevention, including vegetation management, protecting homes and reducing the threat from airborne embers.
The regular session begins at 5 p.m. Agenda items include:
- Community Programs and Special Events Grants. The Council will consider a staff recommendation to award $55,200 in community programs grants to 12 organizations and $300,000 in special events grants to support 23 events. The proposed recipients include homeless service groups, ocean conservation nonprofits, museums and historical societies, community events such as the Balboa Island Parade, and large signature events such as the Newport Beach Film Festival and Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade.
- A public hearing on the Fiscal Year 2022-23 Budget. The Council will hear public comment before considering adoption of the City’s proposed annual budget and capital improvement program. The recommended budget is balanced with a strong projected surplus of revenues over expenses. The budget enhances funding for building replacement and maintenance and increases the speed of the City’s paydown of unfunded liabilities. The total operating budget is expected to be $331 million, with a record additional $71 million in funding for capital projects. Access the budget documents here: https://ecms.newportbeachca.gov/Web/0/edoc/2818594/FY%202022-23%20Proposed%20Operating%20Budget.pdf?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery.
City Council Meeting Information
The Newport Beach City Council meets on the second and fourth Tuesdays of most months (the exceptions are August and December). Typically, there is a Study Session that starts at 4 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 6 p.m., and often has a specific listing of 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.
The City Manager also get’s a copy of the email, because in almost all cases it’s something that the City Manager follows-up on.
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. You are always welcome to attend in person, but you can also watch on TV, Spectrum channel 30 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 the City Manager. You are encouraged to read the full agenda if you wish.
