By Grace Leung, Newport Beach City Manager
Our next City Council meeting is Tuesday, February 14. Items of interest are highlighted below. The entire agenda and reports can be viewed here: https://newportbeachca.gov/Home/Components/Calendar/Event/71675/72.
A study session will begin at 4 p.m.:
- Ocean Boulevard visioning. The Council will hear a presentation on recommendations by the the Parks, Beaches and Recreation Commission regarding potential improvements to Ocean Boulevard in Corona del Mar. The recommendations include scenic vistas and lookout points connected by sidewalk from Poppy Avenue to Carnation Avenue. The Commission has requested that funds for designing the project be included in the City’s fiscal year 2023-24 Capital Improvement Budget.
The regular meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m. Agenda items include:
- Appointments to committees and commissions. The Council will consider appointing nominees for vacant seats on the Finance Committee and Planning Commission.
- A potential General Plan amendment to change the land use designation for 3014 Balboa Blvd. from commercial to residential, allowing for a new residential project. The applicant is seeking to demolish an existing commercial building, now home to Sancho’s Tacos restaurant, and build a new, two-unit residential condominium development. Approval would require amendments to the General Plan, Local Coastal Program Amendment, and the Newport Beach Municipal Code.
- A recommendation by the City Arts Commission of 10 sculptures and four alternates for the rotating exhibition in Civic Center Park. The sculptures were selected by a survey of residents. If approved, the Phase VIII sculptures will be installed in June and remain on display for two years.
- Approval of a construction contract with Hot Line Construction, Inc. for underground utility projects in West Newport Heights and on Balboa Island. Both projects, which require special assessment districts, were approved by neighborhood residents in 2021.
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 gets 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.
