City Council - Regular Meeting

Good afternoon. The time is now for a one and I will call the April 28 2026 regular City Council meeting to order. Madam clerk will call please.

All council members present.

Now is the time for the indication that will be led by Natalie miss spiritual assembly. Newport Beach and following that Councilmember grant will lead us in the pledge of allegiance.

O thou kind Lord, this gathering is turning to thee. These hearts are radiant with thy love. These minds and spirits are exhilarated by thy message of thy glad tidings. O God, let this American democracy become glorious in the spiritual degrees, even as it has aspired to material degrees, and render this government victorious. Confirm this revered nation to appraise the standard of the oneness of humanity, to promulgate the most great peace, to become thereby most glorious and praiseworthy among all nations of the world. O God, this American nation is worthy of thy favors and is deserving of thy mercy. Make it precious and near to thee through thy bounty and bestowal. Abdu'l-Baha.

Good evening. Please join me in the pledge to our flag. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Now we'll move right into our study session item, introducing the Newport Beach 2050 General Plan. I'll now turn it over to staff.

Good afternoon, Madam Mayor, City Council Members, Ben Zadiba, Acting Deputy Community Development Director. I'll be giving you about a 15-minute presentation. I'll try to keep it a little less if I can. Once the slides come up here, we'll get rolling. Okay, so today's presentation, I'm gonna give you a brief refresher on our current general plan, where we are in the general plan update, and what our approach has been, and then an overview of the draft elements, and then our next steps. So starting with our general plan, this is what it looks like. This is the 2006 general plan. It contains 10 elements, seven of which include state-mandated topics. Notably, our last comprehensive update was two decades ago, believe it or not, that's 2006. Our general plan update timing is notable because it's really important that we know that council initiated a comprehensive update back in 2019. However, given the higher RENA allocation, council directed staff to pivot to housing and implementation amendments to implement the housing element. With the housing element complete in 2022, the general plan picked back up in 2023, and we are now three years in and looking to complete the general plan update this year. We have eight remaining elements. As I mentioned, the circulation element and housing element were worked on and completed. And while they're not included on this table, it's important to note that they are included as part of the full general plan update. to make it very clear that this was led by community members there were council appointed brown act committees notably a general plan update steering committee with three members chaired by former mayor nancy gardner general plan advisory committee with 28 members initially reduced to 24 members co-chaired by jeremy evans and arlene greer and those committees combined with their subcommittees for over 100 public meetings and were sunset at your february 2026 council meeting We've taken a phased approach to the general plan update with four phases. We're now in phase four. We started with background analysis and visioning to really take a macro level view of the city. Where do your residents, where the stakeholders want to see the city in 2050, which is our horizon year. Looking into policy development and goals and policies that need to be changed or refreshed to affect emerging technology or trends we're seeing. And then phase three was really getting into the details of what goals and policies will look like, talking about the California Environmental Quality Act clearance and trying to continue spreading the word and raising awareness of the general plan update. Ultimately into phase four, which includes city boards, commission and committees hearings, and then city council adoption. So I'm going to dive into each phase just very briefly. One thing I want to highlight is each phase had extensive community outreach. While the pop-up there notes that we had pop-up events, digital engagement, it's important to note that there's a big reach. So city staff worked heavily with the public information manager at the time and also city manager's office to make sure that our city manager's newsletter included updates on the general plan and that we were advertising the daily pilot. So that's the number of residents that were reached with notifications and paid advertisements. These pictures are a pop-up event at the mayor's egg race back in 2023, 24. And then you've got digital engagement with a interactive mapping exercise on the city's website. Phase two, we dove deeper, talked about ideas to support each element and their goals. So you'll see some conversations were had around tables. We had workshops. We continued to advertise the effort and had a significant reach again in phase two. Phase three, we dove even deeper and had draft elements and draft policies ready for people to review. We had an online open house and an in-person open house. And you'll note that we continued to get a pretty good amount of reach. We had 130 unique comments submitted for staff consideration that were ultimately filtered through the general plan advisory committee and the steering committee. Phase four is hearings. You'll see that we've been to several city board commissions or committees, all of which have recommended council adoption of the various elements that were deemed appropriate for their subject matter expertise. Most recently, last week, the planning commission did unanimously recommend the council's adoption of the entire general plan update. So this is a good point to pause and just talk about some of the numbers. I like to call this our team photo. I was forced to kneel right there, right in front of former Mayor Nancy Gardner, and then we have Laird Hayes flanking a football fame, so it's appropriate again to call it a team photo. With that said, we have 57 GPSC GPAC meetings that were Brown Act meetings, 47 GPAC subcommittee meetings, 16 city board commission and committee meetings, six pop-up outreach events, four community workshops, and two community open houses. And the people in the photo are the general plan advisory committee members, the general plan update steering committee members, and those are the people who really made this effort move and work. Now I'm going to dive into a brief overview of each component of the general plan update, starting with the vision statement. So the vision statement has a horizon year of 2050, and notably this time around includes guiding values to help the city with decision making. It really looks to 2050. What does the city community members want to see in 2050 for the city of Newport Beach? I'm gonna add a little bit of color on each of these slides. One thing that I found interesting here was that it became very apparent that the city of Newport Beach is already an excellent city, so the standards became how do we continue maintaining ourselves as an excellent city, which may not be the case for others in the visioning process elsewhere. Arts and culture element. This is not a state required element, but it's unique to Newport Beach. What's new here is we have enhanced policies that support the city libraries and services. We've got musical programming supported by name. One thing that I think was interesting that Mayor Pro Tem might appreciate is the arts and culture, or the city arts commission noted that culinary arts were very important. So there's now a culinary art program element to the arts and culture element. Historical resources element, this is also not required, and it's largely implemented by the California Environmental Quality Act. Here we had a consideration of a legacy business program, which I think was interesting. That was something that the subcommittee interjected to talk about, say, the Balboa Ferry, the Balboa Island Ferry, businesses that have really been part of the fabric of the city that should be considered for legacy business status, which would give them advanced notoriety and maybe potential opportunities in the future. And then noting that we really should be leaning into enhanced outreach and education, partnering with already established historical societies and programs to really offer partnerships, walking tours, and really leverage existing programs that are already out there to really amplify our reach with historical resources. While this was being prepared, we also had our historian laureate come on board, so I think this is actually a really neat element that's been revamped and refreshed for modern times. Harbor Bay and Beaches element, this is one of my favorite because the subcommittee members and the GPAC actually renamed the element. Today it's the Harbor and Bay element. They're recommending it's the Harbor Bay and Beaches element because the beach is one of our biggest assets in the city and it should be treated as such with advanced notoriety being named in the element itself. So beaches were added by name, there's also advanced goals and policies in there related to beach, talking about integrated coastal access, minimizing the risk of displacement of the access from coastal hazards, and really looking at the harbor and the beach as part of the city's economic strength and vitality being integral to that. And I would just again note, this is not a required element, it's unique to Newport Beach, places value on the harbor and the waterfront for the city. Recreation element is a required element, or carries required components from the state. The state talks about addressing open space, so this element helps do that for the city. In particular, we do have state requirements that we are covering. This is Senate Bill 1425, which talks about equity of open space, co-benefits of open space. That's all covered in the city's update. We're really looking to encourage new connections where we have new potential residential neighborhoods. So I think one of the benefits of having a recently adopted housing element is we do have focus areas where we can look to balance development and really encourage new and unique park opportunities in areas like the airport area, looking at do we do rooftop parks? Do we repurpose office courtyards as parks? How can we be innovative in using our existing space? And then just lastly, really an emphasis on protecting public beach access. Oh, actually, I want to go back. The second bullet point in the second list there, that references like the project we did in San Miguel Park where we did some accessibility upgrades. So really encouraging those continued upgrades for the city to reinvest in its park spaces to ensure that we're providing recreational opportunities for anyone of any ability. Natural resources element also covers some state mandate. Senate Bill 272 requires we plan for sea level rise by 2034. And AB 1889 talks about providing wildlife and habitat connectivity through wildlife crossings in the city. Here we talk about clean energy charging infrastructure to serve clean vehicles. I want to talk about that because the General Plan Advisory Committee and the Steering Committee took the initial policy which talked about electrification, said well electrification is big right now, but maybe that's not everything in the future. So they really talked about clean energy instead. Looking at clean vehicles versus just narrow-mindedly saying Electrification so that again is a credit to the community. I think it was a very adept choice for them to go that way Lastly I'll just highlight that we talked about native and naturalized species and habitats and parks and open space that again addresses state law looking to create wildlife and habitat connectivity corridors and Noise element, the city did recently update the noise element to help implement the housing element. However, there were some parts that were still outdated. So as part of this refresh effort, it was studied the citations and noise complaints were studied and we saw that construction noise is one of the biggest complaining factors for residents. With that, we did include some policy language or best practice on how contractors and developers can help to limit noise when it comes to construction projects. We also looked at emerging trends like drones as they come online. How do we curtail the noise from an advanced air mobility vehicle, for example? So the noise element is now very forward thinking. It also contains new roadway projections into the horizon year, which with the 2006 general plan ironically forecasted to 2025. So those were grossly outdated now, and we needed to project into the future with some new measurements. Safety element, obviously a state mandated element. It talks a lot about evacuation. This was interestingly prepared when the fires were happening, the Palisades fire, all the fires in LA. So evacuation routes became a very hot topic for the committee members. Particularly on the peninsula, you know, gridlock with automobiles. So will they use scooters? Will they use duffies? Will they use the ferry? How will they get off the peninsula in the event of an emergency? So those conversations are really interesting to witness. We also talked about resilience as a really important topic. So looking to be resilient when it comes to sea level rise. How do we encourage nature-based solutions over manmade armoring? And then lastly, addressing aviation hazards especially emerging technology like advanced air mobility again drones making sure that we have policies in place to help guide decision making and planning to make sure that those types of vehicles have safe routes through the city Land use element was narrowly updated to implement the housing element. So as part of this effort, we went back through, reorganized it, consolidated it, and made it more user friendly. Believe it or not, the land use pattern and development regulations in the city are very complicated. So we tried to make more sense of it by reorganizing the land use element. We also provided some new policies that really help balance development in the focus areas where the housing is planned. So making sure we have complete communities, trying to keep residents shopping in the city of Newport Beach, playing and recreating again in Newport Beach to prevent spillover into adjacent cities, making sure we're balancing development in those areas. I think it was also interesting that the GPAC added the Balboa Island as a place that should have emphasis added to it, making it a special place. It's actually not listed in the current general plan as an opportunity for enhanced planning policy. So I think that was a pretty cool change that I'll highlight here. Lastly, I'll highlight that we have a policy in the proposed element for staff administered updates to land use tables for transparency purposes. I have the asterisk there to make it clear that staff would not be arbitrarily updating that table, rather, For example, in the land use table, we have development limits. Transfers of developments have happened over the years that did not include a general plan amendment. So the table is now outdated because it says the original general plan limit when things were transferred out of that area, if that makes sense. This would allow staff to administratively update the table to reflect changes that have happened over time, resulting in a true ledger for the development community, for residents, for council, for any decision makers, making sure we know what is actually allowed in the field. Lastly, we have the implementation program, which has been completely revamped. It is built off the current implementation program that the city has. I'll note that it's not a required component of the general plan, but that cities are required to provide reasonable and practical means of actually implementing general plan elements and policies. One thing that I think that's really great to highlight is the new implementation program includes a crosswalk. which actually inventories all the policies in every implementation program, provides them a timeframe for implementation as well as a lead or supporting department. That's something we don't have today and this is gonna be very useful for us, especially as we do the annual progress report, making sure that we are making progress on the implementation programs, again, in each timeframe as shown here on the slide. I'm going to kind of pause here because this is actually a screen recording. But I want to show you that the intent of this general plan update is to create a very slick online general plan. It's going to be fully searchable. As you hover over terms that are in the glossary, the definition will actually show up and tell you what that term means. So it's supposed to be very user friendly for all users. And I like to say that it's going to be the envy of fellow planners in other cities especially. I'm pretty proud of that. So again, just giving you a flavor for what this is going to look like. I'd be remiss if I didn't take some time to acknowledge all of the community members involved who are not listed, but obviously it says Newport Beach community. We had a lot of resident input throughout the process. I didn't go as far as say we had some honorary GPAC members who showed up to most meetings. We had the former General Plan Update Steering Committee, which was originally formed in 2019. They actually shaped the colors, iconography, and the name of the effort, Newport Together, and that's maintained through this process. We have the most recent General Plan Update Steering Committee, again, chaired by Nancy Gardner, And then the General Plan Advisory Committee, excuse me, co-chaired by Jeremy Evans and Arlene Greer, along with the several over 30 names listed there for their participants on that committee. Again, they really made this process work and they represented their community very well. We really appreciated their time. So for next steps, you have a public hearing later on this agenda to consider authorizing staff to issue a notice of intent to override the Airport Land Use Commission. They deemed the general plan update inconsistent. So that's later on your agenda. And then ultimately June 23, that's when we come back with the general plan update, looking for you to consider adopting it and overriding their land use commission. On the right is just an iteration of the cover, which is still being worked on. And I just want to note that while we do have an online version of the general plan, the intent is to make it friendly for all users. So there will be a printer-friendly option. You can click a button and it'll spit out a PDF that someone can print out. So we'll try to make it accessible to all users. With that, as I'm losing my voice, I will conclude. Thank you for listening, and I'm available for any questions. I also want to note that Dudek, who is the city's consultant on this effort, Elizabeth Dixon is their project manager. She's available as well. Thank you.

Wow, Ben, thank you. It's a culmination of years of work. You did a tremendous job distilling it down. I too want to acknowledge and thank all of the community members who participated in this, both on the committee and as members of the public. It's very important to have contributions from different voices around the city. And I can't believe we're finally here. It seems like... We've been working on this forever, so thank you again. Are there any comments or questions up here from staff before we go out to the public? OK. We will now take comments from the public.

Nancy Gardner was part of the steering committee and went to most, well all the meetings and a lot of the subcommittee meetings. And first of all, I cannot say enough how wonderful staff was, particularly with the leadership of Jaime and Ben. They managed to take that very narrow path between providing enough support without overriding sometimes with their expertise what the committee, what the residents were doing. That's a fine path and you guys did it really well. They put in so many hours and think of the meetings, the General Plan Advisory Committee meetings with 25 people or so. It can be a little tedious and they sat through it with a smile. One thing, a couple things that didn't come out, one thing that GPAC did was they wanted to be sure that while they are formulating proposed policies that they're looking at the timeline and saying we can't anticipate everything. So they have made the language as flexible as possible so that you or future council members can say okay, well the times have changed and without going through massive amendments can adapt to those. And also that If you were at the meetings, you would see that the committee really reflected the diversity of our community. There were a lot of issues where, you know, we started off different and worked together. So what you're seeing is really reflective, I think, of the community at large. And finally, not discussed today, but there's a proposal by GPAC that there be a sort of a a follow-up committee. And I know councils are always, we're leery of forming new committees, but this one I think would save time. It would meet annually, and what it would do is review one or two of the elements. What we found when we were looking at our current general plan was that there were all sorts of policies that It's just been overlooked. And the city does a review every year of the housing element, but the others really don't. And we don't expect staff to sit there reading the general plan just to see if there's something missed. So this would be a committee would meet once a year, would look at one or two elements, and then would come to the council with a report. Hey, everything's on schedule. Or gee, these two were scheduled to begin. Now they haven't. And then the council could decide, oh, thanks for telling us. Or hey, we've got enough on our plate right now. We'll change the time schedule. So it's something to think about. I don't know when that will come forward, but I just wanted to put in a word for it. And thank you for all your support of the General Plan Advisory Committee and the Steering Committee, because it was a long haul. And I think we all did a pretty good job. Thank you.

Good afternoon. My name is Ruth Kobayashi, and I served on the General Plan Advisory Committee. And I want to let you know it was a privilege to do so. I highly encourage any citizens on the next time there's an opportunity to do something like this. It's very rewarding. I wanted to echo what Ms. Gardner says, but also give her a lot of credit. her job often was to herd kittens and make sure the kittens weren't fighting in the sandbox, and she did a great job of that. It was just the utmost of professionalism from top to bottom. Elizabeth from Dudek was Amazing. I've worked in corporate America for 20 years. I did. I've never seen anybody quite that professional. She was great. And Ben and Jaime were just fantastic to work with. So because of the leadership and the subject matter expertise that we had, that had made a long way to making sure that we did a good job. So I just want to offer my support in the work that was done and the leadership that was provided. Thanks.

Thank you. Any other speakers on this item?

mayor clyman and members of the city council my name is jim mosher this is a copy of the staff report from thursday's planning commission meeting on this subject i brought it along in case you actually are going to study any of the policies and goals that are in here so i could follow along they actually had a spare copy and i was suggesting that they might put that in the lobby so that the people here today could see what it is that you're studying But apparently, that was a little too much transparency. I also served on the GPAC. I have a slightly different view. And in my opinion, this is not so much as a new plan as simply primarily a reorganization of the existing plan by the consultant, which has been stripped of most of the narrative that's in our current plan that explains the reasons for the goals and policies. as well as most of the vision for the future. As an example, the existing plan envisioned specific parks that might be built in the next 20 years. You won't find that in the current plan, just some policies. that kind of guide how parks might develop organically, but not specifically where or what they might be. Where we are here today is in the Newport Center area. The current plan had a policy that's kind of a vision for Fashion Island, how it might develop over the next 20 years. That's been removed. And as far as I can tell, it doesn't actually explain what Fashion Island is. And of course, the policies were written in 2006. And since then, we have a civic center. There's no vision for a civic center in this area or anything of that sort. So you might not be surprised. I am the reason that the GPAC recommendation was not unanimous. I thought that this plan still needed more work. And I still think it needs more work. And I would point out that if you're going to approve this on June 23, there's still seven weeks So why are you not asking the Planning Commission or yourself to hold more sessions to review this? As to copies like this, are there going to be copies in the library for people to look at? And my fear is that this is just going to lie dormant for seven weeks. I'm going to come back on June 23rd. I don't know if you're going to discuss it tonight, but I anticipate there might be revisions recommended from the dais on June 23rd, and the public will have no idea what those are and can't meaningfully respond to them. That concerns me. Thank you.

Thank you. Any other speakers?

I'm Jody Joffrey. As a 65-year resident of this city, I've seen a lot of changes. And my concern about this project at Fashion Island, traffic.

So is your comment about the general plan update?

Yeah, about the general plan. So many of these projects are, you know, just too much development. I just, there's too much development. Water, traffic, and energy. Thank you.

Thank you.

Good afternoon, council members, mayor, staff members. Can you please show some slides that I submitted earlier? My name is Laura Curran. I'm going to talk about the general plan and the natural resources element. Can you show the first slide? So I want to talk, first of all, I agree, it is an extensive public process. I had the pleasure of learning from Nancy Gardner and the whole group in 2005, 2006. And I think it is important, as has been discussed, this is a public process, and you still have the opportunity to have comment and look at the website. Next slide, please. I want to comment specifically on the natural resources element. I WANT TO COMMENT ABOUT IT AND PUT IT IN THE CONTEXT OF CIVIC CENTER PARK BECAUSE THERE'S CURRENTLY A PROPOSAL WHICH WAS PRESENTED BY SOME OF OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS TO PUT THE NEW POLICE STATION IN CIVIC CENTER PARK. SO LET'S TALK ABOUT HOW THE GENERAL PLAN NATURAL RESOURCES ELEMENT WOULD APPLY TO THAT. FIRST OF ALL, CIVIC CENTER PARK AND DOG PARK AREAS ARE IDENTIFIED AS ESA'S ENVIRONMENTAL STUDY AREAS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL SENSITIVE HABITAT FOR characteristics in the city's ESA map. So this means that we should be looking at the environmental impacts of any development on those as part of the natural resources element. Next slide please. I encourage everyone to go and read the natural resources element, every element, because as the staff has talked about, they're really written in very approachable language. But there are some ones that are key, especially related to Civic Center Park and all of our parks, because we are a leader in Newport in many ways. One of the goals of the natural resources element is using native species in parks. And as you will see, if you tour Civic Center Park, we have deer grass, Douglas nightshade, marsh flea band, and other species throughout Civic Center Park. Next slide, please. Goal 13 says we should reduce impervious surfaces and minimize pollution of groundwater. If you build a four to six acre police station, which will cover most of the service of the park, you will create impervious surfaces, which is directly counter to the natural resources element guidance. Next slide, please. Goal 18 says that view sheds and corridors should be preserved. And as we say, there's no place like Newport Beach. Well, there's really no park like Civic Center Park for a view of the beach, the ocean, and Catalina Island. Also for recreation, it's the park that gets the most visitors and is accessible to the people with all kinds of walking and abilities. Today I met a three year old who was trying to climb the bunnies and then jump over to the oak tree. So it didn't work. person helped her but it's widely visited for that reason and this is why there should be no police station in Civic Center Park as we honor the work of all of our general plan members and the public emphasizing the importance of the natural resource element thank you thank you any other speakers okay seeing none I'll bring it back up here are there any further comments or questions

Council Member Wiegand?

Yeah, just want to take a moment to thank former Mayor Gardner on this project. As was said, it probably was a challenge at times to work with your committee and the folks around it. And I do appreciate all the hard work that went into it. And I do think what you're suggesting would be a good idea. Staff, how would that go about getting created or formalized if we were to do some annual you know review going into the future and would it be the first year would be the year two or what would you guys have any thoughts on that has this been floated or is this kind of a new idea that might need some time to kind of vet out

Thank you, Council Member Wiegand. I think this is a really new idea. I think it's very innovative. It's something probably we can discuss internally. I'm thinking out loud, maybe it's something where the mayor can appoint in the future during boards and commission committee appointments. We can do it that way, or it just can be something that is initiated by the mayor going forward.

Okay. And then, Ben, the comment about it not being readily available in print, but you were saying that it's a PDF version that you can click on and pull up section by section, and that's ready to go now?

That's correct. We do have a PDF version right now, and the intent is to maintain the ability to create a PDF version moving forward. So even though it'll be online, you can very easily click a button and create a PDF. Okay. All right. Thank you.

Councilmember Grant?

I want to echo Councilmember Wiegand's compliments to the entire committee, the whole team that worked on this for so many years, and especially our beloved former mayor, Nancy Gardner, who took the remarkable effort. This is not a perfect science. Everybody did seem to work together well. There were outliers that brought a lot to the table. between staff and the general plan teams in all those committees, we ended up where we needed to be. And so I appreciate all the work of staff and the committee and the chairs. I also agree, I think having an annual review by the community, especially given all of the expertise that we've developed in this process in so many different committee members, that's a valuable resource that we should continue to mine. And so creating a committee, if that's something that we can do, support looking at that. Again, thank you to everybody who was involved, and especially former Mayor Gardner, who's very shy over there, but we appreciate you. Council Member Stapleton.

Yeah, in the spirit of everything else, ditto, ditto. Congratulations to the Advisory Committee, to the Steering Committee, to the staff. A hundred public outreach meetings and community outreach. This is the good work that you get when the whole city gets involved, so congratulations to everyone involved. Thank you.

Council Member Bartow.

Yes, I'm gonna cut to the chase and echo my colleagues. Thank you all for all your hard work. I'm particularly excited about the policies being more accessible online. I know in my water quality committee, there's a lot of times we would refer to our general plan policies and we have to go digging and look them up. So I think this will help the committees overall as a whole.

Mayor Pro Temblor.

Thank you, Mayor. Thank you so much. And this is no easy feat, mixing all of the different opinions of Newport together into one giant bucket. But especially thank you to both Jaime and Ben. It is a daunting effort and one of the best presentations I've ever seen fitting so much into such little amount of time. So Ben, kudos off to you. And thank the community. I think Newport is the way it is. We might have disagreements on certain things. That's the beauty of democracy. I love that piece. But we still run the greatest city that exists, not just in California, but probably America. So thank you all for your time and effort.

Thank you. And staff, you don't need anything else from us on this, right? No, thank you. Madam Clerk, please read the notice regarding public comments on agenda and non-agenda items.

The City Council of Newport Beach welcomes and encourages community participation. Public comments are invited on items listed on the agenda and non-agenda items. Speakers must limit comments to 3 minutes per person to allow everyone to speak. Written comments are encouraged as well. The City Council has the discretion to extend or shorten the time limit on agenda and non-agenda items.

We will now proceed with public comments on all agenda and non-agenda items. Please note that members of the public will still have an opportunity to comment on agenda items under consent. Public hearing and closed session later in the meeting, provided they do not offer comments on the item at this time.

Good afternoon, Adam Leverins. Back at the February 10th meeting, you all formed the public trust management ad hoc to address state lands report on the tide lands and submerged lands in Newport Harbor. As you've heard, I think, from me at every meeting since then, I'm seeking to create a situation where our mayor and council as the ultimate decision makers are more fully informed of what's involved in this and some of the aspects that have seemed to escape the Harbor Commission and some of the sources of information that have been leading to you. As I walk away from the microphone, I'm going to hand staff a document for both Councilmember Stapleton and Mayor Pro Tem Blum. I know you guys got a lot going on, but I'm just trying to outreach and help work towards a solution for this. And there are some things that many of you are somewhat familiar with, but there's a whole lot of detail and stuff. So I'm just trying to open channels of communication. Thank you.

Thank you.

Good afternoon, City Council and Mayor. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak to you this afternoon. I'm here to present material to support an application that I have for the Harbor Commission as an appointment to the Harbor Commission. I am uniquely qualified And as the council member Lauren Kleinman stated, that you are looking for contribution of different voices from the city. I've been living aboard legally on my mooring for 15 years. So I would be a different voice for the city. And I've also served on the Regional Planning Commission in Northwest Indiana. It was my first job out of college for two years. Since then, I've been a public school teacher, and I have an artist. My studio is on my residence on my boat. Now the city has, the state has asked the city to review and it's the state has said it appears there's discrimination in the fees that are being charged to the moorings and there have been no fee increases for private piers. That's just one issue that I would love to work together with the city so that we can have control of our city and not have the state take it over so i brought my resume and a cover letter for all of you and i would love to be able to share my expertise one other thing i'm also a candidate preliminary administrative service credential i'm in training to become a leader in the orange unified school district also being taught by the orange county department of education so my leadership skills and my desire to build bridges and find a way for us to work together is coming from these sources. So I would like to share that also. My last name is Manich, M-A-N-I-C-H, Manich. That's the way that you pronounce it in the future because you guys will be seeing me in the future and you have in the past. So thank you for your time and I've got these documents for you.

Thank you. Next speaker please.

Good evening, Mayor, Mayor Pro Tem, Council Members. My name's Andrea Bird-Steiner. I've been a resident of Newport Beach for over 16 years and a Newport Heights homeowner for 14 years. I'm here in support of the Undergrounding Utility Assessment Loan Program. It's Resolution 202623 on the agenda. Undergrounding is a citizen-driven process, and it only works when an entire neighborhood can move forward together. When even a few households are unable to participate, it can prevent an entire community from accessing improvements that benefit everyone. This program offers a thoughtful, limited solution to that challenge. I just want to be clear about what the program is and what it's not. It's not a giveaway or a handout. These are secured loans backed by the property with repayment triggered upon sale or refinance. The city's protected. The structure is intentionally conservative and fiscally responsible. And based on the experience of cities like Laguna Beach and Manhattan Beach, participation is expected to be limited due to the strict eligibility requirements. You'll notice you have to be 55 and over. It's limited to only 120% of income. And other than the primary, it has to be a primary residence that's in the area. And it also has to be 120% or less of, did I say that already? Sorry. It also has to be a very low overall assets that the person owns or the family owns. For the small number of homeowners that do qualify, the impacts are very meaningful. These neighbors are longtime residents who bought their homes decades ago, raise their families in Newport Heights or in other places in Newport Beach that this could apply to and help build the community that we all love today and many are now on fixed incomes they're not looking for special treatment they just need a practical way to participate so they're not left behind in the neighborhoods they helped create and you'll notice that the interest rate that they'll be paying is above above the market it's above the bonds it's at 1% above what the city has for the bonds. This program gives my older neighbors on a fixed income that path while still ensuring the city's repaid. And the broader benefit is clear. Recent fires in Pacific Palisades and Altadena are a reminder that safety and resilience matter for every neighborhood. Undergrounding is one step we can take to improve both. Newport Heights is one of the last neighborhoods in Newport Beach that hasn't been undergrounded. If we want our city to remain safe, modern, and consistent across our neighborhoods, we need tools that allow every community to move forward. This is a measured, responsible way to do that while making sure we don't leave our neighbors behind. Respectfully urge your support. Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Hello, Mayor and council members. My name is Annie Clardy, and I've lived in Newport Beach almost my entire life. And I've been a Newport Heights resident since 2009. I strongly support the hardship assistance program for the undergrounding district. Newport Beach has always led We don't follow other cities. Other cities follow us. We set a standard for how a coastal community takes care of its own. So it should give us pause that Manhattan Beach and Laguna Beach have already adopted hardship programs alongside their undergrounding efforts. Their qualification standards are strict. The administrative cost is minimal, but the message is unmistakable. The city stands with its people. If they can do this, Newport Beach absolutely can and should. The program also clears a path forward. The biggest pushback against undergrounding has always been the real concern for neighbors who cannot absorb the cost. A hardship program removes that hurdle, and it lets these projects move forward and helps modernize our city. This is about people, longtime residents on fixed incomes who have lived here for decades, who deserve to stay in their homes and help build this community. The Palisades and Eaton fires showed us that overhead lines put every neighborhood at risk. Undergrounding protects all of us. A hardship program ensures that all of us can participate. I urge city council to lead, as Newport Beach always has, and adopt this program. Thank you.

Thank you. Any other speakers?

Mayor Kleinman, I just wanted to say I appreciate the city's effort to save money by encouraging people to access documents online rather than something that they can see and hold in their hand. But I would point out that at tonight's meeting, there seems to be an absence, or I should say insufficient number of agendas for the public who is in attendance. And I think it would be a very minimal cost to the city to provide agendas to those attending the meetings, and it would help them. A paper copy would help people to follow your meeting. I think we should expend that little amount of money. Thank you.

Thank you. Good afternoon again. As with my philosophy of always being an encourager to our leaders and not someone who wants to tear it down, I want to thank you for the decision making that you have to do as leaders for our community on a regular basis. I encourage you to continue to prioritize public safety in all the decisions that you make. It's paramount in your leadership, even when pressured by different interests or even political threats. Public safety all day, every day. And PS, go Ducks.

Good evening, Newport Beach City Council. My name is Shane Hernandez. I'm a lifelong resident of Orange County. I received my degree of film and television at Loyola Marymount. I'm currently attending Chapman University. I wanted to come here to talk about the big Newport theater. I came all the way from Burbank today from NBC just because I'm so passionate about this historic landmark. In the last year alone, I've seen so many films, and in the last decade, I go all the time with my family. I've been coming to Newport for my film experience since I was about 12 years old, and it's one of the remaining movie theaters that make moviegoing feel... Sir, are you the appellant on the item? I'm not, no.

So we're going to actually consider that item later. You can either speak now. You're welcome to speak now, but we're actually going to consider it later. So it might be better just to hold your comments.

I can hold the comment then if that's the case. Sorry about that. I wasn't sure where we should go now. Thank you.

Any other speakers? We'll be discussing that item shortly. This is both agenda and non-agenda items, but we will be talking about that item. It does, yes.

I their Council marked of a broker with compass and representing a client on 2200 waterfront drive. There's this is a mission that the easements in the pepper trees that are there and setbacks I've got pronounced for everybody, I'll just give that to staff and not just delivered it via e-mail if you could have a chance to look at your time we'd much appreciate that thank you.

Thank you.

Hi, my name is Rudy Svirchek, and over the last few months I've been concerned about the condition of Back Bay. The roads, the ballards, the signs, it's just really getting run down. So I contacted Robin Grant, and she met with me shortly after. She met with staff, toured Back Bay to look at all the list of all the conditions are not conditions the items that I felt needed repair so yesterday I drove out and I see the roads are starting to be refreshed repaired and a lot of the repairs are underway so I just want to thank you for actually responding and make something happen thank you very much any other speakers

Okay, now is the time for council announcements or reports from council members on committee activities and the time for council members to request an item to be placed on a future agenda. Council Member Wiegand, do you have any announcements or reports?

Yes, as my role on the Orange County Sanitation District that the board here, or the council here has appointed me to be on, got a call from the director of the Orange County Marathon about the bridge pump station that we're working on with Sanitation District, how it would impact the marathon going through PCH onto Dover. And I just wanted to give kudos to Mike Senecori at Public Works staff for working with the Sanitation District and the Bayside Village trying to find a good route that would help us preventing closing PCH. And so staff was able to find a solution working with Orange County Sanitation District. We paved a section that's under the bridge that allows runners to go across the pathway without impacting a full closure of PCH, which would have occurred otherwise, and also saved some money along the way. So kudos to staff for that. and then Council Member Stapleton, and I think Council Member Bartow are gonna be touring Orange County Sanitation District facilities on Friday, so appreciate you guys coming to take a look at what we do over there. It's a great service that we provide for the community at a relatively low cost, so thank you.

Council Member Bartow. I just wanted to say thank you to the It's NOSA and the delegation from Ensenada and Mayor Agaton, the mayor of Ensenada, who made the trek up to the Newport to Ensenada race. It's been going since 1948. It's a really amazing event and the dedication that all of them put into it is palpable. So just want to say thank you to them. I was fortunate to be able to be part of that kickoff.

Council Member Grant. Thank you. I do have a few things to bring up. This is a very active time in our city and I want to just call out a few of our community opportunities. The Oasis Senior Center has been Quite active in the last couple weeks. We had our senior center volunteer lunch our senior center is very fortunate to have a large amount of volunteers that work throughout the year and we were able to counsel to go to the senior center and serve the volunteers and I think that that's an important opportunity for us to make sure that we're recognizing these longtime and very dedicated volunteers to the senior center and The Oasis Senior Center Yacht Club started the Yacht Club opening days, which are, that's the season now for opening days of the Yacht Clubs, and they launched with a wonderful event last weekend. And then we had a really interesting event with former council member Joy Brenner, who started a new group, also with Susan DeSantis, who's here today. They coordinated a new group at Oasis Senior Center, the Oasis Coastal Circle, and it brings women together for inspiring conversations with influential leaders who have shaped our community. So that's something to look forward to on a monthly basis, these wonderful conversations that we're gonna be having with our leaders in the community. I was also able to attend the Newport Historical Society presentation of the story of the last 20 years of Newport Beach. Really exciting night. We had former mayor Stapleton there as well as former mayors Selich, Gardner, Dixon, and Webb. That was a great night hosted by the Newport Historical Society. We also had a great night with the Newport Beach Chamber Commodores at their scholarship award dinner, celebrating our teens as they head off to college. Another important time is right now when everybody's graduating, going off to college. It's important to celebrate these teens that have been working so hard in our community. And then finally, National Library Week was last week, and I think all of my colleagues were at the Central Library reading books to our youth. Another important opportunity to celebrate in our community. Thank you.

Council Member Weber.

I don't have anything city related, but I do just have to give a shout out to my daughter Jane who was just elected as her fifth grade class president earlier. So I love you and I'm so proud of you and I'm sure you're at home watching this live.

I hope she's got better things to do. You want me to go to it?

Leadership is in the blood.

God, things must be exciting in your household. Well, congratulations to Jane. That's a big deal. That's awesome. I'll just suffice it to say, kudos. THE O.C. MARATHON IS COMING SUNDAY. COUNCILMAN WEIGAND, THANK YOU FOR PUTTING THAT TOGETHER TO KEEP PCH OPEN AND GET THE TENS OF THOUSANDS OF RUNNERS SAFELY THROUGH OUR CITY. THAT'S GOING TO BE A HOME RUN FOR SURE. I DO WANT TO THANK THE NEWPORT BEACH HISTORICAL SOCIETY. THAT WAS A FUN OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT AS PART OF THE FORMER MAYOR'S CLUB THE LAST 20 YEAR HISTORY OF THE CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH. And congratulations to the Newport Beach International Boat Show. And thank you to our harbor master, Paul Blank, did a yeoman's effort making sure the harbor was clean, safe, well enjoyed. A lot of people in Lido enjoying that. And hopefully it'll be good for sales taxes here as well. and then to our librarian melissa hartson congratulations on a successful library week hopefully next year i'll get something older than babies i don't do really good reading and dancing with young babies so hopefully i'll get some some older kids that'll understand what's going on but another highlight of the year and really appreciate the opportunity and the oasis sailing open lots of opening days coming in the next couple weeks so congratulations to oasis AND THEN TO THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOR HOSTING WHAT IS PROBABLY THE 60TH ANNUAL SCHOLARSHIP AWARDS DINNER FOR THE 35 STUDENTS HERE AT NEWPORT MESA. SO IT WAS WONDERFUL. OUR FUTURE IS BRIGHT. LOTS OF TALENTED KIDS DOING INCREDIBLE THINGS IN THE CITY OF NEWPORT.

SO THANK YOU.

THANK YOU. I'M GOING TO ACTUALLY BREAK MY SELF-IMPOSED MORATORIUM RIGHT NOW ON THIS. to congratulate our mayor for becoming the queen of OCOG. I'm sorry, chair. It's just chair. That's my bad on those notes. If you guys don't know what OCOG is, they deal with all the bacon in Orange County, or I'm sorry, the association of governments throughout Orange County. And Lauren has been on it fighting for Newport since she started in this amazing role. So three years and now the chair running into her fourth. So we're very, very lucky to have her. They work very hard to make sure that We get maybe a better draw next year in the RHNA numbers and some of those other pieces, and she's been fighting for the city. So we're very thankful that she's taken up that honor.

Thank you for that. colorful report quickly from me we had a very successful return of CDM's third Thursday and we are already hard at work planning the next one which will be a endless summer red white and blue theme in July We also had a productive aviation committee meeting last night where we provided some updates on the conversations that I and committee member Jack Strandberg have been having with all of the air carriers on fleet turnover, getting the quieter, cleaner engines here at John Wayne Airport as we, Newport Beach, are the most impacted city. CONTINUING THE CONVERSATIONS AROUND ADVANCED AIR MOBILITY TO GET A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF TIMING, POTENTIAL IMPACTS TO OUR COMMUNITY SOONER RATHER THAN LATER. THAT IS MY REPORT. MADAM CLERK, PLEASE READ THE NOTICE REGARDING PUBLIC COMMENTS ON CONSENT CALENDAR.

This is a time in which council members may pull items from the consent calendar for discussion, items 1 through 13. Public comments are also invited on consent calendar items. Speakers must limit comments to three minutes. Before speaking, please state your name for the record. If any item is removed from the consent calendar by a council member, members of the public are invited to speak on each item for up to three minutes per item. All matters listed under Consent Calendar are considered to be routine and will be all enacted by one motion in the form listed below. Council members have received detailed staff reports on each of the items recommending an action. There will be no separate discussion on these items prior to the time the City Council votes on the motion unless members of the City Council request specific items to be discussed and or removed from the Consent Calendar for separate action.

Council Member Wygand, do you have any items to pull from the consent calendar or conflicts to announce related to items 1 through 13?

No, I do not.

Council Member Grant? Oh, sorry. Council Member Bartow?

Okay. Okay. We'll call the April 23rd, 2026 Planning Commission meeting to order. Will everyone please stand? And will Commissioner Elmore please lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance?

Thank you. Staff roll call, please. Those minutes by Harbor Chair Commission Ira Beer, which he added a bunch of things that were not said, trying to defend a position that he didn't realize he was making. And my three minutes of comment for the meetings you're approving tonight and consent for your last meeting is condensed down to one line. being that I don't think that was reflective of the problem I have with the chair of a harbor commission submitting false materials into the record. I've transcribed from the last meeting and submitted that into the record along with the slides I used. Second item, consent number six, is a finalization of the contract for the dredging at Balboa Yacht Basin. And the staff report notes that it cost 33% less than anticipated. Last year on opening day I spoke before the Yacht Club there. Someone else couldn't make it. And there were a lot of people that are concerned about after the rebuild that they can't afford to boat in Newport anymore. And I hope some way 33% less cost of dredging can be reflected in their rates going forward. And last year, I know some slips at Bayside went up 56% in cost in one year. And as you've heard from me, I'm trying to preserve affordable boating here for everybody. And item number eight, graffiti abatement. I imagine the police department already knows this. This is a vendor contract. Other places I've been, people tag, they have their little mark that, you know, I don't understand why people are proud of scrawling their mark on a public toilet, but they do. And if these things are photographed, at some point, you actually identify who is making those marks. They can pay for that cleanup. And again, with the talents in the police department, I would imagine that's done. But if it's not, I hope it's considered going forward. Thank you.

Any other speakers on consent? Seeing none, do I have a motion?

Thank you, Madam Mayor. I have a motion to move the balance of the consent calendar with adjustments to the minutes and noting that item four has been pulled by Council Member Marta.

Do I have a second? Seconded by Council Member Weber. Let's go ahead and vote.

Motion carried by unanimous vote.

Madam Clerk, do we have any ordinance titles to read?

An ordinance of the City Council of the City of Newport Beach amending subsection 12.68.060B, Preferential Parking Zones, Locations, and Restrictions of Chapter 1.2.68, Residence Preferential Parking of the Newport Beach Municipal Code regarding the residential parking permit program for the Newport Heights and Cliff Haven.

Thank you. We will now consider item number four, which was removed by Council Member Bartow. Council Member Bartow, do you need a staff report?

We could have a staff report, but I just had some comments that I wanted to share before, if staff's prepared to give a report.

So what we can say is that this is a loan program for the undergrounding, and what this requires is for specific homeowners who are kind of lower income, per se, there's a threshold in the resolution, that they can submit an application to the city for consideration and review if they meet a certain specific age limit. And if they qualify, the city would contribute to the funds to pay for that undergrounding for their portion of it. And so backing up a little bit for the undergrounding, property owners have a choice to either pay cash, we expect about $55,000 for an undergrounding, or it can go as part of their property tax roll and they pay through it through the property tax. If those two don't suffice, they can apply for a, if this item were to move forward this evening for a loan program with the city, where the city would actually pay for it, and then they would pay the city back with interest over a 20-year period.

Thank you. I just wanted, I pulled this because I wanted to thank Jason and the administrative services team. This program came to me, I was bringing it through based on feedback from a lot of homeowners who are anxious to get this done in undergrounding, get this done in the Heights area specifically, although there's a couple other areas of the city left beyond these neighborhoods. But the framework, thank you for putting the time with the eligibility criteria and the loan to value protections and the cash collection, and hopefully we can carry that work forward. I was prepared to support this item tonight, but I believe that some of the i've heard a bit and i believe that the concerns about adopting a policy framework prior to a funding mechanism is something that's a fair question and should be acknowledged i want to be very clear i think that undergrounding is extremely important to the city for fire safety in particular if you look at those fire maps some of those areas that we're talking about are within the kind of yellow concerning zone. So anything that I can do to help homeowners who want to underground their property for safety is a priority to me. But I do want to have a measure that I believe will be successful for the public and that will have the full support of the council. It's my request that instead of going forward with this item, we work on continuing this item for further maybe bringing it back in 60 days if possible. Alternatives that I've seen in other cities that, again, the work you've done, Jason, might be helpful is bringing forth RFP for private funding of this is a third option you know cash property taxes assessment and RFPs and then additionally in other places it seems like there's some sort of coordination for low-income residents HUD things like that that would be helpful so I'm bringing back something more like RFP for a private partnership bringing back some sort of coordination for our residents maybe at the planning counter so that people who are unable to afford this know that they have a third option and aren't immediately precluded from being part of this. So that is my request.

Thank you. Mayor Pro Tem Blum.

Thank you, Madam Mayor. And thank you, Council Member Arato. That was very well said. And as far as undergrounding goes in Newport Beach, I believe it is of the one of the most important things we can do throughout the city. Not only does it help make sure that we are funded, because it increases property taxes, which are the main bulk of how we make money in the city, but it also beautifies the city, it makes it much safer, and it's everything we're looking for. Unfortunately, the way that this item was written, I could not support it as is. In my personal opinion, the city and the government in general, they're not a bank and should not loan money, should not take taxpayer revenue and loan it out to others and make money on that. That is not our job. Our job is to represent the people of the city to work to make it better, to build the infrastructure that develops and results in a safer and better place. So I am in full agreement with Council Member Bartow that there is another amazing option. And instead of us being a bank, I think maybe banks could be banks. And working through an RFP program with our finance director, I'm sure we could find a product that works very similar. To this without the government actually lending money or in this case the city lending out money and I would support this in any which way I can as long as we are not the lender and we are facilitating helping and supporting This type of proactive business throughout the city and will always have my entire support. So, thank you. I

Councilmember Grant. Thank you. I wanted to acknowledge the leadership of Councilmember Bardo on this. She worked really hard with staff as well and with former Mayor Henn in bringing this important public safety initiative to us. And I do admire your leadership in pivoting to find a resolution to some uncertainties with respect to how it was originally presented in the agenda looks like we have a path forward and I think that's the most important thing I agree with councilmember Blum this is an extremely important public safety initiative undergrounding is the first step in making sure that we are fired more fire safe as well as all the other efforts that our fire department and our fire marshal are doing and councilmember Bardo took the initiative to you know take a step in the right direction it looks like your leadership we're going to make this happen it's just we're going to have to keep working on it so thank you so much and thank you to jason and all the other staff that worked on it councilmember weber

Yes, to echo a lot of what was just said up here. Thank you again, Council Member Bartow. I think it is incredibly important to state how much I support undergrounding. I think it's a smart investment. It's safety, reliability, and truthfully, it just makes neighborhoods look 100 times better. So I absolutely support any effort we can possibly do to underground these utilities. I just, like Council Member Blum has said, the core role of government is not to act like a bank. Our role is focused on facilitating solutions and not to actually lend funds. So I absolutely would support connecting residents with any third party option that can make participation more successful just as long as we are not shifting the city into the role of a lender so again councilmember bartow appreciate your work on this and i do think it is something incredibly important for our city

Councilmember Stapleton.

Yeah, I'll echo those comments. Congratulations. A lot of hard work on this from staff and for Councilmember Bartow and former Mayor Head. I'm a big proponent of undergrounding everywhere we can. Treat people the same and certainly look out for our seniors. So I look forward to this coming back and whatever, however it looks to get this done and move this forward. I've seen the success throughout District 1 when we underground. I've seen the entire peninsula and then also looking out throughout the city And the success we've seen on Babel Island, which is continuing ongoing, but that's going to look so much better when it's all completed and the residents get the island back. So anyway, well done.

We'll now go out for public comment for anyone who has not yet commented on this item. OK, seeing none, I'll bring it back up here for a motion. And I, too, want to echo the appreciation to Council Member Bartow. I know the work that was done and the intent here. And obviously, there's full accord and agreement up here about support for undergrounding. Do I have a motion?

Yeah. And can I just clarify for that motion to come back within 60 days, because they're on a time crunch?

So Madam Mayor, if I may, we will definitely expedite Council Member Bartow, but I can't guarantee the 60 day just because we have a procurement process. So just a little bit of leeway on that. Okay.

So was that, that was the motion, but not a hard,

Let's see, I move that we continue item four and direct staff to return as close as possible to 60 days with the revised program framework that evaluates private lender RFP partnership and structures internal to assessment districts and coordinate with the state controller's property tax postponement program.

Do we have a second? Second from Mayor Pro Tem Blanc. Let's go ahead and vote.

Motion carried by unanimous vote.

We'll now move on to the public hearing items. Item number 14, resolution number 2026, 26-300, or rather 26 for 300 Newport Center Drive condominiums, appeal PA 2025-0102. First ask Councilmembers if any of you have had ex-party communications related to this matter. Councilmember Wiegand?

No, I have had none.

Councilmember Bartow? No, I have not.

Councilmember Grant? I've not had any ex-party communications regarding this appeal.

Councilmember Weber? No, I have not. Council Member Stapleton.

Yeah, I had a brief communication with Gina Connery regarding this project. Conversation was general in nature and did not include any information beyond what is already reflected in the administrative record.

Mayor Patan Blum.

No, I have not.

And I have not either. Mr. Durgis, do we have a staff report?

We do, Madam Mayor, thank you so much. This is an appeal of the Planning Commission's decision for the project at 300 Newport Center Drive. We did receive two appeals. One of them from Savers has withdrawn their appeal, so we still have one appeal left. The appellant's name is Mr. Ken Lacroix. This is a de novo hearing, so we'll go through the entire presentation here. I'm going to go ahead and turn it over to Director Jaime Murillo and Principal Planner Liz Westmoreland.

Good evening, Mayor Kleinman, City Council members, Liz Westmoreland, Principal Planner, presenting tonight on the 300 Newport Center Drive condominiums appeal. As Mr. Jurgis mentioned, the project was approved by the Planning Commission on March 5th. Unanimously, an appeal was filed on March 12th from Safer, and that was withdrawn today. On March 13th, an appeal was filed on behalf of Save Our Theater. And so tonight, the city council is tasked with conducting a de novo public hearing. The project is located at 300 Newport Center Drive at the corner of San Miguel and Newport Center Drive. The project includes the demolition of the existing improvements, including the theater, the health and fitness fitness business, surface parking, and the construction of two residential towers that will consist of 150 condominium units. They will be 22 stories high, which will reach about 270 feet. These units will be located on a podium structure that includes 343 parking spaces, a retail cafe, and home offices. To quickly walk you through the site plan, the two residential towers are located on the opposite sides of the podium here. The home offices line the streetscape to provide that transition and scale from the taller towers to the street. And then the retail cafe component is located on the corner here with an entrance on Newport Center Drive as well as valet options to the two parking structures. To discuss the non-residential component a little bit more, the retail cafe space is located at the corner of the building. And this is really a conservative assumption analyzing the worst case scenario in terms of traffic and parking. However, this space may end up being used as another home office or a lobby or amenity for the residential buildings. now the home offices that line the street are a little bit of a unique use and that they are a true commercial use however they would be function more like a home office and there's several conditions of approval that will limit these uses so for example these home offices would only be sold to residents of the residential towers No subleasing would be allowed. There's no staff permitted in these buildings without additional parking being provided. And they're limited to professional office use. So you wouldn't have them subleased to a doctor, for example, who's going to have additional traffic and parking needs. Additionally, there is publicly accessible open space. A sample is shown here in the green areas. And these are courtyards that lead to the home offices and the retail. applicant is requesting three entitlements tonight a major site development review that includes a few deviations from objective design standards a conditional use permit to allow for the non-residential component to allow the parking to be waived and a vesting tentative tract map which would allow for separate sale of the residential and the non-residential units proposed As I mentioned, an appeal was filed by Save Our Theater. It brought up several different topics, and I'll be going through these today. First is CEQA. So this project has provided what's called a 15183 exemption analysis. So previously, the housing overlay sites were all evaluated by a program EIR. And then this 15183 provides that project level analysis that's necessary. And this report included 10 technical studies to support the analysis. and was ultimately peer reviewed and supported by the city's consultant. Concerns were raised about the loss of the existing theater. And so as part of the CEQA analysis, a cultural resources assessment was prepared that evaluated the potential for historic resources on the site, namely the theater building, as it's more than 50 years old. However, the conclusion of the report is that this is not currently designated as a historical resource, nor is it eligible for listing as a historical resource at the federal, state, or local level. And also note that the building has been substantially altered since it was originally built. Few concerns were raised regarding aesthetics. In terms of the objective design standards, although these standards were not written with high-rise in mind, the applicant is still required to comply with them based on the density. And nonetheless, the project complies with 47 out of the 52 objective design standards and very much still meets the intent for a quality design. In terms of aesthetics and scale, there are a wide variety of buildings in Newport Center ranging from low rise to high rise, and the podium that's shown here in the image helps to provide that gradual transition and scale from the pedestrian experience, as this would be about two stories high. Additionally, the towers themselves are set back significantly from the property lines up to 80 feet, and the balconies create these soft corners that wrap around the building. Newport Center, the original design intent of Newport Center was to concentrate the bulk and scale along what I call the upper bowl along San Joaquin Hills Road with a gradual transition as you go down with the topography. So this is an image from the cardboard model of Newport Center from the 1960s with an arrow showing the subject site. This is another image that shows the scale of Newport Center with the existing development. The subject property would be proposed at about 270 feet, and there are three existing buildings at almost 300 feet high, and then one approved building, the Ritz, that's 295 feet as approved. Therefore, the project is very much consistent with the original intent for Newport Center. This image shows the site plane view ordinance, clearly showing the project is not subject to these additional height standards. IN TERMS OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING, THE PROJECT IS NOT REQUIRED TO PROVIDE AN AFFORDABLE HOUSING COMPONENT AS THERE'S NO INCLUSIONARY REQUIREMENT IN THE CITY. A FEW BENEFITS OF NOTE FROM THE PROJECT, THERE WOULD BE ABOUT $8.9 MILLION FROM IN LIEU PARK DEDICATION FEES AND THEN SEPARATELY DEVELOPMENT IMPACT FEES WOULD REACH ABOUT 4.9 MILLION TO SERVE SEVERAL DIFFERENT ITEMS HERE. The appellant has noted that the findings are not sufficient for the track map. However, detailed findings have been provided in the resolution. And a couple items to note for the track map, there would be an easement required for the publicly accessible open space walkways. And the track map allows for the applicant to vest their rights for up to seven years. There were concerns raised regarding the waiver of parking for the non-residential uses. A parking study was prepared to support this waiver. For example, with the residential parking, it does meet the standard and exceeds it by 12 spaces. And these 12 surplus spaces would specifically be for staff of the building, so valet, maintenance, child care workers, et cetera. For the non-residential component, the cafe would not be a destination use, and the staff would be required to park in those surplus spaces. Additionally, those home offices are significantly limited by the conditions that I mentioned earlier, which would limit parking demand. Lastly, the appellant brought up a concern regarding the new residents being located in proximity to things that are common for a mixed use environment. And so the city has a standard condition for mixed use environments where we require a deed notification and a written disclosure statement prior to the sale or lease of these units. This would state that the residents are in a mixed use district and subject to the inconveniences and discomforts that may arise as part of that, including noise, late night hours, live entertainment, et cetera. WITH THAT, IT CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION. ONE OF THE PROPERTY OWNERS, MR. EDWARDS, IS ALSO HERE AND WOULD LIKE TO SAY A FEW WORDS. THANK YOU.

THANK YOU, LIZ. DO ANY COUNCILMEMBERS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? COUNCILMEMBER WEIGAND?

YES, LIZ. I JUST HAD A QUICK QUESTION RELATED TO THE OFFICE, HOME OFFICES. WHAT IF NONE OF THE OWNERS THAT PURCHASE IN THERE WISH TO HAVE A HOME OFFICE BE THERE?

I suppose that would be a challenge for the applicant, but they are conditioned to be limited to residents only of the building.

So if nobody just stays vacant until a new owner comes in that wishes to occupy them?

That's correct. They could also come in with a different proposal and provide additional parking or request a waiver based on the proposed use that they're seeking of that space.

OK, thanks.

Any other questions up here before we Okay. Yes, we do have the applicant prepared to speak.

Good evening.

Mayor Kleinman and members of the City Council. It's really an honor to be here.

Thank you.

My name is Jim Edwards, and as most of you know, my family, the Bartons, the Christensons, the Ruops, have called Newport Beach their home for 70 plus years. In that time, we've been blessed to witness so many changes in Newport, going from a sleepy beach town community to the dynamic city it is today. And I believe a big part of that is because of the responsible leadership and vision by the city leaders. Will I will be brief tonight because I made a presentation before the Planning Commission where I outlined the History of our family business over the number of years So Believe me this tonight is not without a lot of heartfelt emotion on families part but the Edwards Newport Cinema, also known as Big Newport, which was opened by my father in the late 1960s, has been a center of entertainment and happiness, I know, for many people over the years. We all have a lot of fond memories, and probably everyone in the room tonight has some story about their experience at Big Newport. But the era of in-person movie going has fundamentally changed over the years. And that is certainly true for the big Newport with the advent of so much content being available in your very own home, on your computer, on your cell phone. And people are just not going to the theater like they used to. So that is why the Edwards-Big Newport will be closed no later than June of 2027 and possibly sooner. But I'm here tonight to thank you Thank the city council for your support and the city staff for your support for the next chapter of the four acres we own at Newport Center Drive and San Miguel Drive, truly a premier location in Newport Beach. The residential development approved for our property will be one of the most attractive and high quality projects we believe in Newport and if not in all of Orange County. What is planned for our property and the plans to reimagine Newport Center itself are very exciting and the Edwards family continues to be proud to invest in the future of Newport Beach and we are especially grateful to the city, to the city council and to the city staff for your responsible leadership, your vision and your service to the city. Thank you very much.

Thank you. Do we have anyone else from the applicant side? Now it's time to open it up for the appellant.

good evening mayor and council members my name is ken lacroix i've lived in newport beach on and off since 1971 i'm a proud graduate of the east bluff elementary eagles the lincoln middle school lancers and coronado marcy kings i want to thank you all for your attendance tonight as well as the uh the response from uh city planners on my appeal um I grew up in this town. My mom still owns a house here in the same house that I grew up in. I still own a house here. And again, I appreciate the time taken to consider this. I became aware of this project through community discussion. And after looking into it, I felt the scale of change warrants a closer review. This appeal is not about opposing a project. It's about ensuring a significant change is thoroughly and thoughtfully evaluated. First, economic implications. What does this project mean for existing uses and the surrounding small businesses? How will changes affect customer access and overall vitality in the area? Second, parking and circulation. This area is already a highly constrained area. How confident are we that on-site parking truly meet demand and what measures are in place to prevent overflow into nearby spaces? I know when I visit my doctor's offices across the street, finding a space can be quite challenging. Third, compatibility. Future residents will be moving into what is effectively a more urban environment. How will expectations be managed around noise, activity, and existing character of the area? Will new residents come before you asking that we don't have live music at Muldoon's anymore? Fourth, I believe the height of the project at this particular location in Newport Center is not consistent with the original plan for tall buildings, which did designate the boundary on San Joaquin Hills Road as the location for these comparatively massive structures. While designated view quarters are not impacted, will the residents of Spyglass Hill and Broadmere neighborhood agree with you? Finally, when I first became aware of the project from my Facebook friends, my first response was to somehow save the theater. That is why I titled my appeal as such. After further thought and review, I came to the conclusion that saving the theater was not a viable option. I would not want to impact the value of the property by insisting on a business model that has run its course. I thank you and truly respect you for the job you have stepped up to do. Mr. Stapleton is well known for his slogan, keep Newport, Newport, and I agree. That doesn't mean we should oppose change. I'm asking that we make sure that a change this significant is thoroughly reviewed. I also want to briefly address the process. I had a few voicemails from the applicant's representative, which I initially appreciated, but later felt too intimidated to return. Additionally, I was later approached by a private investigator outside my office questioning why I filed this appeal. That experience was unsettling, and I think it's important to say that community participation in civic processes should feel safe and respected. Ultimately, these are reasonable questions. This project merits a thorough and thoughtful discussion at the council level. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Let's bring it back up here. Are there any questions for the appellant? Okay, seeing none, we will go out to public comment. We'll open up the public hearing. Can I just see a show of hands of how many people are planning to speak on this item? Okay, we'll go ahead and keep it at three minutes. Our speaker.

OK, now I think I'm good. Thank you. I appreciate you taking the time to hear me. I won't go too much into my intro again, but I'm just a very passionate student, formerly from Loyola Marymount, now at Dodge. In the last year alone, I've attended this theater at least every weekend. I've attended it most weekends for the last decade, at least since I was about 12 years old. And this past weekend, I was there to go see the new Michael film with the huge turnout of people of all ages. And I always look forward to getting greeted by Mark, the theater's longtime employee of 32 years, wondering what his outfit is going to be as he is dressing up in a themed tie for whatever the film is going to be. And sometimes maybe he's dressed like he's Indiana Jones for Dial of Destiny or anything like that. I've been coming to Newport, like I'd said, since the age of 12. I've been coming here for all my big blockbuster movie-going experiences. And this past fall, I had the privilege of working as an intern for the Newport Beach Film Festival, as well as showcasing my personal film that I made for the festival's lineup. The opening night celebration featured names such as Jacob Elordi, Renee Zellweger, and to just name a few. Co-founders Greg Schwenk and Todd Quaternaro have done, what they've done for this community has been remarkable. Creating a community-inviting week-long event filled with films, music, art, dance, and culture, uniting local businesses and restaurants. NBFF is one of the places you can go to be represented as a small filmmaker as well as showcasing your work with some of the biggest filmmakers in the world. The two work in tandem to introduce new art to us as we discuss and engage with our peers. Without Big Newport, there is no Newport Beach Film Festival. I'll try to be quick now. I know that we need to get off of our phones, we need to be able to attend the big screen, we need to preserve our history, our culture, and Orange County does have culture. My grandfather was an architect here in Newport Beach in the early 60s, and he worked for a firm here in Orange County, rubbing elbows with Newport's famous actor, John Wayne, and I know that activism is very important for my family. Newport Beach has become home to many famous stars as well, who also see this theater as an important icon. If you close down Big Newport, what's next? Closure of the Lido Theater, of the lot, NBFF's contributions bring more to the community than any condominium project ever could. Newport is the biggest landmark of movie culture that Orange County has to offer. And by demolishing it in favor of housing, what are we contributing to Newport's growth? And I'll leave it at that. I just want to say thank you again. And I have a copy here as well. Thank you for your time.

Thank you. Next speaker. Thank you next speaker Hello

i'm not good at public speaking here so i'll go quick my name is cody parole i'm a local artist i've done murals at local elementary schools such as mariners kaiser i've done let's see davis anyways victoria anyways my grandparents had a italian restaurant on Riverside Drive called the Stuffed Noodle. Anyways, I see as though it's really the theater's not saveable, but I really wanna bring up the concern of overdevelopment. And I was a huge part of saving Banning Ranch. WHEN IS IT GOING TO STOP? WE HAVE SO MUCH TRAFFIC. IT'S NONSTOP. AND ALL I CAN ASK FROM NOW IS CAN WE SAVE THE SIGN AT LEAST?

THAT'S IT.

THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER?

Once again, Jody Jofre, my concerns are traffic, water. I remember the drought that wasn't that long ago, and you asked us to cut back on water. You're going to have all these people. There's going to be a drought. Are you going to ask me to cut back on water again, electricity? But the main thing is there are too many people here. The San Fernando Valley used to be a really lovely place to be, and now it's horrendous. You can't move in that city because of the traffic. And that's what you guys are going to do to us here. I object to this project. Thank you.

THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE.

FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK, I WANT TO ADDRESS OUR MADAM MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL. THERE'S ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY THAT WAS APPROACHED TO ME, AND IT'S FROM THREE PRIVATE ADVANCE INVESTORS. I know I haven't had a chance to talk to Patty or Jim about this, but they wanted to talk to the Edwards family directly about making a private event center where you really wouldn't have to change the structure of the building, but it would also give the opportunity where you could bring in private events like James Taylor, Adele, and there's a lot of these top artists that are now looking for smaller venues. They just did a quick kind of sent me the numbers over. So there's 458 seats in the Big Edwards Theater. If you sold each one of those seats for $500, that's $229,000 for one night. If you held that event for 10 days, that's $2,290,000. If you had 30 events a year, that would be $137,400,000 gross annual revenue. If you doubled that, that would bring in $274,800,000 800,000 and that would bring that in gross annually. This also to having the events like that in the Big Edwards Newport Theater without having to change any of the outside structure, but some of the inside structure would bring huge amount of money, millions of dollars into Fashion Island restaurants and hotels annually. It would also be able to be, they would like to be able to use it for the local schools, plays, revenues, local businesses, corporate businesses, and still allowing the movies to be shown or the Newport Beach Film Festival. It would be a win-win for the community as they presented that to me, and I'm here presenting that to Jimmy and Patty. And there's one wise woman who told me, and she was dear to my heart, never sell the goose that lays the golden egg, because once you do, there's no going back. Thank you.

Thank you. Next speaker.

Hello. My name is Diego. I'm a high school senior. I'll be going to film school in the fall in LA. And I went to one of my first film festivals at the Newport Beach Film Festival, which I'm sure you're all familiar with, at the big Newport. And that was one of the big moments in my life that I remember when I think of what made me want to be a filmmaker. And I don't know how decided it is, obviously, whether that theater is going to stay or not, but Honestly, I just think demolishing is a little intense. Replacing that kind of landmark in Newport that even if it's not a historical place now, who knows in the future what it could be as a landmark for Newport, even if you change what the purpose of that place is or what you do with it. When I think of Newport, I think of the big Newport. I think taking away the charm and replacing it with more urban places for people to go in a place that already every time I'm here is just like congested traffic and people and even when I get out of the car it's more and more people it's like insane I mean I think keeping the charm of the city is not only important to like the people here but just the image that we have as a city is just a completely separate topic that I think you should take into consideration as well. And for other kids that might come along in the future that might have moments in that theater just like I did, that might go on and be people that people think of when they think of Newport. I mean, who knows? Just no people like me care.

Thank you. Next speaker. And if we have others, if you could go ahead and start lining up at the microphones, that would be helpful.

Hello, members of the council. Thank you for this opportunity to speak. I don't have anything specifically prepared, but I want to say that I think we need to all consider to keep things that bring us together as people and not that separate us. The world is already separating us. It's more money, more projects, more high rises. I think we need more community, more art, more places that are gems. I come from a background of, I'm not from here, but I think that architecture and culture and things that are, you know, that bind us together are very, very important. I think that the path that we're going on, not only Newport, but the world of just more, more, more, bigger and better, it's actually something we need to consider. And maybe smaller is better. Maybe keeping things that are beautiful, things that bring us together, is something that we really have to consider. It's emotional for me to see that it happened in San Juan Capistrano, to bring down the theater, to change the purpose, not bring it down. And I'm thinking, is there a way that developer, the owner, which has a beautiful project, could integrate it in the project? Could they change the plans? Could it be part of it? I don't know. I don't know of that. But it's something I think we need to consider. beyond our job here as human beings to stop tearing down the things that bring us together and bring art, community, and basically beauty. Thank you.

Thank you.

Good evening. My name is Jim Engle. I'm a 30-year resident of Newport Beach. I came through here about 40, 45 years ago, and something that appealed to me about Newport Beach was the character of the city. I think of the quaint cities down the coast, you know, and talk about Del Mar, Solana Beach, Carlsbad, Dana Point, Laguna Beach, and how those cities maintain their character through all these years. A few months ago, I was up at Westwood, and I think of Westwood and what it was before all those high-rises were built around the UCLA area up there. I expressed it to Simone in a Speak Up Newport meeting a couple of months back. When you look at development in Newport Beach, I kind of think of it as a monopoly board, and I kind of see like a park place and a boardwalk being erected over where the Newport Theater was. And I understand that you have a lot of choices to make, and you still have to maintain the character of the city. At last month's meeting, there was a presentation about where you're going to put the new police station. And one thing I did not see in that presentation was relocating that police station to the big Newport site. The big Newport site is 4.2 acres. The existing police station is 4 acres. That includes the fire station. To me, it seems like it would be a no-brainer to at least consider moving the police station over there. It's centrally located. There's a lot of space available, and it would be a way of taking care of that particular issue. I kind of wonder why that was never part of the plan or part of the evaluation. The low-cost housing, one thing I had expressed to Simone was the possibility of taking over the Newport golf course maybe in 20 years and relocating that golf course up to the Newport Coast Drive dump site, which is already designated as a golf course by the county. So anyway, I just wanted to kind of throw some ideas out there. And I think the city believes that the character of Newport Beach is much, much more important than than putting up to high rises there, you know, just fingers sticking in the air to the community. Thank you.

Thank you.

Afternoon, council members and Mayor. I just wanted to speak real briefly on the subject and I oppose the plan. I oppose the plan because there is zero affordable housing included in these units. And I would ask the developer to find a way to integrate some type of affordable housing up percentage. Because the current plan, the only thing I've been able to find, the city's plan, is to discriminate and separate residences into an industrial area around the airport. that is unsuitable for residences these small enclaves is where in residential areas is where affordable housing should be another example that there was a affordable housing on the peninsula that was eliminated 50 homes were eliminated and it was approved a plan that was approved by the state land commission because there is a park there but the government office is right there as well And that I didn't see that in the plan. This is where people used to live on the peninsula, 50 homes. I see the same thing happening over and over in the city and trying to marginalize people near the airport that are low income creates a ghetto. That's not a good look for the city of Newport Beach. And that's all I have to say. Thank you for listening.

Thank you. Next speaker.

I'm Marta Tena. I'm 33. I've lived here for 33 years. I agree with everyone about the overdevelopment. It's happening in Costa Mesa also. I just want to say that I think that my generation, millennials, will start to bring back the movie theaters for our kids. So although it is changing, I think it will eventually go back. And I think that's it because I agree with everyone else too. Thank you. Thank you. Oh, I also have to go because I'm going to Big Newport to go see Michael Jackson.

Good afternoon. My name is Brian Harris, and I've lived in Orange County my whole life. When I was a college student, I showed a film at the Newport Beach Film Festival, and I've been working behind the scenes for the festival since 2021. And unapologetically, I'm here to save the theater. for a few different reasons and I'll actually save the festival reasons for later. I'd actually like to respond to Mr. Edward's point about people not going to see the movies anymore. There was actually a study put out by Fandango recently showing that 87% of Gen Z and 82% of millennials have gone to the movies in the last year compared to 70% of Gen X. and 58 of boomers uh now while attendance for movies has uh seen a 20 decrease since uh before uh the pandemic uh uh i don't believe that a temporary uh slump in movie going attendance should destroy over 50 years of history for newport beach I actually think that Big Newport is one of the most beautiful and iconic theaters in the world. I've been to many movie theaters up in Hollywood, up in Los Angeles, and none are as grand or as architecturally amazing as Big Newport. The only one that really comes close is the Cinerama Dome. on Sunset, but that's actually been closed since 2020 and its future is in limbo. And so what I would like to see is the movie theater preserved for future generations and I don't think that a Sales going down for movie theater attendance should make an impact. Now as for the festival, last year we lost the use of the Port Theater in Corona del Mar. because they're turning it into a private event space, and so now it's really just the Lido, which is a beautiful theater and was recently refurbished, don't get me wrong, and the lot over in Fashion Island, and the lot we have to share with other movies going on at the time, and the Lido can only show one movie at a time, so it's becoming an issue where we don't have the space in Newport Beach to show these films that we'd like to. Now, I understand the importance of finding space for new housing. If I can make a suggestion, there's five golf courses in the limits of Newport Beach, and the Newport Beach Country Club sits on 132 acres. I think they can spare a couple acres to build these condominiums. Thank you for your time.

Thank you.

Mayor Kleinman, members of the council, my name again is Jim Mosier. I agree with one of the previous speakers. When the city staff learned that this property, four acres, was for sale, I am curious if they considered that as an option for the police station, which we seem to think is a very urgent matter. I do not know if they did or not. But what I want to speak about is the transparency of the process by which the project got approved. I believe many people feel that they were caught by surprise. And I would note that this morning in STU News, Tom Johnson, who most people rely on as being somewhat informed about what's going on in Newport Beach, wrote that six of the seven sitting council members were not even on the council when it, this project, was approved as part of the housing element in 2022 with only Mayor Pro Tem Blum being part of that process. As you may or may not know, this property is not identified as a housing site in our current housing element. It was not in 2022. It is not now. But when the housing element was subjected to the EIR process for its implementation, The few people who went to the scoping meeting heard that five other sites had been identified. Who identified them? How they got identified? Any details are vague and they were identified only by accessory parcel number. This was one of those. And that came back in an ordinance 2024-16 in 2024. And all of you other than Councilmember Weber and Bartow were on the council at that time. The EIR, by the way, analyzed this as a 32-foot height limit property. And all of you were on the council when the height increases were allowed, which was by Ordinance 2025-10. And the rationale for increasing the height at not only this location but many others was that was needed to make feasible the housing needed for meeting our RENA requirements. But the Reno requirement we need is affordable housing. And increasing the height limit encourages what we're seeing here is proposals for luxury housing, which is not what we need. At the time, the height increases were considered, speaking of the CEQA process, we were told, as we often are, that that had already been analyzed. But again, the EIR analyzed a 32-foot project. And then we were told if they had not been adequately analyzed, they will be analyzed when the project comes up. That's exactly the kind of thing that I think the Supreme Court told us not to do in the case of the Banning Ranch. Looks like your time is up. Thank you.

Thank you.

Good evening, Mayor Kleinman, members of the council. My name is Denise Olbermann. The city council is making major decisions that have significant and potentially irrevocable impacts to the city's fundamental character and integrity. You heard from Mr. Mosher and a number of other citizens there. is a growing concern with the lack of transparency, not only relative to this project, but relative to other projects that have been planned, approved, and or pending under consideration. Further residents such as myself as well as others are entitled to express their questions, their concerns and also their positions without fear of retaliation, intimidation or any other type of reprisal. So we respectfully request that the council more carefully consider the proposed project that's here under consideration. There is a gap, as Mr. Mosier mentioned, within even the updated general plan, so we really can't be certain, we can't have confidence that there is alignment between the housing, the amount and intensification that's proposed, and the ability of the area to accommodate a meaningful circulation plan. Thank you.

Excuse my hat hair.

I'm Christy Peters. I've lived here my whole life, 30 years, and I've been going to Big Newport since I can remember seeing my first movie there and you know, my friends and I joke, even though how big Newport is, like we feel like small town kids and Bobo Island and big Newport and little things and other things that have left Fashion Island made us feel like it was part of our community and where we'd all go and the food court and hang out and it just feels like we're losing more and more of those things. And, you know, we've slept outside for premieres, Harry Potter to watch big Newport, tented up at big Newport. It's things like this that we want to bring into the next generation and show our kids. And, you know, movies are coming back. People are showing up to the theater. And I think, you know, even if it needs to be revamped or whatever we need to do, it's like, very important landmark I use it going around Fashion Island who knows how many times I'll circle if we lose this you know so I think we should spend more time on this and really like dig in and see what we need to do to try and keep it I'm also going to Big Newport to go see Michael Jackson so I have to leave but thank you for your time thank you

I'm also going for the movie so I'm just gonna be really really quick thank you all for the time I know nostalgia isn't the best for decision-making but I do think it is a major consideration in the steps moving forward whether it be the apartments or not I think the building does really mean something and I think a reference point I would like to bring up is the The camera was called before but it's now referred to as the Rivian Theater in Laguna where it was pretty much a ghost town. I don't think many people were going and they revamped it and now it's for community movies. It's showing old movies. I was trying to get tickets to Cool Runnings and I couldn't because it sold out within a couple minutes. We're going back to the theaters to watch movies that have been out forever. So I think those are things that feel really important to us. Big Newport is one of those things. That was my sister. I also slept out on the street. I know that's not what we're trying to tell people to do with their kids, but it was a very monumental moment for us. I had my first date there. We've been going since we were young, and it feels very important. So yeah, whatever we feel that we need to do to maintain the structure, to maintain that community feeling, and the proponent for the arts and culture. So thank you so much for your time, and also going to the movies.

Thank you.

I'm Dave Joffrey, I grew up in Newport, initially on Lido Isle, later, now we live in Irvine Terrace and have lived there for 40 years. I'm not as concerned, I'm concerned about the loss of the theater because it's part of the structure. What I invite this council to do is ride up and down Jamboree in traffic time and non-traffic time, or MacArthur in traffic time or non-traffic time, and then imagine what it's going to be like with those huge structures that you're going to allow to be built in fashion island we just can't handle the traffic people are moving out of california in droves the the people that we want to have live in california are leaving for other communities because of the the uh well lots of reasons but the main reason that i would leave newport is what it's turned into i'm an active boater i've been boating since i was a child The harbor is completely different than it used to be when I grew up. And things change. And I admit that. And at my age, things do change. But on the other hand, if you make Newport Beach look like Miami Beach, I've spent a lot of time back there. And I've spent a lot of time in Florida. and different parts in the boating communities. And this is a boating community. It's beautiful and a beautiful harbor. And the high density buildings that are going in, even over by Trader Joe's and all of the, my goodness, that's where the car wash used to be. And now you've got people living in there and the home started over a million dollars. So I really am opposed to this project. I know people want to sell their property and make a fortune off of it. But I would love to see something developed at Fashion Island other than two incredible structures. Thank you.

Thank you.

Hello, my name is Nicholas. Full disclosure, I work at Big Newport. I was not planning on speaking tonight. I was just coming because I was interested to see what was happening. In the time since learning that the theater is going away, of course, it's very near and dear to everyone in Newport. It was also where I first had my date. I've been going there my whole life. I remember seeing movies there probably 2004, which I guess might not be that long ago. But for me, that's most of my life I've been going there. I've actually turned kind of in favor of the sale of the theater. I see how this business is going, what the direction is, and I think the Edwards are doing a very smart thing in selling it. However, the only situation where I saw the theater being saved, of course, While it's not eligible as a historic landmark or anything, I do think it's a very important older building in Newport. It's actually the oldest remaining Edwards Theater that still operates as an Edwards Theater. It's one of the first four built in Orange County and is still the oldest that is running. It still has the original branding and everything, which makes it quite unique. But if it was to operate as anything other than a theater, while I'm not opposed to the apartments, I do think that an event center, as Sue has suggested might be possible, would be the best alternative if we're not doing the condominiums. I would say that currently one of the things we actually prefer at the theater, obviously we love showing movies, but we're very enthusiastic about the events that we hold there. We do lots of film premieres, we do lots of birthday parties. Mayor Kleinman, you may actually remember, I was the manager that helped you when your child had their birthday party there. think that that more so than film and of course including film especially including the film festival is a great service that we provide to the community but I would say that the fact that we can also serve kind of as a community event space is really the great thing that I think big Newport offers and so if it's anything other than condominiums I do think that the event center would be something to consider thank you thank you any other speakers

Good evening, Ron Rubino, resident of East Bluff, Newport Beach for 39 years. My comments are kind of different. Number one, thank you Mr. Edwards and the Edwards family for many years of happiness and I'm really sorry to see the theater go, but I recognize the economic situation that they face and my comments kind of in general to the public rather than directly to you. I feel that this process was fulfilled the way the law intends it to fulfill, but I have one exception. So I'm going to just say in a compliment that planning staff work on this was beyond compare. What Liz did, what the staff did, but you had to go to all the meetings. If you don't show up and participate, you don't know what's going on. It's very complex, and the general public's overwhelmed, the ones who live here and participate. We don't want to be discouraged from participating. So that's my overall message, because then it comes up that there's some objection at the end of the process. If you hear us earlier, we have some say in the process. I wrote you a note, the details of the note just say as an HOA director, we really struggle to get our homeowners to know what's going on and participate, and then we make our decisions. And hopefully they don't object and overturn them. So you have a much grander, bigger, difficult job. So the staff report and the planning commission, those are people you picked. And we elect you and you represent us. So I have to count on you to do the best job of what's best for the Newport as a whole. I think you were doing that on here. The only problem I have is that this was all wrapped up into the housing overlay. And it was, you know, 4,845 mandated affordable units. And this height increase and everything was associated with the changes. But people don't understand that. And other property heights have been increased. So now we have this property, Armstrong Gardens, city-owned property where the fire and police department are, and others where the heights have changed. If you don't participate in this process, you don't know those things are happening. This is the end result of raising the height limit in this particular property on these four acres. The point I want to make at the end is that this project does not include any affordable housing. It's not included in, it wasn't in the six cycle regional housing needs assessment. And there's no affordable mandatory element in Newport Beach. So what we end up with is we use our units, but we're not gaining anything on the affordable units. And this is another example of that. The law says that you should not be approving other units if there's a net loss provision. In terms of what units we put on the overlay, a portion of them have to go to affordable housing. If we use up the units and we don't do the affordable, we'll end up short at the end. I personally think that's where we're headed. as in the year 2026 headed to the end 2029. I don't think we're gonna make it to the affordable units. This is an example of the process. So in conclusion, I encourage everybody to participate in these processes, read the materials that were prepared, and don't be surprised when projects like this are proposed. And I appreciate the hard work that you're doing and the difficult decisions you have to make.

Thank you. Any other speakers? We're taking all public comments on this item.

Good afternoon, Mayor Kleinman and members of the City Council. My name is Susan DeSantis, and I am a 40-year resident of Newport Beach. Thirty years were spent in Newport Coast, and I'm now living in Newport Center. I'm also a member, I have been a member of the Housing Element Update Committee and the General Plan Update Committee. So I have been actively involved for the last, I don't know how many years. I would like to thank the council and the staff in particular for the hard work that they have done on a very difficult task in preparing the general plan. I am here today and wanted to comment on the issue related to the height allowances for the two towers. And I, after having served as the land use chair, by the way, of the land use subcommittee for the general plan, I did not have an understanding of the map that Liz showed. And if you could pull it up again, Liz. You showed the map and you showed the heights of the various buildings. And I think part of the challenge the general plan committee had was because the housing and the circulation element had been addressed earlier, they were not an intimate part or an integral part of the general plan process as we were dealing with all the other elements that are going to be before you in the next couple of weeks. So when this project, the theater project, went before the Planning Commission, I was really taken aback by the height of the two buildings. being at that 22-story level because it was, and you can even see from the picture here, it is out of scale for the existing buildings that are along Newport Center Drive. And across the street, the medical buildings and so forth are significantly at a lower height level. So it appeared to me that in looking at the process, I agree with the comments that were made earlier by Jim Mosier and also the comments by Ron. that, if I may just wrap up, the community does not understand how this came to be because they're not aware of the decisions that got made that are gonna affect all of the buildings going forward, not just the two towers.

And the last comment, if I may make, is

you don't have to approve this. You could spend a little bit more time looking at bringing the community up to understanding what this vision is for Newport Center and being able to help them understand, yes, change is gonna happen, there is redevelopment that is gonna occur, and we need to be looking at the future Thank you.

Thank you for your comment.

Thank you.

Next speaker, please Madam mayor city council members and staff. My name is Philip Bettencourt. My business address is 23 Newport Center Drive suite 150 I have spent the better part of three years as an independent researcher on Newport Center and on this particular property and on the movie business. I have been day and night in each of the cinemas to see what the traffic is really like. I have been to five other cinemas theaters to see what the traffic is like and I have accumulated more than a thousand pages of government and planning documents to assist the Edwards family and their advisors on what best steps would be and I want to thank the city clerk's office, the city attorney's office, and these fine folks here for their good help and what they have provided. I came to Newport Beach in 1968. I have been then in the city manager's office from 68 to 73, including serving as acting city manager for five months. I've had as an office here big ones little ones for 31 years i know newport center like the back of my hand and this is the best possible solution the recommendation of the planning commission if in fact it even needs to be sustained i hope that will be And I believe that this appeal should be denied. There is not substantial evidence that there are other better uses and they have not been through any sort of vetting like this property has by these people, by the Planning Commission and other planning professionals. And this is the best possible decision for what's best for Newport Center and for the future of Newport Center. And I thank you for the time that you take. Mr. Mayor Pro Tem, I want to thank you for taking some time out to help me with the research that we were doing along the way. I've interviewed a lot of people, studied a lot of documentation, The right decision is to deny this appeal and proceed with the staff recommendation. Thank you.

Thank you. Are there any other speakers? Okay, seeing none, does the applicant have any additional comments? Okay, then we'll go to the appellant.

So again, thank you for your time. As I got a chance to study this particular slide that was presented, in the 1960s, I just want to remind everybody that's not how Newport Center turned out in reality. And I think there were two giant freeways on both sides of that going through the coast. So I think the current use reflects something different than the 1960s. So again, thank you for your time.

Thank you. Do any council members have any comments at this time? Mayor Poteen Blum?

Thank you so, so very much. All right. Well, I apologize if I use any dirty words like Sacramento Arena during the course of my speech here.

I don't have any questions. If not, let me go ahead and close the public hearing. We're going right into discussion. Go ahead.

Thank you so much, Madam Mayor. You know, I was privileged enough to be born and raised here, and I have spent so much time at that theater and I don't even want to tell the Edwards how many times we snuck in the back parking in the back parking lot, but it was super easy and the ushers helped us a lot. They were all good friends, you know, it's the same thing with the ferry. But that's part of the glory of getting to grow up here and remember the nostalgia, right? And I've heard a lot of talks about that today, right? We're here to preserve We're to create something that we all remember. And sometimes I think there's an irony in that when we're looking at something that is ready to change. And not because some of us want it to change, because the time is creating the change. And if the theater was packed and it was bustling, this wouldn't even be a conversation. There wouldn't be a proposal in front of us. But it is. And the family that built their enterprise on entertaining all of us throughout counties, throughout cities across the globe, it strikes me that they don't want to stop that. But the time is now to adjust it. So what is really At stake, what are we talking about? We're not talking about this project or another project. We're talking about basic property rights and what goes with that. The reality is that Sacramento has implemented a lot upon this city. And so when everyone sits here and they don't want the change or there's an issue about it, well, great. I think that Newport would keep a couple of wooden piers and a red line still going down the peninsula if that was really what worked. But it doesn't. We've grown. As we look at some of the articles that keep calling us the richest city in California, which, you know, also somehow makes us the poorest because we've got to afford to live here, the idea is that we have to grow in the right way. And, you know, I've heard a lot of comments today about parking, noise, height. It's funny. There's 450 units at the Villas Fashion Island currently, right on San Joaquin. I live across the street. Traffic? Well, I don't know how many people I've ever even seen turn in to that grouping. What does it add to the rest of it? Well, what's been created? How many new restaurants have you seen built around Fashion Island in the last 15, 20 years? There were a few in the beginning. The Rex, I think, moved over here after it left where 21 Oceanfront is now. They built the entire Fleming's, Roy's, now Joey's complex. Oceans 48 didn't exist before. Neither did Rideau. All of these things have been improvements to the city, and for what reason? To give us something else to do. To increase the idea. I'm not saying we're trying to overgrow the city or we're trying to force these things down, but the question that so many people have asked is, Why didn't this feel more transparent? Well, okay, let's address that. A family that owned a property sold a property. At what point is the city involved in that? At what point do you want government involved in that? Should we be involved in every transaction that every person makes? We shouldn't. So they made a deal. They went for what they thought was best. It's so funny, for so many people speaking about respect for what the Edwards family did, it's odd that we don't have the respect for the decision they made to keep their legacy going for something they believed in. So, I'm gonna trust them that they made a good choice and a good partner. Our job is not to sit up here and address the merits of each individual project, and if everyone in the city likes it, it's not. Is it within the confines of the law and the legislation that we put forth? That is our job. And in something like this, of course. Do I want movie theaters to be in existence forever? Yes. Am I sad that the Port Theater in Cronomar closed after someone came in and tried to save it? Yes. Am I happy that Lido is now trying other options? Of course. This is my childhood. This is everything I love. I'm not trying to destroy the city, but I am trying to make it better. And I believe the concerted voice, I get it.

People aren't going to agree, but that's okay.

We can smile and wave and not agree. We can have the decorum and the respect to sit there and have an argument. And that is what makes us who we are. So for a project like this, I am so proud to support it because you know what? It gives more people about 147 new families an ability to live in the city that I've called home my entire life, that I believe in, that I want to see them be able to leave that tower and go and shop and dine and enjoy their life here. Because we've all gotten that same opportunity. And sometimes it seems a little odd and self-serving if we don't care to let other people in. And that's really what this is about. A lot of people that decided, hey, we don't want anyone else in Newport. Well, I want everyone to be able to experience the love and passion that I got to grow up with here. And I think this is an amazing project. The towers are beautiful, and I'll never forget one last anecdote before I sign off here. I grew up in East Bluff. I was on Blackthorn Street, and the HOA wanted us to cut down our palm trees. And so someone from Alta Vista, I know Ron, you're up there. It wasn't you, I swear. But the president of the HOA came up at the time, and we stood at that person's house, and they held up a pencil. I said, is this about the view that's being blocked right now? And held it up over that palm tree. He said, yes. He goes, well, I think you can deal with a pencil. And that palm tree stood for the rest of my entire life there. And so I get it. Things adjust. But as long as they adjust in a concerted and beautiful way, I'm happy to support them. As much as this is all of our town, it's also mine. And I hold a very special place in my heart for it, which is why we're doing the community service of being up here, listening to this, and trying to make the best and most informed decisions for everyone in this city. Thank you.

Councilmember grant Thank you. I'll expand a little on that First I want to thank everyone who is attending in engaging in you know thoughtful governance in our city It's very important that we have this opportunity and this decision regarding the movie site, the theater site, is not an easy one. The economic realities, we've heard about that, that are facing traditional theaters are just fundamentally different. We have seen other theaters try and pivot to limited success, but those economic realities are, we can't deny them. The planning department's decision was also a difficult one to allow the residential towers on the site, and they went through a very careful balancing. If you go through the planning report, there was a careful balancing of the priorities of the residents, the property owner and the state mandated housing requirements. And that balance was culminated in a decision by the planning department that we're looking at today. And it's not an easy decision to, you know, look at it's difficult for all seven of us up here and I know for everybody in the audience and for staff the project is in character with already developed Irvine company projects PIMCO building Pacific Life and other buildings in Newport Center and it's pretty well served by the existing infrastructure I think councilmember Blum mentioned that there's you know restaurants there's other facilities I understand that we've had some traffic studies and and made those considerations so it is well served by the infrastructure that's in that existing business district this is a very different decision than others that we've made recently for example the proposed police station in Civic Center Park where we own the property and the land is entirely within our control. This is not our land that we're talking about. In those cases, we have broader discretion and I've supported exploring different alternatives, but that's not the case here. This isn't our land and we don't have broad discretion on how it's used. would mention I'm encouraged by many people who talked about the film festival that is an iconic opportunity in our community it's been around for a long time I support it we've supported it here in the city and it's unfortunate that they're going to lose an important venue but that doesn't mean that we will lose the film festival I would support creative thinking in ways that the city council and the city of Newport Beach and the residents and other businesses can continue to support the film festival. I think it's very important for our community and we'll look at those opportunities as they come to us later down the road. But I would finish just saying a thank you to everyone who took the time to participate. The engagement strengthens our decision making and helps us to ensure that we continue to serve Newport Beach with transparency and accountability. And that, I think, is the most important piece here tonight. Thank you.

Any other speakers up here on the dais? Do I have a motion?

Thank you, Madam Mayor. I would love to make a motion to deny the appeal.

We have a motion and a second by Councilmember Weber. Let's go ahead and vote.

Motion carried by unanimous vote.

We'll now move on to the next public hearing item, number 15, resolution number 202625, Notice of Intent to Override Orange County Airport Land Use Commission's Determination of Inconsistency for the Comprehensive General Plan Update, PA2022080. Mr. Jurgis, do we have a staff report?

Thank you, Madam Mayor. So this is a notice of intent. So you're going to send Airport Land Use Commission a notice that you may override them when this item comes back to you in June. If you'd like a further presentation, Deputy Director Ben Zadiba is here.

Anyone up here like an additional presentation? Okay. We will go ahead and open the public hearing.

Mayor Kleinman, members of the council, my name again is Jim Mosier. In the absence of a staff report, I don't know that people watching will even know what this is about, but it's a dispute about where the noise contours are in the airport area, which affect applications primarily for housing in that area. And I would just say that this is, for me, extremely frustrating. issue having been on the GPAC and on the noise element subcommittee the airport planning unit called the airport land use commission is using extremely outdated contours projected in 1985 for what conditions would be in 2005 and 20 years later is still using those and insisting that the county I mean that the city also use those. The city on the other hand is using some projections that were made 10 years ago for what conditions will be in four years from now in 2030. So neither of them is correct. And the area that is impacted, the airport area east of the runway, neither the county nor the city seems to have any interest in actually measuring what the noise is there. So they're disputing projections that are theoretically what the noise from the aircraft should be. Neither of them right. Shouldn't somebody actually measure what the noise is in that area so we will know how it will impact future residents? That's my point. Thank you.

Thank you.

Adam Leverance, I'm gonna quote something that I read in STU News. It says, quote, if the city overrides the airport land use committee, the airport operator is immune from liability from damages to property or personal injury caused by or resulting directly or indirectly from the city's decision, close quote. I just have concern that if this action is going to absolve the operator of the airport from any of those things I just mentioned, is the city taking on that liability? And there's the possibility of extreme financial consequences that aren't favorable. And I just hope that that be thought of. I know you've heard from me before a lot of things people perceive here as catering to developers rather than what's in the best interests of the people that live and pay taxes here. And if this creates significant exposure to them, I think that needs consideration. Thank you.

Any other speakers? Okay, I'll go ahead and close the public hearing. Are there any additional comments up here or a motion?

Thank you, Madam Mayor. I would love to make a motion to approve staff recommendation.

Do I have a second? Second from Councilmember Grant. Let's go ahead and vote.

Motion carried by unanimous vote.

Madam Clerk, please read the statement on motions for reconsideration.

Motion to reconsider the vote on any action taken by the City Council at either this meeting or the previous meeting may be made only by one of the Council members who voted with the prevailing side.

Are there any motions for reconsideration? Hearing none, are there any public comments on our closed session agenda? Seeing none, Mr. Herp, please announce our closed session item.

Thank you, Mayor. The City Council adjourned a closed session to meet with the city's labor negotiators regarding negotiations with the Newport Beach City Employees Association and the Newport Beach Professional and Technical Employee Association.

Thank you. We are now recessed to closed session. Mr. Harp, do you have a closed session report?

Thank you, Mayor. There's no closed session report this evening.

With that, we're adjourned.