NEWPORT BEACH PLANNING COMMISSION WRAP-UP

WHAT HAPPENED:

Planning commissioners approved remodeling designs for Coco’s

Restaurant and Bakery in Corona del Mar. Commissioner Larry Tucker did

not join the meeting until after the vote due to a conflict of interest.

WHAT IT MEANS:

Coco’s will increase its dining area and add an outdoor patio, which

will remain open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Tony Barr, the restaurant’s vice

president of development, said the company would demolish the building in

14 years, when the lease expires, if it can’t get the lease renewed for

the adjacent property. Part of the new building will sit on the

neighboring plot, which also serves as a parking lot for the restaurant.

WHAT THEY SAID:

“14 years from now, we’re creating another eyesore if the lease isn’t

continued. ... I understand that there are a lot of ugly buildings in

Newport Beach. My desire was not to add one more.” -- Commissioner

Michael C. Kranzley.

Vote: 6 IN FAVOR / 0 AGAINST

WHAT HAPPENED:

Commissioners denied an application for an animated sign displaying

time and temperature at First Republic Back on East Coast Highway. The

commissioners said the sign would set a bad precedent by depriving the

city of control over its advertising.

WHAT IT MEANS:

The bank will not be able to install the sign, which would have stood

out from the side of the wall.

WHAT THEY SAID:

“I know what time it is and the only time people want to know the

temperature is when it’s over 100 or less than zero.” -- Commissioner

Earl McDaniel

Vote: 0 IN FAVOR / 7 AGAINST

WHAT HAPPENED:

Commissioners adopted a resolution of intent to amend sign regulations

for the Balboa Peninsula.

WHAT IT MEANS:

The commission can now hold a public hearing on the proposed sign

addendum for Balboa Peninsula. The “overlay,” which will supplement the

city’s sign ordinance, would encourage business owners to install

creative signs.

In the first year of the program, the city would pay for removal and

disposal of old signs and assist with the graphic design for new ones.

The city would also pay for construction of new signs and waive all fees

for sign permits.

The incentives would decrease in the following years. Fifteen years

after the new sign overlay is adopted, all signs that don’t fit the new

requirements would have to be removed. A federal community development

block grant will pay for the program.

Vote: 7 IN FAVOR / 0 AGAINST

SOUNDING OFF

“As we all know, it’s outdated and we’re trying to be good neighbors.”

-- Tony Barr, vice president for development, Coco’s restaurants,

explaining why his company wants to refurbish its Corona del Mar

location, even though it might have to tear it down in 2014.

NEXT MEETING

7 p.m., Aug. 31, Newport Beach City Hall, 3300 Newport Blvd.