NEWPORT BEACH CITY COUNCIL WRAP-UP

WHAT HAPPENED:

Council members delayed a vote Tuesday on Greenlight guidelines until

their next meeting.

WHAT IT MEANS:

While the slow-growth Greenlight law has been in place since December,

council members have spent several months debating the mechanics to put

it to work. Although most major issues, such as the starting date for the

initiative’s “look-back” provision, have already been settled, council

members decided to wait to adopt the guidelines until some minor issues,

such as adding a table that will include car-trip rates for all possible

land uses, have been resolved.

WHAT THEY SAID:

“Mayor, if I had had a chance to have a cup of coffee with [Greenlight

spokesman] Phil [Arst], we would have resolved [the last outstanding

issues].”

-- City Atty. Bob Burnham, who drafted the Greenlight guidelines

Vote: 7 / 0

IN FAVOR

WHAT HAPPENED:

Council members sent back to the Planning Commission an appeal of a

decision by the commissioners to allow the Riverboat restaurant to offer

outdoor dining through August.

WHAT IT MEANS:

After a recent change in restaurant ownership, city officials said the

new owners had said they wanted to limit the hours outdoor dining would

be offered on the boat. Planning commissioners had approved a temporary

permit allowing the previous owner to install plexiglass sound walls

along the decks and do further noise studies over the summer.

Residents living near the boat had appealed that decision, saying it

would harm their quality of life. They agreed to go back to the Planning

Commission to try to work out a compromise with the new restaurant

managers.

WHAT THEY SAID:

“In the 1 1/2 years that I have been here, we have never received one

complaint.”

-- Wayne Eggleston, executive director of the Newport Harbor Nautical

Museum, which is on the same boat as the restaurant.

Vote: 7 / 0

IN FAVOR

NEXT MEETING:

WHAT: Regular Newport Beach City Council meeting

WHERE: Newport Beach City Hall, 3300 Newport Blvd.

WHEN: 7 p.m. March 27