SUMMER STORY -- Crack down

Deepa Bharath

For the police officers who watch the streets of Costa Mesa, summer is

pretty much like any other time of the year.

They do not worry about sending out more officers, fearing a crime

wave as the mercury rises.

“We don’t have an established trend,” said Costa Mesa Police Lt. Dale

Birney.

“There are summers when crimes go up. There are summers that are very,

very quiet. It doesn’t mean anything to us.”

But less than five miles away, where the sun shines down on the

Pacific Ocean and where people throng at the sands and piers, it’s a

different story.

Newport Beach Police officers take a deep breath and gear up for the

season that usually ends up being a free-for-all at the beach.

They are kept on their toes days, nights and weekends, breaking up bar

brawls and street fights and dealing with drunk drivers, traffic

accidents and parking problems.

Residents who live in West Newport, which takes the brunt of what

might be harmless summer fun to revelers, say the three or four summer

months to them are unlike any other time of the year.

“Oh yeah,” said Margie Dorney, who heads the West Newport residents’

group that works with the police department to ensure a safe Fourth of

July. “It’s a different world out here before June 15 and after Sept.

15.”

These residents see a different face of summer -- one that is

irritating, frustrating and even scary. Summer to them means going to

sleep listening to people yelling out four-letter words to each other and

waking up to the unpleasant sight of trash on the streets and the noise

of never-ending parties still ringing in their ears.

But Dorney said this summer has been remarkably better than the last

two summers. And she congratulates the efforts of the Newport Beach

Police Department for that.

“I think the community in our little neighborhood has been able to

establish a tremendous rapport with the officers,” she said. “They have

listened to our needs and their response time has been excellent this

summer.”

Sedated summer

It has not been an easy trip for the police department, said Sgt. Bill

Hartford, whose patrol area extends from the Balboa Peninsula through

Coast Highway to the Wedge.

Hartford agreed with residents’ perception that this summer has been

quieter. He said the days especially are sedate compared to past years.

“But the nights and weekends are still hellacious,” he said. “We have

all the usual problems with alcohol consumption and the parties in West

Newport.”

With summer, the calls for service always increase, Hartford said. The

exact number of calls is not available for the summer, but the officer

said it was a “large volume of calls.”

The department usually deploys about 10% more officers during the

summer, especially in the beach areas, he said. A special two-man DUI

weekend team was also commissioned at thebeginning of this summer.

“They have been quite effective and have made several arrests over the

summer,” Hartford said.

Also, occasionally during the busy season, two officers, rather than

one, ride in a patrol car, said Sgt. Steve Shulman.

“Given our high volume of calls for service, it helps us speed up our

response time,” he said.

Not so hot

There are also “hot spots” that are particularly problematic during

the summer. Residents say 44th Street, specifically, has been a menace

this year. Also on the list are 38th and 39th streets, which are lined

with rental houses and are often the source of noisy and boisterous

parties.

Among problem areas, apart from the piers and the main beach, a hot

spot for potential incidents is The Wedge, Hartford said.

He said police have been able to address concerns in that area by

working with the Peninsula Point Assn.

“Again, the problem there is the number of people, parking, people

hanging out after 10 p.m. when the beach closes.”

Hartford said the city’s General Services Department has also made a

special arrangement for cleanup operations at the Wedge by sending out

two employees to collect trash at the end of every day.

Remember 1986?

According to Hartford, the worst summer he has seen in Newport was his

first as a police officer.

“I think it would have to be 1986,” he said. “We were very, very busy.

Far too much traffic, people on the street and too many incidents.”

But despite the efforts by officials and neighbors, summer, contrary

to popular perception, is a rough time for the local community, residents

say.

And for three months every year, Dorney and other neighbors feel the

pain.

“You can see it in people’s faces,” she said.

“Almost every Monday my neighbors would come out of their homes and

say ‘Wow! We made it through another summer weekend!”’

* Deepa Bharath covers public safety and courts. She may be reached at

(949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at o7 [email protected] .