Newport Coast eyes potential center site
June Casagrande
NEWPORT COAST -- Residents who worried there might be no place to
build a community center now have renewed hope that a small corner of
Newport Ridge Park will fit the bill.
The spot at the northeast portion of the park -- one of only two
pegged as a potential community center site -- borders a former landfill.
The community center’s parking lot would need to be built on top of the
landfill. Some feared that environmental concerns would kill the plan.
But after meetings with county and state officials, Newport Coast
community leaders are looking into the possibility that environmental
work can preclude problems with methane gas at the site.
“Despite our initial belief that the regulatory hurdles might be
insurmountable, we came away from the meeting with the very definite
indication that this is doable,” said Jim McGee, chairman of the resident
group Newport Coast Advisory Committee.
The Irvine Co. owns the former landfill -- nicknamed the Coyote
Landfill -- near the intersection of San Joaquin Hills Road and Newport
Coast Drive. As is customary with defunct dumpsites, the company is in
the process of transferring the land to the county -- a process that
often drags on for years. Committee leaders are working with the company
to make that happen faster, which would clear one hurdle toward building
the community center.
Their next problem is the methane. The gas, a natural byproduct of
decomposing garbage, creates a risk of explosion. But community leaders
now have reason to hope this risk can be eliminated. County and state
officials pointed to two former landfill sites that have been approved
for development: the city sports complex in Huntington Beach and the
private Oak Ridge School in Orange.
“So there are two other examples of construction that have been
approved. There are environmental concerns that need to be addressed, but
we know that the science to adequately address them in a way that
protects the public is available,” McGee said.
The question remains, though, whether it’s affordable. The committee
agreed to hire a surveyor to determine whether sources of methane are
close to the proposed parking area. If large quantities of methane are
being created too close to the site, it could send the cost of cleanup
too high.
The community has $7 million set aside for the community center. The
cost of most work, including the surveyor, will come from this fund.
The only other site where residents believe a community center could
be built is at a vacant lot near signal peak. The land has been slated
for a park, on which the community center could be built -- but not for
at least seven years. Residents who support a community center hope to
see one much sooner, making the Newport Ridge Park site their best hope.
“This could work,” committee member Dan Wampole said.
* June Casagrande covers Newport Beach. She may be reached at (949)
574-4232 or by e-mail at o7 [email protected] .
All the latest on Orange County from Orange County.
Get our free TimesOC newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot.