Countdown to 2000: 1980s top 10

Tony Dodero

Fights over growth. Flights over John Wayne Airport. Housing prices

moving into the stratosphere. Politicians proving they can’t be trusted.

Sounds like today’s headlines, right?

Wrong.

A glance back into the 1980s shows many of the issues that kept us awake

at night during the 1990s were just as prevalent during that decade as

well.

Newport-Mesans were witness to and beneficiaries of one of the hottest

real estate markets in history as well as some of the most brutal winter

storms to ever land here, flooding streets and smacking the coast with

monster waves.

Political careers were either launched or dashed and activists were born

to fight against airport expansion, the Irvine Co., noise, immigration

and day-laborer issues, and traffic -- fights that continue today, two

decades later.

What really set the 1980s apart from other decades, though, was how more

and more the power of the media allowed major worldwide and national

events to resonate right here at home -- a phenomenon that we take for

granted today.

For example, Newport-Mesa residents, like most Americans, were fixated on

the fate of hostages taken by extremist leaders of the Iranian government

in Tehran; the residents helped elect Ronald Reagan to the presidency and

quickly anointed him the darling of conservatives.

Our residents also watched in horror as a new disease called AIDS sent a

fright through the populace, and as long-standing financial institutions

began to crumble through the schemes of such men as Charles Keating,

whose Lincoln Savings and Loan was based right up the road in Irvine.

But residents really did not need to stray very far from home to get

their daily dose of drama during the 1980s. As usual, there was plenty to

keep the presses rolling.

Here are the top 10 stories of the 1980s:

1980 -- Slow-growth candidates Paul Ryckoff and Ray Williams are defeated

in a bid to take over the Newport Beach City Council. A pro-growth

majority prevailed throughout the 1980s.

1981 -- An Aircal 737 jet crash lands at John Wayne Airport and splits in

two. No one was killed in the mishap, however, nine passengers were

injured.

1982 -- Residents of Newport Beach, including author Joseph Wambaugh,

stage wild protests over the Irvine Co.’s plans to increase lease

payments. In some cases, leases skyrocket out of control. One example was

a lease that went from $1,600 annually to $65,000. The Irvine Co. later

agreed to back away from the steep hikes and an agreement was reached

with residents and businesses.

1983 -- Bruised and battered from the leasehold battle, the Irvine Co.

names Donald Bren its chairman. Bren soon became the company’s sole owner

and was later sued by family heiress Joan Irvine Smith over control of

the company stock.

1985 -- Newport residents and the county strike an agreement on John

Wayne Airport expansion with the federal government to limit noise and

number of flights over the airport.

1985 -- The Orange County Fair Board files suit against Nederlander West,

then the owners of the Pacific Ampitheater, for breach of contract. The

ampitheater lawsuit is tied to complaints by local residents over the

noise from rock concerts at the open-air stadium.

1986 -- The $74 million Orange County Performing Arts Center opens at

South Coast Metro. To kick off the new center in style, musical legend

Zubin Mehta conducts the venue’s first concert.

1986 -- Voters, in a city referendum, widely reject the Irvine Co.’s

plans to expand Newport Center.

1987 -- Two Costa Mesa policeman and a civilian riding along are killed

when their helicopter collides midair over Irvine with a Newport Beach

police helicopter and crashes into a field. The Costa Mesa policemen were

in pursuit of a teenage burglary suspect who had led authorities on a

54-minute cross-county chase. The Newport Beach officers suffered no

major injuries.

1988 -- Republican David Baker, after losing a tight race for the 40th

District seat with Christopher Cox, pleads guilty to forging a check for

$48,000 to help boost his campaign. Political scandal was ripe in the

1980s as earlier in the decade former county Supervisor Ralph Diedrich

was sentenced to and served two years in prison for bribery and

conspiracy charges and Newport Beach businessman Stuart Karl was

convicted of illegally funneling cash to the campaign of Democratic

presidential candidate Gary Hart.

Sources:

Daily Pilot