EDITORIAL

The list reads like a who’s who of business in Newport Beach.

First, The Irvine Co.

Then Pacific Life. Next was Conexant.

And now the Dunes.

The companies share a dubious distinction: they are all casualties of

out-of-control concern over supposed out-of-control development.

Anti-growth fervor in Newport Beach is broiling, and developers are

running for cover. One by one, development proposals are being pulled --

or, at least, pulled back.

In January, The Irvine Co. led the exodus of developers by dropping a

Newport Center expansion project. Then Pacific Life, the largest life and

health insurance firm in the state, simply scrapped its plans to expand

its Newport Center offices, instead renting office space in South County.

This summer, Conexant, a semiconductor manufacturer near John Wayne

Airport, asked the City Council to postpone a vote on its headquarters

expansion project until after the general election.

And just this week, the proposed Dunes resort -- a 470-room hotel and

31,000-square-foot conference center -- joined the ranks of projects that

have been derailed or delayed.

Hotel proponents have asked the council to wait until after the

November election -- when dueling growth-control measures will face off

-- to make a decision on their embattled proposal.

The Dunes has unwillingly, and probably unfairly, become the poster

project for activists who say Newport Beach is too development-friendly.

Yes, it is high time the city takes a good look at protecting what is

left of its open space and preserving its quality of life.

Yes, traffic is a problem. And there is no denying that without a

solution, there is a chance that Newport Beach could become overrun with

unsightly and environmentally unsound developments.

But should developers be running scared? Should projects be wiped off

the books when in some cases city officials, residents and builders

worked for months, even years, to improve the plans?

No new projects could mean no new jobs and a stagnant economy. And the

consequences down the road could be heavy.

Newport Beach has long enjoyed a robust economy and a healthy standard

of living. But residents should never let themselves believe it is a

given.

Newport Beach, like any community, needs fuel to keep its engine

running. And as more and more developers and big businesses back into

corners, there is less and less of that fuel to go around.