At a glance

Mathis Winkler

The Local Coastal Program that could affect the construction of homes

in Newport Coast after it is annexed by Newport Beach was established by

a voter initiative in 1972.

It was followed by the establishment of the California Coastal

Commission, which became a permanent body after the state Legislature

adopted the 1976 Coastal Act.

The commission is responsible to “plan and regulate land and water

uses in the coastal zone,” according to its Web site.

A coastal zone encompasses any area of land within viewing distance of

the ocean. All development in this area has to be approved by the

commission.

The commission, whose 12 members are appointed by the governor, the

Senate Rules Committee and the Speaker of the Assembly, holds public

meetings for three to five days each month in different locations

throughout the state.

Local control guidelines

To have local governments administer the Coastal Act and limit the

commission’s workload, coastal counties and cities are required to

complete so-called Local Coastal Programs. These programs include a

land-use plan that sets general guidelines, as well as a procedures that

describe how the city or county will handle applications for development.

Once the commission has certified the document, most permits can be

issued by the local government agency, which is qualified to handle

coastal development under commission guidelines and the Coastal Act.

Of California’s 125 coastal areas, 37 still don’t have a Local Coastal

Program. They include the cities of Santa Monica, Redondo Beach,

Torrance, Seal Beach and Costa Mesa, as well as some parts of Orange

County, such as the Santa Ana River segment and the Santa Ana Height

segment.

A Local Coastal Program land-use plan has been on Newport Beach’s

books since 1990, but the city still needs to take the second step and

come up guidelines for handling development applications.

Newport Beach remains the only local government that received funds

from the state to finish its Local Coastal Program, but later declined

the money.

Council members decided to send back a $150,000 grant to finish work

on the program after the commission turned down a request to fund a

broader plan in July 1999.

Plans for finishing coastal program

In connection with Newport Beach’s general plan update, council

members had planned to update the land-use plan and conduct market

research to find out if areas designated for commercial development

should be reduced, said Patricia Temple, the city’s planning director.

If City Council members decide to go ahead with this, it would take

about a year to finish the document, Temple said.

Because the council this year has set up a committee to develop a

process for updating the general plan, Temple added, it would make sense

to complete the Local Coastal Program at the same time.

“In the long run, the city will be interested in certification,” she

said, adding that a completion of the program should be a “fairly

straightforward exercise.”

Councilman Tod Ridgeway said he had pushed for finishing the coastal

plan since his time on the Planning Commission from 1992 to 1998.

“I have always said that we needed to get the [plan] certified so that

we don’t have to have every Tom, Dick and Harry go up to the Coastal

Commission for a permit,” he said. “I think that at this point in time,

we’re comfortable with moving forward with a Local Coastal Program. It’s

long overdue, let there be no doubt about that.”

Mayor Gary Adams agreed.

“I think that makes a lot of sense,” he said, adding that the existing

part of the Local Coastal Program should be updated at the same time.