First Newport candidate emerges

June Casagrande

NEWPORT BEACH -- Making the first splash in the upcoming election

season, longtime community activist Laura Bekeart Dietz has made public

her plans to run for City Council.

The 56-year-old Corona del Mar resident will vie for Councilman Dennis

O’Neil’s District 6 seat when term limits require him to step down this

fall.

“Years ago, I was approached by a GOP official who asked me to run for

state office,” Dietz said. “At that time, I said it’s not the time for

me. But now that my son is graduating from high school, I’ll have more

time to dedicate to my passions: local and national politics and

community service.”

Dietz, a former professional lobbyist who now describes herself as a

“professional volunteer” is a member of the city’s Environmental Quality

Affairs Citizens Advisory Committee, the newly formed General Plan

Advisory Committee, and the Corona del Mar Residents Assn. Board of

Directors.

She is also active in the Newport Harbor Republican Women’s Club and

plans to officially announce her intent to run at that group’s luncheon

Friday at the Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club.

No other contenders for the seat have emerged yet.

Dietz said her top goal in running for a council post is to help

secure senior housing and services.

“Our senior population is growing,” she said. “Seniors need more care

and more medical attention. We have an area in Newport Beach near Hoag

Hospital where we can create, without view impairment, multistory

facilities for seniors that can provide services for all levels of care.”

She added that she would like to see a senior community center built

in the area as well.

Also high on Dietz’s priority list are water quality and other issues

that directly affect quality of life in Newport Beach.

A San Francisco native, Dietz moved to Newport Beach from

Charlottesville, Va., in 1988.

“I was immediately enamored with this area -- I thought ‘Wow,”’ she

said. “It seemed to have all the elements anyone would want in a

community, and I haven’t been disappointed. . . . I’ve been active in the

community, been here awhile and am very interested in the quality of life

issues and would do my very best to do what’s best for the city.”