County cuts don’t worry Newport
June Casagrande
Local leaders are disappointed that $1 million in county matching
funds for urban runoff programs have been slashed, but the cutbacks
aren’t expected to cripple any of the city’s plans or programs.
More than $100 million in budget cuts announced this week by the
Orange County Board of Supervisors included about $1 million a year for the Urban Runoff Matching Grant Program.
The program was used by cities countywide to help remove
contaminants from storm water runoff, said Monica Mazur of the Orange
County Health Care Agency.
The county funds are available to cities to help pay for programs
to clean up urban runoff. In Newport Beach, the program has helped
pay for the Newport Dunes storm water diversion system and for
filter-screen devices installed in storm drains in West Newport to
remove debris and pollutants.
“We’ve probably gotten about $80,000 over the past three years
from that program, and it’s been a good program, so we’ll miss it,”
Assistant City Manager Dave Kiff said. “I’m sad to see it go, because
it showed the county’s commitment to reducing beach closures when
some county land is part of the problem.”
The city had not planned to apply for any of the county grants in
the coming months, Kiff said. The cutbacks may not be felt locally
because other sources of funding, such as the states’ Clean Beaches
Initiative, can be used for water quality programs.
The city has gotten about $500,000 from the initiative for water
quality projects and has applied for $380,000 more.
* JUNE CASAGRANDE covers Newport Beach and John Wayne Airport.
She may be reached at (949) 574-4232 or by e-mail at
june.casagrande@latimes.com.
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