Port may get boost without asking

June Casagrande

A City Council agenda item that could have been custom-tailored for

the Port Theatre might proceed without a single official peep from

the theater’s owners.

Mayor Steve Bromberg had asked two weeks ago to postpone a vote on

a landmark theaters ordinance until the upcoming council meeting to

give the “applicant” an opportunity to weigh in.

Though Port Theatre owners did not apply for or request the

council action, they might as well have: The ordinance would give

four city businesses the right to add restaurant, arcade, music and

other live entertainment services at their facilities without having

to apply for new permits.

Of the four affected city landmarks, the Balboa Theater, the Lido

Theater the Port Theatre and the Balboa Pavilion, only the Port has

been hatching plans to do exactly what the ordinance would allow.

The new owner of the Corona del Mar building plans to remove about

600 of the theater’s 900 seats and use some of the extra space for a

restaurant and bar, City Councilman Tod Ridgeway said.

Rick Aversano bought the building about a year and a half ago in

hopes of preserving it as a historical arts venue, Ridgeway and

former owner Scott Burnham said.

Aversano hadn’t communicated directly with city staff or returned

reporters’ calls as of deadline.

“So far, we haven’t heard from them directly, and the only thing

I’ve heard from them is what I read in the paper,” Assistant City

Manager Sharon Wood said. “Maybe they plan to attend the council

meeting, but if so, they haven’t communicated that to us.”

Wood said that the city sent out letters to the owners of all four

properties and that by midday Friday, Port representatives had not

replied.

Residents, though, have been very outspoken. Wood said that a

number of residents have written and called the city in hopes of

saving the Port.

This is fueled by confusion over the Landmark Buildings ordinance.

The ordinance does not offer any special protections for the

buildings. It only gives their operators a little more power to make

a profit from their businesses, thus creating an incentive to keep

them intact.

The ordinance would allow them to use up to 30% of their floor

space for activities outside of their original permits as long as

they keep their original use intact and as long as they don’t create

demand for parking above what their original permits allow. The

ordinance also requires that the architectural looks of the buildings

be preserved.

Some, including City Councilman Dick Nichols, have worried that

the plan will nonetheless create parking problems because parking

once slated for the Port is now used by patrons of other businesses.

Bromberg said Friday that he still believes it’s important to get

input from Port operators.

“Send us something, a carrier pigeon, anything,” Bromberg said,

“and I’m sure we can work something out together.”

* 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.