Tales of Balboa told again
Deepa Bharath
A local Web site that shut down after a debate about its link to
FreeNewport.com is back online.
Webmaster Jim Fournier has declared on his site TalesofBalboa.com
that “TalesOfBalboa Ain’t Going Nowhere.”
Fournier said he had to bow to several readers who said the
decision to shut down the Web site disappointed them.
“It’s hard to say no when so many people say yes,” he said.
Fournier made his decision on Aug. 13 to stop operating the Web
site, a day after some members of the Balboa Business Improvement
District questioned a link on Fournier’s Web site to FreeNewport.com.
Some members said they believed it was inconsistent with the
district’s goal of promoting local business.
The FreeNewport.com Web site has a graphic on the top of its page
of a red hammer and sickle next to the letters “NB” in a red circle
with a line through it.
Fournier said he was not happy with the politics.
“I really shut down the Web site because I was frustrated with all
the politics,” he said. “I spend a lot of time putting everything
together, and I lose money on it every month. And all I get is this
massive amount of flak.”
What changed his mind was the deluge of positive responses,
Fournier said.
“I was shocked,” he said. “It caught me off guard. I expected one
or two, but not so many.”
Business improvement district member Gay Wassall-Kelly, who
attended last week’s meeting, said she is glad that Fournier has
brought his Web site back.
“It’s a real asset to Balboa,” she said. “It keeps us all up on
what’s going on down here.”
As for the politics, Wassall-Kelly said she didn’t know “what the
big deal was.”
“I think it got blown out of proportion,” she said.
Fournier said he is “not going to make any changes on the Web
site” except to introduce a feature called “This Week in Balboa”
featuring some of the happenings at local businesses. The Web site
still has the link to FreeNewport.com.
“The only negative response about that seems to come from City
Hall,” he said. “I see no reason to remove the link.”
All the latest on Orange County from Orange County.
Get our free TimesOC newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot.