Newport project’s hearing postponed

June Casagrande

A Planning Commission hearing on a development of 28 condominiums and

a commercial retail space near South Coast Shipyard has been

postponed after neighbors raised concerns about the project.

The project being proposed by property owner Bill Blurock, would

redevelop the site at 2300 Newport Blvd., keeping the existing South

Coast Shipyard and Design Center building as a commercial space and

demolishing the warehouses and other buildings on the site. The

project would include loft-style condos built above two partially

underground parking garages, about 30,000 square feet of commercial

space and the creation of a pedestrian boardwalk along the bulkhead

for the public to use. The boat-repair facilities and boat hoist now

at the site would either be moved to the adjacent South Coast

Shipyard or eliminated.

Some neighbors, including Crab Cooker owner Bob Roubian, worry

that the project would create more than its fair share of traffic and

parking demand. After hearing their concerns, city staff said they’re

considering postponing a Planning Commission hearing on the project.

“We were hoping to bring this forward to the Planning Commission

sometime in October,” city Senior Planner James Campbell said. “We’re

rethinking that right now.”

A spokesman for Roubian said that traffic in front of the Crab

Cooker, which is next door to the proposed development, is already a

serious problem.

“Most Friday nights, Saturday nights and a lot of other times,

that intersection is a nightmare,” said Dwight J. Griffith, Roubian’s

attorney.

The restaurant has no parking, its customers have to use street

parking, which some fear could be affected by the development.

A spokesman for Roubian’s project could not be reached for comment

on Thursday.

The project is consistent with zoning for the area, and thus will

not require a General Plan amended. But the project needs a use

permit from the Planning Commission.

Environmental studies that were done drew some concerns from

neighbors, which city planning staff may investigate further. Besides

parking and traffic concerns, some worry that a water-quality

requirement placed on the project by the Coastal Commission could

bode ill for the city.

The commission has required the developer to remove some soil

under water at the site that was contaminated years ago by canning

and ship-building companies. City officials haven’t decided how they

want to deal with the contaminated soil throughout the Rhine Channel

and worry that once Blurock has removed the soil behind his project,

the commission might want to extend that costly requirement

throughout the channel.

* 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.