New kid on the Council block

After first running for the Newport Beach City Council in 2000, Steve

Rosansky became its newest member after his appointment in October.

Representing the district of West Newport and Newport Heights,

Rosansky has an especially keen eye on redeveloping Sunset Ridge

Park.

The easygoing speaker no longer takes Boy Scout trips with his son

Jonathon, now a student at UC Irvine, but his love for the outdoors

-- especially fishing -- keeps him active.

Rosansky gave his views on everything from pressing city issues to

being new to the Council to who would win a matchup between college

football’s co-national champions in an interview with the Pilot.

What made you decide to get involved in city politics?

My interest in politics was first piqued when I was in the seventh

grade and I was asked by my social studies teacher, Mr. Pagofsky, to

take part in a school-wide debate centered around the 1972

presidential election. I was assigned the task of presenting Richard

Nixon’s views on tax reform. The same teacher also suggested to me

that I might want to consider a career in law. It’s amazing how much

a concerned teacher can influence a student. Later on in high school,

I was involved in the Political Club and I served as its president in

my senior year. My political ambitions lay dormant for awhile after

that as I completed college and law school and then went into the

practice of law. I still kept up with local and national politics

through the newspapers and watching the City Council meetings on

television, but I focused most of my community volunteering energy on

my son’s boy scout troop, which meets at the Sea Base on Newport

Harbor.

I decided to get involved in local politics in August 2000, when I

read an article in the Daily Pilot that nobody had come forward to

run for the District 2 City Council seat. I called Jan DeBay, the

District 2 councilwoman at the time, and asked her how I could get

involved in the coming election. Although at the time I made the call

I had no intention of running for the seat, Jan and several other

community leaders in West Newport encouraged me to throw my hat in

the ring. Even though I did not win the election, I persistently

applied for positions on various Newport Beach commissions and I was

finally successful in being appointed to the Parks, Beaches and

Recreation Commission. When the position opened on the City Council

after the resignation of Councilman Proctor, I jumped at the chance

to fill the remainder of his term. The rest is history.

What I like the most about being involved in local politics is

that I can really make a significant and tangible difference in our

city. I also think it’s everyone’s responsibility to give back to his

or her community through some type of public service.

What are your initial impressions of being a City Council member?

Has it been difficult to get up to speed? What’s surprised you most

so far about serving on the City Council?

My initial impressions of being a City Council member are all

favorable. Although being a city councilman is demanding both on my

time and my intellect, I would characterize the job as fun. During

the past two-and-a-half months I have spent my time getting to know

the other councilmen and the various community leaders. I have also

devoted time and energy to getting up to speed on the issues that

directly affect West Newport Beach as well as the issues that affect

the city as a whole. What I have found that has surprised me the most

is the quality of the Newport Beach city staff. Although I had high

expectations coming into the office, they have consistently surprised

me with regard to their knowledge of city matters and their concern

for the residents of Newport Beach.

You may have watched City Council meetings in their entirety in

the past. What’s it like sitting on the dais, in the public eye,

knowing that you’re there for the long haul, having to keep your eyes

and ears open every minute?

I enjoy being on the dais listening to the various views expressed

by the public as well as my fellow councilmen. The importance of

being attentive cannot be stressed enough. I try to keep an open mind

and not bring my own personal biases to the matters before us.

How do you think your real estate and business background will

help you most while serving on the council?

Being a real estate broker and a businessman is certainly not a

prerequisite to being a councilman, but it sure doesn’t hurt. Many of

the issues that come before the City Council are based in real

estate. These issues can take many forms such as development

proposals, tree policies, view issues and helping residents with

variances such as the Council recently did in the Goetz matter, among

others. Obviously, a strong business background gives me the tools I

need to analyze contract matters and city budget.

If you had one free Saturday to spend in Newport Beach, with no

other obligations, how would you spend it?

I would probably take a bike ride with my wife down the peninsula

to one of the piers. I enjoy the ocean and you might also find me at

the surf line with my surf fishing rod. As the saying goes, the worst

day fishing is better than the best day at work.

There’s been some talk of the city moving more away from rental

properties and encouraging owners to live in their homes, thus

curbing loud parties and other disturbances often found more

frequently with rentals. Do you think having more owners living in

their homes than renting them out would have a beneficial effect on

the city?

As a person involved in the real estate industry, I am certainly

an advocate of home ownership. Having owners living in their homes

can have a positive and calming effect on a neighborhood. That is not

to say that rental housing is not desirable. A sufficient stock of

rental housing is critical to any vibrant community. We need to be

able to provide residents of all income levels a place to live in our

community.... Sometimes I think the “problems” we encounter with

renters could be avoided by the property owners themselves. Proper

screening of potential tenants, regular maintenance of rental

properties, not cramming too many people into too little space and

avoiding undesirable uses of rental units would go along way toward

having a beneficial effect on the city. As an owner of rental

property in Newport Beach, I try to rent to tenants that I think will

treat my property and the surrounding neighbors as if they owned the

property themselves.

What West Newport or Newport Heights issue do you look most

forward to working through in 2004?

The issue that I intend to focus most intently on during the next

year is securing the funding for the Sunset Ridge Park at the

intersection of Superior and PCH. District 2 has suffered for years

without adequate park facilities while the city has spent money in

other areas for park development. Part of the problem has been

identifying suitable parcels of land to build parks on the west side

of Newport Beach. The city has the opportunity to buy the Sunset

Ridge property for $1.3 million, basically the price Cal Trans paid

for the property in the 1960s. However, we have only allocated

$680,000 to do so. My goal is to secure city funding for the

remainder of the purchase price and to allocate funds to commence the

development process. As a real estate broker, I have seen too many

deals fall apart while a property is in escrow. We have the

opportunity to buy the property and the city needs to move forward

and close the deal.

Any general thoughts on the Santa Ana River Crossing Bridge?

One of my first appointments on the City Council was to the new

Santa Ana River Crossings Committee. I believe that a bridge over the

Santa Ana River between Banning Avenue in Huntington Beach and 19th

Street in Costa Mesa is critical to alleviating the traffic problem

that plagues PCH and Newport Boulevard. I think we as a city need to

reach out to Costa Mesa and Huntington Beach officials to work out a

deal on the bridge.

Personally, I can’t understand the opposition to the bridge by

Huntington Beach and Costa Mesa. Costa Mesa is trying to reinvigorate

the Westside area through redevelopment and other means. The real

estate broker in me can’t think of anything that would have a more

positive impact on property values on Westside Costa Mesa than

opening up an easy corridor to the beach areas by putting a bridge

in. The businessman and restaurant owner in me says the added traffic

on 19th Street would also be a boon to the businesses that seem to be

struggling there.

The burden on Huntington Beach would not increase because the

traffic is already coming down Coast Highway to Brookhurst Street.

Anyone wanting to go to Newport Beach will continue down Coast

Highway. The drivers going to Costa Mesa or the freeway will have a

more direct route, which will save them time and money....

What aspect of Newport Beach do you think could use the most

significant change?

The Back Bay and the harbor are two areas where we need to do

significant improvements. They have been neglected too long with

regard to dredging and the natural habitat. The city has made strides

in that direction but there is a lot more we can do.

Any closing thoughts?

I would just like to thank the members of the City Council for

placing their trust in me and giving me this opportunity to serve the

residents of Newport Beach. I intend to live up to their high

expectations and my door is open to all.