Council pick shows promise

Newport Beach has a new city councilman. Wait -- to be more precise,

it has a new city councilwoman.

On Tuesday night, after eight interviews and three rounds of

voting, the city’s six city councilmen decided to appoint Planning

Commissioner Leslie Daigle to complete the final two years of Gary

Adams’ term. The councilmen praised her as a quick study and having a

fresh outlook. Councilman John Heffernan and Mayor Tod Ridgeway were

straight-forward in their belief that the council needed a woman to

represent the city better. Now Daigle has the responsibility of

proving she was the best choice -- a different burden than being the

choice of the voters.

It is a burden made heavier by the quality of the other applicants

for the position, which Adams vacated after he relocated to the East

Coast for a job promotion. The other hopeful to receive votes,

Planning Commissioner Barry Eaton, has long been a community leader

in Eastbluff and is a learned and thoughtful man. Businessman John

Blom, Parks Commissioner Tim Brown and Chamber of Commerce President

Richard Luehrs all have solid resumes and provided thoughtful,

reasoned answers to council members’ questions, as did Michael

Browning, Charles Griffin and Gerald Hegger. Residents of Newport

Beach are fortunate to have such a depth of talent and commitment

ready and willing to lead the city.

The challenges ahead for Daigle and her colleagues are many. All

of the applicants mentioned the expansion of John Wayne Airport as

the most pressing issue, especially in their part of town, which

includes Eastbluff and the newly annexed Santa Ana Heights. Traffic,

housing and water quality all made the list as well. None will be

easy to solve.

But we are confident Daigle and the rest of the council are ready

to meet them. She certainly presents herself as intelligent, capable,

compassionate and committed. She undoubtedly will provide the fresh

perspective the council sought. She has background in city governing

and a knowledge of development issues. We expect her to serve the

city well and in the tradition of previous councilwomen such as

Evelyn Hart, Jean Watt and Jan Debay.

Congratulations to her. And good luck.