Vote counts vary among Newport-Mesa precincts

Deirdre Newman

Opposition to a potential hotel on city-owned, harbor-front property

was so pervasive that the ballot initiative that would have allowed

it to happen won only one precinct, according to information released

this week by the Orange County Registrar of Voters. And only one

person in that precinct voted.

The resounding defeat of Measure L -- which would have changed the

city’s general plan to allow development of a commercial project on

the property, which has been a mobile-home park for about 50 years --

might be a testament to the outreach effort conducted by Protect our

Parks, a group that galvanized in opposition to the hotel proposal.

“It doesn’t surprise me that the distribution was decisively for

No [on Measure L] in different precincts,” said Protect our Parks

spokesman Tom Billings. “In our mobilization outreach, where we would

be at tables at locations throughout the city on weekends, we were

getting that 70% to 30% kind of response to Measure L.”

Other interesting nuggets gleaned from the data of the 95

precincts in Newport Beach showed that candidate Dolores Otting beat

incumbent John Heffernan in 26 precincts. They were competing for a

district that includes most of Newport Coast. The most common of the

precincts where Otting triumphed are in West Newport.

Otting said she had no idea why she did well there.

“I haven’t a clue,” Otting said. “I’m curious. Maybe because he

wasn’t able to put his Heffernan signs underneath the precinct vote

signs in West Newport.”

Incumbent Steve Rosansky, who represents West Newport, lost in

only three precincts -- one in Newport Heights and two precincts

composed of only absentee ballots.

“In general, I think people are happy with what I’m doing,

especially in West Newport,” Rosansky said. “I think I’ve done a lot

for my district. It would have been a shame if I had lost my district

and won the rest of the city, which has happened before.”

Incumbent Steve Bromberg, who ran unopposed, snagged the most

absentee ballots with close to 13,000.

In Costa Mesa, there are 20 precincts where Planning Commissioner

Eric Bever, who came in third, is separated by 10 votes or less from

Planning Commissioner Bruce Garlich, who finished fourth. Garlich

decided Thursday not to ask for a recount, because he doesn’t believe

it will change the results.

On the Westside, where Bever lives, Planning Commissioner Katrina

Foley finished first in the most precincts. She won eight of 14.

Bever won two.

While Foley reached out to every nook and cranny of the city, she

also focused on certain precincts that had a history of good voter

turnout, she said. One of those was on the Westside. Even so, she

said she believes voters on the Westside want the same things as

other residents of the city.

“Voters on the Westside are no different than voters on the

Eastside, in Mesa del Mar, or Mesa Verde,” Foley said. “They all want

Costa Mesa to be a great place to live. I am going to try my best to

represent the entire community.”

Foley also garnered the most absentee ballots with close to 4,300.

Targeting absentee voters was a priority, she said.

Bever said he is grateful for support throughout the entire city.

“I certainly don’t claim to own the Westside,” Bever said.

“Actually, I’m most proud that my support is appearing -- at least to

the observation I’ve done so far -- to be citywide and balanced. I

think it’s a good indicator going into the next four years.”

* DEIRDRE NEWMAN covers government. She may be reached at (714)

966-4623 or by e-mail at deirdre.newman@latimes.com.