My husband and I and our son...

My husband and I and our son have been living in Newport Heights

since 1970. When we moved here, St. Andrew’s was a neighborhood

church. Then in 1982 that City Council saw fit to make an amendment

to the city’s general plan in order to accommodate the growth of St.

Andrew’s. That allowed the “neighborhood” church to grow to be a

“regional” church.

Now this church is again asking our City Council to amend the

general plan on its behalf -- this would allow them to become a

“mega-church.” Is this what you visualize for a church in a

neighborhood of families and schools? Does this seem fair to you?

The Rev. John Huffman claims that he wants to do what so many of

the homes in our neighborhoods are doing -- modernizing and adding

on. Surely he knows that, even with the “mansionizing” that is taking

place here, no one is asking for the city to make special allowances

or to amend the general plan.

We live side by side as good neighbors, following the rules as

they have been determined for the whole city. By what reasoning

should St. Andrew’s expect to be allowed to receive city permission

to so grossly affect our residential neighborhoods? Every church

within our city limits could come to you with a request for the same

density and you would be obliged to approve them all. Then what would

our Newport Beach look like? What would our neighborhoods be like?

How about our traffic? Our parking in front of our homes? The noise

during Bible studies, youth nights, basketball games, etc.?

It’s ironic that the only letter in the Daily Pilot a few days ago

in support of this expansion was from a couple who have gone to St.

Andrews for 25 years and who live in Huntington Beach. Should we

provide them with such a large church in our neighborhood?

On behalf of the neighborhoods immediately affected and indeed of

all our city, I ask the City Council to please vote no on the

expansion of St. Andrew’s. Thank you.

JEANNE FOBES

Newport Beach

The City Council should approve the expansion for the following

reasons:

1. Studies show that students who get into drugs develop this

habit on school days from 3 to 6 p.m. There are hundreds of

unsupervised kids on our streets every afternoon. St. Andrew’s wants

to be the place where a student can drop in for a snack, play a game

in the gym or do homework in a supportive environment. The proximity

to Newport Harbor High School and Ensign Intermediate School make it

a real possibility for the proposed youth center to change lives.

2. Right now most of the athletic and active events for the youth

programs take place outside the church, often in the parking lot.

Moving these activities to an indoor facility will eliminate many

noise complaints.

3. The renovation plans include a six-foot wall along Clay Street.

This wall should discourage guests from parking on the street. It

will also screen most of the parking lot from the neighborhood’s

view. The wall would greatly improve the existing neighborhood

parking struggle.

4. For more than three years, the St. Andrew’s building committee

has met on a regular basis with the Cliff Haven neighbors to try to

reach a compromise. The building plan has been reduced from 35,948

square feet to 21,741 square feet.

5. St. Andrew’s has served this community for more than half a

century. No matter what the need, the response of this church is

always one of action. Dealing with a messy divorce? Come to the

divorce recovery workshop, and bring your distraught children because

we have a workshop designed just for them. Are you an addict? Bring

your spouse and join one of our many programs designed to help you

live with your addiction. Have you lost a loved one? Come get grief

counseling. Do you or a loved one suffer from mental illness? We have

people who have been there, have resources and are ready to help you.

Have you lost your job? Come to our career networking group. If you

are in prison, we will make sure your kids get Christmas presents. If

you are living in a motel, we can get you the basics. And if you have

a teen in trouble, we have support groups. No matter what we are here

to help you. You never know when it will be your turn.

St. Andrew’s is a good neighbor.

H. HAYS

Costa Mesa

Since the centerpiece of the expansion debate is a youth and

family center, including a gym, has anyone given thought to St.

Andrew’s and the Newport-Mesa Unified School District forming a

joint-use plan and building the structure on school property and

sharing the facility? Has St. Andrew’s considered leasing the old

Niketown building in Triangle Square and converting it to a gym?

While these suggestions may prove unworkable, they are examples of

thinking outside the box, which is what the community desperately

needs since the locals and the church are deadlocked on a compromise.

What we really need is for someone to and come up with a win-win for

everyone.

MIKE BUETTELL

Balboa Island

I agree with the homeowners in that the church should not be

granted its permit. The area is a single-family area, and the church

has totally overbuilt its land.

The council should vote no, as it represents the people who live

in our city, and it should not lower the standards.

CLARK LEONARD

Newport Beach

I am OK with the St. Andrew’s expansion. I live in Corona del Mar

and work in Newport Beach near St. Andrew’s. I don’t understand the

opposition. I live a block from East Coast Highway and get late night

drunks leaving the restaurants, yelling outside my window, and I

can’t park on weekends at my own house. Church people are not drunks.

They are good for the community.

JULIE RALLS

Corona del Mar

As a member of St. Andrew’s and as a resident of Cliff Haven with

three children, I’m completely opposed to this totally unnecessary

expansion proposal. This is not about the church, although the main

supporters of this plan give credence to the argument that St.

Andrew’s goal is a regional church versus a neighborhood church.

The issue here is land use and the impact of a Wal-Mart-sized

facility in the middle of a residential neighborhood. The safety

issues alone arising from the increased programs and attendance on a

quiet neighborhood with no sidewalks and streetlights should kill

this plan.

JIM CONNELLY

Newport Beach

This past year, I moved to Newport Beach as a new resident and

have so enjoyed living in this community. It didn’t take long for me

to realize that there was a campaign against St. Andrew’s regarding

its desire to expand.

As a retired school counselor of one year from the inner city, I’m

puzzled as to what drives such passionate hostility toward a church,

a positive organization. I’m keenly aware of the strong negative

influences that are pulling our youth at this time in all

neighborhoods, not jut the inner city. In the inner city, such

influences are more obvious, but the youth of Newport Beach have or

will feel the tug of destructive forces, waiting to seduce them. If

this were, for example, a crack house, I would be on the streets

protesting as well, but an organization that offers nothing but an

open hand to the community hardly deserves this abuse.

As I understand it, the church has proposed a youth center with

sound proofing, so that the neighbors will not be disturbed and the

children and teens will have a place to go other than the streets.

The underground parking they propose will only take cars off the

street, away from the houses that want their curbs back. What is the

problem? I fail to understand.

Sometimes a small, vocal, well-organized minority simply takes on

a cause, becomes deeply committed, and then refuses to listen to

reason and compromise. That’s the only explanation I can see in this

tempest in a teapot.

I sincerely hope that the political implications of your decision

will have no part in your vote and that you will see this campaign

for what it is. Our youth and community deserve your loyalty.

EVANGELINE E.

BURTCH-FARRELL

Newport Beach

I was called to this area in the fall of 1949 to accept an

assignment at Newport Harbor High School to teach all math courses

above beginning algebra. The school’s enrollment at that time was

less than 900; one could stand by the high school’s tower and have an

unobstructed view of Ensign Intermediate School and most of the area

to the south and west of the high school.

St. Andrew’s moved into its first unit in September of 1950. This

was the beginning of more than 50 years of growth. Almost all the

homes in the Cliff Haven area were one story and remained that way

until recently.

St. Andrew’s and the enrollment at the high school grew along with

the students in the area. In 1970, the high school’s enrollment was

around 3,000 students. This coming fall, it is projected to be 2,472,

having dipped to less than 1,200 in the last 15 years. During this

time, the high school eliminated busing most of its students, and as

a result, more of them now drive to school, are brought by parents or

ride the Orange County bus system. A few still ride bikes. The

school’s parking facilities are usually full, and some of the

students need to park and move their vehicles on the adjoining

streets every two hours. I am sure this has been an annoyance to the

neighbors during the week. Church members are permitted to use the

high school’s parking lot and to avoid driving on the Cliff Haven

streets when possible. In the meantime, the church’s long-term

solution hopes to increase its parking area by going underground by

some 150 spaces, which should decrease the parking problems.

One suggestion that would make the Cliff Haven area safer would be

to install sidewalks for pedestrians and for children to play on

instead of the street.

WEBSTER JONES

Costa Mesa