City Hall location not wise land-use choice...

City Hall location not wise land-use choice

I have read many articles regarding the new-city-hall controversy

in the Daily Pilot. I have to side with those who are very much

against the funding of this very expensive building. Costs are always

more than first anticipated, and this initial amount already seems

outrageous.

There are many buildings the city could rent that would be very

appropriate and economical. The property where City Hall is now could

be sold to developers, as it is a prime piece of real estate, and

those profits could be used to pay this rent amount for many years.

City Hall employees don’t need to have their offices in such an area

as Balboa Peninsula.

That is a place for homes, shopping areas and restaurants. Most

all of us working Newport people have our offices in commercial

areas, and that is where the city employees should be also.

Spend money to improve Newport Beach, rather than give a few city

employees an unnecessary “palace” to work in only during the work

week. The rest of the week, the building would be vacant, with no one

enjoying the building or the location.

That beautiful piece of land close to the water and beaches needs

to be enjoyed more than just 25% of the time.

MAXINE CZISNYL

Newport Beach

Retrofit City Hall, but don’t add parking

Regarding the current publicity stating that the residents of

Newport Beach are not making themselves sufficiently heard regarding

plans for a new City Hall: I e-mailed a letter several weeks ago

stating my ideas on the subject, which I have not heard mentioned. I

think they are worth repeating.

Yes to a new city hall at the same location.

No to a parking structure, which is expensive and not popular.

Retrofit the present building and add a three- or four-story curved

building behind it with a patio in between. Put parking on the entire

first floor of the building with offices, storage and such on upper

floors. And the fire station should be new, improved and on the same

location.

Please give these ideas some serious consideration.

RUTH GARSTONE

Balboa Peninsula

There are plenty who oppose hall plan

Of course, the groups against the planned civic center are not

overestimating the opposition. We’re a very easygoing, very loving,

very kind community. What the city is doing is building this Taj

Mahal for itself. We have more employees for the city of Newport

Beach than any other city our size. There is no reason -- with what

we have in Newport Center and what we have located in our community

in terms of professional space -- to build this monstrosity.

IRENE KANE

Lido Isle

Proposing a radical idea for saving water

I agree with Steve Smith that some people waste precious water

washing their sidewalks and driveways. In fact, we are not supposed

to be doing that anymore in this area, because it drains to the bay.

However, it is not the occasional washing of cement that is

wasting a lot of good drinking water in this area. It is the frequent

washing of boats that must amount to millions of gallons wasted each

year. Cars washed professionally are now cleaned with recycled water,

but boats -- many of which are washed very frequently -- by the

nature of their location use water directly out of the domestic water

supply.

It seems that most boats in Newport Harbor have much more surface

area than cars and require a lot more water to clean. Come on folks

-- you could do your part in saving a lot of water, if you just

didn’t feel the need to keep that boat sparkling clean all the time

(as it sits, unused, at the dock). Let a little dirt accumulate for a

while. If boat owners just cut in half the frequency of their boat

washing -- no one needs to do the math -- it would, of course, save

half of the water used each year.

I will probably be tarred and feathered and run out of town for

even suggesting such heresy: Let some dirt collect on the boat? Good

heavens, man, you must be joking!

FRANK COLVER

Newport Beach

A broken sprinkler is a waste

Regarding Steve Smith’s “Drop that hose you water-waster” on

Saturday, I walk every morning on Mesa Verde Drive West, and it’s

amazing how many times I see water that has been wasted by a

sprinkler system that had the tops knocked off the sprinklers, and

it’s a fountain of water spraying out onto the road. And it goes on

all the time. They probably waste more water than anyone else in the

city.

GORDON PATE

Costa Mesa