LETTER TO THE EDITOR:

Has Newport Beach gone too far?

Back in the ‘70s the answer was obvious when we were twenty-somethings and tested every possible social boundary. Fast forward 30 years and we — the once rebellious — have settled into law-abiding, voting, support-your-local-mayor mentalities. At least most of us have. Our list of punishable offenses has been reduced to a day in traffic school for doing 40 in a 25 mph zone. There are the Kenneth Lays (of Enron history) who have committed major obstruction of justice deeds, but fortunately he doesn’t live in Newport Beach. The major crimes in Newport Beach are the public display of alcohol crimes against our livers. As a sidebar, there are the four grown-up rebels of the ‘70s (who are now approaching 70), who moved some sand dunes. Catastrophe! Moving sand at the beach! It is not like sand is endangered at any time in Newport! At last count, there was more than enough to go around to fill everyone’s vacuum cleaner bags thrice over, and visitors get a mound to take home in their wet towels as a souvenir. But there is a law that sand dunes and their associated sub-life forms are sacred, so a crime was committed. The good news is that the city got $250,000 in revenue (fines) and the supposedly sacred dunes will be replaced with flora, fauna, cigarette butts and dog poop in due time. In light of this terrible sin, the city has beefed up its public-works department with young cowpersons (politically correct, as -boy or -girl would be sexist) to lasso up all those beachfront property owners to the letter of the law with their encroachment violations. YEEEHAW!

After many years of beach walking from The Wedge to the inlet of the Santa Ana River, I was amazed at the visible items that have encroached upon the public beach. Planted grass lawns with sprinklers, swing sets, cactus gardens, patio furniture, tables extending into the sand, bricks, and even driftwood — all obvious sources of the owners’ desire to prevent the public from using the beach. Or not. If someone wants to plant a cactus garden on the back of a sacred dune to make a outdoor meditative space, it’s lovely and doesn’t bother me and doesn’t stop access to the beach. And at least with the invested interest, the areas are nicely maintained. Not many outsiders want to sit on the back side of dune anyway and the biggest obstruction to public access is limited parking. Why even on the Fourth of July when Newport swelled to burst capacity, there was plenty of sand space and beach access for all.

Nonetheless, according to record, 138 citations were given to homeowners for violations of the encroachment laws. Citations ranged from private Zen gardens (sacred dunes and plants), to the occasional flower pot/planting on the sand, to a 6-by-6 loose stack of bricks, small footwash extensions of decking (efficient sand recycling to the beach instead of the street sweepers), to a small portable table and umbrella. Has the city gone too far or have the residents?

Has the city been remiss or negligent in allowing these minor infractions for more years than I have toes or have the residents (four) gone too far and now the whole beachfront bears the wrath of the angry city? Is it wrong to offer to recycle the sand to the beach with a slatted deck extension? Is it wrong to plant a flower pot and place it on the sand for all to enjoy?

My understanding of the encroachment laws is that they are to prevent some hot-dog developer from building an Olympic-sized patio and calling the encroachment of public land “his”, thereby preventing public access to a public beach. It is a reasonable law to establish limits, but I think the recent citations for calling six loose bricks and a flower pot, etc., etc. an “unlawful improvement” is a bit of a stretch, if not downright laughable. The law is written allowing the “spirit of the law” to be enforced. Even though the private Zen gardens are a bit questionable, I haven’t seen 138 of them along the coast by any means.

Ironically, on the notorious Fourth of July celebration, random people were setting off fireworks in front of my property on the beach. The police came and said they were gong to cite me for not controlling their actions. I said if they were breaking the law to ticket the offender, as I wasn’t responsible for that part of the public beach and he again threatened to ticket me. Whose beach is it anyway?

I still question if this whole scenario is a flashback from the rebellious ‘70s resurfacing or a bureaucratic embarrassment for years of a relaxed beach atmosphere.

Barbara De La Pena

Newport Beach