CITY NEWS:A look at issues on Newport Beach council’s agenda

The Newport Beach City Council is dealing with a wide variety of issues. As a means of helping the community understand what topics the council continues to focus on, here is a breakdown of some items in no particular order of priority, as the council hopes to make as much progress as possible on all of them as quickly as possible.

A policy statement opposing further expansion of John Wayne Airport (JWA) and seeking support of adjoining cities (Costa Mesa, Santa Ana, Orange, Tustin and Anaheim) that are also affected by JWA will be created and adopted soon. Through this unity of purpose, we want our cities to push for studies to examine cost-effective methods of moving Orange County airport passengers to other airports in the region with existing capacities.

Because the issue of a new city hall is not an “if” but “when and where” situation, the council recently commissioned a study to determine the feasibility of using the Orange County Transit Authority bus terminal site on the southwest corner of MacArthur Boulevard and San Joaquin Hills Road as a possible City Hall location. The geotechnical study results are due for review by the council on June 26.

The council is very determined to obtain new, state-of-the-art traffic management capability allowing traffic signals to work efficiently throughout our city and in harmony as much as possible with our adjoining municipalities.

A combination of hardware and software both at individual traffic signal sites and at City Hall’s traffic center will allow signal operations control from a single traffic operations room. The result will be smoother traffic flow and greater capability to respond to unusual situations, including emergencies, traffic accidents and road construction. Fees established for new development will be used to widen intersections most affected by future growth.

Aligning the city’s codes, regulations and policies with the newly adopted General Plan is another high priority for the City Council to tackle. This means a comprehensive effort to have our new General Plan policies reflected throughout all city regulations, in particular our zoning code.

A team of consultants has been hired to write the new zoning descriptions, and the General Plan/Local Coastal Program Implementation Committee is meeting regularly to complete this project by early 2008. This complex undertaking will require extensive reviews and updating of other city policies and of the proposed Local Coastal Program. The goal of this priority is to fully implement the General Plan policies recently approved by the community’s voters.

Last year, a newly formed resident committee called the Facilities Financing Review Committee produced a written “road map” reporting on how the city can afford and finance all of its park, city hall, police station, fire station, Older Adult Social and Information Services (OASIS) replacement and other facility improvements over the next 20 years by incorporating certain fiscal-planning measures into its decisions related to these facilities.

The City Council will be updating this plan, adopting and implementing it on a systematic basis.

This is just a sample of the issues your City Council is dealing with. Please refer to the citywide newsletter sent from me to residents recently. And, of course, do not hesitate to call me at (949) 644-3000 if you have any questions or comments.

is Newport Beach’s city manager.