Newport Beach to discuss leasing land for a City Hall

Newport Beach officials agreed to talk with the Irvine Co. about leasing land in Newport Center for a City Hall, but few details are available about this latest entry into the poll of possible sites.

The Irvine Co. has offered the city a 99-year lease on land in the 500 block of Newport Center Drive along San Nicholas Drive. It’s unclear how big a parcel the city would lease or what the cost would be. The council decided Tuesday to negotiate with the Irvine Co., which will have its own requests for building entitlements allowed under the city’s new general plan.

The biggest problem with leasing a site could be the city charter, which requires voter approval of leases longer than 25 years. That issue could be bypassed, perhaps by forming a special body to finance the City Hall or by signing a 25-year lease with additional 25-year options, but the council will have to think about whether getting around that provision violates the spirit of the charter, Mayor Steve Rosansky said.

“The offer from the Irvine Co. was for a lease,” he said. “Whether a lease will be, at the end of the day, acceptable has not been determined.”

— Alicia Robinson