CITY HALL DEBATE

Newport Beach will vote Feb. 5 on Measure B, a controversial ballot initiative that would require the next city hall to be built next to the municipal library on Avocado Avenue. The Daily Pilot asked representatives from the pro-Measure B group City Hall in the Park and opposition group Newporters Vote No on B to answer a few questions about the ballot initiative. For City Hall in the Park, Measure B proponent Ron Hendrickson responded to the Pilot’s questions. Newporters Vote No on B committee members Jean Watt, Hugh Logan and Karen Tringali responded for the opposition.

Question: Would building city hall next to the central library on Avocado Avenue be the most economical option for the city? Why or why not?

Newporters Vote No on B: No, it will be between $7 to $10 million more expensive to build on the park site. This is because the site work, including moving 65,000 cubic yards of dirt to prepare the park site for construction, will cost $6.5 million. Moreover, according to the DMJM study, underground parking required to build at the park costs $58,000 per space, more than twice the $25,000 per space cost of structured parking at Newport Center. For 300 spaces, the park site costs $10 million more. Even considering the cost to buy the Newport Center land, building on the park site is substantially more expensive.

City Hall in the Park: It’s the best and most economical option because Newport Beach already owns the land. Building costs for the Avocado Avenue library site will be at least $13 million less than the Orange County Transportation Authority site or the 1.2-acre Block 500 site, which requires a multistory building jammed onto a small parcel. The opposition is using erroneous costs. The Ficker Avocado Avenue library concept does not require subterranean parking and retaining walls would be no higher than 6 feet. The existing peninsula site is too small to accommodate the needed enlarged fire station, parking structure and a new city hall. A required double move would add millions to these costs.

Question: Would a city hall next to the central library affect traffic in the area?

Newporters Vote No on B: Of course. It will make traffic worse at MacArthur Boulevard and San Miguel Drive. It may require extension of Farallon Drive to MacArthur Boulevard and/or a traffic signal at Harbor View Drive and MacArthur Boulevard. This is the worst location considering traffic impacts. Traffic for the Newport Center location will utilize Newport Center Drive or San Joaquin Hills Road, with substantially less impact.

City Hall in the Park: The City Council has just approved the North Newport Center Development Agreement, along with significant traffic upgrades, which include major improvements to the San Miguel Drive and Avocado Avenue intersection. Currently, the addition of cameras for improved signalization control at this intersection is underway.

Question: The city now has an option to purchase another site for a new city hall in Newport Center from the Irvine Co. for about $7.7 million. Why or why isn’t this a better option than building next to the central library?

Newporters Vote No on B: Not only would Newport Center be less costly overall than the constrained park site, the value of this property to the taxpayers will grow by tens of millions over the years. This premiere site allows us to build on a flat pad, without the architectural constraints that will cause the park site building to be a squat bunker. Traffic impacts will be much less on the community. If we pass up this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to buy the Newport Center site, the Irvine Co. will be able to build 72,000 more square feet of private office space. The taxpayers will lose out.

City Hall in the Park: The Newport Beach City Hall in the Park initiative will save taxpayers that $7.7 million and other costs. Why pay The Irvine Co. nearly $8 million for a very small site when the city already owns a site next to the library a couple of blocks away? In the Irvine Co. development agreement, the city would not own its pro-rata share of parking, and the land remains under Irvine Co. ownership, although the city would be paying upward of $10 million for the parking. On the library site the city would own and have full control of its parking.

Question: Would the land next to the central library make a better park than a city hall site? Why or why not?

Newporters Vote No on B: The Measure B plan eliminates the tot lot, jogging trail, gazebo, view areas, restrooms, sweeping grass lawn, benches and picnic areas. Measure B leaves only the 6.8 acre drainage arroyo. Everything the community would want or use as a park is destroyed by Measure B. Why would we put city hall on a constrained site, with view impacts, drainage issues and bad traffic circulation?

City Hall in the Park: We can have both a city hall and a 10-acre more usable park. The proposed grass portion of park where the city hall would occur, at a lower level, would not have trees because they would interfere with the view plane limitation. With the city hall at a lower elevation, trees would be permitted.

Question: Would building city hall next to the central library benefit the library? Why or why not?

Newporters Vote No on B: No, a park is a better partner for the library. The park plan provides 100 parking spaces for the library that would actually be available for library use. People don’t check out “War and Peace” while getting a building permit. There is no back entrance, so city hall patrons must walk completely around to even get into the library. There is no “synergy.”

City Hall in the Park: The city hall would be designed to relate and connect to the library. Included would be needed additional library parking, plus shared parking for major library events. The City Council chambers could be available to the library when facilities are needed for larger meetings.

Question: The February ballot measure would amend the city’s charter to require city hall to be built next to the central library. How would a charter amendment benefit or hurt the city?

Newporters Vote No on B: You don’t put office building addresses in the charter. This measure bypasses the environmental, cost effectiveness, geotechnical and general plan reviews we depend on to protect our community. It violates Greenlight and the General Plan. It prevents the consideration of lower-cost options or of even keeping city hall where it is.

City Hall in the Park: It would resolve the long-debated issue of where to locate a new city hall, allowing everyone to focus their energies on creating a new city hall in the park. At the same time the initiative doesn’t dictate the design of the city hall or the design of a new park, leaving it under the control of the City Council with public input.

Question: Regardless of costs, which site would be the best place for a city hall that would instill civic pride in the people of Newport Beach and why?

Newporters Vote No on B: A Wal-Mart-style bunker, buried into the hillside, is what we will get with Measure B. Either Newport Center or the current site provides a better, more cost effective and better-designed city hall. In addition, we get a better park. Let’s build something we can all be proud of. Vote No on B.

City Hall in the Park: The concept of a Newport Beach City Hall in the Park would best embody our civic pride, with the integration of our flagship civic buildings — City Hall and Central Library — and a new 10-acre park. This would generate exciting civic synergy in the geographic center of Newport Beach, in a creative, cost-effective manner. The city hall would not be part of a dense office complex, nor would it be in the shadow of the city’s largest developer. By locating city hall next to the central library, the city would maintain its independence and identity.