Save Newport Real News in Newport Beach
Of the many years I have been running SaveNewport, I have prided myself on having never had to issue a retraction– but all winning streaks come to an end. Yesterday, we had five independent on-scene reports that someone was struck and killed on Balboa Peninsula. Later, our council and city manager said that they were only “minor injuries”. So what was the truth?
The truth, according to the NBPD themselves, is that the man struck who was struck on the bicycle sometime before 6:15am did not die, but did sustain head trauma and was taken to Orange County Global Medical Center in Santa Ana for treatment. The driver of the a 2005 Infiniti G35 travelling up the peninsula was not charged, and police do not believe that drugs or alcohol were a part of the crash.
I realize that the reason you rely on this news source is accuracy, and I am terribly embarrassed at having reported inaccurate information. After thousands and thousands of pages of information on Newport Beach– I finally got one wrong. Being the most accurate (just one retraction in all these years!) and most widely read news source in Newport Beach (averaging about 10,000 views/day!), this is a hit on our integrity that I understand will irk some– but to me, it hits me to the core and is not taken lightly at all.
While we are very happy that nobody died this particular day in this particular intersection, dismissing the problem wholesale is not the solution. Last year, a 92-year old man was struck on 6th St. We have not received the outcome of his case– but that doesn’t sound good off the cuff. The year prior, a man was killed on 30th street. I personally know several residents who have sustained serious life-altering injuries after being run down in the crosswalks. While I am glad this particular person did not die– the problem still exists, and we should fix it before another person does die.
What is even further troubling, though, is that our very own council has no idea where our money is coming from. They wrote letters back to some of you stating that the outrageous $260,000 road sign was paid for by “Balboa Village Merchants Association”. Let me be very clear and very frank: This is a complete and utter fabrication due to the way they move money around, and our council is either completely uneducated on the subject or they are intentionally attempting to mislead you.
In every single area throughout the city, parking meter funds go directly to the general fund. In every single area… except one: The Balboa Peninsula parking lot by the ferry. Here, the funds are diverted before they ever get to their default destination and instead are contributed to crony businesses in the area who have banded together to form the Balboa Village Merchants Association. Now to be fair, these people are friends of mine and they likely don’t even see what they are doing as wrong. In fact, I am certain that they seem themselves as “helping the community”. However, the truth is that they are diverting taxpayer dollars into their own slush fund and they are blowing it all on things like the sign or replacing palm trees– or even on helping their very own businesses. When anyone in the city says that anything is paid for by the “Balboa Village Merchants Association”, just know: that money is coming from the general fund– not the goodwill or charity of the business owners themselves. Any councilperson who attempts to mislead you into believing anything else is either grossly misinformed due to laziness or a lack of intelligence, or they are attempting to willfully mislead you. Push back on them and ask them how BVMA is funded. When they tell you “it’s from parking meters”, ask them “where do the revenues of every other parking meter in the city go?”, and they will say “the general fund”. This answers your question: They are diverting general fund money to the BVMA, and everything that comes out of the BVMA is actually general fund money.
Please don’t lose momentum here until yet another person is struck and killed on the peninsula. Write your councilpeople at citycouncil@newportbeachca.gov and if you think blinking crosswalks are a good idea, then sign the petition from Jennifer Park, here: http://savenewport.com/crosswalks/
