Mike Glenn

Mike is the founder and publisher of Save Newport and Chair of Government Relations for the Elks Lodge. He writes, shoots photos, and edits, but much of the time, he's just "the IT guy". He can be reached at: Google+, Facebook, or via email, at michael.glenn@devion.com

Correction on Water Prices

Sometimes, we get it wrong.  One or two times per year we issue a correction, and while it is never fun to admit getting the facts wrong, it is a necessary part of being transparent and honest with your audience. Recently, we published a post that said we could get cleaner, cheaper, and more abundant water from Mesa-Water “at half …

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Lombardy’s Closing for Weekdays; Open on Friday, and Weekends Now

As we all know, summertime is the life-blood of businesses on Balboa Peninsula and Balboa Island.  Lombardy’s Market & Deli– at 508 W Balboa Blvd on the peninsula– is feeling the squeeze. While several grocery-oriented foodstores have been at this location in the past, Lombardy’s has been there the longest.  And with good reason: If you like spicy food, definitely check out …

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“Unicorn” Meteor Storm Event TONIGHT, First Time Since 1995

More exciting than a meteor shower is a meteor storm!  While meteor showers can produce shooting stars at the rate a dozen or so per hour, meteor storms can produce them at the rate of several per minute.  These are quite rare, the last one happening nearly a quarter-century ago, in 1995, where it produced 400 shooting stars per hour.  In …

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Last Night Council Voted to Spend $8m on a Pedestrian Bridge (and it only gets worse from there)

After a long recess (and plenty of work, which is most of what drug me away for so long!): I’m back.  I apologize for the lack of quality content recently, but I’m back now.  Let’s get down to business. Last night, at the City Council Meeting on 11/19/2019, Mayor Diane Dixon presided over a council meeting that was truly painful …

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Citizen Launches “Save Our Summer” Campaign, as Schoolboard Tries to Inch Into Children’s Summertime

This weekend, I met with Chris Keener, local activist and sponsor of the Save Our Summer campaign for the Newport-Mesa School system.  Recently, the school board has been trying to shorten summer vacations in order to “reduce stress” for students in Newport-Mesa– to the tune of chopping out a whopping 2 weeks off the end of the longtime summer, according …

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Newport Seeks to Double Water Rate Charges on its Citizens

Remember Newport’s water supply that we’ve been writing about for years?   The one where we could get cleaner water from Costa Mesa at half the cost? Instead of cutting your water bill in half and providing cleaner water while eliminating $45 million in ongoing line maintenance costs for our city on line repairs and employees, Newport Beach City Council is …

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Happy Veterans Day, Today!

Veterans Day

Yesterday the Marines may have gotten their day (and happy birthday to them!), but today is dedicated to all veterans.  In fact, if you are a vet, many companies would like to honor you on this day dedicated to you and your service.  Here are a few nationally recognized names, and their attempt at giving back: • Get a free …

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Why is Newport Beach Still Using More Expensive Less Clean Water?

California Water Drought

For over a decade, Mesa Water– who already provides about 9% of Newport’s water service– has been wanting to partner with Newport Beach to provide water services for the area.  Why?  Because one of their biggest costs to deliver water isn’t the water itself– it’s literally keeping the operation going to clean, pump, and service the water base station.  This …

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Newport Beach Drinking Water Contaminated

The Environmental Working Group has recently released their water reports for Newport Beach, and the results are not good.  They have found 24 contaminants in our drinking water, with 13 of them exceeding EWG Recommended Guidelines.  Of note, many of these contaminants in our water supply (like Chloroform or the chemical that made Erin Brockovich famous, Chromium!) have zero federal …

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BJ’s Closing on Balboa Peninsula

A sad note that after 41 years of service to the Balboa Peninsula, the BJ’s Pizza at 106 Main Street will be closing.  The Balboa Pier restaurant was a classic for many, and while competing with a young and energetic pizza environment next door cannot be an easy task, many insiders note that the opening of Cruisers actually added another …

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