Save Newport Real News in Newport Beach
Remember, TODAY, there will be a hearing about the “Lights Out At 11pm” proposal, officially known as the “Balboa Overlay”. It will be today, Tuesday, March 10th, at 3:30pm at 100 Civic Center Drive Newport Beach, CA.
Almost undoubtedly, the council will proclaim that “nobody is talking about shutting down businesses after 11pm”, but if you read the proposal, here: http://novusagendapublic.newportbeachca.gov/CoverSheet.aspx?ItemID=4876&MeetingID=668
You will see that it is very, very clear on what is being attempted.
Here are the two main reasons that the council will cite for reasons: Crime and crowds.
The crime stats that they will present will be on a per-capita basis, accounting only for 11,000 residents on Balboa Peninsula. As Balboa Peninsula gets over 10,000,000 visitors per year, that leaves us with an average daily population of 38,000 visitors — meaning that you can remove 71% from their “per-capita” stats. They are literally inflated by over 3x (as improperly reported 11,000 people, instead an on-beach population of over 38,000).
The city will also likely complain about “crowds”. These are the people who wait for cabs outside of bars, or wait to make sure that the beer they just drank wears off before they hop in their car and start driving. Enforcing against these crowds will cause more drunk drivers.
The city may also present very specific incidents of violence, vandalism, or other criminal behavior. These are sad and unfortunate incidents. Thankfully, they are rare. The true fact remains: We have a fantastic crime rate, and when the real numbers are taken into consideration, we have the lowest crime rate of any policed district in Newport Beach.
If you’d like further reading before attending, please use the following as references:
– Dixon’s reasoning behind the “Balboa Overlay”: http://www.dailypilot.com/opinion/tn-dpt-me-0301-commentary2-20150226,0,6152257.story
– Balboa Overlay is Overhyped: (it’s the top-right of the “Forum” section on the new Newport Beach Indy): http://www.joomag.com/magazine/newport-beach-independent-newspaper-march-6-2015-edition/0205102001425660216/p9?short
– Proposal is an assault on property rights (second article down): http://www.dailypilot.com/opinion/tn-dpt-me-0308-mailbag-20150306,0,5882063.story
– Petition (over 1600 signatures, and growing literally every day): http://savenewport.com/2015/02/15/petition-against-lights-out-at-11/
I expect this will be a fairly good turn-out for those who want to ban the bars. We must make a similar turnout.
Please join me today, Tuesday, March 10th, at 3:30pm at 100 Civic Center Drive Newport Beach, CA.
