Save Newport Real News in Newport Beach
Will Mayor Diane Dixon and Councilmen Kevin Muldoon, Scott Peotter and Duffy Duffield finally be able to keep their election promises?
Team Newport ran on keeping the fire rings but due to lack of public support, rather than bothering to fight AQMD Rule 444, they complied, eliminating half of Newport’s wood-burning fire rings and instead instituting charcoal rings in their place. Barry Wallerstein, executive at AQMD, was fired on Friday after many years of protests from far-reaching groups including city officials, small government activists, builders, and even some environmentalists. This leaves the door open for Rule 444 to be revisited– and perhaps– repealed.
Rule 444 is the rule which limits fire rings on beachfront property, requiring that they be certain distances apart. The only way for Newport to comply with this rule (since they chose not to fight it) was to either expand the footprint of the fire rings to comply with the minimum foot-length distance, or to turn some of the woodburning rings into coal. Newport chose to do the latter.
However, now that the shake-up has occurred, Team Newport has a chance to complete one of the promises that it collectively ran under: Keeping our fire rings intact.
There will be a hearing on this which invites public input this coming Tuesday at 7pm at the Newport Beach city council chambers, at 100 Civic Center Dr. I will be there speaking in favor of restoring the fire rings, and if you are able to, I do hope to see you there!
