TONIGHT, Wednesday June 3rd, there will be a large fundraiser for Ben Carlson, our lost lifeguard.  The event will be held at the Balboa Bay Club from 6pm-9pm, and is open to the public.  There is no cover charge and there are no reservations.  Simply come in, grab a drink, and mingle with those who are there to pay …

Monday morning, at least one Oarfish measuring at least 15 feet washed ashore to Catalina Island. Reports of a second, 17-foot long Oarfish have widely circulated but are yet unconfirmed and may be a case of misreporting on the same fish. Oarfish are incredibly rare and are said to beach themselves only before large seismic events. Several recent large earthquakes …

Newly elected Newport Beach councilwoman Diane Dixon wrote commentary for the Daily Pilot explaining that nobody actually knew what was inside the $282 million budget which increased taxes, increased expenses, and increased public employee unions– but defended that she passed it anyway, saying that council can fix it and amend it later on through the budget-amendment process, rather than fulfilling the seemingly-arduous …

On Thursday morning, construction crews demolished an iconic tree on Balboa Peninsula Point.  This tree was not only beloved by neighbors, but also had several species of federally protected birds nesting in it, and two types of herons, covered under the Federal Migratory Bird Act (which basically says you can’t mess with migratory bird habitats). A woman stood under the …

Last night, Duffy, Peotter, and Muldoon stood by helplessly as Diane Dixon abandoned her pledge for reform and fiscal responsibility and voted to increase taxes, increase spending, and increase our public employee union size– all in one fell swoop.  By doing this– again– she has completely betrayed all of her campaign pledges and also her campaign runningmates.  The spending bill last night– …

During the last election cycle, we voted in four new people, ousting the current mayor. The theme behind it all? That the current city council was overspending. The sitting mayor was ousted by a resounding two-thirds of the population who all demanded fiscal responsibility. Now, it has come time to put the money where their mouth is. The annual budget …

Did you know that newly elected councilwoman Diane Dixon has proclaimed the entire peninsula area as a “nuisance area” and a “crime problem”– both of which require disclosures according to the California Bureau of Real Estate? What do you think that will do to the value of homes in and near the Balboa Peninsula area? FACT #1: Last year, Newport’s crime …

When Dixon initially came out and tried to restrict the bars open past 11pm, she said this: Basically, she said there were three options: 1) Restrict already-existing late-night businesses 2) Create a voluntary group that works with her 3) Saturate the peninsula with police officers Well, #1 and #3 didn’t sound very good, so I got all the bar owners together and they all …

As many of you may [or may not!] know, I have been working with the bars and restaurants on the peninsula, and also the ABC, or Alcoholic Beverage Control in order to protect them from council ordinances proposing new regulations to places open past 11pm, and the tripling of the police on nights and weekends. As accusations from naysayers have recently been flung about, …

From now until the end of the month, watch out for the Click It Or Ticket campaign, which will run until May 31.  Newport police say they will be taking a “no excuses” approach on seatbelt tickets this time around. “If you ask the family members of those unrestrained people who were killed in crashes, they’ll tell you they wish their …