News

On Thursday, the California Coastal Commission reviewed “Plan 17” that was presented by the City of Newport Beach. This plan included 64 rings– 32 of them containing fire, and 32 containing charcoal. Four of the new rings will be added on the Back Bay, leaving the oceanfront with 28, rather than the 60 we had just a few years ago. …

It is with a heavy heart that I must inform you that we lost more than half of the oceanside fire rings at the Coastal Commission vote. Here’s the breakdown: Currently, we have 60 fire rings, all of them wood-burning (as of the vote on Jan 13th).  They are divided between Balboa Pier and CdM. Assuming the CdM vote goes the …

Tonight’s city council meeting is going to include an item which will reduce transparency in government and erode the ability of the public to effectively participate in council sessions.  The most questionable item on todays agenda is called– ironically– “Open Meeting Policies”.  However, what it states (http://novusagendapublic.newportbeachca.gov/CoverSheet.aspx?ItemID=5780&MeetingID=672) is that the mayor will have the ability to shuffle items on the agenda, …

Less than one month after hitting 3500 Facebook subscribers, we have now exceeded 3,750.  The momentum is growing, and I could not be more excited about it!  Our local government is the one that has the most immediate affect on our lives, and being involved here really and truly makes a difference. When I started getting involved with local politics, I didn’t …

This Sunday, June the 7th at 11am, the 22nd Annual Balboa Island Parade will take place.   This parade features a spirit of America like no other, and honors local business people, social groups, and elected officials. The parade is about 2.5 miles long and marches on about a half-mile of road, making it the most feature-packed parade per-square-mile in America.  The parade takes …

Today, 71 years ago, the United States and our allies joined forces for the Normandy Landings, code named Operation Neptune.  This operation was the largest seaborne invasion in the history of the world, resulting in five allied beachheads being established in Normandy. Newport Beach was also a major contributor to the war effort. Many of our docks and shipbuilders were used to …

Last night, newly elected councilwoman Diane Dixon sent out a Wildly Misleading Letter to her mass email list.  This email contained all kinds of deceiving information on crime. There are two major claims in the letter, but there is also an underlying deception that I will clear up afterwards.  Let’s take care of the two headlining dubious claims, first: 1) CLAIM: “Area …

  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 …