No permit? Parking will be tougher near Newport Harbor High
The Newport Beach City Council this week tightened parking restrictions for non-permit holders on Margaret Drive in Newport Heights.
A residential parking permit program has been in place since 1996, when parking issues in the neighborhoods around Newport Harbor High School came to a head. At the time, the council limited parking to a two-hour duration on school days between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., except for cars displaying a permit.
However, residents have said the two-hour limit hasn’t eased their parking woes.
In response, the council voted 6 to 0 on Tuesday to further limit parking for non-permit holders to one hour on Margaret Drive between Irvine and Tustin avenues between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. daily, except holidays.
“Because of the immediate proximity to the school entrance location, Margaret Drive experiences more school parking issues than other residential streets in the surrounding neighborhood,” according to a city staff report.
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City to fund fire ring project for disabled access
The City Council also voted to earmark $60,000 to fund improvements intended to make fire rings near the Balboa Pier more easily accessible to the disabled.
Americans with Disabilities Act improvements to the fire rings were mandated as part of a permit issued for the site by the California Coastal Commission in 2015.
Commissioners gave Newport Beach permission in June to reconfigure 64 fire rings, allowing half to burn wood and half to burn charcoal.
The approval ended about two years of debate among Newport Beach residents, city leaders and government agencies over the placement and number of rings.
But the permit also came with the condition that the city make four rings at the Balboa Pier accessible to the disabled by installing a Trex access path so wheelchair users can easily access the rings without entering the sand. The plan calls for 16 wood-burning and 16 charcoal-burning rings in the area.
The city is accepting bids for the project and expects to complete construction before summer, according to city staff.
