Newport to pursue access road and parking lot for Sunset Ridge Park
Newport Beach city leaders took a step forward Tuesday in the years-long struggle to add a parking lot to Sunset Ridge Park.
The City Council voted 6-1 to submit an application to the California Coastal Commission requesting that the city be allowed to build a public access road and 92-space parking lot for the park, which opened in 2014.
Councilman Kevin Muldoon dissented, saying he would rather the city look into building a pedestrian bridge over Superior Avenue that would provide access to the park from an existing lot across the street, where visitors currently park.
The 13.7-acre park, located on the bluff at the northwest corner of Superior Avenue and West Coast Highway, has a baseball diamond, two soccer fields, a playground and a butterfly garden. However, it lacks an attached parking lot, which has been a point of consternation for some park users.
“I do believe that a parking lot is necessary there for access for families for the safety for young people,” Councilman Tony Petros said.
An onsite parking lot and an access road were proposed when the Coastal Commission first reviewed the park project in 2011. At the time, the city’s application became entangled with larger environmental concerns about the Banning Ranch development proposed on neighboring land.
The access road proposed in 2011 would follow the same path as the Banning Ranch development’s main artery, known as Bluff Road, off West Coast Highway.
Because of that, the commissioners had to consider potential effects on wildlife, Coastal Commission staff said at the time.
Recognizing that the project could be rejected, city officials submitted an alternate plan without the road and onsite parking lot, which was approved.
The Banning Ranch project, in which Newport Banning Ranch LLC proposes to build 895 homes, a 75-room hotel, a hostel and 45,100 square feet of retail space on about 65 acres, is scheduled to be heard by the Coastal Commission in May. City staff decided the time was right to again consider a parking lot at the park.
If the Banning Ranch project is approved, it could open the door for the city to attach an access road to Bluff Road. The city’s road would then lead to a parking lot adjacent to the Sunset Ridge sports fields, plans show.
Newport Crest residents who live next to the park expressed concerns about the parking lot being built on the site within view of their homes. Several speakers at Tuesday’s council meeting suggested instead building the pedestrian bridge across Superior from the existing parking lot, an idea the city has previously considered and may still study, staff said.
Jenny Lombardi, a Newport Crest resident, suggested making any new lot an area for pickup and drop-off only and not for parking.
“It would reduce congestion in the lot and encourage carpooling,” she said. “The city needs to pursue the pedestrian bridge system for all people using that area to make it safer.”
The city’s proposed access road and parking lot need approval from the Coastal Commission before construction could begin. The approval process likely would take more than two years, said Public Works Director Dave Webb.
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Twitter: @HannahFryTCN
