Newport Beach

Judge to Decide: An Irvine firm and 180 residents of Newport Beach have been unable to agree on an arbitrator in their ongoing lease dispute, so Superior Court Judge Judith Ryan will make the decision for them today. Ryan had ordered residents of Newport Shores, whose homes sit on property owned by Signal Landmark Inc., and the firm to select individual arbitrators and agree on a third, but the two sides deadlocked on whom to select for the tie-breaking vote. The original lease agreements provided for an 1984 increase, based on the property’s fair market value, but residents are disputing Signal’s method of calculating that figure.