NEWPORT BEACH : City OKs Funds for Appraisal, Flag Pole

The City Council made its final amendments to the city budget Monday, allocating money for an appraisal of property the city may buy from the Irvine Co. and funds for a flag pole that will commemorate the bicentennial of the Bill of Rights.

The council agreed to earmark $25,000 for the city’s Circulation and Open Space Committee to pay for appraisals of the Castaways and Newporter North, two holdings the Irvine Co. plans to develop as residential and commercial projects. The city is considering buying the property and maintaining it as open space.

Councilman Clarence J. Turner said the committee, which he heads, hopes to value the property without spending the funds but wants the money available if it needs to hire an assessor.

The Irvine Co. values the properties together at more than $125 million but the city initially put the amount at about $90 million. The city is considering asking voters if they want a tax to buy the property for open space.

The other amendment allocates $30,000 for a flag pole and monument that will tower over the foot of the Balboa Pier in Peninsula Park to honor the bicentennial of the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution.