NEWPORT BEACH : Firm Reduces Size of Planned Marina

In response to environmental concerns, a plan to build a private marina in Newport Harbor has been scaled back in size just a week before the City Council is scheduled to hold a public hearing on the matter.

The California Recreation Co. decision last week to cut the size of its proposed marina nearly in half came after months of insistence that only a larger facility would be economically feasible.

The new proposal calls for reducing the number of boat slips from 121 to 71. The change also means that the marina would be built entirely on the square-shaped piece of property the company owns at the intersection of Dover Drive and Pacific Coast Highway instead of extending into public-owned tidelands in the direction of Upper Newport Bay.

“At this time, the most feasible thing is a marina. That’s what we planned for, and that’s what we are going to continue with,” said Edward V. Powers, president of the company, which is a division of the Irvine Co. “We have looked real hard at all sides of this, and we think this is something that will please everybody.”

The change in plans sets the stage for a public hearing on the project before the council next Monday.

The marina will still cater to bigger boats. Its plans do not include any slips smaller than 40 feet, which industry officials say is the size that is in most demand.

The marina builders said the reduced plan will cost about the same as the large one--about $7 million--because most of the construction and dredging will still take place on the vacant lot the company owns.

Powers said, however, that the company now believes that the smaller marina can be profitable.

“Obviously, the company has looked into it seriously for the long haul,” he said. “It just might take a longer haul to make it profitable.”

The city Planning Commission had already approved the original plan, noting that its size could still be reduced by other public agencies scheduled to review the plan.

But leading up to the council meeting next week, concern has grown among environmental groups and nearby residents who oppose the plan. At each step of the approval process, environmental groups such as Friends of Newport Bay and some residents have lobbied against the project.

Some of the opponents have suggested that a smaller marina--one that would not extend into the public waters and potentially harm the state reserve in Upper Newport Bay--might be acceptable.

Others, however, have said the area should be preserved as open space, arguing that the harbor’s fragile ecosystem should not be threatened by more boats.

“If they develop within their property lines, that’s no sweat,” said Frank Robinson, a spokesman for Friends of Newport Bay. “What more can you ask for? That’s fair.”

Robinson said, however, that he and others would be watching the company’s proposal closely to ensure that it does not contain any loopholes that may allow further building into the tidelands.

Power said the reduced plan, unlike the original marina proposal, also means the facility does not require approval from the county or the state Coastal Commission.

The property is zoned commercial and marine recreational, and up to 40,000 square feet of commercial building could be built there. In the past, both a marina and a restaurant have occupied the location.