NEWPORT BEACH : Fun Zone Reverts to the Locals in Winter

During the summertime, it’s hard to find an inch of uncovered space at the Balboa Fun Zone. But in the dead of winter, the amusement park turns into a place where locals calmly stroll without the hassles of the crowds.

Neighbors of the Newport Beach amusement park on the Balboa Peninsula welcome the lighter foot and automobile traffic with open arms.

“We have quite a little seaside village this time of year,” said Charlie Brown, 44, a longtime resident of the city. “This is when you find out who lives here and when everyone lays back and says hi to each other. I’ve been around the world three times and this is it. This is the best it gets.”

Police Officer Tom Schomburg, who patrols the Fun Zone from the ferry landing to the Balboa Pavilion, agrees. “It’s a peaceful atmosphere and people are very friendly. You really get to know people’s names and faces,” a major difference from the hectic summer months, he said.

“Summers are too crowded,” said Newport Beach resident Dagian Thomas, 11, as she sped by on in-line skates one recent afternoon. “You can’t even move and you’ve got to squeeze through everyone.”

The small-town, carnival-like Fun Zone, two blocks on East Bay from Palm Street to Main Street, may not be bustling with hordes of tourists this time of year, but residents and some merchants say it’s better this way.

Cathy Katzner, who manages Kelly’s Coffee shop, enjoys people watching during this season. Movie star Julia Roberts “bought muffins here last week,” she said, adding that actor Jack Nicholson is another celebrity who enjoys the Fun Zone in the winter. “This place has real esprit de corps and is very romantic at night,” she said.

Couples passing by hand-in-hand as the fog starts to roll in, giving the scenery the look of an early 1950s movie, makes the place all the more mysterious, Katzner said. And riding the Ferris wheel gives her a sense of “immediate departure from the rest of Orange County,” she said.

“You really get to appreciate it here,” Katzner said.

“There’s a feeling of relaxation during this time of year here,” said Kirk Phillips, 34, who visits the Fun Zone often to take his mind off his troubles.

There are amusement parks in other cities, but Susie Distaso, 45, of Orange brings her grandchildren to the Fun Zone, where they ride the Ferris wheel, merry-go-round, bumper cars and play in the arcade and feed the ducks.

Daniel Nelson, a 12-year-old Newport Beach resident, who rides his skateboard to the Fun Zone at least twice a week to play in the arcade and eat a frozen banana, said: “I like it better during the winter because there’s not as many tourists walking around with their road maps, bumping in to people all crabby.”

Pete Bower, owner of Balboa Beach Treats, said he expects sales of his famous Balboa Bars and other sweets to dwindle this time of year. But the perky clientele keeps him cheerful.

“It’s a very, very gentle place in the winter,” Brown said. “I love this place.”