Council to Decide on How Big a Majority Tax Vote Must Have

Although voters will decide in November whether to buy 138 acres overlooking Upper Newport Bay, the fate of the ambitious $58-million deal may rise and fall with the City Council on Monday.

The council must decide how many votes the proposal needs to pass: a simply majority or up to two-thirds of the vote.

At stake is one of the most expensive public land acquisitions in Orange County history. It would be funded by a tax of $120 per year for homeowners, $102 for residents of apartments and mobile homes, and $120 per 2,000 square feet of space for businesses.

Two council members, John W. Hedges and Phil Sansone, say the city shouldn’t impose such a tax unless it gains a “super majority” approval from at least 66% of the voters.

Mayor Clarence J. Turner and City Manager Kevin J. Murphy say 55% approval is a comfortable margin that avoids controversy. Councilwoman Jean H. Watt, the main proponent of the purchase, says a simple majority is the most democratic option.

While winning even 50% support for the deal would be a formidable task, officials say, requiring a “super majority” probably would kill it.

“This is a major issue that affects the people,” said Councilman John C. Cox Jr. “And there are a lot of people interested in it,” including a growing contingent of business owners and residents who oppose the tax hike.

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The Newport Conservancy, an environmental group which is orchestrating the purchase for the city, faces a February deadline set by the Irvine Co. to come up with the money for the 56.6-acre Upper Castaways, 4-acre Lower Castaways and the 77.2-acre Newporter North.

Failing that, the Irvine Co. could begin construction of 363 homes on the two properties. That plan also would set aside a total of 72 acres as open space, wetlands and bluffs, said Tom Redwitz, vice president of development.

This is not the first time residents of Newport Beach have flirted with a tax to acquire these same properties.

Two years ago, the city considered a bond measure to buy the Upper Castaways and Newporter North for $82 million. When surveys predicted that the effort would fall short of a necessary two-thirds vote, it was dropped.

To spearhead the campaign this time, the Conservancy chose former Newport Beach city manager Robert Shelton to run their campaign and hired political consultant Paul Freeman, a veteran of the successful 1990 campaign to acquire 2,200-acres of Laguna Canyon for $78 million.

Conservancy officials say they will have to convince Newport voters that $10 per month is a small price to stop development on the environmentally sensitive parcels.

“This can be Newport’s Central Park,” Watt said. “We want to buy the whole site that is beautiful and not boxed in by housing developments . . . it will be the most significant recreational area in this city--a place where you can run, jump and play.”

To that end, the Conservancy has mapped out a plan to appeal to a broad constituency. Most of the land will accommodate hiking trails and be restored to its natural habitat. There would also be a parking lot, a baseball field and a nautical museum. These uses, Watt says, would increase property values throughout the city.

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“It will make Newport a nicer place to live,” she said.

In the midst of all this planning, an organized opposition is coming to life.

“I would be surprised if the Chamber of Commerce will support a $2.4-million additional tax hike,” said Newport Harbor Area Chamber President Richard Luehrs assessing the annual amount that businesses and apartment owners will be expected to pay. “We are not in the most robust economy here, in fact we are probably in the worst economic condition in recent history and we have two major tax increases staring us in the face.”

Earlier this year, the city increased the price of a business license and created a tax on hotel bed occupancy in hopes of raising $1.7 million. Luehrs said some merchants feel they are being milked for taxes.

Sansone said many landlords oppose the measure because they will have to pay the tax on vacant units.

“I have three-plexes and quad-plexes (in my district) and they hump up into the $300 range for their annual assessment,” he said.

“This is a very unwise buy for Newport voters,” said Vic Sherreitt,pointing out that the Irvine Co. already promised to build its homes on less than half the land. He and others plan to launch an opposition campaign.

“We have a battle in front of us,” he said, “because the Conservancy and the Irvine Co. are dealing with quite a pot of money here.”