Fernleaf Avenue in Newport Beach to be given trial as a one-way street

Commuters who use Fernleaf Avenue to travel from Ocean Boulevard north to Seaview Avenue will need to find another way as the Newport Beach City Council Tuesday voted unanimously to make Fernleaf a one-way southbound street for a trial period of six months.

Residents petitioned city staff in January to give a one-way designation to their block, citing concerns about traffic confrontations, congestion, damage to parked vehicles and delayed emergency responses, according to a presentation given Tuesday by city traffic engineer Antony Brine.

Residents from 14 of the 18 addresses located on the block joined the petition.

“It’s one of the main arteries coming into Ocean [Boulevard],” said resident Ben Roth during public comments on the matter Tuesday. “So, the only way you can really get into Ocean is through Fernleaf, Marguerite and Poppy [avenues]. [They] are the three main streets to access it.

“The difference between our street and those other two streets ... is our street is R-2 zoning. So, it means you have more cars parked in the street than what you do on Poppy, for example, or other streets.”

Roth noted residents couldn’t park in the 300 block of Fernleaf, as no parking is allowed there, pushing those residents to sometimes park their vehicles on the 200 block.

“That [crowded parking] situation means that cars can’t pull over,” Roth said. “As they’re going down the street, there’s no place for them to go. So, you end up having stand-offs in the street... there are altercations that come out. People [are] honking their horns. We’ve had people turn off their engines and just park there in the middle of the street.”

Roth said his car and those belonging to others have been damaged while parked on the street.

The residents of Fernleaf Avenue in Corona del Mar, between Seaview Avenue and Ocean Boulevard, submitted a petition to city staff with concerns about traffic congestion. This is a view of Fernleaf Avenue on Wednesday, April 13.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Resident Janice Carsten told the council first responders in emergency vehicles often try to get onto Ocean Boulevard, only to be impeded by cars that are traveling the narrow street.

“These kinds of altercations between the people that don’t understand the problems with a small amount of space on the streets, mostly people from out of the area; the property damage; and the emergency vehicles all are kind of an accident waiting to happen,” said Carsten.

The street is about 30 feet in width curb to curb with parking allowed on both sides. City staff said this is particularly common of streets in Corona del Mar, and it isn’t atypical for cars to have to pull over to allow another one to pass.

Brine confirmed traffic volumes are higher on Fernleaf compared to parallel streets in the area.

Councilwoman Joy Brenner, who represents Corona del Mar, said residents had been meeting with her, Brine and the Corona del Mar Residents Assn. about the circumstances on their street for some time the same concerns.

She said there has been support districtwide for potentially establishing more one-way streets, though it hasn’t been unanimous.

Mayor Kevin Muldoon raised concerns about whether or not the temporary closure would just divert all the traffic to Goldenrod Avenue. Brine said two-way traffic currently occurs on both streets the diversions impact would be determined pending an official traffic study.

Currently, about 1,400 cars a day travel Fernleaf, according to staff. By comparison, Goldenrod sees about 330 cars a day.

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