Newport Beach tightens rules on beach shade coverings, citing public safety
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Newport Beach isn’t just looking to rein in waves of unruly spring break and summer holiday revelers with new safety measures, but the also crowded shade coverings along its coast.
The city advanced new year-round rules for beach shade coverings out of concern for public safety as part of a catch-all ordinance councilmembers formally adopted on Tuesday.
“[People] want five shade structures to enjoy the beach and not be in the sun,” said Councilmember Noah Blom. “But we want to make sure that we can get every emergency personnel we need there. We want to make sure lifeguards have a line of sight. We want to make sure that people can be rescued and saved. That is the basis and structure of this ordinance.”
Citing big crowds and high-volume arrests, the Newport Beach City Council approved a number of measures aimed at enhancing safety during spring break and summer holidays.
But in between a pair of Newport Beach City Council votes on the changes this month, an influx of emails from residents sought more clarity about what is and isn’t allowed when seeking shade from the sun on the sand.
Councilmember Michelle Barto pulled the ordinance, which was first introduced on Feb. 10, from a second, routine vote to have a fuller discussion after she had read dozens of emails from confused constituents.
Per the ordinance, new rules stipulate that beach shade coverings cannot be larger than 6 feet in width and height when fully opened. Canopies also have to be anchored 5 feet apart from each other.
Beach shade coverings cannot be connected to each other and are prohibited from blocking a lifeguard’s view of the ocean or another lifeguard tower.
Shade coverings within the regulations can only be up between the hours of 6 a.m. and 7 p.m.
“It seems like somewhat of a missed opportunity to work with across agencies,” Barto said. “I wanted to ask how that was going to be rectified and who would be doing the enforcement.”
City Atty. Aaron Harp said his office worked on the shade-covering rules with the fire department, lifeguards, police and code enforcement. He said the ordinance is similar to what other beach cities are doing.
“It would typically be code enforcement that would enforce these type of rules,” Harp added.
He said that warnings would precede citations for offenders.
Adam Leverenz, a resident who is a fixture at council meetings, shared a photo with council that he took of a recent teen birthday party with shade coverings at the beach, which he claimed would violate the new rules several times over.
“I see concerns on both sides, but the way this is written, it’s incredibly problematic,” he said. “Do you really want to keep some girls from having a party on the beach?”
Councilmember Erik Weigand supported the ordinance’s time restrictions as a way to discourage elaborate setups in early morning hours that block off stretches of the beach.
“Paying people to set up the beach is unacceptable,” he said. “I hope that we can have our code enforcement guys go out there and cite those that are bad actors.”
Blom noted that Newport Beach’s effort mirrored Laguna Beach, which restricts beach shade coverings from being larger than 6 feet in width and height. Laguna Beach is currently considering banning such coverings from the beach outright or just seaward from lifeguard stations.
Aside from beach shade restrictions, short-term rental owners and managers made a last ditch effort to soften the language in the law that gives the city greater authority to revoke permits in safety zones during summer holidays when parties get out of hand.
“You will impose a greater penalty on the property owner and the property management company who tried to do everything right than the guest who was the real bad actor,” said Jeff Flint, executive director of the Newport Beach Short-Term Rental Alliance. “That will, in almost all certainly, happen under the ordinance if you pass it tonight.”
Harp’s office met with stakeholders over the issue in between council meetings and added intent language to Tuesday’s staff report.
“Penalties are intended to apply where an [STR] owner or operator fails to fulfill their obligations as a responsible operator,” the staff report read.
Such obligations include informing guests of applicable laws and taking immediate action when unlawful conduct happens.
But the ordinance remained unchanged where it concerned the city’s permit-revoking powers.
Councilmembers unanimously approved the new law, which will take effect March 25.
