Discussion of fire rings to throw a log on wood-burning debate

The heated debate among Newport Beach residents over the placement of wood-burning fire rings along the shore is likely to be rekindled at a Speak Up Newport discussion Wednesday.

Councilman Scott Peotter, Balboa Peninsula resident Denys Oberman and a representative of Friends of the Fire Rings, an advocacy group for wood-burning pits, will talk about plans submitted by city staff to the California Coastal Commission in January.

The commission is expected to vote on a plan during its next meeting, June 10 to 13. The City Council then will have the opportunity to ratify or reject the plan.

Discussions about the placement of wood-burning rings, and whether to have them at all, have pitted neighbor against neighbor in Newport Beach since the council voted in 2013 to restrict all of the city’s fire rings to charcoal-only. The rule went into effect in March 2014.

Opponents of wood burning express concern about air quality, while those who want it say they are trying to preserve a long-standing tradition for beachgoers.

When council members Peotter, Kevin Muldoon, Marshall “Duffy” Duffield and Mayor Pro Tem Diane Dixon took their seats on the council in December, the issue was reignited. In the months leading to the November election, Peotter was a strong advocate of reintroducing wood to the rings.

To the chagrin of many people who live near fire rings, the council voted in January to bring wood burning back to the beach. Later that month, the city submitted seven possible arrangements for 60 fire rings as part of its application to the Coastal Commission for a coastal development permit. Any change to the configuration or the density of the fire rings requires Coastal Commission approval.

Currently, some rings are still charcoal-only. But Plan 1 — endorsed by a majority of the council members — would allow 18 wood-burning rings at Corona del Mar State Beach, 26 near the Balboa Pier, nine north of the Newport Pier and seven at the west side of the Newport Dunes lagoon.

Plan 2 would place all 60 rings at Corona del Mar State Beach and the Balboa Pier.

Alternative plans include keeping 60 wood-burning rings in their current beach locations but spacing them to achieve the required 100-foot separation, or placing rings along the stretch of beach between the Santa Ana River and 15th Street in addition to Corona del Mar State Beach and the Balboa Pier.

Wednesday’s Speak Up Newport event will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the Civic Center Community Room, 100 Civic Center Drive, Newport Beach.