Harbor Commissioner Brad Avery files to run for Newport City Council
Brad Avery, a Newport Beach harbor commissioner and longtime director of marine programs at Orange Coast College, has stepped into the race for Newport Beach City Council.
Avery, 62, filed paperwork Thursday declaring his intent to run for the District 2 seat, representing Newport Heights, Newport Shores and Newport Crest.
If elected, the 47-year Newport Beach resident would replace Councilman Tony Petros, who recently announced he was ending his bid for reelection to spend more time with his family.
Law student Shelley Henderson also is trying for the seat.
“I am excited at the possibility to serve on the council and work with residents and businesses to protect and improve the quality of life in this exceptional city,” Avery said in a statement.
He could not immediately be reached for further comment Thursday.
Avery has acted as director of Orange Coast College’s marine program, which operates the School of Sailing & Seamanship, since 1991. The school has grown from a small publicly funded sailing program to a national maritime school serving more than 1,500 people annually with a $1.5-million budget funded by course fees, grants and the Orange Coast College Foundation, according to a news release.
The school’s public-private partnership was the result of a cut in public funding, according to Avery.
“I had two choices when our funding was cut. We could close the program or we could start charging fees and run it like a business,” Avery said in a statement. “As a nonprofit, we also reached out to our community for support. The level of private giving over the years has been tremendous.”
Avery, who has served on the Harbor Commission the past five years, is president of the 700-member Catalina Island Conservancy Marineros Group and sits on the board of the Santa Cruz Island Foundation, a group dedicated to cataloging items from unique island environments off the coast of Southern California.
He also is a member of the Board of Advocates for the Oasis Senior Center in Corona del Mar.
Three council seats are up for grabs in the November election, with at least two candidates running for each one.
Local attorney Phil Greer, Finance Committee member Will O’Neill and former Planning Commissioner Fred Ameri are running to replace Councilman Keith Curry, who will be termed out of his seat representing District 7 (Newport Coast and Newport Ridge).
Businessman and activist Mike Glenn, longtime resident Jeff Herdman and businessman Lee Lowrey are running to replace Councilman Ed Selich, who will be termed out of his seat representing District 5, which includes Balboa Island, Newport Center and portions of Big Canyon.
