Newport adds $357,000 to Jamboree and Bayside road improvement project after water main break

A water main break and manhole adjustments will add more than $350,000 to the budget for a road improvement project in Newport Beach.

Work was nearly done on the Jamboree Road, Bayside Drive and Marine Avenue area when the main, which is 18 inches in diameter, burst under Jamboree near Bayside on Feb. 12. The break caused significant roadway damage in the construction zone, in addition to the time and cost to get the water main back online.

The city had already been drawing on a $300,000 contingency for adjustments unrelated to the water main break, such as water meter relocations, landscaping changes and unforeseen storm drain repairs.

The City Council unanimously agreed Tuesday to boost the project funding by $357,000, including $300,000 for repairs related to the break and $57,000 for manhole modifications. The Orange County Sanitation District will reimburse the city for the manhole component.

The original $2.9-million construction contract was for narrowing lanes on Bayside and rehabilitating segments of Jamboree and Marine.

The work is expected to be completed by next week.

Home reconstruction time limit

The council agreed Tuesday to limit homeowners to three years when rebuilding as the city looks to tighten the time frame for what can seem like interminable neighborhood construction projects.

One-off home reconstruction or remodeling is common in Newport, which had 2,557 active building permits as of Monday, and the limit is part of a plan to ameliorate nuisance impacts on neighbors.

Under a new ordinance, homeowners will have three years to complete their projects, with the possibility of two six-month extensions at the discretion of a hearing officer.

The city currently doesn’t have a time limit for finishing construction.

The council agreed to the changes on a 6-1 vote, with Councilman Marshall “Duffy” Duffield dissenting. He previously had said that even three years is too long.

The ordinance will return to the council for a final vote April 23. Regulations on construction worker parking are pending.

MacArthur and University repaving

The council unanimously approved repaving MacArthur Boulevard between Bonita Canyon Drive and the 73 Freeway and nearby University Drive between Jamboree Road and the city limits just east of the 73.

The $2.3-million contract went to Orange-based R.J. Noble Co. With contingencies, geotechnical services and incidentals, both segments of the project — combined for efficiency — will cost $2.6 million total.

Work is scheduled to begin in late May and be completed by September.