Newport moving toward having summer anchorage every year

Newport Beach likely will soon start applying to the U.S. Coast Guard to make the summer harbor anchorage an annual seasonal feature.

City Harbor Resources Manager Chris Miller asked the Harbor Commission on Wednesday for guidance, knowing the process can take months.

“I thought, ‘Let’s not wait until October to begin thinking about it,’ ” he said.

Commissioner Doug West recommended that Miller begin putting together the application “very soon to get that wheel grinding, and make that application subject to the (City) Council’s decision in the fall.”

“I don’t think it would be difficult to get that rolling. If for whatever reason the commission and/or the council changes its mind, we just say ‘Never mind,’ ” West said.

This summer marks the third trial year for the anchorage, a 5-acre patch in the turning basin west of Lido Isle where visiting boaters can stay free for up to five days. The latest session started May 26 and runs through Sept. 17.

West, who headed the commission’s anchorage subcommittee, said an absence of complaints and increasing use encouraged commissioners’ recommendation to offer the anchorage again this summer. He said he’s optimistic that this year also will go well and that the council will get a recommendation to make the summer anchorage an annual amenity.

More than 60 different vessels used the west anchorage last year, with 21 of them making overnight stays or repeat visits, the city said.

Newport Harbor’s year-round public anchorage is between the eastern tip of Lido Isle and the west side of Bay Island. City staff says it often gets overcrowded during the summer.

hillary.davis@latimes.com

Twitter: @Daily_PilotHD