Newport plans to spend $67M on fire stations, sea walls, traffic signals and more
A $67-million capital-improvement budget that includes long- and short-term construction projects for streets, buildings, parks and beaches got an initial nod from the Newport Beach City Council on Tuesday.
Highlights of the plan for the coming fiscal year include:
• $10.9 million for facilities projects, including repairs and reconstruction of three fire stations and conceptual designs for the West Newport Community Center
• $9.1 million for parks, the harbor and beaches, including the eventual replacement of the aging Balboa Island sea walls
• About $8.16 million for water-main and sewer repairs throughout the city and about $5.4 million for water-quality projects like dredging the Semeniuk slough
• About $3.1 million for traffic-signal synchronization and other transportation-related projects
Being on the list for 2015-16 doesn’t necessarily mean a project will be completed during the fiscal year.
“A project can take several months or several years to finish,” according to budget documents. “As such, capital spending can span multiple fiscal years.”
Listed projects are funded from ongoing revenue such as dock fees, the state gasoline tax, utility enterprise fees and city general funds, according to a staff report.
The spending plan for capital improvements edged up from the original $66.6 million after Councilman Scott Peotter suggested Tuesday that improvements to the Corona del Mar entryway be included.
Staff had proposed delaying the $410,000 project and a handful of others for a year.
The entryway project would relocate eight parking spots along East Coast Highway near MacArthur Boulevard and expand sidewalks and landscaping. The plan is to make Carnation Avenue a one-way street between Fourth Avenue and East Coast Highway.
Peotter said that because the Corona del Mar Business Improvement District has already paid about 10% of the project’s total cost, it should be green-lighted this year. “I have a problem with that being left out,” he said.
City Manager Dave Kiff vowed to search for available resources to add the project to the budget for 2015-16, which begins July 1.
The council is expected to approve the entire city budget, which includes the capital improvement plan, by June.
The planned sale of the city-owned Balboa Performing Arts Theater would eventually add to city coffers, though the city hasn’t decided which funds would get the money.