Newport’s top stories of 2014: Bunnies, ballots, bikes — and a heroic lifeguard’s death
From the concrete bunnies at the Newport Beach Civic Center and Park to a controversial cheating scandal that rocked a top-performing high school, it’s been a busy year in the city.
Here are the Daily Pilot’s top 10 news stories from Newport Beach in 2014:
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City Council election
Newport Beach voters shook up the City Council in November’s election, sending Mayor Rush Hill packing in favor of businessman Marshall “Duffy” Duffield and giving a slate of candidates known as “Team Newport” a sweep of the four available seats.
Kevin Muldoon (District 4), Diane Dixon (District 1), Scott Peotter (District 6) and Duffield (District 3) took their seats in December, emphasizing fiscal conservatism.
Voters also defeated Measure Y, which aimed to update the city’s general plan to allow more development in the main business district and limit it along the residential coast. Opponents of the measure said it would increase traffic in the city, while supporters argued the opposite.
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Death of Ben Carlson
Ben Carlson, a 15-year Newport Beach lifeguard, died while trying to rescue a swimmer who was struggling in large surf off the Balboa Peninsula in July. With Carlson’s help, the swimmer made his way back to shore, but the 32-year-old lifeguard disappeared into the water. His body was found hours later.
The City Council voted to rename the Newport Beach lifeguard headquarters in Carlson’s honor. He was the first Newport Beach city lifeguard to die in the line of duty.
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Corona del Mar High cheating scandal
Newport-Mesa Unified School District trustees voted to expel 11 juniors and seniors from Corona del Mar High School in January on allegations that they participated in a cheating scheme involving a private tutor who fled the country and was later arrested at Los Angeles International Airport.
A top district official resigned in protest over the way the scandal was being handled. Thousands of grades were audited by teachers, and the Orange County Department of Education became involved to settle a dispute between parents and the district after the expulsions were finalized.
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Civic Center bunnies
The 14 giant concrete cottontails installed at the Civic Center early in the year provided fodder for political debate in November’s city election. The city paid just over $221,000 for the nearly 4-foot-tall sculptures, plus a pair of 8-foot rabbits, leading some to say that the cottontails represented a City Council that needed to rein in its spending.
The fate of the bunnies remains uncertain. Newly seated Councilman Scott Peotter has suggested removing them and donating the sculptures to a museum or children’s hospital.
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Officer-involved shootings
Two shootings involving Newport Beach police officers made news in the span of two months.
In May, police shot and killed Gerrit Vos, a 22-year-old hairdresser from San Clemente. Authorities said Vos charged at officers while carrying a sharp object after he was involved in a scuffle with a clerk at a 7-Eleven store. Vos’ parents accused the police of using “excessive, unwarranted and brutal” force during the standoff and filed a pair of legal claims seeking $50 million from the city. In December, the Orange County district attorney’s office determined the shooting was justified.
In July, police shot and wounded Scott Jay Abraham, 43. Authorities said he fired a .45-caliber handgun into the air outside his beachside condominium on the Balboa Peninsula.
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Controversy over fire rings
The City Council approved an ordinance in February that banned the burning of any material other than charcoal in the city’s 60 beachside fire pits, where people had been known to use everything from wood to old couch cushions to fuel flames.
The measure was introduced in an attempt to protect the city from being fined by the South Coast Air Quality Management District and the California Coastal Commission. However, council members elected in November have said they intend to bring back wood-burning fire rings in 2015.
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Marina Park
The city broke ground in February on the $38.3-million Marina Park development, which will include a short-term marina with 23 spaces, a sailing and community center and a new Girl Scout Leadership Center on the Balboa Peninsula.
The project, which officials have said will provide greater access to restaurants and other peninsula businesses, is expected to open in spring 2016.
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Lido House Hotel
The City Council in September approved a proposal to turn the former City Hall site at 3300 Newport Blvd. into a 130-room inn called the Lido House Hotel. The project, which has been called the “gateway to Lido Village and the Newport peninsula,” was met largely with support from residents who said the area has long needed revitalization.
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Bicycle master plan moves forward
In response to the deaths of two bicyclists in 2012, the City Council in October approved a long-range plan to make the city more bike-friendly.
The $22-million bicycle master plan lays out a framework for adding 46 miles to the city’s network of biking infrastructure in the next 20 years, making improvements to existing bike routes and creating a bike boulevard on Santiago Drive.
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Prom ‘draft’
Corona del Mar High School students faced public scrutiny for the second time in 2014 after news broke in May that a group of boys was selecting prom dates in an NFL-style “draft.”
The intent of the draft, described alternately as “creepy” and “sexist” on social media, was to avoid infighting and controversy that often follow the selection of prom dates, students said. No students were punished.