Steamed over prospect of fire-rings smoke

Residents living near Newport Pier say they hope the City Council’s plan to move fire rings in front of their homes goes up in smoke.

Earlier this month, the Newport Beach City Council voted 5 to 2 to approve a plan allowing wood to be burned in 30 rings — 15 on the east side of the Balboa Pier and 15 at Corona del Mar State Beach.

The council also agreed to amend the city’s Coastal Development Permit with the California Coastal Commission to allow the city to burn wood in all 60 of its fire pits — split among four beach areas, including the Newport Pier and Newport Dunes.

If approved by the California Coastal Commission, Corona del Mar State Beach, also known as Big Corona, would have 18 wood-burning rings, the Balboa Pier, 26, the Newport Pier, nine, and Newport Dunes, seven.

But some residents living near the Newport Pier say they weren’t properly notified of the city’s plans, and they don’t want to live near fire rings.

“Fire rings have been one of the most controversial topics in our city, but what was never debated was moving the rings to an area of Newport where they have never been before,” said resident and surfer Brian Park. “Now you’re going to surprise us with fire rings. That’s not right.”

Councilman Tony Petros, who voted with the majority on the plan, said he was not aware that he was voting to eventually bring back 60 wood-burning rings. Confused by Councilman Scott Peotter’s motion, Petros thought that he had voted only to approve an interim plan of 30 rings.

Petros said the council should have gathered more public comment and completed an analysis of the possible effects of the 60-ring plan before considering placing pits in areas where they had never before existed.

“If you move too fast things get mucked up,” Petros said in a previous interview. “You don’t have good public disclosures, and you don’t have enough public dialogue.”

City Manager Dave Kiff has stressed that the city is still accepting public input on the permanent plan.

Mayor Pro Tem Diane Dixon, who voted in the minority on the plan, said she was concerned when she heard how quickly the issue would be brought before the council.

“I said, ‘This is moving too fast, and it will take the community by surprise,’” she recalled. “I think it was rushed.”

The city estimates placing nine wood-burning rings directly north of the Newport Pier. The closest distance between a fire pit and a home would be 216 feet, according to a staff report.

In Newport Dunes, the closest distance between one of its proposed seven wood-burning pits and a home would be 610 feet.

“Some of the rings are moved moderately closer to homes when compared to the current footprint,” the staff report states. “To avoid this, we could move the rings oceanward, but that can impede construction of the beach berm at Balboa and can increase the likelihood that rings will be inundated during high tides.”

The city must seek Coastal Commission approval before moving forward with the plan, although the commission has indicated that it prefers wood-burning plans over other proposals, according to city staff.

Blackies, a popular surf spot near the Newport Pier, often sees higher tides than other areas of the beach, Park said. He worries that a high tide could reach up to the fire pits and pull debris into the water.

The city, he said, has a duty to protect the ocean.

“Water quality is a big deal for people who surf and swim,” he said. “We shouldn’t be doing anything that compromises that.”