Harbor area alive with marina and park projects

A new public dock and waterfront restaurant could be coming to the Newport Harbor area if state coastal regulators give the OK.

The Balboa Marina West project, proposed for a swath of land on East Coast Highway between Bayside Drive and the Coast Highway bridge, would add eight public boat slips, relocate four others and expand the private Balboa Marina by 24 slips.

The project, which is expected to be completed by 2016, would include a 19,400-square-foot building that could be used as restaurant space, according to city documents.

Once the project is completed, the city would operate the public dock, which harbor commissioners recently said would increase public access to the harbor, something they have been working toward.

The west side of the marina was once home to the Reuben E. Lee, a smokestack riverboat that housed a restaurant and then a nautical museum before it was demolished in 2008.

The Irvine Co., which owns the space, has been working to expand the marina ever since. The project is likely to go before the California Coastal Commission in 2015. The commission would have to sign off on a coastal development permit before construction could begin.

The Balboa Marina West development was one of several projects discussed during a special Harbor Commission meeting Saturday morning.

About 50 people climbed aboard a ferry for a guided tour of ongoing projects.

Commissioners discussed a variety of upgrades in the harbor, including improvements to the 19th Street and M Street piers, development of Marina Park and the Lower Castaways, and their goal to remove derelict vessels.

“I can’t recall a time when there were more projects going on in the harbor,” Commission Chairman Brad Avery said. “It’s a very exciting time.”

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Marina Park

Newport Beach expects the $38.3 million Marina Park development to be open in spring 2016.

It will include a short-term slip marina with 23 spaces, a sailing and community center and a new Girl Scout Leadership Center.

The park will allow boaters to dock for 30 days in the West Newport marina, providing greater access to restaurants and other peninsula businesses, commissioners said.

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Lower Castaways

Moving forward with the development of Lower Castaways, a 4-acre parcel at the northeast corner of Dover Drive and East Coast Highway, is another Harbor Commission priority.

The land, given to the city by the Irvine Co. in 2008 in exchange for separate development rights, is being reconceived as a hub for bikers and hikers who use the trails surrounding the area.

The portion closest to the water probably can’t be developed because it’s in a marine area protected by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Though the city has concepts of how Lower Castaways could look, it will probably be years before the plans fully take shape, commissioners said Saturday.

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Derelict boats

In the middle of the harbor Saturday morning, a family of sea lions had staked a claim on a small boat, jumping from the edge of the vessel to the water and back again.

The boat, commissioners said, is an example of a vessel that the city classifies as derelict, meaning it probably doesn’t run and isn’t kept up properly by the owner.

The city has been ramping up effort in recent years to get owners of dilapidated vessels to remove them from the harbor before they become safety hazards. Commissioner Joe Stapleton estimated that 10% of the boats in the harbor can be classified as derelict.

Boats that don’t run are likely to sink and spill oil into the harbor, Stapleton said. They also become attractive resting spots for sea lions. However, the city is barred from removing the boats from the harbor without the owners’ consent.

“We hope to spend the next two years educating boat owners about the risks involved with keeping a derelict boat on the water,” he said.