Councilman calls for building moratorium

Noaki Schwartz

NEWPORT BEACH -- City Councilman Tod Ridgeway said he will propose

that the council put a moratorium on major development decisions until

the Greenlight measure is voted on this fall.

“I respect the process of the initiative and think it’s important that

we go ahead and delay any action,” Ridgeway said Friday.

The controversial slow-growth measure, slated for the November ballot,

proposes giving voters the final say on certain major developments even

after they’ve been approved by the Planning Commission and the City

Council.

Greenlight supporters could not be reached Friday for comment.

Councilwoman Jan Debay declined to comment until Ridgeway formally

introduces his idea. Other council members could not be reached for

comment.

Should the council agree to Ridgeway’s motion, it would directly

affect some major development proposals going through the planning

process, including the Dunes resort.

Tim Quinn, project manager of the Dunes, declined to comment until the

council makes its decision.

This would not be the first time Greenlight has had an effect on the

city’s proposed developments. Developers had an immediate reaction to the

introduction of the measure at the end of last year.

In February, the Irvine Co. pulled its expansion plans for Newport

Center, saying the measure added too much uncertainty to an already

time-consuming and expensive city planning process. In the wake of the

Irvine Co.’s move, insurance giant Pacific Life officials pulled their

proposed project as well.

The proposed 470-room, $100-million Dunes resort was the next major

development to feel the measure’s effects. After six grueling months

under the Planning Commission’s knife, the council recently postponed

further discussion of the project until September.

Although some council members cited summer vacations and the desire

for more time to review the proposal, Ridgeway said he believes the delay

on the Dunes project is directly related to Greenlight looming on the

horizon.