Plans for 55 disputed at forum

Stark contrasts among Costa Mesa Council candidates became apparent Thursday night during a pointed forum that focused heavily on the 55 Freeway and was hosted by the Eastside Neighbors’ Group.

Many in the packed house appreciated how the questions asked were more specific than those from at the previous candidates’ forum, which was hosted by the Mesa Verde Homeowners Assn.

Early in the debate, candidates were asked how they would stop speeding cars from cutting through Eastside residential streets while the city waited for the green light on a major project that would address the 55 Freeway.

Councilwoman Katrina Foley said that nearby residents would have to be prepared to sacrifice some efficiency if they wanted to make their neighborhoods safer and quieter.

“The only way to stop the cut-through traffic is to make cul-de-sacs, create one-way streets, create some inconvenience for the people who live near Newport Boulevard,” Foley said.

Lisa Reedy agreed that such measures should be explored.

Gary Monahan, who owns a restaurant just off of Newport Boulevard, strongly disagreed. He said such actions would increase his commute to work from two and a half minutes to 10 minutes.

Hearkening back to his time on the City Council in the late 1990s, Monahan said, “We talked about cul-de-sacs. We talked about one-way streets: The majority of people on the Eastside did not want them.”

People going over speed bumps create noise, and culs-de-sac lead to people getting lost, Monahan said.

Community sentiment has changed a bit since the 1990s, though, according to Eastside Neighbors’ Group President Jeff McConville.

Because safety and noise concerns have worsened significantly, McConville said, more residents might be ready to accept traffic-calming measures that they weren’t as excited about before.

Monahan and Jim Righeimer slammed Foley for her expressing frustration with the time it’s taking to proceed with a large-scale restructuring of the 55 Freeway, echoing similar criticisms made by Mayor Pro Tem Allan Mansoor at Tuesday’s council meeting.

The two men said that when Foley airs her concerns publicly, she risks diminishing the good will of other governmental bodies like the Orange County Transportation Authority, without which the project might not come to fruition.

Foley did not shy away from her past remarks. She fired back, saying that secrecy and closed-door meetings are more counterproductive — a response that garnered the most applause the whole night.

Chris Bunyan and Chris McEvoy focused much attention on how increasing the density on the Westside of Costa Mesa and developing Banning Ranch, effectively adding thousands of cars to the road, might undo progress made by improving the infrastructure of the 55 Freeway.

People living in these areas would have to commute on Newport Boulevard and the 55 Freeway, which would counteract the benefits of improving the freeway infrastructure, Bunyan said.

McEvoy suggested that the city should look into making alternate routes to the freeway, like Irvine Avenue and Jamboree Road, more palatable to commuters.

Nick Moss said the widely accepted plan to create an underground extension of the freeway into Newport Beach might be too costly and could drive potential customers away from Costa Mesa businesses; however, proponents of the project say it would do the opposite by making the city’s downtown less congested and more pedestrian friendly.

Righeimer said that if the city played its cards right, the underground extension could be done in five years, an estimate that OCTA consultants and city officials consider unrealistically short.

“I think that 10 years is a realistic time frame to get this project done,” Eric Bever said.

Another common theme in the comments of a few candidates was the need for a city council that coalesced well to deal with city issues.

Many candidates and residents have criticized the present council for bickering and arguing, which doesn’t serve the common good.

“I think it’s time for a change on our council. Time is of the essence, and we need to have some solid leaders on our council that can get along and be civil on the dais,” Reedy said.

Bill Sneen said the council should be more proactive in dealing with city staff, instead of being lead around by the nose.

“I really feel that the city staff shouldn’t be dictating to city council,” Sneed said. “I think the council should be setting the direction for the city staff.”

ALAN BLANK may be reached at (714) 966-4623 or at [email protected].