Controversial Newport office project up for council reconsideration

The Newport Beach City Council will hear an appeal Tuesday of the approvals for an office building and parking garage project off Mariner’s Mile that has met resistance with neighbors.

The city Planning Commission approved in October the development of a roughly 2,750-square-foot, two-story office building with suites for one or two tenants, plus a 41-space, roofless two-level parking garage that would replace a larger, aging office building and small surface lot at 215 Riverside Ave., about a block off West Coast Highway at Avon Street.

Some neighbors in nearby Newport Heights have been critical from the start, citing wide-ranging concerns with traffic, noise and light that they said would threaten their quality of life. A group that banded together to lodge a formal appeal with the City Council alleged improper public notification and incomplete consideration of environmental impacts.

Some have accused developer Gary Jabara of “piecemealing,” or separating the office and garage from a possible new restaurant across Avon at 2902 W. Coast Hwy. in order to diffuse scrutiny in an attempt to build and support both components.

The restaurant is being considered separately. Opponents have said any approvals should be made in tandem with the restaurant.

The meeting starts at 7 p.m. Tuesday, with remote access only likely in light of physical distancing and stay-at-home directives during the coronavirus pandemic. The meeting will be livestreamed online on the city website, newportbeachca.gov, and broadcast on local cable television channel NBTV (Spectrum Channel 3 and Cox Channel 852).

Members of the public can participate telephonically in real time by calling the numbers posted on the screen and in the agenda, or by submitting written comments by 5 p.m. Monday to [email protected]. The agenda can also be found on the city website.

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