WEEK IN REVIEW

Newport Beach leaders were stunned last week by a denunciation by Rep.

Chris Cox of the county’s airport plan for the closed El Toro Marine

Corps Air Station.

Cox called the plan unacceptable after a federal report revealed each

flight out of the proposed airport would cause a 15 minute delay of

flights arriving at John Wayne and Long Beach airports.

In other airport news, the Board of Supervisors found a way to delay a

final vote on their plan for the closed Marine base Tuesday. The board

nearly violated the state’s open-meeting laws when Chairwoman Cynthia

Coad tried to take public testimony after it had been announced the

meeting was closed for further comment.

The vote is now set for Tuesday.

-- Paul Clinton covers the environment and John Wayne Airport. He may

be reached at (949) 764-4330 or by e-mail ato7

[email protected] .

Question: Which city to manage

After 25 years of loyalty to Costa Mesa, City Manager Allan Roeder

admitted to having a wandering eye.

Last week, Roeder announced he would be interested in filling the

soon-to-be vacant city manager position in Anaheim, now held by retiring

James Ruth. It is still too soon to deem it a real possibility because

Anaheim has not yet decided whether it will launch an outside search for

other candidates.

Roeder said he is not unhappy in the city of Costa Mesa but cannot

ignore the management opportunities Anaheim boasts, such as the fact that

it owns its own utilities, is home to two professional sports teams and

popular tourist attractions such as Disneyland.

Starting as an unpaid intern, Roeder quickly climbed to the top of

Costa Mesa, becoming the city manager in 1985.

Colleagues were not shocked by Roeder’s announcement and agreed the

move would be a step up. Mayor Libby Cowan called the Anaheim city

manager job a “plum position.”

“Allan has an incredible reputation as a city manager and a problem

solver. It’s no doubt his name would surface as a replacement,” Cowan

said.

Former Councilman Joe Erickson, who worked with Roeder for nearly 10

years, said he would be greatly missed and hard to replace but expressed

the utmost confidence in his ability.

“If Anaheim really wanted him and he served there, he would do a great

job,” Erickson said.

-- Lolita Harper covers Costa Mesa. She may be reached at (949)

574-4275 or by e-mail at o7 [email protected] .

No sold sign yet at Dunes

Newport Beach residents who hoped to stop a 275-room hotel from being

built at the Newport Dunes Waterfront Resort got some bad news this week

when they learned bidders are competing to buy the property.

The city had hoped to buy the land to prevent development of the site.

But their hopes to acquire the Dunes died when an Oct. 16 deadline was

put on bidders.

Carmelo’s Ristorante came under fire as neighbors’ complaints prompted

an upcoming Planning Commission review of the restaurant’s longtime

permit for live music.

And Newport Coast residents entered a 30-day “protest period” to say

“no” to annexing their area to the city. At a community meeting, Newport

Beach officials pitched their plan to make the Coasters part of the city.

That plan includes $18 million in tax relief over 15 years, netting an

average of $722 for the owner of a $1.7 million home the first year.

-- June Casagrande covers Newport Beach. She may be reached at (949)

574-4232 or by e-mail at o7 [email protected] .

Rough week for police, fire

A 48-year-old Costa Mesa man was stabbed to death Monday in a motel

room after an argument with another local resident turned lethal.

Police said Morris Earl Grice, the victim, and Stephen Charles Novak,

43, got in a fight in a room at the New Harbor Inn. Novak reportedly

stabbed Grice several times on the neck. Novak was arrested outside the

motel after witnesses identified him to the police. He is being held in

Costa Mesa jail without bail.

In other news, the district attorney said this week that Newport-Mesa

Unified School District board member Jim Ferryman had a blood alcohol

level of 0.19, more than twice the legal limit of 0.08, when he was

arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol Sept. 27.

Ferryman has said he intends to stay on the board and has the support of

all his colleagues except trustee Wendy Leece, who believes he should

resign.

Also, local public agencies have been dealing with scores of anthrax

threats after the bacteria has been found in several people on the East

Coast. Costa Mesa police reported 15 to 20 callers every day over the

last week.

-- Deepa Bharath covers public safety and courts. She may be reached

at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at o7 [email protected] .

Many Newport-Mesa schools improved substantially in their Academic

Performance Index, which was released last week and is based on

standardized testing done in the spring. And Harbor View Elementary

School in Newport Beach outscored other county elementary schools for the

second year in a row.

In other news, Orange Coast College held a teach-in to discuss

international issues surrounding the terrorist attacks last month. Many

students said they gained new perspective by hearing the variety of

speakers.

-- Deirdre Newman covers education. She may be reached at (949)

574-4221 or by e-mail at o7 [email protected] .