Council members support disposal of sand offshore

Deirdre Newman

City leaders took a firm stand on sand Tuesday, approving several

measures to show their staunch support for sand replenishment in West

Newport through deposits offshore, not on the beach.

The sand disposal is part of a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

flood-control project, which will dredge 400,000 cubic yards of

sediment from the Santa Ana River channel.

The city originally agreed to take sand from the dredging to

replenish the beach between 32nd and 56th streets in West Newport.

However, residents’ concerns that spreading sand on the beach would

create dangerous wave patterns, coupled with additional fears that

the sediment will be laced with trash and pollutants, caused the

council to reconsider.

Tuesday, the council approved issuing a permit to the corps,

allowing it to work in the beach area, but prohibiting it from

spreading the sand directly on the beach. This now puts the burden on

the corps to exhaust all its sand disposal options first. If the

corps feels spreading the sand on the beach is the only feasible

alternative, it will have to come back to the council to ask for a

change to the permit.

Council members agreed it was more important to spell out their

preference to the corps on how the sand should be handled, rather

than letting the corps dictate it, even though it could jeopardize

other projects the city wants the corps’ funding for, like dredging

of theBack Bay.

“I’m tired of being in the position where the tail is wagging the

dog,” Councilman Steve Bromberg said. “If the Army corps is getting

punitive on us because we’re trying to protect our little piece of

cheese, I’ll be the first to get on the phone with [Congressman]

Chris Cox ... and he would have to get involved.”

The council also approved hiring a liaison to monitor the work for

the city and stay in contact with the corps’ contractor. It also

approved other permit restrictions, including a requirement that the

contractor comply with an environmental assessment the corps

performed for the project several years ago, which limits the

widening of the beach to a maximum width of 350 feet.

Council members also authorized Mayor Tod Ridgeway to write a

letter to the corps supporting sand replenishment but explicitly

asking for it to be done offshore.

The corps hasn’t received official word of the council’s actions

yet, said corps spokesman Greg Fuderer. But the contractor is looking

into placing the sand offshore, which would increase the cost of the

project, Fuderer said, from its current level of $4.5 million.

Assistant City Manager Dave Kiff said the additional cost would be

in the range of $1 million to $1.5 million.

Some opponents of the beach-disposal plan urged the council to use

even stronger language to the corps in its letter.

“It seems like the Army corps is our servant, and we shouldn’t

have to compromise the health and safety of residents in West

Newport,” said Michele Brooks, who lives on Seashore Drive.

If the corps is able to deposit the sand offshore, there is a

chance a storm could wipe out a portion of the beach, Ridgeway

reminded opponents.

“This is a severe risk we’re taking,” Ridgeway said. “If we have a

severe storm, and the beach goes away, I don’t want to see you in

here screaming at us.”

* DEIRDRE NEWMAN covers government. She may be reached at (949)

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