FINAL RESULTS

A close race all Tuesday night finally yielded a winner early Wednesday as nearly 53% of Newport Beach voters said they want their new city hall next to the central library on Avocado Avenue.

The mood at the City Hall in the Park watch party Tuesday evening at a Newport gated community clubhouse was one of reserve and cautious optimism as early returns were too close to call.

But with all precincts reporting, Measure B won 13,905 to 12,446, or 52.8% to 47.2%, according to unofficial returns.

About 35 supporters gathered to watch returns arrive on a big-screen television with a “Yes on Measure B” campaign sign propped on top. Most partygoers drifted away before 11 p.m. as it became apparent that despite a slight early lead, returns would continue to trickle in slowly through out the night and into the morning.

“We’re in the lead now, and I hope it will last through the night,” said Councilman Steve Rosansky, a vocal supporter of Measure B.

Lead Measure B proponent Bill Ficker appeared calm and collected Tuesday night. Ficker, who fought last year to get the measure on the ballot with a massive signature drive, said he’d wait until morning for the final election results and planned to be in bed by 11 p.m.

“I’m not a very emotional person. I don’t speculate on these things,” Ficker said. “It’s really too early to be optimistic or pessimistic. I don’t know a lot about elections.”

The group’s main benefactor, Jack Croul, who donated about $670,000 to the City Hall in the Park campaign, was nowhere to be found Tuesday night. He was either in Florida or the Caribbean, City Hall in the Park supporter Ron Hendrickson said.

Critics have accused Croul, a retired businessman, of having designs on the old city hall site on Balboa Peninsula, an accusation City Hall in the Park supporters shrugged off Tuesday night.

“He can do it, so he does,” Hendrickson said. “He personally believes this is the best thing for city hall.”

About 30 Newporters Vote No on B campaign met Tuesday night at a supporter’s Corona del Mar home overlooking the Bay and watched presidential primary returns on local television while live results on Measure B from the Orange County Registrar of Voters website were projected onto a large screen at the front of the room.

The mood was cheerful, although early reports showed No on B slightly down in the polls.

The crowd chanted “hooray for 2 points” as early returns took a slight jump in No on B’s favor.

“This is a very energetic and optimistic group of volunteers, and they’re conducting this campaign wearing out the rubber on the soles of their shoes,” said Karen Tringali, an organizer for No on B.

No on B supporter and environmentalist Jan Vandersloot handed fistfuls of sage to other partygoers as they walked by.

“It’s your piece of the park,” he told them.

No on B supporters have long maintained the 12.8 acre site in Newport Center some want to turn into the next city hall was meant to be a park.

Vandersloot picked the handfuls of green sticks and leaves from the proposed site earlier Tuesday as voters headed to polls.

Many No on B supporters said they believed Croul’s large donations to the City Hall in the Park camp were unfair.

“This is a lesson in politics 101,” said Scott Hart, a campaign consultant for No on B. “They bought and paid for this election.”

Local activist Allan Beek, who attended the No on B party Tuesday night, said he remained committed to his efforts to challenge Measure B in court if it passes.

Beek filed a lawsuit in November alleging the ballot measure is illegal because it leaves the city hall issue up to voters.

The suit claims only the City Council has the power to make a decision.

“If you have a whole bunch of candidates in an election, there are many different ways of deciding among them,” Beek said Tuesday. “But you never just vote yes or no on one candidate.”

An Orange County District Court judge in December ruled against Beek’s temporary restraining order that would have prevented the measure from appearing on Tuesday’s ballot. But the judge will hear arguments in the lawsuit if voters approve the measure.

Beek said Tuesday he would call his attorney first thing in the morning if the measure passes.

Newport Beach voters in favor of the measure said cost and convenience were major factors in their decision.

“They should build (city hall) on the new location because right now it’s just empty space and we won’t have to buy the land,” said Newport Beach voter Rosita Chausse. “It saves money, and it’s easy to access.”

Voters earlier today at the Newport Beach Public Library mostly opposed the measure, citing increased traffic they believed the measure could generate in their neighborhood.

“I think there’s more homework to be done,” Newport Beach voter Ulla Overby said. “I think it’s a little premature.”

Measure B would amend the city charter to require Newport to build its next city hall on a 12.8-acre parcel of city-owned land next to the central library on Avocado Avenue.

Opponents of the measure say the site should be preserved as a park.

Supporters say a park can coexist on the site with a new city hall and that the land would be the cheapest to build on because the city owns the property.