In what is likely a dog and pony show, Newport’s bumbling city manager Colin Kennedy, in collaboration with the Newport Beach Commission and its consulting team, is inviting the public to help the city figure out what to do with Easton’s Beach. A ‘special listening session’ is scheduled for Thursday, January 30, from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Newport Public Library, where city officials will turn to residents to clean up the mess they’ve already made.
For those who can’t make it, feedback is also being collected on a project website at www.CityofNewport.com/FutureBeach—because nothing screams well-thought-out urban planning like an online suggestion box.
Easton’s Beach has been many things over the years: a rollercoaster, a saltwater pool, and a spired pavilion that once evoked the glamour of a bygone coastal era. Now, it stands mostly as a cautionary tale of what happens when out-of-towners think they know what’s best.
The latest chapter in this saga? The demolition of the snack bar and carousel building—apparently step one in the grand plan, or lack thereof. With funding now secured through the 2024 infrastructure bond, the city has promised a new vision for the beach. Hopefully, this vision no longer includes Councilor Khamsyvoravong entertaining the idea of selling the beach to the highest bidder.
Whether this will be another short-lived iteration or the start of a lasting solution is anyone’s guess. What’s certain is that Newport is leaning heavily on public input, presumably hoping someone else will come up with the answers they haven’t.
Residents are invited to chime in and help the city figure out its next move. Head to www.CityofNewport.com/FutureBeach to share your thoughts—and maybe a little common sense.
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