Vessel Owners Invited to Apply for New City Mooring Licenses
By Newport Indy Staff – December 27, 2023
Source: Newport Beach Independent https://www.newportbeachindy.com/vessel-owners-invited-to-apply-for-new-city-mooring-licenses/
The City of Newport Beach has introduced a new license program offering 16 onshore and offshore City-owned moorings to the public in a variety of sizes. Applications for the initial licenses will be accepted through March 1, 2024.
The new program is designed for vessel owners to lease moorings long-term without having to acquire a permit, sub-permit or mooring equipment.
Monthly fees will be charged based on the size of the mooring, starting at $162 a month for an 18-ft. mooring. There is no cost to apply for one of the 16 new mooring leases.
The licenses will be issued by random drawing from among the applications received by March 1. Assignments will be made based on the fit of available moorings to vessel size. Applicants who do not receive a mooring assignment in the initial drawing will be placed on a waiting list, as will applicants who submit after March 1.
Successful applicants will be contacted after the drawing and have 14 days to execute a mooring license agreement.
The mooring license application can be completed and submitted online via the City’s Virtual Connect application portal.
For more information please visit www.newportbeachca.gov/harbor or contact the Harbor Department at ha**********@ne************.gov or (949) 270-8159.
By Newport Indy Staff – December 27, 2023
Source: Newport Beach Independent https://www.newportbeachindy.com/vessel-owners-invited-to-apply-for-new-city-mooring-licenses/
Photo Credit: Sara Hall/Newport Beach Independent
Newport Beach scored high marks during the summer season in the 33rd Annual Heal the Bay Beach Report Card, released Wednesday, June 14.
Of the 36 Newport Beach bay and ocean testing sites listed in the report, 32 earned an A or A+ during the summer season, when the beaches are most frequented. Four sites earned a B grade. Heal the Bay’s annual report measures bacterial pollution for more than 700 West Coast beaches, from Washington to Baja, ranking them and grading their water quality from A to F.
The United States Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) has halted the dredging of Lower Newport Bay and construction authorization for the City of Newport Beach’s (the city’s) Confined Aquatic Disposal (CAD) facility. The Corps put things on hold after Orange County Coastkeeper (Coastkeeper) filed a lawsuit challenging their failure to fully analyze actions possibly violating the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Endangered Species Act (ESA).
So, is that a good thing or a bad thing?
On May 23, the City Council approved a pilot program to change the harbor mooring fields configuration and approved changes to the Harbor Code to accommodate the proposed pilot program and the long-term plan for all the moorings in the harbor.
Speak Up Newport is hosting a meeting on Wednesday, June 14 to discuss the mooring plan with guest speaker Bill Kenney, the former Harbor Commission Chair. He will describe the Harbor Commission’s Open Water Initiative and the reasons for the changes to the mooring fields.
The valves, which were built in the 1970s to replace a system from the early 1900s, are necessary to prevent flooding in low-lying areas. They are manually operated, and need to be closed during high tides to prevent seawater from flooding the streets. Once the tide recedes, crews reopen the valves — nearly 90 in total — to allow water to flow from streets to the bay.
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