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Home My WebLink About03 - Amending Chapter 11.04 of the NBMC Related to the Use of Bicycles, Electric Bicycles, and Other Such Devices on the Beach - CorrespondenceReceived after Agenda Printed April 29, 2025 Item No. 3 From: City Clerk"s Office To: Mulvey, Jennifer Subject: FW: COMMENTS- RE. CITY COUNCIL ITEM 3 of COUNCIL SESSION 4-28-25 AGENDA Date: April 25, 2025 2:52:12 PM From: Denys Oberman <dho@obermanassociates.com> Sent: Friday, April 25, 2025 2:51:57 PM (UTC-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada) To: Stapleton, Joe <jstapleton@newportbeachca.gov>; Lauren Kleiman, Newport Beach Mayor Pro Tern <lauren@lauren4newport.com>; Grant, Robyn <rgrant@newportbeachca.gov>; Weigand, Erik <eweigand@newportbeachca.gov>; city <council@newportbeachca.gov>; Brown, Leilani <LBrown@newportbeachca.gov>; City Clerk's Office <CityClerk@newportbeachca.gov> Cc: dho@obermanassociates.com <dho@obermanassociates.com>; Fred Levine <fredric.mark.levine@gmail.com>; sheri.morgan@gmail.com <sheri.morgan@gmail.com>; Maureen Cotton <mcotton@integrated8a.com>; Carmen Rawson <carmen_rawson@att.net>; davidsherbeck@yahoo.com <davidsherbeck@yahoo.com> Subject: COMMENTS- RE. CITY COUNCIL ITEM 3 of COUNCIL SESSION 4-28-25 AGENDA [EXTERNAL EMAIL] DO NOT CLICK links or attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. Report phish using the Phish Alert Button above. PLEASE DISTRIBUTE THIS CORRESPONDENCE TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND THE PUBLIC, AND ENTER INTO THE PUBLIC RECORD Re. Item 3 on Consent Calendar -Introduction of Ordinange No 2025-6 amending Chapp 11.04 of the Newport Beach Municipal Code re. use of bikes, electric and motorized bikes and other such devices on the Beaches. Mayor Stapleton and Members of the Council: We understand that the City Council is introducing and will consider an Amendment to the City's ordinances, referenced above, establishing prohibition of the devices on the City's beaches. We commend staff for their report summarizing the conditions and circumstances leading to this proposed Ordinance Amendment. The ever-increasing use of the devices at the beach areas poses a threat to the safet and healthful use of the boardwalk and beach areas by the public- at -large. Hazardous operation of these devices has now extended to the beach and ingress/egress strands adjoining it ( including Newport Beach Elementary school playground). The public at large is entitled to access, use and enjoy the beach area as a place for safe and healthful activity. A request for clarification and confirmation: Are the definitions and terms of the amended Ordinance assumed to include, the ingress/egree strands on the beach leading out to the water? What about the Newport Elementary School playground on the beach? We would suggest that these be included for clarity. Residents and visitors extend our appreciation to the Council for progressing this necessary regulation, complimentary to the focus on Boardwalk safety enforcement action. We encourage the Council to approve and direct enactment of the Ordinance amendment with the clarifications proposed above. Thank you for your consideration. Denys H Oberman Resident Oceanfront and community stakeholder Regards, Denys H. Oberman, CEO NOBERMAN SlvcdaW orb I vwx-o AdvWws OBERMAN Strategy and Financial Advisors 19200 Von Karman Avenue, 6th Floor Irvine, CA 92612 Tel (949) 476-0790 Cell (949) 230-5868 Fax (949) 752-8935 Email: dho _ obermanassociates.com CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE: The documents accompanying this transmission contain confidential information belonging to the sender which is legally privileged. The information is intended only for the use of the individual or entity named above. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution or the taking of any action in reliance on the contents of this telecopied information is strictly prohibited. If you have received this transmission in error, please notify us immediately at 949/476-0790 or the electronic address above, to arrange for the return of the document(s) to us. From: Maureen Cotton <mcotton@integrated8a.com> Sent: April 28, 2025 3:23 PM To: City Clerk's Office Cc: Stapleton, Joe; Dept - City Council Subject: Ordinance No. 2025-6 - CNBCA Supports this Action! Attachments: Banning E-Bike on Beach —Ord No 2025-6_ltr to Mayor and CC_04-28- 2025.pdf [EXTERNAL EMAIL] DO NOT CLICK links or attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. Report phish using the Phish Alert Button above. City Clerk, Please see attached letter from Central Newport Beach Community Association. Thank you! Sincerely, Maureen Cotton President CNBCA Cell: 714-981-4926 please check out our website www.MVNewportBeach.org Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail. The information contained in this electronic message is intended only for the use of the individual or entity to which it is address and may contain information that is privileged, confidential and exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If the reader of this message is not the intended recipient, you are informed that any dissemination, copying or disclosure of the material contained herein, to include any attachments, in whole or in part, is strictly prohibited. If you have received this transmission in error, please notify the sender and purge this message. Central Newport Beach Community Association PO Box 884 • Newport Beach, CA • 92661-0884 www. MyNewportBeach.Org April 28, 2025 Dear Mayor Stapleton and Councilmembers, Kleiman, Barto, Blom, Grant, Weber, and Weigand: Central Newport Beach Community Association (CNBCA) wants to applaud the Mayor, City Councilmembers, and City Staff for introducing Ordinance No. 2025-6, which effectively bans the operation of bicycles, electric bicycles, electrically motorized boards, motorized bicycles, motorized scooters, pedicabs, and surrey cycles from operation on beaches within the City of Newport Beach. This ordinance —along with continued enforcement along the Boardwalk —are the first steps in improving Boardwalk safety. The City Council and the Parks, Beaches & Recreation (PB&R) Commission received 87 letters and emails written by homeowners/taxpayers and residents to the City Council and PB&R Commission with 85 of the 87 opposing a split trail. Most of these emails were sent from our members and several of them took even more of their personal time to speak at the PB&R Commission meeting on April 1, 2025. Having heard the community's opposition to the split trail and the need for greater enforcement, Mayor Stapleton enlisted the Newport Beach Police Department (NBPD) to commence more visible enforcement of the 8-mph speed limit along the Boardwalk that began on Saturday, April 5th. We really appreciate Mayor Stapleton "hearing" the community! We also want to thank the NBPD for issuing tickets with stiff fines for those speeding along the Boardwalk that weekend and the following weekend. Keep up the good work! We also want to thank NBPD who "...recently observed a significant increase in the number of e-bikers riding their bikes on the sand. This poses a significant risk to beachgoers for a variety of reasons. The speed capacity of the a -bikes as articulated above, in combination with the terrain of the beach (which includes sand berms with limited visibility), and large crowds during summer months, could lead to disastrous consequences for beachgoers who aren't accustomed to looking out for vehicles while enjoying the sand." This is one of the leading reasons that CNBCA opposes a split trail. The Staff Report goes on to state, "In addition to the safety concerns, e-bikers have been riding on the sand dunes, which are considered an Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area (ESHA). Sand dunes provide nesting and shelter for several species of endangered birds and provide habitat for such rare species as the California legless lizard and several species of Blue Butterfly. It is imperative to keep e-bike riders off of these dunes in order to preserve this fragile habitat area and prevent unnecessary destruction." CNBCA agrees wholeheartedly with this statement. CNBCA sent a letter to the City Council on August 11, 2022, making the following suggestions: Education. Making a visitor friendly required handout for property managers and owners with responsibility for short-term rentals to each set of tenants. The handout would include laws, regulations, and new ordinances (speed, helmets, etc.) as well as a list of potential hazards that the visitor may encounter such as toddlers through adults running across the Boardwalk without looking both ways. The handout could also remind visitors to respect the lanes on the Boardwalk as well as address ocean safety (e.g., what a rip current looks like and what to do if caught in one). Enforcement. As has been frequently stated, "The City has most of the laws/ordinances on the books, the City just needs to enforce them." xtaPier,Pier Regulation. During Speak Up Newport's June 8th meeting, Don Dicostanzo (Pedego Electric Bikes CEO) stated that AB1096 (was passed in 2015) gives cities (e.g., City of Newport Beach) the authority to regulate e-bikes. AB1096 allows the City to require helmets, set maximum speeds, and/or prohibit operation of a -bikes on specified paths (e.g., the Boardwalk). CNBCA presented this option (AB1096) in letters, at meetings with City staff, and at City Council meetings on behalf of CNBCA in 2017 and again in 2020. Given the results of the July 10th (2020) weekend ticketing of hundreds of speeding e- bikes/cyclists on the Boardwalk and the flood of complaints by residents and Boardwalk visitors, CNBCA would like the City Council to: • Direct the City Attorney to research/vet AB1096 and develop an ordinance that: ✓ Prohibits a -bikes on the Boardwalk ✓ Requires helmets on all a -Bike riders city-wide ✓ Establishes fines that start at $500 per violation (e.g., not wearing a helmet, speeding) • Enact the new ordinance to promote rider safety and simplify enforcement by the Newport Beach Police Department. We look forward to continuing discussion with tangible results both citywide and in District One. Sincerely, fIaU_&J1494 Maureen Cotton President, CNBCA