CLOSER LOOK -- Does Greenlight win either way on Nov. 20?

June Casagrande

NEWPORT BEACH -- What’s in a name? Well, if that name is Greenlight,

the answer is: a lot.

Greenlight is the name of the initiative that essentially changed the

face of Newport Beach forever. Greenlight is also the name of the group

that created that initiative -- the Greenlight Committee that is now

dedicating all its resources to fighting expansion of the Koll Center.

And Greenlight is also the name of the developer-backed Greenlight

Implementation Committee that wants to add 250,000 square feet to the

Koll office complex at the intersection of Jamboree Road and MacArthur

Boulevard near the airport.

Confused? Some would argue that’s the point.

“This is deliberately deceptive use of our name,” Phil Arst, a leader

of the Greenlight Committee, has said. “People could be tricked into

voting for something they don’t know what they’re voting for.”

On the contrary, say opponents: Greenlight Implementation Committee is

as clearly descriptive as a name can be.

“We’re literally implementing the Greenlight Initiative,” Koll

developer Tim Strader has argued.

Campaign signs for the upcoming special election over Measure G

underscore the confusion, with banners for both sides proudly proclaiming

their cause to be pro-Greenlight.

Arst’s committee got its start as a movement to stop a large hotel

proposed to be built at the Newport Dunes. Arst, along with other

activists, created the city’s Greenlight Initiative, which was

emphatically approved by voters last November.

Some call it a slow-growth measure. But critics say it’s a thinly

veiled “no-growth” initiative.

The initiative requires a majority vote on developments that would

create more than 100 peak-hour car trips, more than 100 dwelling units or

more than 40,000 square feet of floor area above what the General Plan

allows. Once the City Council approves such a project, then a special

election must be held to make sure the voters approve of it, too.

But in a pro-business environment, where many believe entrepreneurial

spirit should be allowed to pursue its own interests, citizens aren’t

likely to feel it’s their role to advocate for someone else’s profit.

As such, any Greenlight vote could be inherently skewed against new

development. The way one planning official put it: Residents will go to

the polls to vote against a development in their community, but why would

people really go out of their way to vote for it?

On Nov. 20, Newport Beach residents will see for themselves. That’s

when voters will be asked to cast their ballots for or against Measure G.

The measure proposes that developer Starpointe Ventures be allowed to

expand the Koll Center near John Wayne Airport.

A split City Council in July approved plans for the

250,000-square-foot addition that would include a 10-story office complex

and added parking facilities.

Expansion plans had been in the works for decades when, last year, the

Greenlight Initiative stopped the project cold. Strader, Starpointe

Ventures’ president, said developers are in too deep -- about half a

million dollars already sunk into the project -- to give up without a

fight.

They’ve made a number of concessions to ensure their plan will be

amenable to city officials and voters. To alleviate the traffic some say

will be severe, especially at the intersection of MacArthur Boulevard and

Jamboree Road, developers have committed about $3 million. To offset

demand for increased city services the project is likely to create, they

have pledged $60,000 toward building a new fire station.

Opponents say these are scraps that fall far short of compensating

Newport Beach residents for the problems the project will bring. They

also say that expansion offers no real financial benefits for the city.

The developer estimates the expanded office center would bring in about

$28,000 a year in property taxes for the city. Opponents say this figure

is $10,000 at best and, worst-case scenario, the project could cost the

city about $10,000 each year for providing services.

For these reasons, the Greenlight Committee is advocating a no vote on

the measure.

The Greenlight Implementation Committee says vote yes.

But the most important thing, many agree, is to know which side you’re

voting for.

* June Casagrande covers Newport Beach. She may be reached at (949)

574-4232 or by e-mail at o7 [email protected] .