Newsletter
January News in Newport Beach: Review, Renew and Look Ahead
Happy New Year and 120th Anniversary, Newport Beach!
Table of Contents
Featured Posts
January 2, 2026
A look at 2025
Pausing to acknowledge the Council’s many accomplishments in 2025, before we roll up our sleeves and get to work on this year’s needs and objectives:
✓ Promoted a trusted NBPD veteran and leader, Dave Miner, to be our new Police Chief
✓ Installed over 70 FLOCK safety license plate-reading cameras citywide, resulting in countless successful arrests and prosecutions, as well as interventions with criminals entering our city to re-offend
✓ Brought on a prosecutor for high recidivist repeat offenders of our Municipal Code
✓ Rolled out a new NBPD crime information center, with the addition of drone and Fusus technologies
✓ Added coverage and cameras for our School Resource Officer partnership on Newport Beach public school campuses
✓ Expanded the Safety Enhancement Zone (triple fines for citations) to CdM and to all three summer holiday weekends
✓ Ensured public safety departments are fully-staffed; that personnel are compensated and appreciated in order to retain and recruit the best of the best
✓ Banned nitrous oxide and flavored tobacco sales, and initiated a moratorium on smoke shops, bolstering last year’s ban on Kratom
✓ Introduced Corona del Mar’s “3rd Thursdays” street fair
✓ Partnered with Sherman Gardens for a public mural program in Corona del Mar
✓ Supported expansion of the NBPD Mounted (horseback) Enforcement Unit
✓ Procured OCTA grant funding for a city-wide trolley program
✓ Utilized the results of our State audit of residential rehab licensing to help educate legislators who voted to pass several of our supported bills
✓ Opened the city’s first accessible playground for children of all abilities
✓ Adopted new fire maps along with enforcement tools, contracted for and worked with the community on fuel modification in canyons, sensitive habitat areas, and private property;
✓ Launched the Newport Bay Trash Interceptor wheel to prevent debris from polluting the harbor, bay, and beach
✓ Added defibrillators to city parks and community centers; and,
✓ Adopted new e-bike ordinances, including a youth diversion program to prompt parental accountability
Newport Beach Aviation Committee Meeting – January 26 at 5:00pm
This month, as the Chair of the newly-restructured Aviation Committee, I will be kicking off the first of a series of discussions about preparations for the implementation of advanced air mobility (AAM) technologies in Southern California. The Council has enlisted the expertise of military and civilian pilots, attorneys, and consultants to guide the process of formulating recommendations for policy on these uses in our city.
Archer Aviation, the official air taxi provider for the 2028 Olympic Games, will be presenting on its acquisition of Hawthorne Airport and plans to utilize its four-passenger Midnight electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft to alleviate traffic congestion and transform urban transportation. As always, residents and members of the public are welcome to join us in the Community Room at City Hall.
Dredging Updates
The City has secured all necessary regulatory permits and has begun dredging the Balboa Yacht Basin and the Lower Newport Bay in order to maintain access channel depth for safe navigation. More information and updates can be found through the links below.
Safety Spotlight
Especially proud of our NBFD leadership this year, after Fire Chief, Jeff Boyles, was named Ronny J. Coleman Fire Chief of the Year Fire by the California Fire Chiefs Association, and Fire Marshal James Gillespie received the Commitment to Excellence Award for his role as a founding member and current President of the California Fire Chiefs Association Fire Marshal Section. This statewide recognition is reserved for leaders who demonstrate exceptional vision, leadership, and a sustained commitment to advancing the fire service profession.
Both have achieved significant career milestones in previous years; Chief Boyles was named Public Sector First Responder of the Year by the Association of California Cities – Orange County (ACC-OC) for his leadership during the department’s achievement of a Class 1 ISO ranking and high cardiac save rates. Gillespie completed his Fire Marshal State Certification Task Book, is credited with strengthening fire prevention efforts statewide, and establishing foundations for future innovation. Clearly, the Newport Beach Fire Department continues to set the standard for excellence, innovation, and performance.
