NEWPORT BEACH – – The 25-story, 100-unit Museum House luxury condominium project slated to replace the Orange County Museum of Art cleared the City Council before a standing-room-only crowd evenly divided between supporters and opponents.
Speakers wearing “Museum House supporter” stickers told the council Tuesday night that the building would increase property values and enhance nearby Fashion Island. Detractors voiced concerns that the project would transform the city into Los Angeles, paving the way for more large-scale developments and added traffic.
In the end, the council voted 6-1 to approve the project – which would be one of the tallest buildings in Orange County.
Councilman Tony Petros dissenting, saying his vote stemmed from the significant public opposition to large developments in Newport Center.
“As much as I like the shiny object that’s before me… My personal opinion in this has to be subordinated to the will of the people,” he said.
Developer Related California plans to build the 295-foot-tall structure on the two-acre site of the Orange County Museum of Art at 850 San Clemente Drive. The art museum is selling the land to Related California to help finance its move near the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa.
William Witte, Related California CEO and chairman, countered pushback from critics, saying the building’s height does not stand out among nearby high-rises.
“It doesn’t obstruct any ocean views,” he told the council. “It’s a taller building with a much, much lower traffic impact.”
Resident Drew Lawler said Museum House, specifically its height, would take residents “away from our roots” and change “who we are as a community.”
“I think we really need to step back and take a look and see if this is the direction that we really want Newport Beach to continue in,” he said. “I’d say no to 25 stories, no to 10 stories, no to five stories.”
Ruth Kobayashi said she supported the project after meeting with developers, who said they will work with the surrounding community to mitigate impacts.
“They are people of high standards,” she said. “They will create a good-neighbor environment.”
Museum House is expected to generate over $21 million for the city through several fees paid by developers.
The council on Tuesday approved setting aside $11.1 million in fees toward possibly constructing a new junior lifeguard headquarters, a lecture hall for the Central Library and landscaping on Coast Highway.
Museum House will have 54 two-bedroom, three-bathroom units and 46 three-bedroom, four-bath units. Plans call for an Olympic-sized swimming pool, pet spa, dog run, garden terrace, gym, meeting room, lounge and 24-hour valet parking with 288 parking spaces. The units are expected to sell for $2 million to $4 million.
The Planning Commission endorsed the plan last month, and so did the Airport Land Use Commission on Nov. 17, which was required to conduct a review because of the building’s proposed proximity to John Wayne Airport.
The high-rise also has support from the city’s police and firefighter unions.
Museum officials want to donate to the city an adjacent one-acre parcel at 856 San Clemente Drive that houses a one-story building the museum uses for administrative and storage purposes. But the Irvine Co. has put a hold on the offer, saying the land given to the museum in 1995 was to be used for cultural purposes.
The city has no specific plans for the land but wants to retain it for community and cultural use, city officials said in mid-November.
The influential real estate company has a restriction on the land through 2055. Irvine Co. donated the site where the main museum building stands in 1977, when it was known as Newport Harbor Museum. Restrictions on that parcel have run out.
As of Tuesday night, critics had gathered about 1,500 signatures on a petition opposing the development. Activist group Stop Polluting Our Newport has said on its website it would begin efforts on a referendum to side-step the council and force the matter to a public vote.
Lawyers for OCMA Urban Housing, a division of Related California, sent a cease and desist letter Monday to Citizens Against High Rise Urban Towers, a group that has been sending mailers and online petitions opposing Museum House.
The letter said the group “engaged in a pattern of publicizing inaccurate and deceptive information” about the project. The Santa Ana-based group said the project would place an increased burden on the city’s police and fire departments and violated height restrictions.
The letter said Newport Beach has a height limit of 300 feet, whereas the building is 295 feet.
Contact the writer: 714-796-2478 or lcasiano@scng.com
