East Side

Andrew Glazer COSTA MESA -- The City Council voted Monday night to prohibit a developer from building five homes on an East Side lot in a move designed to preserve the neighborhood's character, even though the project didn't appear to break any city codes. After the council's decision, Newport Beach resident Jim Cefalia said he wouldn't have spent $550,000 on the lot at 2087 Garden Lane or an additional $40,000 on planning the project had he known the city would reject his proposal.

Andrew Glazer EAST SIDE -- Cookie-cutter homes squeezing onto lots once occupied by larger, single-family homes here are taking away from the neighborhood feel of this middle-class, family-filled area, city officials say. City Councilwoman Heather Somers said the new, higher-density developments, sprouting like dandelions here as the real estate market continues to boom, are also flooding residential streets with traffic...

House in Costa Mesa's east side nets best price yet for that area. Realtors say prices to go higher.The new record price for a home on the east side of Costa Mesa is $1.4 million. But how long until another deal surpasses that mark? "You're going to sell a lot more out there that are going to go for that," predicted First Team Real Estate agent Bob Gottuso. Gottuso and his wife Gayle sold the record-setting home, which is at 457 Costa Mesa St. Gottuso described the home as a 3,900-square-foot abode with six bedrooms and four bathrooms.

This past Memorial Day, we took an afternoon stroll through Costa Mesa's East Side. What we saw was the stuff of Norman Rockwell paintings. Family picnics sprawled out on front lawns, kids playing catch with dads in the street and pint-sized entrepreneurs trying to make an extra 50 cents with roughly constructed lemonade stands. But what makes this neighborhood even more special is that the cozy feel is organic, not artificially induced by a developer trying to sell houses.

Andrew Glazer COSTA MESA -- The City Council is expected to decide tonight whether new cookie-cutter homes -- popping up like dandelions on the well-watered lawns in the East Side -- are a large-enough threat to the neighborhood's charm to warrant freezing similar developments. "The East Side is a neighborhood that is losing its character and quaintness," said Councilwoman Linda Dixon. "We need to address that issue until the council can review the zoning there."

Andrew Glazer COSTA MESA -- The City Council late Monday night unanimously approved a measure temporarily halting multi-home developments here. "This is a very key issue," said City Councilwoman Heather Somers, who has led the effort to preserve the East Side's unique character and proposed the moratorium last month. "We can't keep allowing four-bedroom homes to be built on postage stamp-sized lots." The measure, sparked by the East Side but will apply citywide, is designed to halt "cookie cutter" developments from popping up as city planners devise a more permanent way to preserve neighborhood character.

The Federal Aviation Administration plans to change a satellite-guided takeoff procedure for some flights from John Wayne Airport. Newport Beach residents had complained that the system was diverting noisy aircraft over the Bluffs neighborhood on the east side of Upper Newport Bay. “It’s a tiny little tweak in the procedure that we hope will eliminate noise concerns for people in the Bluffs neighborhood,” said Ian Gregor,...

WHAT HAPPENED: The City Council on Monday decided not to rehear its June decision rejecting a plan to build five homes on an East Side lot. Councilwoman Heather Somers abstained because the project is near her home. Developer Jim Cefalia has submitted revised plans to address the council's concerns about the project. The new proposal includes more parking, more private open space and architectural enhancements. The council asked Cefalia to submit the new plans to the city's planning division for review.

Jan D. Vandersloot The Costa Mesa City Council made the right decision in removing the intensive uses of Fairview Park east of Placentia from the Fairview Park Master Plan. While the model railroad has been a permitted use for many years, it has a relatively low impact on the sensitive biological resources on the east side of Placentia compared to the other proposed uses, and rare birds such as the burrowing owl have been able to coexist with it. Indeed, sighting the owl has been pointed out by the railroad engineers to their passengers during the train trips, serving an educational experience to the thousands of railroad visitors, especially children, every year.

The coming week is a busy one for Costa Mesa government, with at least seven meetings scheduled, two of which include the City Council going over future goals and objectives with other city groups. The council and Planning Commission are set to discuss planning goals in a joint meeting at 4:30 p.m. in Conference Room 1A on the first floor of City Hall, 77 Fair Drive. The commission in its regular meeting at 6 p.m. in Council Chambers will go over various developments in the Eastside, including a proposed five-unit condominium complex at 2573 Elden Ave. and two homes on an empty 8,250-square-foot lot at 2590 Orange Ave. City staff are recommending that the commission deny the Elden project, partially because the developer is seeking an unjustifiable variance from the city's open-space requirements.

The Federal Aviation Administration plans to change a satellite-guided takeoff procedure for some flights from John Wayne Airport. Newport Beach residents had complained that the system was diverting noisy aircraft over the Bluffs neighborhood on the east side of Upper Newport Bay. “It’s a tiny little tweak in the procedure that we hope will eliminate noise concerns for people in the Bluffs neighborhood,” said Ian Gregor,...

At least 17 cars were reported burglarized in Costa Mesa on Monday, an unusually high number that police said Wednesday serves as a reminder for people to take care of the valuables in their vehicles. Police could not say how many were related so early in the investigations, but at least a few of them appeared to be, Sgt. Bryan Glass said. A majority of the vehicle break-ins occurred on the east side of Costa Mesa, east of the 55 Freeway between 20th and 17th streets. In three separate break-ins in the 1900 block of Rosemary Place, thieves smashed car windows, and stole gym bags and iPods found inside, Glass said.

. The headline incorrectly implied that Promelis Westcliff Market is moving from Westcliff Drive. Supermarket officials plan to keep Promelis on Westcliff Drive and open a second market on the Balboa Peninsula this fall.. When the Promelis Seaside Market opens its doors this fall, it may decrease traffic on the Balboa Peninsula. At least, that?s what the owners are hoping. The east part of the peninsula hasn?t had a grocer since the 2W Market closed in 2005, and co-owner Mike Matthews said he expected the gourmet supermarket to be a popular neighborhood destination ?

COSTA MESA — Ten years ago, when Hugh Siler was looking to purchase a home on Costa Mesa's east side where he grew up, he wished there were more affordable entry-level houses and condos on the market. Now he's trying to make his one-time dream into a reality for other potential homeowners with a condo conversion project — the Bungalows at Elden. The Costa Mesa Planning Commission will review the project today Siler wants to convert seven rentals at 2550 Elden Ave. into condominiums to create an alternative to the high-priced homes in the area.

House in Costa Mesa's east side nets best price yet for that area. Realtors say prices to go higher.The new record price for a home on the east side of Costa Mesa is $1.4 million. But how long until another deal surpasses that mark? "You're going to sell a lot more out there that are going to go for that," predicted First Team Real Estate agent Bob Gottuso. Gottuso and his wife Gayle sold the record-setting home, which is at 457 Costa Mesa St. Gottuso described the home as a 3,900-square-foot abode with six bedrooms and four bathrooms.

Jan D. Vandersloot The Costa Mesa City Council made the right decision in removing the intensive uses of Fairview Park east of Placentia from the Fairview Park Master Plan. While the model railroad has been a permitted use for many years, it has a relatively low impact on the sensitive biological resources on the east side of Placentia compared to the other proposed uses, and rare birds such as the burrowing owl have been able to coexist with it. Indeed, sighting the owl has been pointed out by the railroad engineers to their passengers during the train trips, serving an educational experience to the thousands of railroad visitors, especially children, every year.

David Gruder's name consistently appears as the only one in print who supports the widening of East 17th Street. An uninformed person would think that the 17th Street Merchants and Community Assn. is dominated by small businesses. The truth of the matter is that a majority of the volunteers and supporters of this group are residents. Some happen to own businesses and are also residents. Gruder writes about the city survey of residents and the fact that traffic is a concern.

WHAT HAPPENED: The City Council on Monday decided not to rehear its June decision rejecting a plan to build five homes on an East Side lot. Councilwoman Heather Somers abstained because the project is near her home. Developer Jim Cefalia has submitted revised plans to address the council's concerns about the project. The new proposal includes more parking, more private open space and architectural enhancements. The council asked Cefalia to submit the new plans to the city's planning division for review.