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Results from Tuesday’s Newport Beach City Council election are a mixed bag, with two incumbents and one challenger coming out on top, while one race is still too narrow to call. In probably the most heated race this year, challenger Joy Brenner unseated incumbent Scott Peotter...

A state board this week again cleared two Newport Beach City Council members of any conflicts of interest related to a complaint filed about possible conflict of interest. In a letter released on Tuesday, the Fair Political Practices Commission rejected to pursue any enforcement...

As the election draws to a close, Newport Beach residents face some stark choices.  After a month of dodging the question, our mayor was forced to disclose that he is a licensed marijuana grower and had secretly employed Councilman Scott Peotter as his lobbyist. Duffield skipped...

The city was recently awarded a $1.68 million grant to move forward with a solar-powered, trash-collecting water wheel in Newport Bay. Newport Beach Mayor Marshall “Duffy” Duffield traveled to Santa Cruz to address the Ocean Protection Council at its Oct. 25 meeting about the...

Regarding Former Mayor Rush Hill’s letter to the editor in NB Indy on Oct. 19: Mr. Hill—Facts? May I remind you of your personal FPPC problems for participating in the Mariners Mile redevelopment committee that resulted in the taxpayers paying over $60,000 in legal fees to...

The 2018 Newport Beach City Council campaign season is nearing the end, and this year had its share of twists and turns, controversies and contentions, and hot button issues discussed at about a dozen forums. Eight candidates spent the last several months meeting residents,...

How did our common understanding of what is right and wrong in terms of the conduct of public officials change so drastically in the last four years? Before 2014, a council member would have been shamed by accepting a donation from a known felon and compelled to return it. Now,...

Balboa Island and Balboa Peninsula owe deep gratitude to this City Council for fighting the Federal Government the past two years. The Federal Emergency Management Agency changed its flood maps to include all of Balboa Island and much more of the Peninsula. This would have...

When it takes the Mayor of Newport Beach almost two months to answer a simple yes or no question, something’s terribly wrong. At the August 29th West Newport Candidate Forum, I asked my opponent, Mayor Marshall Duffield, if he’d ever employed Councilman Scott Peotter during their...

A state board this week cleared two Newport Beach City Council members of any conflicts of interest related to complaints filed earlier this year, but has yet to address the most recent complaint which includes the newly revealed paid work relationship between the two. On...

Seven Orange County cities have sales tax increases on their ballots this year.  Without question, these are all pension taxes. Pensions are crowding out basic services across the County. But not here in Newport Beach. In 2014, a wave of new candidates ran on a platform of...

Taking a stroll yesterday in Newport Heights, I noticed a few “Duffy” signs around my neighborhood and I couldn’t help but think to myself that some residents just might be voting for their friend and naively for a “Duffy” boat and not for the future of Newport Beach. Ironically,...

At the final public forum for the 2018 Newport Beach City Council candidates, the audience was more involved and outspoken, creating some tense, heated, and impassioned moments. Members of the crowd often interacted directly with some of the candidates, calling out questions and...

As a former member of the Newport Beach City Council, I have a unique perspective on this year’s election. During my first two years, I was privileged to serve with dedicated public servants who put the city first and worked in a spirit of collegiality to accomplish important...

It has been our collective honor to serve as Citizens of the Year in Newport Beach.   All of us share a love for our community and a deep appreciation for the values that make our city great. We also share a concern about the direction of our city over the past four years and how...

Newport Beach City Council candidates had a busy week of forums, one more casual, discussion-like, another small, neighborhood-focused, and another moderated by local students who will be voting for the first time in November. They discussed a range of topics, including which...

As a Newport Beach resident, I am very troubled by the fact Mayor Duffy Duffield has skipped the recent Speak Up Newport Candidate forum and, along with the other incumbent council members, has not confirmed their participation in the Feet to the Fire Forum. If they will not...

I am disappointed to hear that City Councilman Scott Peotter and our Mayor Duffy Duffield are willing to attend a fundraiser at the home of Bob McCaffrey.  McCaffery referred to Joy Brenner as a “drooling dog.” Brenner is running against Peotter for a seat on the City...

I recently received a taxpayer funded mailing inviting me to a taxpayer funded Town Hall on Public Safety featuring Supervisor Michelle Steel and co-hosted by Newport Beach Mayor Duffy Duffield. Ironically, this meeting will be held in the Community Center at Civic Center Park,...

Most of the 2018 Newport Beach City Council candidates participated in another forum this week and, on top of being questioned about several important local issues, were asked to explain some of their own comments made at previous forums. Speak Up Newport hosted a candidate forum...