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Newport Beach presents Corona Del Mar corridor plan aimed at more restaurants, parking solutions and pedestrian upgrades
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Summary
City staff presented a year‑long study proposing zoning changes, parking strategies and streetscape improvements for the Corona Del Mar commercial corridor; council members generally endorsed the recommendations and asked staff to return with code amendments, detailed parking options and public‑hearing materials.
City planners on Nov. 4 unveiled a comprehensive study aimed at revitalizing the Corona Del Mar (CDM) commercial corridor, recommending targeted zoning updates, parking strategies and pedestrian and bicycle improvements to boost business activity and safety.
Liz Westmoreland, principal planner, and Jocelyn Perez, senior planner, said the study area runs roughly a mile from Avocado Avenue to Poppy/Hazel Drive and is split between coastal and noncoastal zones. The consultants reported that about 2,900,000 visitors a year stay 30 minutes or more in the corridor; visitor household income was estimated at about $153,000 and median visitor age at 38. Staff told the council that food and beverage uses currently make up only about 20 percent of businesses in the corridor — substantially lower than comparable “main street” corridors — and that a limited mix of active uses contributes to shorter visits.
The staff recommended a suite of actions to encourage investment and walkability: streamline preferred land uses (including outdoor dining), consider mixed‑use residential on second and third floors, reduce parking requirements or offer parking waivers for preferred uses, incentivize lot consolidation by offering additional floor area, adopt minimum design guidelines to improve pedestrian character, prohibit automobile‑centric uses (car washes, vehicle repair, drive‑thrus) while grandfathering existing operators, and pursue parking programs such as leasing underutilized private lots, piloting parking‑finding technology, expanding a trolley or circulator, and creating a parking in‑lieu fee program.
"Streamlining those preferred land uses, including outdoor dining, is a big step towards leveling the playing field," Westmoreland said, outlining the proposed shift of some approvals from conditional use permits to director‑level reviews to reduce time and cost for businesses.
Business owners who spoke during public comment generally supported the plan but urged safety and parking solutions. Jim Walker, owner of the bungalow restaurant near McArthur Avenue, urged the council to prioritize crash mitigation measures, saying a driver who passed out previously struck his building at about 80 mph and that existing 15‑inch retaining walls were inadequate. "There was a matter of about 15 seconds, and we would have had a fatality," Walker said.
Ryan Wilson, owner of 5 Crowns, said the recommendations "reflect exactly what many of us have been hoping for," praising the plan’s attention to walkability, safety and shared parking. Other residents emphasized concerns about adding housing to the corridor and possible spillover parking impacts.
Council members praised the outreach and broadly supported staff’s direction while asking for more detail. Mayor Pro Tem Kleinman urged continued resident outreach and requested that staff return with concrete parking options and implementation phasing. Council members discussed parking garage feasibility, leasing private lots for public use, expanding the local trolley year‑round, valet or shuttle options for employees, and protected bicycle infrastructure.
Next steps, staff said, include drafting code amendments and taking them through the public hearing process with the Planning Commission and a future council hearing. The council did not adopt specific code changes at the meeting but indicated consensus to advance the recommendations for additional study and formal hearings.
