Proponents take steps to get library issue on ballot

Proponents of building a city hall next to Newport Beach’s central library on Monday filed papers to get the issue on the February ballot. They’ll likely start in June to gather the 9,000 signatures from Newport Beach voters needed to qualify for the ballot, said Bill Ficker, a retired architect and leading proponent of the measure.

The Newport Beach City Council plans to build a new city hall, but a majority of council members have rejected building on the 12.8-acre site by the library because it has long been reserved as a park.

Ficker said the city can have both a park and a city hall there, and he’s not alone — retired state legislator and state education secretary Marian Bergeson and businessman and philanthropist Jack Croul signed on as proponents. City rules under Measure S, or Greenlight, may require a vote to change the general plan to allow a city hall on the park site, but Ficker said his measure won’t try to navigate that territory.

“We wanted to keep it very straightforward so the citizens know what they’re voting on, and if it requires a separate vote because of Greenlight, well, so be it,” he said.

— Alicia Robinson