Corona del Mar Today: Cities won’t co-host cycling event

The Newport Beach Bicycle Safety Committee won’t pursue plans to co-host a ciclovia event with Costa Mesa, members decided at a Monday meeting.

The idea for the event, which was first discussed in a May meeting, included joining forces with Costa Mesa to close 17th Street for a few hours to vehicular traffic to promote bike riding for all ages, and to bring business to the community.

Mayor Pro Tem Nancy Gardner asked cycling activists and Jim Fitzpatrick of Costa Mesa to float the idea to see if Costa Mesa city officials had any interest. At Monday’s meeting, Gardner told the committee that he had talked to Costa Mesa staff members and one major business — with negative results.

“Staff was very hinky about it,” Gardner said. “And the business was, also.”

Instead of a ciclovia, Gardner proposed holding a Newport Beach cycling event to coincide with next year’s Bike Week, traditionally held in May.

“Let’s hold a bike-to-work day, a bike-to-school day,” she said. “Let’s have a really huge bike rally, on say the Sunday, and end up with a picnic or barbecue or something.”

The committee also could work with the Restaurant Assn. to create a “Bike to Eat” event with specials offered to cyclists who ride to Newport Beach restaurants.

The committee members said they liked the idea and would begin making preliminary plans to present to city staff this summer in order to see what costs would be involved.

In other committee news, Brad Sommers, a Newport Beach senior engineer, showed a map of alternate bicycle paths through Corona del Mar and promised to have plans by the group’s August meeting for dealing with dangerous intersections.

Newport Beach Police Department Traffic Officer Spencer Arnold gave a report on cycling accidents for June.

There were six reported cycling crashes, he said, none with serious injuries.

Of the six crashes, four were the fault of the cyclist, one had no known cause, and the other was caused by a vehicle, he said.

The group’s next meeting will take place in August.

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NBPD awarded alcohol grant

The Newport Beach Police Department was one of two Orange County law enforcement agencies to be awarded grant funding from the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, police announced.

“Over the last year, the $26,318 in grant funding enabled the Police Department to expand current ABC operations in order to address various alcohol-related problems in the City,” according to a news release. “The grant objectives included placing uniformed officers, as well as plain clothes detectives, inside retail alcohol establishments in order to observe and address such issues as: over-service, service/sales to minors, possession of fake ID’s, over-occupancy, and City Use Permit violations.”

By the end of the grant period, police made two arrests and issued 23 citations for various alcohol-related offenses.

The grant objectives also included community outreach and providing responsible beverage service training for the city’s 306 retail alcohol establishments. The grant period ran through the fiscal year of July 1, 2010, through June 30.

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School sets dates for whooping cough vaccine clinics

As part of the “No Shot — No School!” campaign to make sure all seventh- through 12th-graders have met state requirements for whooping cough booster shots, the Corona del Mar High School campus will host two campus clinics for families whose students need the booster shots.

A school all-call this week said that students will be able to get the booster vaccine at the nurse’s office from 8 a.m. to noon Aug. 17, or from noon to 4 p.m. Aug. 18. The shots cost $55 and can be paid in advance online, or with a check or cash. Parents or legal guardians must accompany students, the all-call said.

The school’s website will be updated as information becomes available. Currently, no signups are available.

The requirement, State Assembly Bill 354, went into effect July 1.

Students will not be permitted to register without proof of the booster shot, the message said.

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Alumni to relive the ‘70s

Corona del Mar High School graduates from the 1970s are planning a multi-class reunion later this month featuring musicians who used to rock the quad, organizers said.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun,” said Rick Allen, who played in several bands while a student at CdMHS and will be performing at the July 30 event with his band, Pinch Me! “We want to try to get 300 or 350 people together, many who haven’t seen each other for years. This is going to be a wild party.”

The CdMHS Mid-Summer Classic Reunion ‘75-’77 began as a reunion for those mid-1970s graduating classes, but organizers said all CdMHS graduates are welcome.

Featured guest musicians include Chris Allard, Mike Allard, Jon Canale (aka Jonny Relic), Dave Chase, Chuck Cummings, Warren D’Avirro, Bill Hayes, Matt Mageira, Greg Morgan and Jim Schindler. Pinch Me! includes CdMHS alums Allen, Greg Peters and Tom Solis.

Allen said the musicians will play music from the 1970s, and several songs will feature two drummers at a time.

“Which we used to do in the quad,” Allen said. “Think Allman Brothers … don’t see that every day.”

Advance discounted tickets are $85 and include a hosted beer, wine and margarita bar, food and entertainment. For more information and to order tickets, visit https://cdmclassicreunion.eventbrite.com/.

The event also has a Facebook page, which currently shows more than 100 people attending.