Newport Beach to replace guide piles with a floating swim dock

The California Coastal Commission approved Newport Beach’s request to remove two concrete guide piles and replace them with a 160-square-foot public floating swim dock and two new concrete guide piles. The dock and new piles would be located on the bay side of Balboa Island, at the end of Ruby Street. A public swim dock existed at the same location between 1947 and 1970.

“The proposed dock float is generally consistent with past commission-approved public dock floats, and there are no expected impacts to eelgrass,” Coastal Commission staff told commissioners in a report.

Newport Beach removed the old public dock in 1970, due to deteriorating conditions.

Coastal Commissioners approved the proposed project on Dec. 12; the Coastal Commission met Dec. 11-13 in Calabasas.

Newport Beach has yet to provide any official plans of the proposed public dock.

“The city states that the public dock will maintain typical design features that identify it as a public dock, such as white finial(s) mounted on top of the dock piles that signify public docks within Newport Harbor, and improved signage,” Coastal Commission staff stated in a report to commissioners. “While no plans have been submitted, the city stated that they will install visitor-serving/coastal access directional sign(s) on the existing informational signage located on the sandy beach landward of the swim platform at the Ruby Avenue street end and on the swim dock itself.”