How Tragedy and a Russian Forged the World’s Best Lifeguard Department by William Lobdell of Newport in the Rearview Mirror

5 of The Worst Ideas In Newport Beach History by William Lobdell.

The Island No One Wanted. Local History by Corona del Mar resident and podcaster, William Lobdell,

In the early 1960s, the Irvine Company received the green light from the County of Orange to develop nearly 75% of Upper Newport Bay. The ambitious plans called for a sprawling marina with hundreds of boat slips, bayfront homes, swimming beaches, four parks, businesses, a water skiing basin and rowing venue. At the time, the public viewed the bay as undesirable swamplands, so nearly everyone believed an upscale development in Upper Newport Bay would be a vast improvement. Read on.