When it rains, it pours on Balboa Island — most notably into its streets, where flooding can occur.
This week, the Newport Beach City Council received a presentation of plans to modernize Balboa Island’s drainage infrastructure, which relies on manually operated tide gates to manage rainfall and the high tides that wash onto the island. City staff said there are about 25 drain lines.
Bob Stein, an assistant city engineer, said the trouble is that the tides from Newport Bay are often higher than the surrounding bay-front or street elevation. On average, streets on the westernmost end of the island are about 5 feet above sea level. High tides are typically 4.5 to 7 feet.
King tides can reach 8 feet.
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