NBSTRA Statement on July 4 Disorder on the Balboa Peninsula

In the wake of the unacceptable behavior in Newport Beach on the Balboa Peninsula on the Fourth of July, the Newport Beach Short-Term Rental Alliance issued the following statement:

The Newport Beach Short-Term Rental Alliance (NBSTRA) strongly condemns the violence, vandalism, illegal fireworks, theft, assaults, and disorder that occurred on the Balboa Peninsula over the Fourth of July holiday.

This behavior has no place in Newport Beach. It endangered residents, visitors, business owners, employees, law enforcement officers, and families who came to enjoy the holiday responsibly. We are grateful to the Newport Beach Police Department and the public safety personnel from neighboring agencies who responded under extremely difficult conditions to restore order and protect the community.

Responsible short-term rental owners, managers, and guests were just as shocked and disturbed by these events as other Newport Beach residents, businesses, and City leaders.

It is important, as the City assesses how this happened and considers how to make sure this never happens again, that Newport Beach respond to what happened with facts, enforcement, and accountability — not assumptions, especially as it relates to the role of short-term rental properties and guests to these horrible activities.

Public reporting, resident accounts, and publicly available social media activity indicate that viral social media promotion played a major role in encouraging young people to come to Newport Beach to “party” on the Fourth of July. These posts appeared in the days immediately before the holiday and directed people toward the Balboa Peninsula, including areas already known for nightlife and large beach crowds.

That is an important distinction. Most Fourth of July short-term rental stays in Newport Beach are booked well in advance by families and visitors planning holiday vacations. A last-minute, social-media-driven crowd event on the Peninsula should not automatically be treated as the same thing as responsible guests staying in licensed short-term rentals.

NBSTRA is not suggesting that no short-term lodging guest was involved. That is for the City’s fac-finding to determine. If the City’s review shows that verified short-term lodging guests were a significant part of the problem, NBSTRA stands ready to work constructively with the City on targeted, evidence-based steps to address that portion of the problem.

But before conclusions are drawn, the City should review the relevant data and share what it can with the public. That review should examine whether the incidents were widespread or concentrated in specific areas; whether they were tied to short-term lodging, day visitors, residents, hotel guests, minors, young adults, social-media-promoted gatherings, nightlife-adjacent crowds, or visitors from outside Newport Beach and/or Orange County; and whether any verified short-term lodging violations were concentrated among particular properties, booking channels, or management models.

The City should also examine what worked and what did not under the enhanced holiday enforcement rules already in place. Newport Beach has adopted some of the strictest short-term rental rules and enforcement tools in California, including enhanced penalties during major holiday periods. If the problem was driven primarily by viral social media, day visitors, underage crowds, illegal fireworks, or activity concentrated near public beach and nightlife areas, then the response should be focused on those facts.

Bad data leads to bad policy. Good data can help the City, residents, businesses, law enforcement, and responsible short-term rental owners work together on solutions that actually address the source of the problem.

NBSTRA is prepared to sit down with the City after it completes its assessment of the July 4 incidents to review the data, discuss what worked, identify what did not, and improve communication and coordination with responsible owners and managers. Organized, responsible short-term rental owners and managers can be part of the solution, especially when the City works with them before major holiday weekends to communicate expectations, prevent problem stays, and respond quickly when legitimate issues arise.

The vast majority of Newport Beach short-term rental owners, managers, and guests are responsible, law-abiding, and committed to being good neighbors. They should not be scapegoated for a large public-safety incident unless the facts support that conclusion.

Newport Beach deserves a serious response to what happened on July 4. That response should hold wrongdoers accountable, support law enforcement, protect residents and businesses, and focus future enforcement on the actual sources of the problem.