CORONA DEL MAR TODAY

All Ages Welcome for May 12 Mayor’s Walk in Buck Gully

Some Newport Beach mayors talked the talk — but Mayor Nancy Gardner walks the walk.

On Saturday May 12, Gardner will lead a walk through Corona del Mar, stopping to check out Buck Gully, Little Corona, Big Corona and the Goldenrod Footbridge. The walk will be about 2.75 miles and will run from 9 until about 10:15 a.m., beginning and ending at the OASIS Senior Center at Fifth and Marguerite avenues. Along the way, the group will learn about the Upper Buck Gully trail project, the lower Buck Gully erosion project and other Little Corona Beach concerns.

Gardner said the walk was her version of the Meet the Mayor events that Councilman Keith Curry began two years ago. Curry, and then later Mayor Mike Henn, would gather with members of the public at various locations throughout the city to discuss current events, local issues and private concerns.

Gardner became mayor in December and had not scheduled any Meet the Mayor events.

“I pictured myself a civic Lucy with my sign, ‘The Mayor is In,’ but that seemed a little static, and besides, suppose nobody came?” Gardner wrote in her May newsletter. “So it’ll be ‘Walk with the Mayor’…”

“Most of it is pretty easy, and where there are climbs, they are either spurs, meaning you can stay on top and wait for us to come back up, or at Big Corona you can walk along Ocean Boulevard and meet up with us at Jasmine,” her newsletter states. “The good thing: If nobody comes, I’ll have a nice walk.”

Refreshments will be served at the end, she said, and all ages are welcome.

Gardner grew up surfing and horseback riding and often can be seen walking to meetings, paddle boarding or cycling (she serves as chairwoman of the city’s Bicycle Safety Committee.)

“I’m thinking of doing a mayor’s paddle and a mayor’s bike ride, but we’ll see how this goes and whether more walks might be scheduled,” she said.

For more information, call (949) 644-3000 or click here.