Newport Beach City Council members Tuesday will consider a ban on “jetpacks.”
Acting on complaints from neighbors about safety and noise, the city’s harbor commission on Wednesday recommended a ban on jetpacks, said Chris Miller, the city’s harbor manager. Council members will consider the first reading of an ordinance banning the backpack-like devices, Miller said.
About a year and a half ago the council prohibited individuals from using the devices on their own, but city officials allowed Jetpack America to provide the service for one person at a time and during certain hours, Miller said.
The city continued to receive a steady diet of complaints from neighbors about the noise, Miller said.
Jetpack America let its permit expire in November and another company has not been licensed to fill in, Miller said.
“Jetpack America did a good job of running their business,” Miller said. “But the Harbor Commission and many of the harbor’s residents complained about the incompatibility of that activity there.”
—City News Service