Month: July 2019

By Geoff Page

Councilmember Barbara Bry, a candidate for mayor this year, had this to say about the situation downtown, “City Hall, quite frankly, is a mess,” when she came to the Midway-Pacific Community Planning Group’s meeting on July 17. Those are words that resonate with many people these days, but it has to be kept in mind that this is a candidate for office.

Bry came to the planning board at the invitation of chair Cathy Kenton. Last month the group hosted Dr. Campbell from District 2.

Bry spoke for some minutes explaining her background and her positions on several things. For example, she said she was against the city buying the old SDG&E building because it needed work and the city has spent, and is spending, $30 million to renovate it. Bry said she was against land use being dictated from Sacramento referring to several current bills that are intended to help ease the housing shortage.

There’s now been nearly three dozen attacks BB gun attacks over the last month in San Diego County – including one in Ocean Beach and one in the Midway District. Plus one target was the second storefront of a well-known OB business.

The BB gun attacks appear to be intentional and have targeted pedestrians, drivers, businesses and homes. Police are trying to figure out if they’re all related. Or maybe shooting BB guns at people and property is just a trend.

NBC7 reported on the Midway District shooting:

By Gaye Macy

It seems at least two Torrey Pines have been/ are being cut down on Ebers and West Point Loma Blvd. I don’t know why the City has now begun taking down Torrey Pines, whether they were asked by the community, or whether it was based on risk assessment.

From one of the NextDoor strings that followed, it seems that some people feel Torreys are dangerous and want to see them cut down. One man linked to the story of the Torrey that fell on a house during a severe wind storm last winter. Another woman suggested that not all the Torrey Pines needed to be cut down, “only the ones in backyards and near sidewalks.”

by Ernie McCray

Like any other American I appreciate the freedoms we have, especially the freedom to express one’s self, as I can’t exist without speaking up in some manner.

But I just wish I, and my people, were fully free, free to just go about our lives, like white people, like for instance, not having to instruct our sons regarding what to do if they’re walking down the street minding their own business and a cop rides up on them with his hands on his weapon, at the ready to commit a crime where there had been none.

That’s the kind of liberty we want, simply freedoms like being able to sit down and wait on a friend to join you in Starbucks or swim at a pool or barbecue in the park without somebody calling 911.

By Geoff Page

What would you say if someone told you that you would have to walk over 700 feet out of your way to make it from one side of a 90-foot wide project to the other side on a sidewalk?

You would probably ask why.

If the only answer from the City of San Diego was just “because we say so,” I imagine you’d be a bit unsatisfied with that response. But that is precisely what the city has been doing to residents of Point Loma who live in the area near St. Agnes Church on Canon Street for over a year. This is a tale of how much more developers matter to the city than do regular community residents.

For a year, local residents have been complaining bitterly about a temporary construction fence on Canon St. between Evergreen and Rosecrans.

By Jim Miller

For me, memories of summer always start with the smell of a campfire in the deep woods. As a young boy, I found there was nothing more fun than my family’s camping trips up in the Redwoods where we’d park in our site, get the tear-drop trailer set up, and start the fire.

I remember pulling in late at night with a million stars out, the cold air biting my cheeks, and feeling like I was in some magical place as wonderfully far away from my Los Angeles home as I could imagine.

By T. Ultican / Tultican / July17,2019

Members of the California legislature have engaged in an internecine battle over charter schools. Even the California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) has expressed concern over lawless cyber charters and filed the first known complaint with the California Department of Education over A3 Education and Valiant Prep which were recently charged with stealing a stunning $50 million.

California State Sen. John Moorlach (R) is warning that 85% of school districts in California are running deficits. Governor Gavin Newsom has stated “rising charter school enrollments in some urban districts are having real impacts on those districts’ ability to provide essential support and services for their students.” The drive to privatize schools in San Diego, Oakland and Los Angeles has been fueled

Five water quality advisories have been issued that affect Sunset Cliffs, Ocean Beach and Mission Bay. The advisories have been issued by the County of San Diego Department of Environmental Health.

All of the advisories – which advise that humans avoid any water contact in the area – are due to bacterial levels exceeding health standards. See the map included with this article; the yellow balloons are the advisory areas.

Two of the advisories are for Sunset Cliffs:

Sunset Cliffs at Ladera St. – Beachline adjacent to access stairs; advisory since: July 18, 2019 – Bacteria levels may exceed health standards. Avoid water contact in the advisory area.

by Bob Edwards

On Thursday, July 18, Michael Martino, former Chief Lifeguard for the California State Parks System, gave a presentation on his new book, “Help! San Diego Lifeguards To The Rescue” at Water’s Edge Church on Sunset Cliffs Blvd. The recently published book is the first volume of Mr. Martino’s proposed complete history and covers the period of 1868 to 1941. In the audience of 60 to 70 people were about 10 former lifeguards and retired officers from the lifeguard service.

Mr. Martino showed slides of pictures, charts, and news clippings taken from his book and recounted stories about lifeguards in San Diego with a particular emphasis on Ocean Beach’s role in that history.

In the early days before professional lifeguards appeared, ordinary citizens were the only people available to rescue swimmers

It is true that the San Diego Free Press, launched by the OB Rag in 2012, closed itself down and has not been publishing since December 2018. But that doesn’t mean it’s dead or its writers had to leave the country.

In fact, in a Swan Song of its last public appearance, the San Diego Free Press won 9 awards at last night’s annual dinner of the San Diego Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

Here’s the list of Free Press winners with links to their contributions:

By Michelle Gormlie Seguin

America was born like a child

You ever heard of Mai Lai?

You ever heard of John Brown?

It’s never been what you think,

it never wanted a crown.

Pollution from Fireworks is an Unnecessary Risk to Our Personal and Environmental Health

From Back Country Attitude

Why celebrate those special occasions by polluting? Is poisoning the air and water a patriotic way to recognize the 4th of July?? Is unnecessary air pollution a good way to ring in the New Year??

Do you consider yourself environmentally conscious and responsible? You might not know that all those colorful explosives used to celebrate special occasions…. (your firecrackers, skyrockets, Roman candles and yes even those so-called “harmless” sparklers)… pose a serious environmental and health danger from heavy metals and other toxic firework fallout.