News and Notices for Ocean Beach and Point Loma – Mid-March 2020

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Point Loma High Renovation Hits New High

Point Loma High has been around since 1925 and this is the first time the school has ever seen a renovation project of this magnitude. What used to be the site of an old useless building, is now turning into a state of the art 38,000 square-foot facility. The excitement is certainty building among the student body and staff. In late February, they watched the hoisting of the final steel beam of what will be a new three-story building.

“It’s a milestone in the project here. Just seening it completed, watching this building go up actually as quick as it did, is exciting. A steel beam and the symbolism. It’s Point Loma gold, ” said Hans Becker, the principal referring to the school’s color. Students have indeed struck gold, thanks to voters who approved a couple bond measures to help fund the massive project. “It’s going to house our library but it’s also going to have an innovation center to it where students will have the opportunity to collaborate either in small spaces or larger spaces,” said Becker. This of course in addition to a café and lots of classroom space. The project will also feature upgrades to the athletic facilities, On-site parking and entrance security. KUSI

Man Found Guilty of Murdering OBcean Sentenced to 83 Years

Before a judge Wednesday sentenced a National City man for murdering another man whose body supposedly was never found, the prosecutor dropped a bombshell that the victim’s skull had been found two years ago, but not identified until the trial had begun. The judge ruled the discovery inadmissible, as it would have put Brian Hancock’s defense at a disadvantage, and ordered lawyers not to mention it during the trial. Then, calling Hancock’s 2017 murder of Peter Bentz of Ocean Beach “heinous,” San Diego Superior Court Judge Joan Weber sentenced the 49-year-old to 83 years and four months to life in state prison. “I will tell you, Mr. Hancock, you deserve to never step outside of a prison for the rest of your life,” Weber said, adding, “Rarely has this court seen a more diabolical crime.”  A jury convicted Hancock of murder on Jan. 27. Hancock previously pleaded guilty in unrelated cases of burglary and transporting methamphetamine for sale, for which a total of eight years, four months in prison was tacked onto his 75-years-to-life term for the murder. SDU-T

San Diego Police Push Their Use of “Smart Street Lights” in Minor Mission Bay Pedestrian Accident

A pedestrian was struck by a car while crossing the street in Mission Bay Tuesday morning, San Diego police said. According to police, the incident occurred just before 7:30 a.m. as the pedestrian walked in the crosswalk in the 1600 block of W. Mission Bay Drive, near Quivira Access. 10News learned the 40-year-old male pedestrian was taken to the hospital after suffering a broken leg and head injury. The Mazda’s 25-year-old driver, who remained at the scene after the collision, told police he was on his way to work when the incident happened. As part of the investigation, police are planning to use information obtained from a nearby smart streetlight that was installed by the city of San Diego last year.

Point Lomans Have Problems With New Bike Lanes on West Point Loma

Amy Stark, assistant manager at The Orchard Apartments at 4040 Hancock St., pinpointed several troublesome traffic spots in her Midway neighborhood including: Sports Arena/Midway/West Point Loma Boulevard corner; The bike lane on Sports Arena; and West Point Loma Boulevard heading to/from OB (new bike lanes and loss of car lane). Stark characterized Sports Arena/Midway/West Point Loma Boulevard as “dangerous,” noting The Orchard seniors have been hit several times there in the last few years. “It is especially treacherous for mobility devices because riders sit low to the ground and are harder to see,” said Stark.  Stark argued new bike lanes on West Point Loma Boulevard to and from OB is also a safety issue.  “With the new bike lane and loss of a driving lane, bikes come in and out between parked cars, which seems dangerous,” she said. “The whole stretch seems poorly designed and will bottleneck even more on summer weekends (beach traffic) and rush hour on weekdays.” Peninsula Beacon

Closing Arguments on March 11 in Murder Trial

Testimony ended on March 6 in the murder trial of Matthew Scott Sullivan who is accused of killing his wife who disappeared from their Point Loma house two years before her body was found. Jurors will hear closing arguments on March 11 in the slaying of Elizabeth Sullivan, 32, before they begin deliberations. Sullivan, 35, did not testify about the slaying of his wife who was found dead Oct. 4, 2016, in San Diego Bay, which was not far from where the couple lived in military housing in Point Loma. The trial is ahead of its schedule as the seven-man, five-woman jury with four alternates were told it would last until March 20. sdnews.com

Coastal Habitat Restoration – Sat., March 14

Spend your Saturday morning soaking up the sunshine and coastal breeze while you help save and restore one of the last remaining Coastal Dune and Wetland Habitats in San Diego! Over 95% of these habitat areas no longer exist in California. Home to many endangered birds, fish and mammals this area needs your help to remain as a viable habitat area. An educational walking tour will be included! This event is part of River Kids Discovery Days. Activities Include: • Invasive plant removal • Native plant rescue • Watering and care of recent plantings • Trail maintenance • Litter removal. • An educational nature walk. Details: • This event is open to volunteers of all ages, but volunteers under the age of 16 must come with an adult. • All tools and supplies are provided. • No experience necessary. • Community service hours can be verified. • Be sure to dress in clothes that can get a little dirty and wear closed-toe shoes, no sandals or flip-flops allowed for safety reasons. • Bring plenty of water and sun protection. Location: Volunteers will meet in the grassy area just inside the Dog Beach parking lot in Ocean Beach at the western end of Voltaire Ave. RSVP Required. When: Saturday, March 14, 2020, 9 a.m. to noon
Where: Dog Beach Ocean BeachWest Point Loma Boulevard and Voltaire Street, San Diego, 92109

Skate for the Kids Benefit for OB Elementary – March 15, Robb Field

Postponed by rain in February, Ocean Beach Surf and Skate Shop have rescheduled its 10th annual Skate for the Kids benefiting OB Elementary School PTA for Sunday, March 15 from noon to 3 p.m. at Robb Field Skate Park.

Slightly Stoopid Sets Summer Schedule

Slightly Stoopid has announced its Summer Traditions 2020 summer tour, which will see the top San Diego jam-band joined by Pepper, Common Kings and Don Carlos. The coast-to-coast trek will include a June 20 hometown show at The Park at Petco Park, the home of the San Diego Padres. That performance will be book-ended by the tour’s opening date (June 11 at Oregon’s Cuthbert Amphitheater in Eugene) and closing dates (a pair of Aug. 15 and 16 performances outside of Denver at Red Rocks Amphitheatre). All tour dates and ticket information appear below. This will mark the 16th consecutive year the Ocean Beach-bred Slightly Stoopid has done a summer tour of outdoor venues. But this will be the first time the band has headlined two consecutive shows at the 9,525-capacity Red Rocks Amphitheatre, where it has previously headlined single performances a dozen times over the past decade and a half. U-T

4 Arrested in Point Loma

Officers arrested four people on suspicion of burglary after a one-hour search in Point Loma Sunday, police said. Police said a neighbor called and reported two men entering a back gate and two others going through the front door of a home near the intersection of Bernice and La Cresta drives around 5:15 p.m. When police got to the home, officers found an empty gun case inside — prompting officers to take additional precautions during the search, according to San Diego police Officer Yovanna Gonzalez. About an hour into the search, a nearby resident called and reported seeing four people in her backyard.
Officers in a police helicopter spotted the suspects and they were taken into custody around 6:15 p.m. No weapons were found on the suspects, police said. SDU-T

Navy Land Redevelopment Will Have Huge Consequences for Midway

The Navy is in the process of putting together what could be one of San Diego’s most consequential redevelopment projects in decades, as it seeks a new facility for its cybersecurity operations in the Midway District. Naval Information Warfare System Command, or NAVWAR, is responsible for developing high-tech communications software and hardware for Navy vessels. But it carries out that mission in a decidedly low-tech location: a sprawling group of World War II-era hangars built to manufacture B-24 bombers. Greg Geisen, who is overseeing the NAVWAR redevelopment project, said the 70.5-acre site is a poor fit for a host of reasons: less than optimal security, no air conditioning and offices so far apart that it can take a half-hour to walk to a meeting and back.

For years, the Navy has been mulling ways to move NAVWAR into a new facility. It’s now exploring a partnership with the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) that would add new housing, commercial space and a major public transit hub to a neighborhood plagued by blight. The Navy says it will likely be able to pay for the new facility by leasing or selling off its excess land for private development. … NAVWAR’s surrounding areas are largely underdeveloped. The Navy is also considering including a major public works project in its plans: a new transit center that would connect the nearby rail network to San Diego International Airport. This is where SANDAG, the county’s transportation planning agency, comes in. Its executive director, Hasan Ikhrata, signed an exclusivity agreement with the Navy last month, and the two sides are meeting weekly to hammer out a joint development deal.  KPBS

Stolen Jade Buddha Turns Up in Ocean Beach

Weeks after it was stolen from the front of her shop, a Hillcrest business owner said her prized statue has been recovered by police. TAP Lighting owner Tammy Packard told 10News that the person suspected of stealing her jade Buddha statue on Feb. 14 attempted to sell the item at an Ocean Beach store on Feb. 27 but was denied. “The owner read the story last Thursday morning, and later that same morning, a guy came in and asked if he would be interested in buying a jade Buddha, and he said, ‘No, we don’t buy off the street.’ But then he remembered the story about my jade Buddha and later called police.” 10News

New Jersey Beachgoers May Have to Tie Beach Umbrellas to Sand

Beachgoers at the Jersey Shore would have to tether their beach umbrellas to the sand to prevent them from flying off and injuring people under a recently introduced bill. Assemblyman Eric Houghtaling, a Monmouth County Democrat, wrote a bill that would require beach umbrellas to be secured to the sand with an attachment that bores down into the sand, with tie-down straps or by using sandbags. The bill as introduced on Feb. 20 would only require that umbrellas be secured on days when the wind speed at the beach is 25 mph or more. But Houghtaling said in an interview Wednesday he plans to eliminate that provision as the bill moves forward, making it apply whenever beach umbrellas are used. It also would require stores that sell beach umbrellas to post a sign warning of the dangers they can pose. He also said signs at the entry to beaches should alert beachgoers that they are required to secure their umbrellas. The most commonly used devices that screw down into the sand cost about $15 apiece. SDU-T

National City Firm Awarded $10M Contract for Roof Repair and Maintenance at Point Loma Naval Base

Arwi JV LLC, National City, California, is awarded an indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract with a maximum amount of $10,000,000 for roofing repair and maintenance at Naval Base Point Loma, California. Initial task order is awarded at $350,180 for re-roofing at Buildings 260 and 262. Included is the requirement to repair and maintain roof components that are incidental to the main roof structure, such as scupper drains, downspouts, gutters, as well as roof-mounted hardware that may require to be removed and reinstalled by reason of the primary roof repair requirements. Work for this task order is expected to be completed by June 2020. All work on this contract will be performed in San Diego, California. The term of the contract is not to exceed 60 months with an expected completion date of February 2025. HomelanldSecurityToday

“We Can All Relate to Making God Laugh” – Point Loma Playhouse through March 15.

There’s an old Yiddish proverb: If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans. We all make plans for our futures. Some work out, but many don’t. We’re encouraged to reach for the stars, but often we fall and hit the hard ground. With the passing years, our families change and yet stay the same. Making God Laugh follows an American family with three grown children from the 80s to the twenty-first century. Bill and Ruthie are empty nesters in their cozy suburban home, waiting for “the kids” to arrive for Thanksgiving. The accouterments are very Catholic with the Ten Commandments by the front door, a crucifix, a portrait of the Madonna and Child and no mention of sex. Making God Laugh is playing at the Point Loma Playhouse through March 15. San Diego Jewish World

OB Yoga for Kids at OB Library Every Tuesday Till June

Tuesday Yoga at OB Library at 1:30pm is just the right class for children with parents! Parents can bond with their children while achieving some serenity every Tuesday afternoon. Children’s yoga includes yoga storytime and singing, too! Check out the 1pm session if you have even littler ones. Every Tuesday, until Jun 30;  Ocean Beach Library, 4801 Santa Monica Ave, San Diego, California 92107

“Into the Woods” at OB Playhouse & Theatre Co.

OB Playhouse & Theatre Company Presents: James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim take everyone’s favorite storybook characters and bring them together for a timeless, yet relevant, piece. The Tony Award-winning book and score are both enchanting and touching. The production will look at the story told through a new perspective.  The production is helmed by audience-acclaimed director, Juztine Tuazon, winner of the BroadwayWorld San Diego region awards in 2019 for their productions of Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead and American Idiot. Tuazon will take the audience on a whimsically enticing visual adventure that follows the path of unlikely characters on a journey deep into the darkness (and light) found only in the woods. Tuazon presents a fresh and more diverse perspective on this now classic tale, by challenging gender and sexuality norms, and finding parallels in the story with struggles same-sex couples experience while trying to have children of their own.

The story follows a Baker and his wife, who wish to have a child; Cinderella, who wishes to attend the King’s Festival; and Jack, who wishes his cow would give some milk. When the Baker and his wife learn that they cannot have a child because of a Witch’s curse, the two set off on a journey to break the curse. Everyone’s wish is granted, but the consequences of their actions return to haunt them later with disastrous results. “Anything can happen in the woods.” DATES: March 13th – April 5th; Thursdays – Saturdays at 8 PM; Sundays at 2 PM

Famosa Slough Work Party March 14th Saturday 9 am – 12 pm  

4275-4283 W Point Loma Blvd, San Diego 92107. Volunteers are needed to help restore this City of San Diego wetland preserve. We will plant and weed around California native plants, remove invasives, and work on trails at the Famosa Slough and Channel. Wear work clothes (preferably long pants, long-sleeved shirt, hat, and sturdy shoes). If you have them, bring work gloves, gardening or weeding tools, or clippers; and bring a water bottle. Refreshments, gloves and tools will be provided. https://www.facebook.com/events/530870460869622/ See https://tinyurl.com/FamosaSlough-031420 for details.
Please RSVP to famosa-slough@cox.net, or PM to FB page.

Mongol Tribe hosts OB Seed Library One-Year Celebration! March 21st. Saturday 2 pm – 3 pm

Hosted by Ocean Beach Library and Mongol Tribe. Ocean Beach Library 4801 Santa Monica Ave, San Diego 92107 We are excited to celebrate the one year anniversary of the OB Seed Library by hosting a seed saving workshop and heirloom seed swap! Join us as we get our hands dirty processing some of our bountiful harvests from last year. Nathan Lou, Executive Director of Mongol Tribe, will share some of his tips for cleaning, drying, and storing seeds. The seed swap will begin after the workshop. Bring in some of your favorite seeds to trade and share with the community! Additionally, the seed swap will be accompanied by the musical styling of local favorites- the Tinkersmiths!   https://www.facebook.com/events/596235334269430/

Job Fair for Teachers at Liberty Station – March 28

Educators seeking jobs in San Diego County schools can receive credential advisement, employment information, and possibly even an offer of employment at the Teacher Job Fair on March 28th. The event is presented by the San Diego County Office of Education (SDCOE) in partnership with Point Loma Nazarene University. School districts and charter schools from across San Diego County are looking for qualified educators to work with students. The job fair will be from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on March 28th at Liberty Station Conference Center, 2600 Laning Road in San Diego. For more information: Visit SDCOE.net or email teacherjobfair@sdcoe.net.

Dredging of Southern San Diego Bay Begun

The Port of San Diego and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are working together to conduct a dredging project. The federal channel dredge will be conducted in the southern portion of San Diego Bay and was begun in mid-February. The federal channel to be dredged,  located three nautical miles southeast of the Coronado Bay Bridge and near National City Marine Terminal and Sweetwater Channel, will have a channel depth of -35 Mean Lower Low Water (MLLW). It will be the first time this channel, which is near the Chula Vista/National City border, has been dredged since 1976. There are three recreational boating marinas in the vicinity: Pier 32 Marina in National City and two marinas at Chula Vista Harbor. Army Corps staff hopes the dredging project will be completed by March 31. Long Beach-based Curtin Maritime Corp. was awarded the dredging contract; Curtin Maritime will be paid $2.9 million to perform the work, which, according to the Army Corps, “will be done with a clamshell dredge.”

Army Corps staff stated. “About 240,000 cubic yards of sediment will be removed from the channel, with about 175,000 cubic yards being disposed of at the LA-5 Ocean Dredge Material Disposal Site, located six nautical miles southwest of the entrance of San Diego Bay. “The remaining 65,000 cubic yards of sand will be taken to the Coronado Nearshore Placement Site to nourish the adjacent Silver Strand State Beach. Placement of beach-quality material along the shoreline is a beneficial byproduct of the maintenance dredging project,” Army Corps staff continued. San Diego Bay was fairly shallow until the late 19th century. Modifications of the bay, including dredging, began in the early 1900s and continued through 1950. Contact Dena O’Dell, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles District Public Affairs, at 213-452-3925 or Dena.M.O’Dell@usace.army.mil, or Brianne Page, Port of San Diego at 619-686-6243 or bpage@portofsandiego.org for more information about the project. The Log

Card Night at Hess Brewing

Join us at Mike Hess Brewing to play some cards! Free to all! A portion of the beverage proceeds will benefit the OB Woman’s Club. The Ocean Beach Woman’s Club is dedicated to supporting the community through civic, social and educational development. They connect local women with one another through fun and charitable work.

Local Businesses In Da Newz!

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