Ocean Beach Apartment Complex Sells for Almost $2.4 Million
An Ocean Beach apartment complex has been sold for nearly $2.4 million. Mincks Family Trust bought the property at 1703-1719 Bacon St. from Orchard Properties, LP. The 1,920 square foot complex has four one-bedroom, one-bathroom apartments on a 6,740 square foot lot with four garages and a laundry room. Each apartment has a private yard. The renovated complex has a new roof, updated interiors in some units, and new landscaping. The buyer was represented by Chris Siedenburg of ACI Apartments. Orchard Properties, LP was represented by Catrina Russell of Coldwell Banker West.
Local Woman Killed in Wrong-Way Crash at End of I-8
A local woman is dead and a man from Sacramento suffered major injuries Tuesday morning Dec.21 in a wrong-way freeway collision in Ocean Beach. The 24-year-old man was driving a Subaru Outback east on the westbound side of Interstate 8 and collided with a Toyota Camry driven by a 54-year-old woman at 11:24 p.m. Monday, according to the California Highway Patrol. The San Diego Fire-Rescue assigned 22 personnel including two medics and one rescue crew to the scene, and the county medical examiner was called to the scene at about 12:15 a.m. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene, and the man was rushed to a hospital. He was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs and will be taken into custody. Fox5
Maria Senour Re-Elected as Prez of Community College District Board
Longtime educator and public servant Maria Nieto Senour was re-elected as president of the San Diego Community College District’s (SDCCD) Board of Trustees at its Dec. 16 organizational meeting. Trustee Senour has served as board president since 2015. First elected to the board in 1990, Senour is the longest-serving SDCCD trustee and has been re-elected to the governing body seven times. She has a doctorate in guidance and counseling and retired in 2014 as a full professor within the San Diego State University’s Department of Counseling and School Psychology, where she had worked since 1977, teaching in and directing the master’s degree level Community Based Block Program in Multicultural Counseling and Social Justice Education. Maria is also a friend of the Rag staff and the main squeeze of OB Rag writer and poet, Ernie McCray.
Police Dog Recovering From Stab Wounds in the Midway
San Diego Police canine officer Hondo is recovering after being stabbed on duty. The 2-year police dog helped arrest a man who was armed with a knife on Friday morning Dec.17. The suspect, 35-year-old Dedrick Jones, has been arrested for attacking a canine officer in the past. The most recent attack happened on the morning of Dec. 17. A woman called police to report a man had threatened her with a knife on Riley Street, near Kurtz Street in San Diego’s Midway District. Police confronted the suspect. According to SDPD, the man swung a knife at officers. In order to avoid lethal use of force, Hondo was deployed. The canine officer was able to take down the suspect but was stabbed in the process. Jones was arrested in 2020 after stabbing another police dog named Titan. 7SanDiego Here’s more.
New Shelter Opens in Midway District
A Community Harm Reduction Team facility for unsheltered San Diego residents with substance abuse and mental illness issues opened in the Midway District in mid-December. The city-owned facility, located in a former Pier 1 Imports building in the Midway community, will consist of 24-hour staffing and 44 beds operated by Alpha Project through a contract with the San Diego Housing Commission. The outreach and case management will be handled by Family Health Centers of San Diego through a contract with the county. 7SanDiego
Man Who Gunned Down Romantic Rival at Pt Loma Gym Pleads Guilty to Murder
A man who gunned down a romantic rival outside a Point Loma gym, then fled to Mexico and hid out for two years, pleaded guilty in mid-December to first-degree murder. Ernesto Castellanos Martinez, 45, is expected to be sentenced in San Diego Superior Court to 45 years-to-life in prison for killing 27-year-old Alexander Mazin on Feb. 25, 2018. Shortly before 11 a.m. that day, patrol officers responding to reports of gunfire found Mazin mortally wounded in a rear parking lot of the 24 Hour Fitness on Midway Drive, police said. He died at the scene.
The victim’s parents told reporters their son had been going out with a woman Martinez previously had dated. Martinez, who also admitted to an allegation of using a gun in the killing, was arrested in Mexico in March of last year. Sentencing is set for Jan. 18. SD U-T
OB Resident, 56, Receives Heart Transplant
“I can feel your heart beating, bro!” Isaac Gonzalez, 19, told George Jimenez, 56, while hugging him hello during their first in-person meeting in three months. “I can feel mine, too! With my old heart, I could never feel it because it was so weak.” “I was going through so much emotionally, it felt like Isaac had been put in my life for a reason,” said Jimenez, an Ocean Beach resident with a 6-year-old daughter, a 22-year-old son and a fiancée. “It just kind of hit me in my heart. If he can go through this and handle it at his age, then I could certainly go through and handle it at mine.” UCSD News
OB Is the “Soul” of San Diego
Some of San Diego is undeniably slouching off into the Sad, Great Homogenization, but some of SD’s retro, some of it’s rich, and some is “alternative.” In short, we San Diegans have still got options. And option number one, the angel of my appreciation, the element that bucks convention, San Diego’s last true neighborhood and earthly connection, indeed, the soul of this good place, is Ocean Beach. If SD were the Beatles, then OB’d be George Harrison. SD Reader 2003
The Old Strand Theater of OB Remembered in History of San Diego Cinema
From SD Reader in 1977: The years immediately preceding America’s entry into World War II introduced more new neighborhood theaters like the Roxy (1939) in Pacific Beach, the Strand (now completely remodeled) in Ocean Beach, and three in the Logan Heights area: the Coronet (1939) at 1792 Logan, the Metro (a Spanish-language house, later renamed the Corral) at 2175 Logan, and the Victory (1941) at 25th and Imperial. The Victory and Coronet have vanished, the latter razed to make an entrance/exit for I-5, but the Metro’s building is still up, though in considerably deteriorated condition.
OB and Point Loma Had Some of Very First Jack-in-the-Boxes – Now Jack Has Bought Del Taco and Has Over 2800 Restaurants
Two fast food giants are joining forces. Jack in the Box is buying Del Taco for $575 million in a deal expected to close early next year, CNN reported. Together, the San Diego-based company and Del Taco will have over 2,800 restaurants in 25 states and will be “better positioned to compete with large quick-service restaurants,” the companies told CNN. San Diego Patch
OB Holiday Parade Go’ers Wish for Peace, ‘No More Covid’ and People Get Vaccinated
Along Newport Avenue in Ocean Beach, two dozen colorfully attired spectators at the 42nd annual OB Holiday Parade shared their Christmas wishes for the world. Interviewed as dusk fell, the wishes ranged from everyone finding their own happiness to “more games and more joy and more fun.” But a recurring theme was the pandemic — which forced OB Town Council organizers to hold a “reverse parade” last year at Dog Beach, where parade units were stationary and spectators drove by them. “That everybody gets vaccinated” was the dream of county sheriff candidate David Myers, walking the parade route. Said Stacey Hoffmayer of Point Loma, an emergency room nurse: “I hope there’s an end to this pandemic soon.” And Santa-suiters Jennifer Crowley and James Wasser of Clairemont: “That COVID goes away forever” (Jennifer) “and everyone gets vaccinated and gets your booster shot” (James). Times of San Diego
Shooting at Mission Bay Park Leaves Teen in Serious Condition
An 18 year-old was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries after he was shot during a party at a Mission Bay park. The victim was shot at the park off East Mission Bay Drive around 9:30 p.m. Friday Dec. 3 and police were called to the scene, according to Officer Robert Heims of the San Diego Police Department. Investigators learned that at some point a fight broke out and the victim was shot in the hand and stomach. He was taken to a hospital in critical condition. There is no suspect description or information on how the struggle occurred. Heims said detectives from the San Diego Police Department’s Northern Division are in charge of the investigation. Anyone with information is asked to contact the detectives at 858- 552-1700. Those who wish to remain anonymous may call Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477. Fox5
Point Loman Thankful He Got Polio in New Memoir
The title of Wayne Raffesberger’s memoir is certainly memorable. That title is: “Thank God I Got Polio: A Life of Adventure and the Adventure of Life.” And for the San Diego author, the best thing about the book’s headline-worthy name is not that it’s eye-catching, intriguing or possibly a little shocking. The best thing about it is that it’s true. “It means exactly what it says. It’s not just me trying to be clever,” Raffesberger said from his home in Point Loma. SD U-T
Crash Near Liberty Station Causes Death
A 68-year-old man died Saturday morning after colliding with a car near Liberty Station, San Diego Police said. The 68-year-old man was driving a blue Chevrolet HHR eastbound on 3000 Lytton Street just before 4 a.m. when he entered the intersection on Rosecrans Street and collided with a gray Nissan Altima that was going southbound on Rosecrans Street, SDPD said. According to police, the 68-year-old man flew through the car windshield and was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the Nissan Altima, a 27-year-old man, sustained minor injuries and was transported to a local hospital. 7SanDiego
Man Who Drove Kids Off Sunset Cliffs Ordered to Stand Trial for Attempted Murder
A man accused of intentionally driving a pickup off Sunset Cliffs into the ocean with his twin toddlers inside was ordered in early December to stand trial on charges that include attempted murder. Robert Brians, 48, is accused of abducting his twin 2-year-old daughters from his parents’ home on June 13, 2020, then speeding off a cliff into the waters below. Fox5
Shout-Outs to Local Businesses
Mission Bay High School Teen Recognized for Volunteer Work as Docent at Old Point Loma Light House
Sita Antel was nominated as a Remarkable Teen in the community service category back in November by the San Diego County Public Defender Youth Council. It was due to the hundreds of hours she has volunteered with the National Park Service starting at age 11. Her efforts include dressing in historically accurate period clothing and serving as a docent at the Old Point Loma Lighthouse at Cabrillo National Monument. “I had no idea this was happening,” Antel said of her Remarkable Teen nomination. “I never thought I’d get it.” She goes to Mission Bay HS and is a resident of PB. PB Monthly
Garrison Street Holiday Lights on City List of Sites to See
Garrison St. Lights – Point Loma – Not too far from Sunset Cliffs rests a neighborhood bustling with holiday joy and stupendous displays. Garrison St. Lights is back with its festive lights that would inspire even those who typically say “bah humbug” to the holidays. Stroll through this Point Loma community for family-friendly holiday displays certain to lift your seasonal spirit. Where to go: 3616 Garrison St., San Diego, CA 92106. When to go: 5 to 9 p.m. through Dec. 31 7SanDiego
NY Times: “Terriers” Filmed in OB “One of the Best California TV Shows”
“Terriers” (2010), San Diego: “Not only was it a very good show with intricate plotting, crackling dialogue and great acting, it also shone a light on a bit of a seedy underbelly of the San Diego beach towns. If I recall correctly it took place in Ocean Beach. Editors’ Picks. I had never seen a show that took away the fun and sun of San Diego beach culture and instead replaced it with the scrappy day-to-day (or as was often the case on this show, night-to-night) living in a part of California most people consider idyllic.” — Dan Hess, Los Angeles; New York Times
Airbnb to Crack Down on New Year’s Eve Parties
In November, Airbnb announced a plan to crack down on New Year’s Eve parties in San Diego and throughout the United States by instituting the following:
- For one-night reservations – Guests without a history of positive reviews on Airbnb are prohibited from making one-night reservations in entire home listings.
- For two-night reservations – As NYE approaches, Airbnb will begin deploying more stringent restrictions on two-night reservations that may pose heightened risk for disruptive parties. For example, Airbnb is leveraging and amplifying technology that restricts certain local and last-minute bookings by guests without a history of positive reviews on Airbnb.
- Guests who have a history of positive reviews on Airbnb are not subject to these restrictions.
OB Runner Coaches With Cannabis
Ocean Beach resident Christy Collins wears two career hats. One of them is conventional. The other one very much isn’t. Yet from within both professions, she helps clients look and feel their best. Collins alternates between working as a hair stylist and coaching people how to exercise while under the influence of cannabis. The latter is a concept that was studied a few years ago by the University of Colorado, which reported nearly 82 percent of its 497 participants said marijuana increased their motivation to exercise. More recently, The New York Times touched on the subject in a July article titled, “Can Marijuana Make You a Better Athlete?” The general consensus in that piece was less conclusive. But Collins and scores of other cannabis users say they discovered the answer years ago.
“I first stumbled upon combining cannabis with running in 2014 because I had a significant amount of weight to lose. I saw the runner’s physique but hated every minute of running. Yet when I used cannabis, I couldn’t stop moving,” she recalled. “It happened so organically.” Before long, Collins had dropped 50 pounds and adopted her own regimen. She then spent the next seven years developing customized programs for others through a business she launched called HighStryde. San Diego Community News Group
Local Landscape Architectural Artist Kristi Lin Displays in Point Loma
“Actually, to really answer that question, I know exactly the space that got me into landscape architecture,” local artist Kristin Lin told the SD U-T. For Lin it was a trip to the Manzanar National Historic Site that awed her to a point to where she said to herself “this is real.” “I went there on a civil rights pilgrimage in college,” says Lin, who at that time was an undeclared student at the University of California Davis. “It really was a life-changing experience.”It wasn’t until she visited Manzanar, a former concentration camp for Japanese-Americans during World War II, that she felt a connection to what landscape design could bring to an outdoor space. In the case of Manzanar, a site nestled in between the bleak environs of Death Valley and the lushness of Sequoia National Park, Lin says the experience “made it real” for her.
“Walking on the same paths that they walked on and feeling the wind and the sun,” Lin says. “It felt like getting a sandblast to the face. And seeing the barbed wire around you. It was so moving just to be really moving through that space. I really felt a sense of what it might have been like if it had been me there.” Lin researched further and found that many of the designs at the Manzanar site, from restoring old buildings to creating pathways featuring natural vegetation, were facilitated by landscape architects working for the National Park service. She went back to UC Davis and declared Landscape Architecture as her major.
Her most recent art shows, “Blend,” which will be up through the end of the year, are at the two locations of Paru Tea in La Jolla and Point Loma. For the two spaces, Lin created what appear to be vivid watercolors, but are actually Japanese-inspired landscapes made from blended tea leaves (the clouds are made from cherry blossom petals and the sun is a dried orange, for example). “When I was doing research on Japanese landscape painters, I found they weren’t even trying to be accurate with what they were painting,” Lin continues. “It was all about how they felt about the place. So for a while, I was really focused on trying to convey a specific place, but then I was all about leaving it up to chance and seeing what happens.”
The Views of Street Vendors in OB
In Ocean Beach, vendors cram into a small park space selling gemstones, hot dogs and clothing. The vendors started setting up weekly on Wednesdays when the neighborhood hosts its farmer’s market, but it’s become a daily thing along the beach. Vendors see the area as a prime spot for customers given the neighborhood’s tourist heavy foot traffic, but residents have repeatedly complained about trash and loss of public space. Residents and merchant groups have pressed the city for rules that would prevent street vendors from setting up near the beaches, but vendors argue that preventing them from vending in the area would upend their livelihood.
“This is not my second job, it’s not my hobby, there’s literally a sewing machine in my face, this is my life,” said Mylor Davis, while adding a patch to a pair of jeans. Davis designs clothing and sells it on Wednesdays in Ocean Beach and sometimes at swap meets. He’s recently sold some socks to a nearby gift shop, he said. He understands residents and business owners are frustrated about the number of vendors that gather at the beach – it also poses challenges for him as there is more competition. But he doesn’t see preventing vendors from selling in the area as a solution. Voice of San Diego
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This is a compilation of a month’s worth of news from various sources. It took me a couple of hours to compile, so please dear reader, understand why there’s no other posts for today (Wed).
Frank, The 68 yr old man in the accident was really 39 yr old Joe Ghio who will be missed by all.
Jeff, thank you. What a tragedy.
Sad passing of young Joe Ghio: “Paddle Out” was cancelled but ,will be re-scheduled!
Thanks for what you do.