Fences Around Veteran’s Park in Ocean Beach Are Removed

By Geoff Page

The fences came down two days ago – on Tuesday. The long, luxurious grass inside the fence has been trimmed like a long-haired hippie entering the military. A couple of vendors are back. And the public once again has access to what is usually referred to as Veteran’s Park, on Abbott Street between Newport Ave. and Santa Monica Ave.

This particular piece of land was quite a mess before this work was done, as can be seen by the “before” picture taken from Google Maps. The site was mostly sand with some bits of grass. The deterioration of the area was the result of overuse, especially by vendors. Performers and the ocean added to it as well.

Checking in with Denny Knox, Executive Director of the Ocean Beach Main Street Association, for information about the restoration, it was learned that the project was the work of the city’s Parks and Recreation Department.

Knox said the piece of land had a lot of problems. The vendor explosion caused most of it. Knox said one street performer, a fire twirler, had burned circles in what grass there was. The ocean contributed quite a bit of sand, something that is a regular occurrence all along grass parks next to the sand. The sand smothers the grass.

Knox said the earth had become so uneven with all this activity that it needed grading to smooth it all out, for the safety of the public.  Parks and Rec did this before replanting the grass.

It looks very nice, very green. The biggest threat, a horde of vendors, may not be as much of a problem as before. That, however, will depend on how successful the city is in bringing the “first amendment” exception under control.

The vendor ordinance has a massive hole in it. Vendors who are exercising their First Amendment rights by some form of public expression such as creating art or public performances or providing educational information cannot be banned. The Rag documented the problem in February 2023 when the vendor ordinance went into effect.

The main problem with fixing the First Amendment hole is the ambiguity of the word “art,” that is a word with no boundaries. Same with a public performer, there is no standard to measure talent. Is having an education table set up teaching about astrology while selling crystals and books free speech? Surely, the city will come up with a perfect fix.

Beyond the vendors though, the surefire battle will continue with sand encroachment.  Short of building a very tall protective wall, nothing will stop that. It is doubtful that anyone would favor such a wall that would block the ocean view.

Having seen the sand damage to the grass on this piece of land, and the larger green area north of the main guard tower parking lot, during 44 years in OB, this writer has often wondered at the wisdom of trying to maintain grass in these areas.

Everyone loves grass but this is the beach. Grass thrives everywhere else. Why not let the sand have those areas back, people would enjoy it as much as they enjoy the sand on the other side of the rocks. One small effort where the city could save money perhaps.