OBceans React to New City Crackdown on Private Businesses Staging Events on City Beaches

The big news coming out of City Hall that affects the beach is that San Diego is no longer allowing private companies to stage picnics, corporate events, large parties, bonfires or similar organized activities on the vast majority of city beaches.

According to David Garrick today at the Union-Tribune:

A city spokesperson said the crackdown, which comes as spring break is beginning and just before the busy summer beach season, was prompted by complaints from beach-goers and nearby residents.

Beach-goers often get asked to relocate on the sand to make way for large parties, said the spokesperson, Nicole Darling. And some parties are so large that they limit public access to popular beach areas, she said. The parties are also often noisy and sometimes run into late-night hours, prompting complaints from nearby residents — especially on weeknights, Darling said. And while tourists sometimes use the party companies because they can’t bring chairs and other party equipment on planes, Darling said much of the business these companies do is corporate events.

The outright ban is a shift in direction for San Diego officials, who announced in 2022 that they were exploring a formal permitting process for businesses that host beach events to bring some order to a sometimes-chaotic industry.

When this made the news today, the Rag immediately sent out a dozen emails or so to writers and friends of the Rag — all who live and have done things for OB – except one in Mission Beach — and asked them what their reaction to this ban was.

Here’s a handful of their responses.

Andrea Schlagetter, the chair of the OB Planning Board:

Our public spaces are just that, public. I’m glad the City continues to crack down on private businesses seeking to profit off our public spaces.

Rag writer Geoff Page:

I am all for the ban. The beaches need to be available to anyone anywhere to enjoy, not cordoned off for private interests making money. If it were up to me, I’d ban all commercial interests from the beach. They are lucky no one ever asked me to move…

Gary Wonacott, former chair of the Mission Beach Town Council:

The decision to ban staged beach events rather than permitting them is a prudent approach.

Seventy-five years ago, the Mission Beach Precise Plan highlighted the vulnerability of Mission Beach to increased traffic in the summer months. Remarkably, little has changed since then. By 9 am, parking spaces vanish rapidly, creating challenges for residents and visitors.  Regrettably, some short-term rental operators, who do not reside here, actively endorse large events.

These events are strategically advertised to attract more clients. With 1250 to 1300 short-term rentals already impacting the area, the situation becomes even more challenging.  Local residents, in general, express a preference for staged corporate events to be held at Fiesta Island. Having resided in South Mission Beach since 1974, I can attest that the beach naturally thrives without the need for large staged gatherings.

The city’s decision aligns with this perspective, emphasizing the importance of preserving the beach’s natural beauty.

One Rag reader told us:

Company events are fine as long as they do not restrict public access.  There are way too many events (even in OB – Ho Ho Boys Parties) where city property is used by private companies to reap a profit and the public is prohibited from attending unless they pay admission fees.

A few come to mind i.e. Boat Races Mission Bay, Mardi Gras parties on the Bay.  Also, the city allows camping for some of these events and that activity is not permitted for residents – double standard.  Asking someone to relocate on a public beach for which we pay taxes to clean, maintain, provide life guard services is a NO NO IMO.

Charles Landon, a long-time beach resident and videographer Rag contributor:

The public beaches are public property. We the taxpayers own the beaches and no commercial entity should be able to buy exclusive access. The beaches and ocean are some of our last public areas.

As we saw with Valvi’s take over of the Cape May Beach area, the corporate interest bullied visitors as well as residents whose access and use of the sand was negatively affected. Parking, noise and threatening ended finally this year  where their new contract limited them to weekends and just seven courts.

Valvi , now Volo is now forced down to the designated volleyball area north of the public bathrooms. According to the rules governing the contract the area is still first come first serve even with a permit. Valvi used to tell us that they had pull in City Hall, many police officers as members and we were powerless. Now they are limited to 7 hours a day 7am to 2pm.

The Rag did not cherry-pick these responses. These are the ones that were emailed to  us. And they help begin the discussion.

So, what do you think, dear reader? Let us know.