Author: Frank Gormlie

Morris Cerullo was indeed a deeply-flawed televangelist, but in 2017, the San Diego City Council approved his Legacy International Center’s main campus for Mission Valley. It had a $160 million price tag. Construction began in 2018, and was completed in 2020, but Morris Cerullo died that same year.

Now, the massive, sprawling Hotel Circle property that was once envisioned by Morris Cerullo as a luxurious center for his global ministry and teachings has gone up for sale — after just four years.

Local TV station CBS8 sent a couple of reporters out to Convoy Street in Kearny Mesa to check on the new bike lanes the city just installed a couple of weeks ago.

What the station found was not pretty. The crew was there for 2 hours and witnessed a total of 5 bike riders in the bike lanes, including one on an ebike and another who jumped onto a sidewalk to ride.

They also found that the plastic barriers used were ineffectual – several already damaged — and that because the barriers prevented street sweepers able to clean the gutters, the bike lanes had trash, rubble and shopping carts clogging them.

A lot of OBceans know Matt Beatty. He was the librarian at the OB Library for years. Now Matt is in the news.

Matt is a resident of Mission Beach and goes for daily swims in the ocean off his home beach. But on Friday, September 20, he was attacked by a sea lion while swimming — and injured and had to be taken to a hospital for his wounds.

And he wasn’t the only person attacked by a sea lion. Jessica Linares was snorkeling with a friend earlier in the day, around noon on that same Friday when she too was attacked and had to go to the hospital.

Matt, 61, told ABC10News that he was halfway done with his daily ocean swim near the lifeguard station Friday night at Mision Beach when he felt more than just a tug on his leg.

Spill the Beans to Open Soon in OB

To celebrate their brand-new location, they’re offering a limited time promotional code for use on online orders only. Enter promo code ‘STBinOB’ at checkout for 10% off of your first online order at Spill the Beans: Ocean Beach. It’s at 4805 Newport Ave in OB.

Wildflour Deli at Liberty Station

“Wildflour is a take on a modern day heritage bakery, deli service and fast casual experience. From its namesake in the Philippines, the focus will be on local ingredients, seafood and provisions I’m the local region. Influenced by minimalist bakeries, hustling and bustling deli services from around the world and integrating a mix of a Southern California vibes.

The newly-renovated apartments on Abbott Street in Ocean Beach are about to open. And 13 formerly homeless people will be moving in very soon.

Dubbed “The Shores at North Beach” the low-income housing project is a $6 million dollar remodel paid for with local, state and federal tax money, including California’s Project Homekey. (See Fox5 San Diego report by Dan Plante.)

In a more perfect world, a substantive candidate would have run against Todd Gloria for San Diego’s mayor. But no one did. And it’s common knowledge that Gloria has such a lock on local Democrats that no one dared to upset his apple cart of governing. No one, except Genevieve Jones-Wright, an attorney and social justice advocate and Larry Turner, a former Marine officer and San Diego Police officer.

If we are to take Donald Trump at his word, then since I just donated to the Harris-Walz campaign, I now will anticipate an arrest if he wins.

Come get me! Last weekend, Donald Trump threatened violence if he didn’t win the election and if he won, he would jail political opponents, Democratic political lawyers and donors and enact the substance of that Project 2025.

There Will Be Blood

Over this past weekend, Donald Trump threatened violence if he didn’t win the election and if he won, he would jail political opponents, Democratic political lawyers and donors and enact the substance of that Project 2025.

“WHEN I WIN, those people that CHEATED will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the Law, which will include long term prison sentences so that this Depravity of Justice does not happen again,” Trump wrote on Saturday on his Truth Social platform. “We cannot let our Country further devolve into a Third World Nation, AND WE WON’T!”

I couldn’t help but notice the good news about a week ago for an affluent neighborhood of San Diego — Pacific Highlands Ranch — as it was about to get a brand new all-electric library.

Set to open this fall, construction on the new library began in 2022 and is now nearing completion. Fox5News reported:

The 18,000 square-foot library will be all-electric when it is completed and will be a LEED Silver-certified green building in an effort to help meet the city’s Climate Action Plan goals, the city said.

The stairs at the foot of Bermuda Avenue in Ocean Beach are finally open. And they’re beautiful!

The $3.65 million replacement project was initiated in 2018, started construction in the spring of 2023, and was completed in July 2024. They were damaged during winter storms in 2015-16, and were closed due to tidal action that eroded the lower stairway foundation causing the lower stairs to collapse.

Tyler Becker, senior City spokesperson, stated:

“The original staircase, which was constructed in the 1940s, collapsed due to decades of exposure to the harsh coastal environment. The top landing and backfill eroded, concrete material broke down due to natural weathering and pieces of reinforcement corroded.”

Well, I guess we know where District 3 Councilmember Stephen Whitburn stands on a key issue for San Diego — short-term rentals.

An association of San Diego’s short-term rental owners is throwing a fundraising for him this week. Whitburn is running for re-election and the Short-Term Rental Alliance (SDSTRA) “is delighted to invite you to a special fundraising event.” Their invite states “Your support is crucial in ensuring that Councilmember Whitburn can continue his dedicated service to our community.”

Wine tasting and hors d’oeuvres and hobnobbing with the councilman are the draws and then you too can mingle with other owners of short-term rentals and learn how to keep local electeds at your fingertips.