Life Events

5 Gadgets that Make Sleeping Under the Stars a Real Treat

July 22, 2016 by Source

UrbDeZine camp 1
By Averi Melcher / San Diego UrbDeZine /June 29, 2016

Last month, I accepted the challenge to camp out for a total of 31 nights between May and September. It’s not for any big campaign or some sort of a contest – just a gentle nudge in the rear to remind you that you don’t have to sail away on a month-long sabbatical to reconnect with nature.

I really think that’s the best way to do it – a night here, a weekend there. Getting out when and wherever you can.

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Good Samaritan Saves Woman After Fall Off Sunset Cliffs

July 20, 2016 by Frank Gormlie

OB cliff rescur Sean

A Good Samaritan by the name of Sean Hanrahan saved a woman after she fell off Sunset Cliffs into the ocean, Tuesday night, July 19th.

Around 8:15 pm at the end of Del Monte Avenue, the woman, with friends, somehow fell from the cliffs into the ocean and was immediately pulled out further by the rip current.

Sean Hanrahan, who lives nearby, saw that the woman apparently having trouble in the waves, and saw her hit her head against rocks. Hanrahan jumped in and kept her afloat until lifeguards arrived.
appeared to be struggling in the water and her head was hitting against the rocks. He jumped in to try and help her before lifeguards arrived to the scene.

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News From Ocean Beach and Point Loma – Mid-July 2016

July 19, 2016 by Frank Gormlie

OB ACE wall side beach 7-16-16

* PB Skateboarder Not Expected to Survive After Being Struck Monday Night
* Woman says she was roofied, left paralyzed after drinking at Ocean Beach bar
* How to Protect Yourself From Date Rape Drug
* Pregnant Woman and Baby Injured in Car Crash
* Naked Man Arrested
* Navy pipeline project progressing to completion in 2017
* Kevin Gormly Loses Battle to Cancer
* Chichiuaua Dies at Dog Beach – Victim’s Owner Wants Changes

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The Spaces We Live In – 2016 Summer Chronicle 5

July 18, 2016 by Jim Miller

houseBy Jim Miller

Where we live is who we are. Surely, the country, state, city, and neighborhoods we occupy profoundly shape us, but does not the house craft our being in the most intimate of ways?

Gaston Bachelard observes in The Poetics of Space:

For our house is our corner of the world. As has often been said, it is our first universe, a real cosmos in every sense of the word.”

Hence, the kind of space we choose to live in has a particularly profound impact on our identity. Bachelard again notes,

Thus the dream house must possess every virtue. However spacious, it must also be a cottage, a dove-cote, a nest, a chrysalis. Intimacy needs the heart of a nest.”

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It’s Not Just Dog Owners Who Want to Keep Fiesta Island ‘Wild’

July 13, 2016 by Frank Gormlie

Fiesta Island googmap

By Frank Gormlie

Perhaps you’ve been too busy with summer to notice, but there’s been a ‘quiet’ debate going on recently in certain circles – including the op-ed pages of the San Diego Union-Tribune – over the future of Fiesta Island.

Fiesta Island – you know that flat and sandy piece of land that juts out into Mission Bay – it’s not really an island as it’s connected with the rest of San Diego by a narrow land bridge with an asphalt road – where people bike, do day-camps on the sand, water or jet-ski, or take their horses, have fires in the firepits, – oh, and who take their dogs to the great off-leash area on the Island.

The land of Island Fiesta itself is what’s left from all the sludge dredged up during the 1950’s development of Mission Bay Park.

There’s been for years an ongoing debate between dog owners who have formed a group Fiesta Island Dog Owners (FIDO) and others who want to see Fiesta Island developed with “improvements”. And the now the debate is ramping up ….

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How I Learned to Keep the Peace at a Hippie Festival With No Rules

July 13, 2016 by Source

Rainbow gathering livia gershon

When 10,000 people camp out together at the Rainbow Gathering, staying groovy can be a challenge.

by Livia Gershon / Atlas Obscura / July 11, 2016

When I wandered into an internet forum for members of the Rainbow Family of Living Light and started asking about going to their long-running national gathering, the responses were friendly, but a little unnerving. In the midst of a series of messages about Rainbow etiquette, one person briefly noted that “some bad things have a potential 2 happen. If ya ever have trouble just yell ‘shanti sena’, & some help will be on the way.”

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Suspect in Homeless Attacks Arrested and OB Victim Identified

July 8, 2016 by Frank Gormlie

Suspect Imprisoned 6 Years Ago for Lighting Homeless Man on Fire

The suspect in the serial attacks on homeless men was arrested Thursday, July 7th, and the Ocean Beach victim of one of his fatal attacks has been identified.

Anthony Alexander Padgett, 36, was arrested by San Diego Police in Chula Vista about 10 a.m. Thursday. The arrest occurred near H Street and Broadway. He was booked on 5 felony counts altogether, two counts of murder, two counts of attempted murder and one count of arson.

San Diego homicide Capt. David Nisleit told the media :

“At this time, we have probable cause to arrest Mr. Padgett for these heinous crimes.”

homeless attacks OB Vict Shawn Longley

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Other Victims of Killer of Homeless Men Identified – Including Ocean Beach Man

July 6, 2016 by Frank Gormlie

The other victims of the vicious attacks on homeless men have now been identified.

In the Midway District of the 4th of July, the killer assaulted his second victim who has been identified as Manuel Mason, 61, who was stabbed and found at Greenwood and Kurtz streets at about 4:50 a.m. The good news is that he is expected to survive, but is still in in critical condition.

An hour or so later near tennis courts at Robb Athletic Field in Ocean Beach, Shawn Longley, 41, was found dead with wounds to the upper torso.

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News from Ocean Beach and Point Loma

July 6, 2016 by Frank Gormlie

OB cliff rescue 7-6-16Man Falls to His Death from Sunset Cliffs

An unidentified man fell to his death, Tuesday, July 5th, off Sunset Cliffs, near Ladera Street. …

Is Reader Article on “Aggressive Homeless” Inappropriate Right Now?

There is a new SD Reader article out, published online on July 6th, about how OB is on edge – not because of the killer of homeless on the loose, but because of “aggressive transients”. Badtaste? …

Poke Hotspot Heading to OB

Poke is currently blowing up in San Diego, and the latest hotspot will be take-out hub It’s Raw Poke Shop, heading to Ocean Beach by early August.

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Killer of Homeless on the Loose – Severely Injured Fourth Victim Set on Fire in Downtown San Diego

July 6, 2016 by Frank Gormlie

This is an update on the series of grisly and vicious attacks on homeless people that have occurred this week – that have now claimed their fourth victim. A homeless man was set on fire early today – Wednesday, July 6 – in downtown San Diego.

One of the first victims – the other victim whose body was burned – has been identified as Angelo De Nardo, 53. An autopsy determined that he had been killed before being doused with gas and set afire.

The other attacks occurred around Mission Bay; one in Ocean Beach – in Robb Field where a sleeping houseless man was beaten to death; another in the Midway area, where a man was beaten, but survived and is now hospitalized with life-threatening injuries; De Nardo’s death occurred just east of Mission Bay. The victims from OB and the Midway have not been identified.

Police say that the 4th victim’s injuries match the pattern of the earlier attacks.

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“I’m Just Saying … What about All the Lonely People with No One to Celebrate With?””

July 5, 2016 by Judi Curry
Thumbnail image for “I’m Just Saying … What about All the Lonely People with No One to Celebrate With?””

By Judi Curry

This should not be construed as a “poor me” article. It isn’t meant to be seen that way; rather it should be an insightful message to those more fortunate to have people around them that care, that are concerned, and are aware of mental status.

The Fourth of July. It used to be such a fun day when my husband was alive. We did all of the things that people do on the fourth; BBQ, watch the fireworks, and, when legal, even had our own show. Frequently we would take the boat out and catch some fish for homemade ceviche or sushi.

He’s been gone almost seven years now and the Fourth of July is only another day; a day of keeping my dog calm because of the assh*les that insist on shooting off fire crackers all day by the beach. Shadow doesn’t mind the fireworks – Sea World in their infinite wisdom of continuing with their polluting noisy 9:50 pm show – has allowed him to become somewhat immune to the percussion’s he feels every evening. Oh yeah, he still tries to get away from it, but he is much better than my other dogs that tried to get under the carpet to hide.

No, this is not about Shadow, but about all of the lonely people that have no one to celebrate with.

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Man Suspected in 3 Vicious Attacks on Homeless – Kills 2 – One in OB – Seriously Injures 3rd

July 5, 2016 by Frank Gormlie

UPDATED: One of the victims has been identified as Lorenzo. And the local NBC affiliate spoke with the clerk who sold gas cans to the suspect.

COME INSIDE FOR MORE OF UPDATE …

NBC 7 spoke to a Hector Roman who told them he knew the burned victim as Lorenzo. He told the media that Lorenzo came by his store often, and would buy sandwiches, soups and candybars:

Homeless attacks July 2016 map

There is a suspect in vicious attacks on three homeless men over the July 4th weekend – attacks that killed two – including one in Ocean Beach, and seriously injured a third.

The suspect – as yet unidentified – is in photos here. He is described as a white male, 40 to 50 years old, who was wearing a tan or brown jacket or sweatshirt, a green Army hat or baseball cap and tan khaki pants, and carrying a backpack.

Here is what happened, as best as we can put together:

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Stop Work Order on Emerson Project in Point Loma Issued by City

June 29, 2016 by Frank Gormlie
Thumbnail image for Stop Work Order on Emerson Project in Point Loma Issued by City

Temporary Victory for Roseville – But Hurdles Remain

On Tuesday, June 28th, the City of San Diego issued a Stop Work Order on the controversial 40 foot structure at 3144 Emerson Street, near Evergreen.

Both Mayor Kevin Faulconer and Councilmember Lorie Zapf issued a joint statement that stated:

Further review of the Municipal Code has determined that this project does not conform to the City’s development regulations.

This is definitely a victory for Roseville, Point Loma and all the neighbors who rose up and demanded action from the City to deal with an obvious violation of the spirit of Proposition D, the 30-foot height limit that passed overwhelming in the 1970’s. Although, it is a temporary victory.

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Hunger Strike Being Organized in San Diego Against Private Prison

June 29, 2016 by Source

Private PrisonOn July 5th activists and community leaders in Southeast San Diego will begin a hunger strike to protest the private prison Corrections Corporation of America (CCA)

By Mark Bartlett

Community Leaders and Local Activists will execute a hunger strike on July 5th at 6pm next to the Oceanview Facility located at 551 S. 35th St. San Diego, CA 92113. The hunger strike will continue until all action items requested by the protest organizers have been satisfied.

Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) is the largest for­-profit prison industry in America and they currently operate three Correctional Facilities across San Diego County.

Two out of the three facilities are located in the heart of Southeast San Diego and Barrio Logan. Both centers are located in residential neighborhoods within close proximity of homes, churches, schools and businesses.

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The Homeless Artists Who Make Ocean Beach Rock

June 28, 2016 by Frank Gormlie

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Have you ever wondered who’s piling the rocks up – making artistic piles – along the entryway into OB? Have you even noticed them?

There’s these two guys – Corey and Greg – both homeless – who are making Ocean Beach rock with their rock art.

You can see it along the Sunset Cliffs Boulevard entryway into and out of OB. And Corey and Greg have been doing this for the past eight months – they told me. They work everyday, they say, 7 days a week, on their art.

Greg – the self-admitted artist of the two – figures they have completed up to a quarter of a mile of their installations. Corey agreed that it takes a lot of time just to assemble one pile.

So, it’s constant.

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Memorial Set Up for Jess Robles – Victim of Last Week’s Shooting in Point Loma

June 28, 2016 by Frank Gormlie

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

A memorial has been set up for the victim of last week’s shooting near the site of the fatal encounter in the 4100 block of Voltaire Street. Flowers and personal messages were left for Jess Matthew Robles, in his mid-30’s and from Pacific Beach, on a painted utility box in front of a coffee shop.

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Last Days of the Honeycreepers and Honeyeaters – 2016 Summer Chronicles 2

June 27, 2016 by Jim Miller

ocean through jungle

By Jim Miller

There is something deeply and tragically resonant about extinction in paradise. After returning from a hike on Haleakala where I was lucky enough to have spotted a number of rare birds, I sat on the lanai of my room on the edge of the Maui rainforest and read this from Errol Fuller’s haunting book, Lost Animals: Extinction and the Photographic Record:

There are two groups of birds on the Hawaiian Islands that are notorious for the number of extinct species they contain. Although these birds are not particularly closely related, they have names that are similar and this sometimes causes confusion.

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Socks for Homeless Vets Being Collected for Stand Down San Diego

June 24, 2016 by Source
Thumbnail image for Socks for Homeless Vets Being Collected for Stand Down San Diego

By South OB Girl

Victor Brown, Field Representative for Speaker Emeritus of the Assembly, Toni Atkins, had his hands full of socks at Wednesday night’s OB Town Council meeting – all donated by local OBceans.

Socks for Stand Down was started in 2015 by State Assembly Member Toni G. Atkins, Speaker Emeritus, after local Stand Down organizers expressed a need for socks and underwear for homeless veterans attending Stand Down.

Under the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Stand Down events are one to three-day events providing supplies and services to homeless veterans.

Homeless veterans receive food, shelter, clothing, health screenings, dental care, VA Social Security benefits, and counseling.

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Getting Set for the OB Street Fair – What’s Happenin’?

June 23, 2016 by Staff
Thumbnail image for Getting Set for the OB Street Fair – What’s Happenin’?

Ocean Beach Street Fair and Chili Cook-Off set for June 25

It’s that time of year when thousands will flock to the annual Ocean Beach Street Fair for food, drinks, chili, live music, art and people watching – all coming down this Saturday, June 25th.

This year is the 37th annual Ocean Beach Street Fair and Chili Cook-Off Festival.

Here’s what the free one-day street festival will offer:

  • Location, location, location – 4800 to 5000 blocks of Newport Avenue from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., at cross streets of Bacon and Cable, at the OB Pier parking lot,
  • Free bike valet at the intersection of Bacon Street and Newport Avenue, courtesy of the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition.
  • Free trolley services will run for people parking near Robb Field (every 30 minutes) and on Sea World Drive at Pacific Coast Highway (every hour) from 9:30 a.m.to 9 p.m.
  • The chili cook-off and competition – Chili tastings will begin at 11 a.m. and will end when contestants run out of samples from the more than 20 tastings …
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‘The Emerson and Evergreen Project in Point Loma Is Where We Have to Draw the Battle Line for the 30 Foot Height Limit’

June 23, 2016 by Source

PL Emerson Project gp 05

City Planners Allow Developer to Measure 30 Feet From Top of Retaining Walls – the Call Goes Out to Shut the Project Down

By Geoff Page

This is it folks, this is where we have to draw the battle line for the 30-foot height limit.

Our own city, in the form of the Development Services Department, is leading the assault on the 30-foot limit. They are working for developers, not the citizens who pay their salaries. The project on Evergreen and Emerson in Roseville is a huge raspberry from the DSD to the community and here is why.

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Wild Wedding at Ocean Beach’s Wonderland

June 22, 2016 by Source
Thumbnail image for Wild Wedding at Ocean Beach’s Wonderland

By Jonnie Wilson

Perhaps the most unusual wedding ever to be held in Ocean Beach was that of Charles Sanders and Hazel Shaw, who said their vows on August 13, 1913, at Wonderland, O. B.’s 8-acre amusement park, which had just opened a month earlier.

The couple didn’t pick the park’s ballroom or Japanese Tea Garden as the location for their wedding as those venues would have been much too traditional.

Nor did they choose one of the park’s exciting rides, such as the 95-foot high roller coaster, to say their vows.

Clearly, this adventurous couple wanted more thrills than even that ride could provide, so they opted to perform their nuptials in the “lion’s den,” a steel arena which housed the park’s lions, leopards, pumas, and jaguars.

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An Ocean Beach Garage Repair Has Locals Steamed

June 22, 2016 by Frank Gormlie
Thumbnail image for An Ocean Beach Garage Repair Has Locals Steamed

They’ve been doing it for years – if not decades. A local OB garage repair parks its customers’ cars and vehicles on adjoining public streets. And sometimes those vehicles sit there … for long periods of time.

Well, now, neighbors of the garage are so steamed that they have filed a complaint with the City of San Diego.

Everybody knows the Eber Street Garage at the corner of Voltaire and Eber Street in north-east Ocean Beach. And it’s Tony Calfato’s – the owner’s – habit of having his employees park the cars they are working on or that have been fixed on Eber Street, or around the corner of Lotus, or up a block on Froude.

So, nine residences have complained. Homeowners, tenants – from all the surrounding streets. They have filed a citation against the garage, have a case manager, who has been out there on site and who has taken dozens of photos.

Is anything happening?

Not really, locals say.

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OB Town Council Meeting – Short Term Vacation Rentals Presentation and Discussion – Wed., June 22nd

June 20, 2016 by Staff

OBTC OB image 6-22-16

Everyone is invited to the OB Town Council meeting on Wednesday, June 22nd, to discuss Short Term Vacation Rentals in Ocean Beach, a very hot topic these days at the coast.

From the OBTC website:

Tourism to our quaint beach town helps our economy thrive, but many residents have been feeling the affect of short-term vacation rentals as fewer homes are available for affordable long-term rental.

Representatives from Save San Diego Neighborhoods will provide an overview on short-term vacation rentals, community impacts, and enforcement of current municipal code. The Town Council wants you to come and share your experience, concerns, and feedback on STVRs during the community discussion.

The meeting begins at 7:00pm at the Masonic Center (1711 Sunset Cliffs Blvd.)

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PLHS Students Awarded FDR Scholarships From Pt. Loma – OB Democratic Club

June 20, 2016 by Source
Thumbnail image for PLHS Students Awarded FDR Scholarships From Pt. Loma – OB Democratic Club

The Franklin D. Roosevelt Scholarship Is an Annual Event

By South OB Girl

For students in Mr. Patrick McElhaney’s history classes at Point Loma High School there is an event that students have begun to look forward to every year.

The lucky students of McElhaney’s AP US History, AP European History, and American Government classes have the opportunity to attend a lavish banquet at the Bali Hai, where many students are presented with awards and scholarships. This year was the 11th year Mr. McElhaney has coordinated the event.

This year the event on June 9th included costumed Union and Confederate soldiers, presenting the flag for the pledge of allegiance, and doing a 21 gun salute (with blanks and Civil War-era guns) to honor the life of PLHS Vice Principal Mr. Kevin Gormly, who was diagnosed with brain cancer in October. Previously The OB Rag reported on fund raisers for Mr. Gormly .

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Canine Cruelty in Ocean Beach: Dogs Left in Crate in Alley – Rescued by Locals

June 17, 2016 by Staff
Thumbnail image for Canine Cruelty in Ocean Beach: Dogs Left in Crate in Alley – Rescued by Locals

Here’s a sad story about canine cruelty in Ocean Beach but it has a happy ending .

Somebody abandoned 2 dogs in a crate in an OB alley near Voltaire and Lotus – and they sat there in the heat for hours apparently. The dogs were poodle-mixes.

Fortunately for the dogs, OBcean Cynthia Salgado noticed them and kept an eye on them to see if anyone was coming for them. When no one did, Salgado got on one of OB’s facebook pages and sent out a call for help.

Within minutes, a neighbor came over to help. Channel 10 News reported that “Samantha Caan lived a few blocks away and ran over to help.” Salgado told the news:

“She came in two minutes. I just told her ‘hey, you know what, like, I need help’ and she’s just like ‘I’ll be there in two minutes.’”

Other community folks joined in and assisted the women load the dog crate into a jeep owned by Caan, that she drove over to the Animal Services on Gaines Street.

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Baseball’s All-Star Game in San Diego: Rocks for the Homeless?

June 17, 2016 by Doug Porter

anti homelessBy Doug Porter

The infamous rockscaping in and around East Village was installed as part of the city’s preparation for Major League Baseball’s 2016 All-Star game on July 12.

The wishes of the surrounding community, the supposed reason for the installation, were actually not considered.

Even as emails on the situation were made public on Wednesday by Kelly Davis at Voice of San Diego , local gendarmes were rousting homeless people who’d moved to surrounding neighborhoods as a result of the city’s actions.

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Reader Rave: ‘I contacted the City about a crosswalk at Newport and Abbott – and got action.’

June 15, 2016 by Source
Thumbnail image for Reader Rave: ‘I contacted the City about a crosswalk at Newport and Abbott – and got action.’

By Reid Corley

In response to an article that was written about possible crosswalks at certain intersections in Ocean Beach, which encouraged residents to contact the City of San Diego about them – I did.

As a surfer and someone who takes my daughter down to the OB Pier/seawall regularly, I see people try to cross at Abbott and Newport frequently and almost get hit by cars!

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Of Dentistry in Tijuana and Cross Border Friendship

June 15, 2016 by John Lawrence

Dr. Garcia & staff with Judy

By John Lawrence

I have been writing about my friend Dr. Luis Garcia for almost 10 years. That’s how long he has been doing my dental work in Tijuana at the Baja Oral Center.

Over the course of those years, Dr. Garcia has become much more than my dentist; he has become my friend. Way back in 2007 I had broken my front tooth off by biting into an English muffin that was hard as a rock.

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Carbon Dioxide Levels Set to Pass 400ppm — Permanently

June 15, 2016 by Source

The findings highlight increasingly urgent concerns about global efforts to curb climate change as outlined in the Paris agreement. (Photo: Mikael Miettinen/flickr/cc)

Carbon emissions and extreme weather events poised to push CO2 levels past symbolic threshold for good.

By Nadia Prupis / Common Dreams

Record carbon dioxide levels are set to surpass the symbolic threshold of 400 parts per million (PPM) this year and will likely never fall below that line again in our lifetimes, according to a new study published Monday in the journal Nature Climate Change.

Scientists at the UK Met Office used emissions data, sea surface temperature figures, and a climate model from the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii to track the trajectory of CO2 levels and found that carbon dioxide “will for the first time remain above 400 ppm all year and hence for our lifetimes.”

Emissions have increased over the past 12 months due to the continued burning of fossil fuels, but the impact has also been exacerbated by an unbridled El Niño event.

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The San Diego U-T Looks at Short Term Vacation Rentals – and Still Misses Major Point

June 14, 2016 by Frank Gormlie

SD U-T stvr 3

By Frank Gormlie

The San Diego Union-Tribune had veteran reporter Lori Weisberg write an extended piece on short term vacation rentals in Sunday’s “SD In Depth” entitled “Opportunity or Nuisance” (June 12, 2016). Weisberg looked at the impact of short term rentals on San Diego’s housing market and wrote based on her research into who exactly was profiting “from the rise of the home sharing.”

Two of the immediate take-aways from her article are that more and more commercial rental agencies are dominating the short term market and that the available housing stock in San Diego is being affected.

Yet, she still has not focused on one of the key effects of the short term vacation rental industry: the loss of community.

Weisberg’s piece showcases Ryan Scott, who – as Weisberg explained – owns or sublets a dozen STVR dwellings and manages another 10 – many in the beach area and including Ocean Beach.

“The reality is,” he told Weisberg, “you’re leaving money on the table if you’re renting to a long-term tenant.”

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