Ocean Beach

Ocean Beach Is Second Only to Barrio Logan for Being the ‘Mural Capital’ of San Diego

October 18, 2019 by Frank Gormlie

It’s not surprising that Ocean Beach has many murals adorning the walls of businesses around the community. But what is surprising is that Ocean Beach now – with recent additions on People’s facade – has more murals than any other community in San Diego except for Barrio Logan and all its murals at Chicano Park.

Not based on any scientific study – this is art, you understand – this claim to mural fame second to Chicano Park – is based on just driving around the village and counting all the murals. Try it – it’s a trip. OB has a feel, a vibe for art – (and music, beer and drugs) …. – but OB has had a history of murals since the 1970s. Another OB tradition that’s still alive.

Now, there’s different kinds of murals, for sure.

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Dear Ohio: The Fight to Say We Are Good

October 17, 2019 by Staff

By Joni Halpern

Dear Ohio,

There were moments of hope on October 15, as I watched the youthful audience respond to the Democratic Presidential Candidate debate. One word spoken often by almost all the candidates was “fight.” “I will fight for you.” “I will fight the billionaires.” “I will fight for the American people.” “I will fight the corporations.”

Why must we be so embattled?

I remembered the answer when I connected with a memory that had been plaguing me all that day. October 15 was the birthday of Aida Reyes, who would have been 68 if she had outlived a vicious cancer. Her body may have left us, but her spirit remains. She was a person who always knew why we must fight and why we can never stop.

It is a condition of the human species that we are a combination of opposites, even within ourselves. We can tenderly embrace a loved one, and five minutes later, we can scorch lash out at them in anger. We can repose our deepest secrets in the trust of an admired friend, and tomorrow, we can suspect that friend of the vilest treachery.

We can celebrate our achievements until we destroy them. Like a sculptor who never knows when to put down the carving tools, we are never satisfied.

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Candye Kane, Charles McPherson Among Honorees at San Diego Music Hall of Fame in Ocean Beach – Friday, Oct.18

October 17, 2019 by Source

By George Varga / PacificSanDiego / Oct. 16, 2019

The Friday event at Newbreak Church in Ocean Beach will also honor blues ace Robin Henkel, Americana vocal dynamo Eve Selis, Latin-jazz mainstay Bill Caballero and bluegrass fingerpicking wiz Walt Richards.

The nonprofit San Diego Music Hall of Fame, which held its first induction ceremony and concert last fall at the Ocean Beach Playhouse, will move to the nearby Newbreak Church for its second edition on Friday, Oct. 18.

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Another Cannabis Bust at the Foot of Newport in Ocean Beach

October 17, 2019 by Frank Gormlie

It has happened again. Back on October 7, there was a bust of a cannabis canopy at the foot of Newport Ave. where OB’s “outlaw” weed salesman was detained by police and his products taken.

Just yesterday, October 16, two gentlemen were detained by San Diego police for sales of cannabis products under a canopy right there on the sidewalk across from the Wall.

Their products were confiscated and the two were handcuffed and at least detained. It’s unclear if they were arrested and taken either downtown to the jail or over to Western Division HQ. (Even being detained with cuffs is a type of arrest, yes.)

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San Diego Progressives Lose an Icon – Floyd Morrow Passes

October 16, 2019 by Frank Gormlie

One of San Diego’s most popular progressives in the modern era has passed. Floyd Morrow died October 3; he was 86.

Called “independent” or a “lone ranger” by his colleagues on the San Diego City Council – Floyd represented the greater Clairemont community of the 5th District for 3 terms – 15 years.

Others – such as those within the then-small progressive community of San Diego – saw him as a populist, a hero to the downtrodden or under-represented, and an early environmentalist and supporter of parks and people’s movements.

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Ocean Beach Project Review Panel Looks at Long Branch and Cable Projects

October 16, 2019 by Frank Gormlie

The Project Review Committee of the OB Planning Board has two projects to review Wednesday, October 16. The committee is a sub-committee of the full Board and getting first crack at reviewing project plans, it usually makes recommendations of whether to approve or not projects that come before the Board.

Meeting at the OB Rec Center, 4726 Santa Monica Ave, the PRC meetings begin right at 6 pm.

4672-4674 Long Branch Ave

The first project up for review is a Coastal Development Permit by Wennes to convert part of the garage at 4672-74 Long Branch. It would have 499 square feet.

2077 Cable Street

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Proof That the Fox Has Returned to the Peninsula

October 16, 2019 by Frank Gormlie

An Ocean Beach woman who found a fox – yes, a real fox – in her bathroom this past week took its photo. And the photo is proof that the fox has returned to the Peninsula, to Point Loma and Ocean Beach. The fox, as a mammal group.

According to the San Diego Humane Society, the fox was playing with the woman’s dog on Monday, October 14, but then it ran into her house. In the hope that it would it would run back outside, the woman left her door open over night.

But when she came into her bathroom the next morning – there it was. So, she called the Humane Society.

The Humane Society stated:

Our Humane Officer safely captured the fox, which was healthy, and released the animal back outside.

Here’s the full Humane Society statement:

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Is the ‘Wild West’ of Scooters Over in San Diego?

October 15, 2019 by Source

‘Wild West’ environment may be easing with citations, impounds, and speed curbs

By John Wilkens / San Diego Union-Tribune / Oct. 10, 2019

For more than a year, San Diego was all carrot and no stick when it came to electric scooters. Now the stick is out, hitting both the scooter companies and their riders.

Three months after new city regulations went into effect, two companies, Jump and Skip, have left town. Another, Lime, may lose its permit because of repeated operating infractions. Almost 500 riders received traffic tickets, more than half of them for riding on sidewalks. The city impounded more than 3,700 scooters for parking violations.

The Wild West, it seems, may finally have a sheriff.

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‘The Early Years of Surfing Sunset Cliffs’ by the ‘Original Dudes and Gidgets’ – Thurs., Oct.17

October 15, 2019 by Source

OB Historical Society Presents

The Ocean Beach Historical Society Presents:
“Surfing Sunset Cliffs, The Early Years”
By Original Sunset Cliffs Dudes & Gidgets

Thursday, October 17, 2019 at 7 PM
At Water’s Edge Faith Community, 1984 Sunset Cliffs Blvd., O.B.

Dig out your Hawaiian shirt for the Ocean Beach Historical Society’s “Surfing Sunset Cliffs, The Early Years” presentation.

Flashback to the blue waters of the cliffs with surfers/presenters Jim “Mouse” Robb, 86, Marsh Malcolm, 86, John Holly, 76, Billy Chapman, 75, Tom “Lizard” Chapman, 76, and the “Original Gidget” Linda Benson, age unknown.

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OB Planners to Form Outreach Committee – Monday, Oct. 14 at OB Woman’s Club

October 14, 2019 by Source

The Ocean Beach Planning Board is forming an Outreach Committee and it’s meeting tonight, Monday, October 14 at the OB Woman’s Club. It starts at 6p – and this is the very first meeting of this new sub-committee of the full board.

Board member Tracy Dezenzo is the contact person for this endeavor to increase participation from the community in the Planning Board.

Here’s the official agenda:

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News and Notices for Ocean Beach and Point Loma – Mid-October 2019

October 11, 2019 by Frank Gormlie

Liberty Station’s Golf Course Future Could Be in the Hole

Liberty Station’s Loma Club is considered a great golf course in its own unique way. …More than a century of history sits in the club’s soil. At one time, a young Phil Mickelson played tournament at what was then called Sail Ho. Which is why players and locals were shocked to learn the Loma Club put out a notice that it will close in late December.

Point Loma Home Target of Passing Cars – Hit Twice Within a Year

San Diego Music Hall of Fame in OB at Newbreak Church – Oct. 18

Two Roots Brewing Wins Gold Medal for Non-Alcohol Beer

Point Loma Office Building Is Awarded “Orchid” in Annual Judging

Santa Barbara Coastline Study Has Lessons for Us: More Hot Days, Longer Dry Spells and Higher Sea Levels

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Ocean Beach Has a New In-Residence Mystery Writer: G.M. Ford

October 11, 2019 by Staff

By Bob Edwards

A resident of Ocean Beach since 2017, mystery writer G.M. Ford seems to have settled in to the OB lifestyle. With over twenty books published, the author’s latest novel Heavy On The Dead (reviewed in the OB Rag this past July) in set mostly in OB.

Ford participates in a local writers group that regularly meets at Te Mana on Voltaire. He reads the OB Rag and social media webpages such as the Social OB Facebook page. Perhaps most importantly, he has thrown himself into one of the most pressing controversies our community faces in the 21st Century: Where does one go to get the best fish taco in Ocean Beach?

I joined Gerry Ford at one of his favorite watering holes and taco purveyors, South Beach Bar and Grill on Newport Avenue, where we talked about various topics including his move to OB, his writing process, and the American publishing industry in the digital age.

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Last 2 ‘Classic’ OB Rag T-Shirts Up for Auction

October 10, 2019 by Frank Gormlie

UPDATE: We have 2 winning bids – the auction is over.

It’s true! The very last two Classic OB Rag T’s are up for auction.

For years, we offered OB Rag T-shirts as part of our fund-raising efforts – all printed at James Gang in OB, all 100% cotton and all with our logos. But over time, the swag gig was time-consuming and didn’t generate all that much at any one time. We did sell dozens and dozens of our shirts, including various styles and logos.

Now here we are today. We have the very last two OB Rag T’s in the classic variety. And they are up for auction.

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A Town In Need of a Public Library

October 10, 2019 by Staff

By Joni Halpern

Dear Ohio,

There is a little town about 772 miles from the southern border of Ohio. The people there have been poisoned, and I am writing to warn that the poison has spread. You must take precautions. It can be fatal.

In Clinton, Arkansas, a rural community of about 2,500, in which almost one-fourth of the residents live below the poverty line, the majority of voters have become blind to the economic, social, civic, or spiritual sense of spending taxpayer money on endeavors that help their fellow human beings.

The people of Clinton don’t want a public library. It’s a waste of money. They don’t want government services even for the very poor.

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Public Asked for Help in Identifying Ocean Beach and Point Loma Arson Suspect

October 10, 2019 by Source

The public is being asked for help in identifying the arson suspect who is alleged to have started up to six fires in the Ocean Beach and Point Loma neighborhoods back in late September.

San Diego Crime Stoppers have now released new photos and video of the suspect, who appears to be a white, young and thin male.

Investigators with the Metro Arson Strike Team report that during the early hours of Sept. 28, between 12:30 a.m. and 5:03 a.m., six separate fires were started in the backyards of homes, at the following locations:

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New Recycling Center Opens Next to Pat’s Liquor in Ocean Beach

October 9, 2019 by Frank Gormlie

Here’s some good news. Ocean Beach has a brand new recycling center.

Prince’s Recycling Center just opened earlier this week next to well-known Pat’s Liquor at 5096 Voltaire at the intersection with Abbott Street. James Prince and Allison and Laura are making the bold venture.

Their center will be open Mondays through Saturdays, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and closed on Sundays.

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Point Loma Architectural Reporter Gives Tour of What’s on Deck for San Diego Development

October 9, 2019 by Source

Editordude: Local Roger Showley, Point Loma High School Class of 1966, gives an illuminating tour of what’s on deck in terms of San Diego’s mega development projects. Love development or hate it, it’s important to know what’s coming.

By Roger Showley / The Architect’s Newspaper

As it celebrates the 250th anniversary of its founding this year, San Diego is rethinking past projects, planning billions of dollars’ worth of new projects, and coping with a housing shortage that is making it one of the nation’s least affordable markets.

The most significant project on the boards is the redevelopment planned for Horton Plaza shopping center, a 1985 postmodernist downtown mall designed by Jon Jerde. But there are many other megaprojects under construction or in the offing throughout this county of 3.3 million residents.

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OBceans Volunteering at Tijuana Orphanages, Migrant Centers

October 9, 2019 by Staff

By Brett Warnke

San Diego is a refugee city.

Yet, in an age of fears and in a time of increased dislocation, millions of people are on the move. Spurred by bad policies, corruption, inequality, gangsterism, war and climate change migrants find themselves jammed in ad hoc centers and refugee camps in developing cities like Tijuana with few resources.

Many migrants have been blocked from entry and wait in an impoverished limbo, uncertain what will come.

The Sharda Yoga Center is working to fuse yoga and art education for people caught in this horrifying vortex. It’s founder, Nora Munoz, believes making art and yoga available to all children regardless of class or socio-economic status is a goal worth achieving.

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Widder Curry ‘Banned’ From Nextdoor

October 9, 2019 by Judi Curry

Just What Is Nextdoor?

By Judi Curry

Let me begin this biased report by saying that I have been reduced to a “read only” status on our neighborhood Nextdoor. And yes, I admit that I violated their rules re: no political discussions on this site.

And yes, I admit that it has happened more than one time. However, many things that I write about are politically motivated – be it outright, or “under the covers.” And yes, I admit to being a liberal; I cannot stand the person in the White House; I have no tolerance for people that were my friends – and relatives – supporting children in cages; separating families; no medical attention; no flu shots.

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Audit Reveals San Diego Losing $2 Million a Year Due to Free Trash Pickups at Short-Term Rentals

October 8, 2019 by Source

A report by Union-Tribune writer David Garrick last week confirmed the fears: according to a recent city audit, San Diego is losing $2 million a year by allowing trash pickup at short-term vacation rentals around town.

Short-term rentals, along with commercial buildings, apartments, multi-family units and condos are excluded from the free trash pickup embedded in stone with the People’s Ordinance which guarantees free trash pick-up for single-family homes.

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OBceans Sue Each Other Over Peanut Butter Whiskey

October 8, 2019 by Frank Gormlie

Usually when there’s an article about Ocean Beach on the front page of the San Diego Union-Tribune‘s Sunday paper, it’s a fluff piece about how the bohemian enclave does or doesn’t live up to its name. This has happened so often that we even keep a file on all those articles.

But that wasn’t the case this last Sunday, October 6. This time the front page article was headlined: “Lawsuits Erupt Over Ocean Beach’s Famed Skrewball Whiskey” and it was all about the three suits – two of them by well-known OBceans – against the makers of Screwball Whiskey – that new combo of whiskey and peanut butter invented in OB and now being marketed across the country.

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Ocean Beach’s ‘Outlaw’ Pot Dealer Detained On Newport Ave

October 8, 2019 by Staff

by Joaquin Antique

Locals and visitors alike watched as San Diego police plainclothes officers apparently arrested a man who had set up a “mini-dispensary” at the foot of Newport Street yesterday, October 7. The marijuana products the man was selling were confiscated and bagged up and the vendor was placed in an SDPD vehicle.

For several weeks one or more individuals have erected a card table, sun shelter, and display case next to the OB Pier parking lot and have been selling pre-rolled ganja and cannabis edibles.

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Ocean Beach Ten Years Ago: October 2009

October 7, 2019 by Frank Gormlie

It’s amazing to discover what was going on in Ocean Beach a decade ago – in October 2009. Because the OB Rag keeps archives which can be pulled out at any time (and available to our readers), we looked at the articles we posted 10 years ago and found many parallels with today in OB. So get on the OB Time Machine and travel back with us ten years … to another era ….

  • Poverty Rate at 50-Year High in San Diego County

Poverty in San Diego County shot up in 2008, rising at a much faster pace than in California or the nation … Poverty rate at 50-year high in San Diego County

Here’s some local news from ten years ago:

  • Peaceniks Leaflet Point Loma High School – …
  • North OB Restrooms to have Temporary and Mobile Replacements – …
  • A man hit a woman on the head with a bongo drum …
  • Diver who died off Sunset Cliffs identified –
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News On Newport Avenue Ten Years Ago in October 2009

October 7, 2019 by Frank Gormlie

Newport News 007-cow-smOriginally posted on October 17, 2009

Cow is moving out of OB

We spoke to Greg last week, the owner of Cow, Newport’s only music store. And unfortunately for the community, his business will be moving out of Ocean Beach by the new year. He is on a month-to-month lease. The reason for the move from the beach? Well, there are two reasons:

First, the owner of the BBQ House is expanding and developing a new restaurant next door to its current and apparently successful enterprise. Abdul is opening up – probably – a pizza and beer place – the space that Cow now rents. So, Cow has to move.

But Greg wanted to buy a building up the street – in the 4900 block of Newport – and had offered the owner over half a mil.

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OB Networking Group – Bytes, Computer Tech, and Knowing Google – Tues., Oct. 8

October 7, 2019 by Source

Join the OB Networking Group this Tuesday, October 8 for a talk by Steven Murphy, of Murphy’s computer services.

He has three subjects to cover:

  • Got your bits in a byte: Tuning up your tech.
  • RTFM: How 80% of tech work is knowing how to Google.
  • Have you turned it off and on again: Talking to tech support effectively.

This all happening at 12 noon at Te Mana Cafe

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San Diego to Crack Down on Street Vendors?

October 4, 2019 by Source

By Priya Sridhar / KPBS / Sept.25, 2019

The City of San Diego is considering cracking down on street vendors because of a new state law that went into effect January 1.

The new law decriminalized street vendors and requires cities across California to create local ordinances that only regulate street vending based on public health and safety, not stifling competition.

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OBceans Attend Elizabeth Warren Rally at San Diego’s Waterfront Park

October 4, 2019 by Staff

By Brett Warnke

Senator Elizabeth Warren spoke on October 3 on a cool night as the sunset sank beyond Waterfront Park. The setting and format were quintessentially Warren: tidy, organized, and a bit nerdy. Warren was introduced by a veteran and woman whose parents were deported after living in the country since 1986.

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What You Can Do Besides Being an OB Vigilante

October 3, 2019 by Staff

By Brett Warnke

John Brady, a local advocate who has experienced homelessness in his own past, is the Director of Advocacy for the Voices of Our City Choir. He’s on the YIGBY task force focused on faith-based properties to build affordable and low-income housing for people in need.

He doesn’t take my own adversarial approach to local anti-homeless vigilante groups, but he says he supports people who want to keep their communities safe. He also doesn’t know much about the anti-homeless groups quoted in a recent mediocre, poorly written profile by Channel 8’s Abbie Alford.

However, Brady does see a need for informed interdictions regarding unsheltered people.

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Shame on you, Channel 8: An OB Media Criticism of Journalistic Mediocrity

October 3, 2019 by Staff

By Brett Warnke

In a sloppy, half-baked under-sourced brief, Channel 8’s Abbie Alford became San Diego’s publicist for the worst quarter of Ocean Beach, a vigilante group of homeless-haters.

Characterizing the group in her story as “fed up with troublemaking homeless,” Ms. Alford’s first paragraph claims the so-called “community group” puts “troublemakers on notice.” She includes a bland statement from Jen Campbell’s office and a series of tactics and quotes by the group as well as a smiling picture of them.

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San Diego Green Calendar for October 2019 – from the Ocean Beach Green Center

October 3, 2019 by Source

Events at the Ocean Beach Green Center

Ocean Beach Green Center, 4862 Voltaire Street, Ocean Beach 92107 oceanbeachgreencenter@gmail.com

October 10th Thursday 7 pm. Film Night “The Human Element”
Every Saturday at 10:00 a.m. Climate Mobilization Coalition Meeting. October 5th, 12th, 19th, 26th
October 24th Thursday 7 pm Jim Bell’s Legacy meetings.

Other Events in Ocean Beach and Point Loma

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