OB Rag

Lisa Mortensen was sent a holiday greeting recently from Congressmember Scott Peters. Here’s her holiday greeting back and response.

By Lisa Mortensen

Hello Congressman Peters:

Happy New Year and thank you for your kind email of holiday wishes and appreciation of my community activism and dialogue with your office.  Your email was timely since I was going to reach out to your office regarding the NAVWAR project.

A brief recap on the background of this project which became known to the citizens of San Diego was in 2021.  At that time the Navy did a public engagement campaign asking for feedback and a selection of one of 4 different project designs.  The community overwhelmingly chose the least detrimental plan which was plan 1.  The reason why I say ‘least detrimental’ was because countywide, citizens spoke out in opposition to this high-density, high-rise megalopolis project which would wall-off access for those coming westbound on highway 8 or northbound/southbound on highway 5 to the airport and beaches.

During the spring and summer of 2021, the Navy orchestrated public outreach and feedback with virtual meetings that were well-attended.  There were many cogent suggestions such as this government land be set aside for military housing and public park with ‘non-profit’ oriented retail.  We expected the Navy to provide affordable military housing for its active-duty personnel.  We also questioned the Navy’s reasoning of having private high-rise residential and hotel use surrounding a top security building which seemed to be a major breach to secure such a highly sensitive facility.  Which is why we believed the Navy should have considered our options to rebuild a state-of-the-art top-security building to house the SPAWAR systems and secure the surrounding area of the building with government housing.

by Ernie McCray

2024
was a year
unlike any I’ve ever undergone before,
one in which I feel as though I barely survived.

The year did, however, provide me
with a few lovely upsides
such as some really good times
with family and friends,
moments where I cheerfully
rooted for our country’s Olympians
and watched a masterful basketball player whose
artistic wizardry in the gym
made millions of people
women’s roundball fans,

A permanent barricade is being installed this week on a small section of the bluffs on Sunset Cliffs Boulevard in Point Loma because of continuing coastal erosion.

San Diego city crews are working to install the barrier to replace a temporary one intended to prevent people from accessing the cliffs. Cracks that developed in rocks along the cliff face, at the water line and away from the road have worsened recently, presenting a potential risk to people standing on the bluff or the sand below, authorities said.

Construction of the permanent cliff barrier is expected to be completed within the next week. Meanwhile, the area is blocked off with caution tape and signs warning visitors to avoid the bluffs.

By Donna Frye / San Diego Union-Tribune Op-Ed / January 1, 2025

I was thinking about the coming new year and feeling overwhelmed by the bad stuff going on in the world. If only I had a magic wand to fix some of what ails us, I would be waving it all over the place like a whirling dervish. But I don’t, so all I could do was fret and worry about things I couldn’t do much about anyway.

I thought some music would help so I turned on San Diego’s Jazz 88.3. The Saturday show “Sing! Sing! Sing!” was being hosted by the esteemed jazz writer and author Will Friedwald. He was playing classic Frank Sinatra songs and I liked them all. But the one that magically cheered up my heart was “High Hopes,” not just because of the lyrics but because it reminded me of my parents who always played music in the house and loved Sinatra.

By Jim Kempton / Surfer.com / December 31, 2024

Wading into the Pacific Ocean on a clear cold New Year’s Eve in 1926, Faye Baird was more than a little nervous. For starters, she was carrying a ten-foot, 110-pound redwood surfboard on her back as she entered the shoreline. There was no wetsuit to seal out the 59-degree temperature on both land and sea—only a scratchy wool bathing suit. The winter sky had darkened early and was now turning a shade of blue-black.

Joining her—and already neck deep in the surf—was her partner Charlie Wright, a lifeguard from Ocean Beach just a few miles south. He was carrying two lit waterproof flares above his head, trying to get as far past the shorebreak as possible to prevent the torches from getting soaked before they reached the outside lineup. In the moonlight, Faye could see head-high waves rolling through on her right. But what gave her the most pause were the hundreds of people packing the Promenade, crowding the dunes. Hundreds more were following her to the water’s edge.

By Hunter Clauss / Los Angeles Times / Dec. 21, 2024

More than half of cannabis smoking products in California’s legal market contain chemicals that are not being monitored for public safety, my colleague Paige St. John reports in a new Times investigation that looked at hundreds of product tests and industry surveys.

The investigation raises significant questions about health threats to consumers and the state’s ability to monitor cannabis products, issues that have emerged as California’s $5-billion legal cannabis market struggles to overcome a resilient black market and growing competition from other states.

Here are three big findings from Paige’s investigation.

By Wendy Fry and Jeanne Kuang / CalMatters / Dec. 27, 2024

California’s southern border, long ‘ground zero’ in the fight between federal and local officials over immigration policy, is now at the center of renewed controversy over how far local leaders can go to protect people from deportation.

After San Diego County took steps earlier this month to strengthen safeguards for undocumented residents, an organization led by President-elect Donald Trump’s adviser Stephen Miller sent a letter warning that elected leaders and employees of “sanctuary” jurisdictions could be “criminally liable” if they impede federal immigration enforcement.

by Crystal Niebla / Times of San Diego — inewsource /December 26, 2024

San Diego officials are one step closer to eliminating a controversial zoning rule that singles out parts of the city’s southeastern neighborhoods.

The Planning Commission this month voted 5-1 to recommend removing a footnote quietly added to the municipal code in 2019 that allows developers to build single-family homes at a higher density in Encanto.

Some residents supported the removal of the footnote. But others urged the commission to reject the proposal as written because it was not retroactive, raising concerns about whether two projects already under consideration would be able to move forward with higher density.

Robert Campbell, vice chair of the Chollas Valley Community Planning Group, which has been demanding a removal of the footnote for months, said he has mixed feelings about the commission’s vote.

by Chris Jennewein / Times of San Diego / December 28, 2024

Mayor Todd Gloria has added his voice to growing community opposition to a proposed 23-story hotel and residential tower in Pacific Beach.

“While I am a staunch advocate for affordable housing, this project is an extreme application of the state Density Bonus Law that fails to meet the spirit or intent of California’s affordable housing policies,” he said in an email update to constituents just before Christmas.

The mayor noted “significant community concerns,” and added, “I share many of the reservations about the project.”

By Dani Miskell / 10News / Dec. 28, 2024

A local martial artist is set to receive three World Championship Titles in Sport Karate after competing in tournaments across the country in 2024.

At her last competition of the year in Toronto, Abigail Hunck,13, and her father, Michael, tallied all her points from the 12 competitions together, and the total number determined she met the threshold to win three World Championship Titles for the three divisions she competed in.

By Arturo Castañares / La Prensa San Diego / December 29, 2024

When San Diego County Supervisor Nora Vargas announced last week that she will not be taking office for her second term on January 6th, she set into motion political maneuvering among possible replacements for a coveted political seat that has only been up for grabs once in the past 29 years.

Vargas, who claims she’s resigning to protect her personal safety, is stepping down just weeks since winning re-election to her second four-year term after first being elected to the seat in 2020 to replace Supervisor Greg Cox who had held the position since 1995.

The five-member Board of Supervisors oversees the functions of over 20,000 employees and approves an annual budget of over $8.4 billion.

Family of girl hit by lifeguard on a Jet Ski sues city for negligence

By David Garrick / The San Diego Union-Tribune / December 30, 2024

Controversy continues to grow over the use of devices commonly known by the brand name Jet Ski at San Diego’s beaches and bays.

Amid an ongoing crackdown by San Diego lifeguards on unlicensed rentals of the devices on Mission Bay, a family is turning the tables by blaming a city lifeguard for running over their daughter in La Jolla Cove with a Jet Ski.