OB Rag

Observers of the comings and goings of businesses on Newport Avenue — the main commercial drag in Ocean Beach — couldn’t help but notice that just a couple weeks after OB’s winery closed and had its “last hurrah”, a brand new wine bar opened down the street.

On July 6, Gianni Buonomo Vintners had their last party on Newport Ave, and are opening a large facility in the Midway District at 3492 Pickett Street.

by Branden C. Sigua and Geneviéve Jones-Wright / Voice of San Diego / July 15, 2024

[Please go to original for links]

In his January State of the City address, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria said we “should be locking up criminals, not laundry detergent,” an unduly callous statement meant to discredit Proposition 47, which passed into law in 2014 with the support of 55 percent of San Diego’s voters. Ironically, in the same speech, Gloria proudly declared San Diego “one of the safest large cities in America.” Two months later, he praised the two-year downward trend in San Diego’s crime rate.

Mayor Gloria should give credit where credit is due. In the decade since its passage, Proposition 47, also known as the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act, has been a social and fiscal game-changer for our region and state. The truth is, Proposition 47 is a success for all Californians.

July 18- A Willow Tree Becomes A Forest

The Ocean Beach Historical Society presents: “A Willow Tree Becomes A Forest” on Thursday , July 18, at 7 pm, at Waters Edge Community Center, 1984 Sunset Cliffs Blvd.

MacKenzie Elmer at Voice of San Diego just brought to light that the San Diego Audubon Society is demanding the California Coastal Commission halt the SeaWorld fireworks after bird activists found dead eggs, chicks and adult elegant terns that had been washed ashore after consecutive days of displays.

Elmer reported:

Soaked carcasses of dead unborn, chick and adult elegant terns washed ashore at Kendall-Frost Marsh Reserve just days after San Diego SeaWorld and Discover Mission Bay set off well over 500 pounds of explosives over the Fourth of July weekend. Bird biologists uncovered their bodies and reported the incident to the San Diego Audubon Society, which subsequently called on the California Coastal Commission to revoke SeaWorld San Diego’s fireworks permit through most of the breeding season.

On August 10, there will be a celebration of life for Stew Shaw, a long time Mission Beach resident, community activist and an early staff member of the Beach Area Community Clinic.

Stew passed away peacefully of heart and kidney disease in June. He is also remembered as a member of the La Jolla Symphony Chorus and a frequent tennis player at the Barnes Tennis Center. He is survived by a daughter.

The Celebration of Life for Stewart Henry Shaw will be Saturday August 10th 11AM at the Congregational Church of La Jolla

by Ernie McCray

After the assassination attempt
a Trump disciple was heard to say
“I’m going to vote for him
more than ever now”
and to the question “Why?”
he replied
“You can’t stop us,”
spreading a little taste
of that divisive attitude
we’ve come to expect
from Trump’s MAGA tools
and, as he steps into
his new role as a fist-pumping martyr,

By Judi Curry

It has been quite a while since I had a meal at Hugo’s.  It used to be the place I would always go when I didn’t feel like cooking, or if I had company for lunch or dinner, or…..   but after the restaurant changed hands I decided to try other places in the area that I had not gone to because of my love for Mexican food.  And then, of course, Covid hit and we didn’t go out at all.  And, as I found myself aging, I found that different illnesses were keeping me closer to home and I was very careful what I eating.

Then, last week a very dear friend, Mona, that used to live in OB called to tell me she would be in town and wanted to see me. We have been friends for a very long time, and I knew she only ate vegetarian.  And I remembered that Hugo’s was known for their vegetarian/vegan food.

U.S. Rep. Scott Peters, whose 50th District includes Point Loma and Ocean Beach, has just joined a growing number of fellow Democratic members of Congress who are calling for President Joe Biden to end his reelection campaign. Peter’s announcement came right after after Biden’s solo press conference Thursday night, July 11.

Peters, a La Jolla resident, said in a statement that “the nation owes an enormous debt of gratitude to President Biden” and that his shaky debate performance “did not diminish his remarkable accomplishments and record of service,” the debate “raised real concern among elected leaders, supporters and voters that the president will not be able to wage a winning campaign.”

City of San Diego Historical Resources Board 2024 Preservation Award Winners

By Ann Jarmusch / SOHO /July-August 2024 Newsletter

SOHO applauds the City of San Diego City Planning Department for reviving the Historical Resources Board’s Preservation Awards program, after a long hiatus since 2016. Individuals, groups, businesses, and public agencies were once again invited to nominate projects and programs. The HRB’s policy subcommittee selected six winners who received Awards of Excellence during Preservation Month, at the board’s meeting on May 23, 2024.

Mission Beach Boardwalk Cultural Landscape Reconstruction

The .3-mile section of the Mission Beach Boardwalk and its cultural landscape, as reconstructed by IS Architecture, reflects the history of the boardwalk and amusement center,

The 40th anniversary of the horrible San Ysidro Massacre is coming up on July 18th and Charlie Minn has made a film about it, “77 Minutes.” And there is an anniversary screening on July 18, 2024 at Reading Cinemas Town Square, and the film will be shown for a week through July 25.

Over the years, the Rag has posted several articles about it. For starters,

Editordude: Here’s a chuckle story from our friends at Peninsula News about our city’s flag.

If vexillologists are not vexed, should we be?

This is all about our City of San Diego Flag. You can picture it, right?

By JW August

The San Diego Police Department currently has 439 street surveillance cameras (smart street lights)  installed across the city.

Police Chief Scott Wahl says that some of the cameras currently in position will be moved to six new locations in Hillcrest in advance of the Pride Parade.  He is concerned about the growing number of hate incidents targeting the LGBTQ+ community.   The chief’s announcement that he was using his emergency powers in a public setting is, says City Councilmember Marni Von Wilpert, “wildly opposite how street lights were deployed the first time” referring to previous Mayor Kevin Faulkner’s administration.