OB Rag

Public Comment on This Use of Public Land Closes After August 24

by Andi Ruiz / Times of San Diego / Aug. 4, 2026

Lights, poles and nets at a proposed waterfront golf and entertainment center could have a negative impact on habitats and native species, according to an environmental analysis of the project.

The concerns are addressed in a draft environmental impact report (EIR) on the redevelopment of East Harbor Island being sought by the Port of San Diego, which would include a Topgolf complex and waterfront park, each covering about 10 acres.

The report cites light pollution and height of the Topgolf poles and nets as notable impacts.

Bright light, according to the analysis, could disrupt the behavior of birds and attract them to nets in the structure, leaving them entangled.

A proposed alternative would limit the Topgolf to one story, as compared to the currently proposed three stories. The planned 108 hitting bays would drop to 34 and the height of the netting poles would fall from 170 feet to 140 feet with the shift to a one-story structure.

by Phoebe Huss / Cal-Matters /  July 31, 2026

Summary: Following a CalMatters investigation, students and faculty at UC San Diego protested against campus police for collaborating with Border Patrol through a federal grant program. The university will stop participating in the program and aiding patrols, sources and internal documents confirm.

A California public university cut ties with a federal program that paid for campus police to aid Border Patrol, within weeks of CalMatters revealing the decade-long partnership.

Operation Stonegarden, a grant managed by the Department of Homeland Security, allocates an average of $11 million each year for California law enforcement agencies to work with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and its subagency Border Patrol on border security missions. Dozens of police forces throughout the state receive the grant, including campus police at UC San Diego, a recipient since around 2012.

On Feb. 10, a CalMatters article explained how UC San Diego police used the grant to patrol sections of the coastline near campus, which quickly set off an uproar among students who felt it placed undocumented and international students at risk. By Feb. 26, after students emailed complaints and threatened to hold a public rally, student Aryan Dixit said the campus police chief, Lamine Secka, agreed to leave the grant program in a one-on-one meeting.

By Cathy Bussewitz / Associated Press PBS News / July 31, 2026

American oil and gas giants raked in massive spring profits while fighting between Iran and the U.S. impeded petroleum shipments and consumers around the world paid more for fuel and confronted shortages.

The conflict, now in its sixth month, halted most shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that previously served as a delivery route for a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas. With global supplies constrained, prices for Brent crude, the international standard, soared from about $70 to above $100 a barrel for much of March, April and May, and at one point reached $126.

The money that oil companies accrued between the beginning of April and the end of June could receive extra scrutiny this year. Gasoline, diesel and jet fuel prices climbed sharply during that period, increasing costs for drivers and airline passengers. Supplies ran low in some countries, leading to sporadic fuel rationing in Australia and government office closures in Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Exxon Mobil on Friday reported that its second quarter profits doubled to $14.53 billion, boosted by record diesel production. The oil giant, based in Spring, Texas, brought in $116.02 billion in revenue, up 42%.

Chevron, based in Houston, nearly quadrupled its profits to $12.07 billion and revenue jumped 56% to $70.06 billion.

Six of Europe’s largest oil companies posted combined first-quarter profits of $22 billion, more than 40% higher than last year.

San Diego Police Have Recently Issued 18 Misdemeanor Citations and 300 Warnings at Sunset Cliffs 

By Omari Fleming / 7SanDiego / August 4, 2026

A cascade of cliff-jumpers continues to catapult themselves off Sunset Cliffs, a week and a half after two high-profile rescues. One case involved a 17-year-old who jumped and crashed on the cliffs. The other involved a man who fell trying to climb the cliffs.

Law enforcement has made it abundantly clear — cliff jumping is illegal.

San Diego police and lifeguards said they have increased patrols in light of the recent issues.

NBC San Diego crews witnessed lifeguards in boats using bullhorns to try and get jumpers off the cliffs on Tuesday, Aug. 4. A crew was also stationed in one of their trucks, parked off the cliffs, trying to dissuade illegal activity.

San Diego police said they handed out over 300 warnings and 18 misdemeanor citations to would-be jumpers. But people who take the plunge say that won’t do the trick.

By Staff at River Cities’ Reader / August 2026

With Americana Highways praising the artist for delivering a “sweet, steamy pot of serious country music and lyrics.” singer/songwriter Stacy Antonel headlines an August 18 concert at Davenport’s Raccoon Motel, her debut album Always the Outsider hailed by Saving Country Music as “quite an exquisite collection of songs that gives Antonel a unique role in the country landscape.”

As stated at StacyAntonel.com: “Imagine Tammy Wynette crossed with the Ventures and you’ll have an idea of the sonic world of Americana artist Stacy Antonel’s forthcoming EP, The Seahorses: Volume 1. Always a genre-defying artist, Antonel blends her passion for classic country, jazz and surf rock with this collection of songs, and the result is a fresh hybrid of musical styles that feels both vintage and hyper-modern. Recorded at Nashville’s Fitting Room Studio, the band includes heavy hitters Ethan Ballinger (Miranda Lambert), Joe Reed (Merle Haggard), Paul Sgroi (Josh Hedley) and San Diego jazz phenom Tony Econom.

“Antonel grew up in a seaside San Diego town called Ocean Beach, listening to pop and R&B hits and studying classical piano until she was eighteen. “

By Jillian Butler

Residents of Mariner’s Cove Apartments in eastern Ocean Beach say years of deferred maintenance have left some affordable housing units with mold, deteriorating cabinetry, broken stairways and other unresolved problems, raising concerns about whether tenants in subsidized units are receiving the same level of maintenance as market-rate residents.

As the cost of living soars, many people turn to government programs in order to find a place to live. Being the ninth most expensive city in America, San Diego is no exception to this. In fact, there are approximately 80,300 people in San Diego County living in government subsidized housing. However, some landlords give preferential treatment to those not in subsidized housing, creating two separate classes of people.

Several sources have reached out to the OB Rag, citing negligence towards those in rent controlled units at the Mariner’s Cove Apartment complex. Issues range from mold to the landlord illegally painting over fire lanes.

Mariner’s Cove is a two story apartment complex with 500 units. Of those 500 units, 300 are considered “affordable”, with 100 being low income. Many such residents are elderly, have disabilities, or both.

One resident I spoke with recounts:

“For years, I have expressed serious concerns regarding the lack of ventilation and potential mold in my unit, as well as the deteriorating plywood and peeling veneer in my kitchen. These issues pose legitimate safety and health risks rather than cosmetic concerns. Although management acknowledges the poor bathroom ventilation and has previously patched a water-damaged wall, they have refused to test for mold. Furthermore, the deteriorating wood in my kitchen cabinets sheds debris onto my dishes every time the drawers are opened.

By Gabriella Rubio

We’re in Ocean Beach, California, where the grey sky looming overhead begins to burn away, the air is well… earthy, and our eclectic bubble fills with vacationers.

This time we zoom back into the beloved Template coffeehouse on Niagara, a cornerstone and home for many in the community. This summer, this colorful portal hosted a few small, silly and playful creatures in its back garden, looked after them and took them on wild adventures in the great outdoors of OB. This was all by the enchanting and mythical guardian, Miss Chula, accompanied by her magic bus, Rover.

Chula, or more fondly known as ChuChu to the lively kids attending her camps, is the sole founder of Down to Earth Nature School. At the heart of it all is what she calls “Kids Empowered” — a school where radical self-expression is a core value, a place kids feel safe to be their pure, authentic selves and applaud others for doing the same. Where “Odd-Ball” behavior is welcomed, embraced and encouraged, while learning environmental impact and the importance of taking care of the planet. Speaking with her about her vision, you can see the passion bubbling up from within, which makes learning from her all the more fun.

To understand where this vision comes from, let’s go back in time a bit, to Chula’s past. She grew up nannying and being around kids her whole life, surrounded by the support of her parents and sisters. Along the way, she gained entrepreneurial influence from her dad. This led her to San Francisco State, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies with a complimentary degree in Holistic Studies. She went on to earn her teaching credential in 2025.

By Paul Krueger

July has slipped away, and with it, the best chance we had to force City Hall to reopen the 13 Mission Bay restrooms closed in pursuit of  so-called “fiscal responsibility.”

We now have little more than a month until the traditional end of summer to find a solution to this civic embarrassment. And I’m not optimistic.

The city council is on vacation until mid-August, so we can’t organize a protest outside city hall and try to shame council members during non-agenda public comment for their lack of unified response to this actual threat to public health.

Mayor Todd Gloria is only seen in public at pre-scripted ceremonies where he cuts ribbons and fills potholes. So there’s no opportunity to confront him about his false narrative that City Hall can’t spare the $550,000 needed to reopen the restroom doors.

And the council member who should be speaking loudest about the need to protect public health has been regrettably – though predictably — silent on the issue.

Jen Campbell, whose District 2 includes Mission Bay, is a family physician. She knows public health is at risk when people can’t find a restroom.

New CNN Poll Reflecting Changing Winds of Younger Dems

By Edward Wu /  CNN / July 30, 2026

About a third of Democrats and Democratic-leaning adults identify as democratic socialists, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS.

They’re some of the party’s staunchest supporters, but many are also raring for a party overhaul at a time when democratic socialists are seeing new momentum at the polls.

Building on New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s victory over Andrew Cuomo last year, candidates describing themselves as democratic socialists have secured the Democratic nomination in several US House races around the country, including defeats of incumbent Reps. Adriano Espaillat in New York and Diana DeGette in Colorado.

Primaries over the next few weeks will test whether the trend can expand beyond Democratic strongholds – with recent polling on the Democratic gubernatorial primary in Wisconsin finding democratic socialist Francesca Hong leading the field in that critical battleground state.

A Classic Story of Mid-West Immigrants Coming to Southern California During the War

By Philip Roger Shafer

Retold by His Daughter Micaela Porte 

Chapter 1

The Idea  — It started with the letters. The letters from California. The letters from my father’s friend, Walter, had been arriving for over a year, who moved there to work for the defense industry.

Father read them to us at the dinner table. We could hardly believe it. Roses and oranges in winter? A postcard of snow-capped mountains in the background and fruiting orchards in the foreground from Burbank, California.

It was January, 1944. We lived in Columbus, Ohio. I think we all dreamed a lot of California that year.

Christmas had been dreary. Dreary weather, dreary long war rationing, dreary death of Uncle Sydney, prisoner of war, my mother’s young brother, she was so sad. Dreary death of my dad’s mother, Grandma Emma, from a long illness, he was so sad.

I wasn’t sad about death and war. I was ten. I loved sledding, but I busted my front teeth in a jump and all the dental work was making me sad.

“Dear Phil and Edith,

Happy New Year 1944, glad we are alive.
Friends, you must move to California. The place is booming, towns forming overnight. Ask for a transfer, we need good Bell Men.

The war drags on, our condolences to you for the lost of your loved ones in this tragedy…

I miss the snow sometimes, for about 15 minutes at Christmas. Our winter coats hang unused in the hall closet.

Give our love to the family,
Happier New Year to all,

Editordude: In mid-July, Robert Campbell wrote “Footnote 7: The Truth, the Corruption, the Timeline” here at the Rag where he documented how the infamous Footnote 7 came into being. In it he states:

Right before voting to approve the (Land Development Code) and Footnote 7, then-Councilmember Monica Montgomery Steppe personally thanks (land use developer and attorney) Dennis Dawson by name, along with the YIMBYs, for their work. Orchestrating this legislative session is her then-Chief of Staff, Henry Foster III.

And here below, Campbell gives us a valuable update to his story.

By Robert Campbell

As you all may recall, then City Councilmember Monica Montgomery Steppe personally thanked Dennis Dawson for speaking in favor of Footnote 7 when it passed at City council in 2020. Public records show Dennis Dawson concocted Footnote 7 with Gary Geiler from the Development Services Department along with its revision a year later.

by Ernie McCray

It’s great
that we continue
to chant and sing
“No Kings”
and constantly scream
at ICE
and other such things
but now
it’s time to
take-to-the streets
and demand
the termination of Donald J’s presidency
before he makes our democracy
look like a ship
sinking in a turbulent sea,
and we should do so
for any number of reasons
that we could list randomly,