OB Rag

by Ernie McCray

I remember my grandfather
always saying to me
“Well, son, I guess that’s too much like right”
when my most logical response to a situation
should have been put into action but was not,
and lately I’ve been saying that to myself a lot
as I look at what’s happening
here and there
around the country,
thinking, particularly,
about what if we bypassed all the rigmarole
with regard to Bad Bunny
headlining the halftime show
at the 60th Super Bowl,
singing in Espanol,
and instead praised him
for how he rose
from work as a bag boy at a grocery store
in Puerto Rico
and became a global music icon

Rents are declining across the country according to the Zumper National Rent Index. In fact, it’s the fourth straight month of declining rental prices across the United States.

Yet, what does that mean for renters in San Diego?

The national average price for a one-bedroom rental apartment is $1,650, according to both Zumper and Apartments.com—a price that Californians are hard-pressed to match, with a median rent price of $2,059.

At the top of the rental market in California, sits San Francisco with an average rental price of $3,110 per month, which is 91% higher than the national rent price.

Yet, in Southern California, the rental market “is facing a surge in supply, giving renters a bit more leeway, according to Zumper. Both Los Angeles and Orange County are seeing declining rents. This is due to “massive rental developments have been built and are opening along the I-15 and I-215 freeways in Riverside and San Bernardino counties.”

Proposed Regulation Attempt at Reining in and Taxing Uncertified Pot Delivery Businesses

By Alex Lai / CBS8 / November 9, 2025

San Diego city leaders say some cannabis businesses are evading local rules, and they’re preparing to step in.

A new proposal at City Hall aims to create fair regulations for cannabis delivery businesses operating in the city. Legal dispensaries argue that competition with the unregulated market has gone on for years, prompting one shop, A Green Alternative in Otay Mesa, to sue the City of San Diego over enforcement.

Right now, legal dispensaries pay the city a 10% tax, putting untaxed delivery operations at a financial advantage.

By Dave Schwab / Peninsula Beacon / Nov. 12, 2025

There’s a new restaurant in Ocean Beach on Newport Avenue, and its name is Latin for its function.

Vinum Locus (literally “wine place”) is owned by native Italian Luigi Agostini, who also owns Pizzeria Luigi, recently opened at 5003 Newport Ave. in a space formerly inhabited by a tattoo parlor.

The new establishment is filling a gap left by the departure of Gianni Buonomo Vintners, which has moved to the Midway District.

“We knew with Gianni Buonomo leaving, there was going to be a little bit of a vacuum, and we wanted to open a wine bar on Newport that was also serving food that is a little higher end,” said executive chef Nicholas Vassari. “So we stepped into that niche.”

Vassari graduated from The Culinary Institute of America, a private culinary school with its main campus in Hyde Park, N.Y. He was also chef de cuisine at Nobu Hospitality.

By Danna Givot / Op-Ed SD Union-Tribune / November 12, 2025 

Three years ago, Mayor Todd Gloria unveiled his “Build Better San Diego” initiative, with an ambitious goal of eliminating inequities between our city’s wealthiest and poorest neighborhoods. Build Better San Diego intended to replace crumbling infrastructure and improve public services in our older and long-neglected communities south of Interstate 8.

But our mayor’s pledge now rings hollow. In fact, recent and upcoming community plan updates will only reinforce the cruel reality of “two San Diegos,” not the “one city” he promised. If the mayor and his planning department get their way, our lowest-resourced, infrastructure-deficient neighborhoods will be burdened by extraordinary levels of up-zoning and density, with no funding for desperately needed parks, libraries, and fire and police stations.

The most shocking example of “one city, two realities” is the proposed College Area Community Plan Update

Plastic in your green bin? Batteries in the trash? City inspectors are checking to see if your garbage is in compliance

By David Garrick / San Diego Union-Tribune / November 11, 2025

San Diego has begun sending teams of trash inspectors to neighborhoods across the city to gauge whether people are using the proper bins for trash, organics recycling and traditional recycling of glass, metal, plastic and paper.

The inspectors — code compliance officers who’ve been nicknamed “lid lifters” — aren’t issuing fines or punishing city trash customers who mistakenly put the wrong items in either their gray, blue or green bins.

Focused on education instead of punishment, the inspectors place either “oops” tags on bins that contain improper materials or “do not collect” tags on bins with dangerous materials like propane tanks or lithium batteries.

Customers who get a “do not collect” tag must remove any dangerous materials and then call the city to send out a trash crew to handle the container.

By Ezra Klein / New York Times / Nov. 10, 2025

Back in September, when I was reporting an article on whether Democrats should shut down the government, I kept hearing the same warning from veterans of past shutdown fights: The president controls the bully pulpit. He controls, to some degree, which parts of the government stay open and which parts close. It is very, very hard for the opposition party to win a shutdown.

Which makes it all the more remarkable that Democrats were winning this one. Polls showed that most voters blamed Republicans, not Democrats, for the current shutdown — perhaps because President Trump was bulldozing the East Wing of the White House rather than negotiating to reopen the government. Trump’s approval rating has been falling — in CNN’s tracking poll, it dipped into the 30s for the first time since he took office again. And last week, Democrats wrecked Republicans in the elections and Trump blamed his party’s losses in part on the shutdown. Democrats were riding higher than they have been in months.

Then, over the weekend, a group of Senate Democrats broke ranks and negotiated a deal to end the shutdown in return for — if we’re being honest — very little.

By Jillian Butler

Ocean Beach has always been more than just a San Diego neighborhood. It’s a community with history, charm, and a deep sense of independence.

Few people embody that spirit more than Denny Knox, the longtime CEO of the Ocean Beach MainStreet Association (OBMA). From helping her in-laws run the beloved Cabrillo Art Center on Newport Avenue to overseeing one of the city’s most active business districts, Knox’s life has been intertwined with Ocean Beach for decades.

In this conversation, she reflects on her early years, the evolution of OB’s business community, and the challenges and triumphs of keeping a small coastal district thriving in an increasingly digital world.

Q:  Please tell me a bit about your personal history–the high school that you went to, siblings, and what your parents did for a living. I am told that you helped your parents run a business in OB and I would love to hear about that.

A: Actually, I was born in New York, lived in Old Greenwich, Connecticut until I turned 13 years old. My folks decided to leave the New York madhouse and moved the family to Scottsdale, Arizona where I attended high school. After high school, I fled the heat and ended up going to Cal Western University [ed: today Point Loma Nazarene University] in 1966 as an English Major.

I absolutely loved the weather and the coastal access and Ocean Beach was my favorite place to go. I met Roberta and Gene Knox in 1968 who owned Cabrillo Art Center on Newport Ave.

City Still Pushing for Answers While NFABC Closely Monitors Situation

From Neighbors for a Better California Board

The proposed 23-story Turquoise Tower project in Pacific Beach remains under review as the city continues to press the developer for additional documentation. On September 24, the City Planning Department issued its second round of questions to the developer.

A project of this size and complexity typically goes through at least six full cycles of questions and responses between the city and the developer before any approvals are considered, so Turquoise Tower is still in the very early stages of review and remains far from final approval.

These cycle reports are one of the tools the city uses to clarify issues directly with the developer. They focus on technical and code-related questions about the project’s design and incentives and do not yet include reviews of public safety, traffic, or other community impacts.

The San Diego City Council will go into closed session next Monday, November 17 to discuss a possible appeal of the recent court ruling on the Midway District height limit.

In a memo from the office of council president Joe LeCava, dated Nov. 10, it announced that council would have a closed session on that date — a conference with legal counsel regarding current litigation, and the first case on the list is Save Our Access v. City of San Diego. The agenda item was described this way:

This item involves litigation related to Measure C, a November 2022 ballot measure to exclude the Midway-Pacific Highway Community Plan Area from the Costal [sic] Zone’s 30-foot height limit. Save Our Access seeks to invalidate Measure C due to an alleged failure to comply with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The City Attorney’s Office will update the Mayor and City Council on the status of litigation and seek direction.

by Beacon Staff and Wire Reports / Peninsula Beacon / Nov. 10, 2025

Ready to watch a rousing game of pickleball?

If so, you’re in luck: The 2025 USA Pickleball National Championships will take place at Barnes Tennis Center in Point Loma from Nov. 15-23.

It will feature elite-level competition, with the most skilled players qualifying to participate in the prestigious tournament.

“Barnes Tennis Center will provide an exceptional backdrop, offering a dynamic atmosphere for both participants and spectators alike,” said USA Pickleball chief executive director Mike Nealy. “We are thrilled to honor the passion and talent within the pickleball community in San Diego.”

The national championships will build on the success of the 2024 tournament, which drew over 2,600 athletes from 47 states and 13 countries, along with more than 10,000 spectators.

Please see an update in a newer post here. 

Basically, faced with tremendous pushback, city staff now recommends $150 a year for residents. 

By David Walters

We have learned that Mayor Todd Gloria’s office has proposed setting annual rates for parking in Balboa Park at $300 for residents and $375 for non-residents. This is an outrageous increase and far above the $150 annual rate proposed by Councilmember Marni Von Wilbert and others as fair and reasonable.

I attended the Balboa Park Commission meeting this week. The Commission, which serves as an advisory body to the Mayor’s Office, voted to recommend annual passes be priced at $99, with discounts for seniors and low-income families.

The final decision on parking fees will be made by the City Council, which is expected to meet and vote on this issue on Monday, November 17, or Tuesday, November 18.

A recent survey of our Redwood Bridge Club members showed that most of them cannot afford parking permits at these prices — and the same holds true for most San Diegans. If the City intends to monetize parking in Balboa Park, it must do so in a way that keeps the park accessible and welcoming to all.