OB Rag

The OB Planning Board continues its monthly meetings via Cisco WebEx this Wednesday, Feb. 3, at 6 pm.

There’s a number of issues and projects on the agenda, but because most are under the controversial “consent agenda” (4 of 6) there’s only 2 so-called “action items”. Items on the consent agenda do not need to be discussed or detailed and there’s usually just a vote by the full Board. Any board member or member of the audience, however, in this process can request to have any consent item “pulled” from the consent agenda and placed on the “regular” agenda.

So, for example, there’s a project at 5064 Lotus Street – but because it’s on the consent agenda, there are no details to the project on the agenda; usually there is some description of the project. Okay, the subcommittee, the Project Review Committee, voted 8 to 0 to recommend approval to the full Board. But the full Board at least needs to bring it up for some level of discussion.

In addition, there’s at least one issue deserving of discussion embedded in the consent agenda, called “Froude St. Traffic Calming.”

The effort to recall Councilwoman Jen Campbell is becoming official this week. The Notice of Intent to Circulate Petition is being published and Campbell will likely be served over the next few days. Once these procedural elements have been accomplished, the recall effort can begin to officially collect signatures.

The Petition outlines a host of reasons for the recall effort (see below) and ends with, “Councilmember Campbell has betrayed the voters and is unfit for office. Having no other recourse, we the residents of District 2, together with concerned residents throughout the city, have come together to take this action.”

Five fairly prominent and active residents of District 2 have stepped up during this crucial moment and have signed their names to the Petition. They represent every neighborhood of District 2 and include:

1. Kevin Hastings – Vice Chair, Ocean Beach Planning Board
2. Cathie (Jolley) Umemoto – presently a director on the PB Town Council Board of Directors. Cathie is two-time past President of PBTC and 2019-2020 Honorary Mayor of PB.
3. Mandy Havlik – Board Member & Secretary, Peninsula Community Planning Board
4. Erin Cullen – Board Member, Clairemont Community Planning Group
5. Gary Wonacott – Past President, Mission Beach Town Council

Here is the Notice statement:

The 2021 Ocean Beach Town Council Board of Directors election is here and members have begun voting. Voting began on Thursday and runs to Friday, February 5.

OBTC Directors are elected voices in communicating the views and needs of the community to the appropriate agencies, and are at the forefront of community discussions. When needed, Directors take appropriate action on community issues and are leaders in promoting the general betterment of Ocean Beach.

This year, there’s an unprecedented amount of interest – and there are 18 candidates for the 8 seats up for election on the 15 seat Board of Directors. OBTC members elect Board Directors for two-year terms. Half of the Board stands for election every year. This year, 8 seats are up for election.

Eligible candidates for the OBTC Board of Directors must be over (18) years of age, have Bronze Level OBTC Membership, and either live, work, own property, or operate a business in Ocean Beach (92107). Voting for this election will take place from Thursday, January 28th to Friday, February 5th, 2021 .

Candidate Statements

Nuclear Shutdown News January 2021

Nuclear Shutdown News chronicles the decline and fall of the nuclear industry in the US and beyond, and highlights the efforts of those working to create a nuclear free world.

By Michael Steinberg

Court rejects legal challenge to stop work at San Onofre.

On January 14 Law 360 reported, “9th Circuit Court Denies Advocate’s Nuclear Decommissioning Challenge.” The case concerns San Diego based Public Advocate’s petition asserting that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission “abdicated its safety responsibilities” overseeing the decommissioning of the San Onofre nuclear plant in Orange county, Southern California, which shut down in 2012.

By Paul Krueger / Times of San Diego / January 28, 2021

Count me among that small but dedicated group of San Diegans who embrace bicycling for its health and environmental benefits.

When I worked downtown, I often commuted 14 miles roundtrip from my Talmadge home. Now retired, I bike to doctor’s appointments in La Mesa and Mission Valley, and stores in North Park and Hillcrest.

It’s a rewarding challenge to climb those hills, and fun to see city life up close. But it’s also a bit demoralizing.

That’s because I have so little company on my two-wheeled travels around our county.

San Diego has spent millions of dollars for dedicated bike lanes, but from where I sit, the “if you build them, they will come” strategy has been an abject failure.

At least, according to the public news record, there were no deaths at Sunset Cliffs during 2020. There were 5 incidents where people were injured, however.

This is definitely good news from a year filled with bad news. Perhaps because of COVID, less people ventured into dangerous areas on or around the beautiful but treacherous cliffs. Which is unlikely, given all the reports and complaints about how people have jammed Sunset Cliffs these last months of the pandemic.

However, the rate of deaths and serious injuries at the cliffs for the year tracks with the average, according to the survey the OB Rag has conducted for years. Data collected for the study goes back to 2005. The OB Rag has found there’s been an average of 5 deaths or serious injuries every year.

In comparison with 2019, for instance, there were 2 tragic deaths, and only one seriously injured person at or below Sunset Cliffs in Ocean Beach and Point Loma. (See this study the OB Rag )

Here is an up-to-date chart and more details:

By Colleen O’Connor

What keeps America together? See for yourself.

“Look at the people that are on the ground. That’s who represents America,” says Admiral William McRaven; the man who oversaw the Bin Laden raid.

Look at the great story of the Oregon health workers who got stuck in a snowstorm on their way back from a COVID-19 vaccination event and went car to car injecting stranded drivers before several of the doses expired.

That “impromptu vaccine clinic” is a prime example of who represents America. Those are the angels among us. As I discovered myself.

Starting from the beginning.

On Wednesday, Jan. 27, in an extraordinary warning to the American public, the Department of Homeland Security issued an alert about a growing risk of attacks by domestic terrorists – whom they call, “ideologically-motivated violent extremists.”

No other bulletin in recent years has been issued to alert Americans about violence by domestic extremists. The extremists are agitated about President Biden’s inauguration and “perceived grievances fueled by false narratives.”

In a statement, the department said the purpose of the new bulletin was to warn the public about a “heightened threat environment” across the United States “that is likely to persist over the coming weeks.” The bulletin is a lesser-status warning designed to alert the public about general risks, rather than an imminent attack linked to a specific threat.

The State of California on Monday made a pilot project website regarding the COVID-19 vaccine available for residents in San Diego and Los Angeles counties on which people can sign up to receive alerts on when they’re eligible and then schedule an appointment.

The website, at MyTurn.ca.gov, allows people to input their basic information and learn if they are currently available to receive a vaccination and, if so, allow them to scheduled a shot.

People who aren’t yet eligible can provide information on age and occupation and register to receive an email or text alert about when they will be able to schedule a shot.

The MyTurn system is operating on a trial basis for residents of the two counties. Gov. Gavin Newsom said the system will hopefully be available statewide by early February.

Reposted as a public service announcement.

Tenants would still need to pay back rent.

By Phillip Molnar / San Diego Union-Tribune / Jan. 26, 2021

San Diego City Council voted Tuesday to extend an eviction ban for renters and businesses hit hard by COVID-19.

The council unanimously approved the business eviction moratorium and voted 8-1 on the residential moratorium. Both laws were achieved by declaring a state of emergency. The actions were separate from a $42.3 million rent relief program the city is still working on.

Both moves by the council do not erase rent owed to commercial or residential landlords, and require proof of hardship related to COVID-19.

By Geoff Page

The Peninsula Community Planning Board held its first regular monthly meeting of 2021 on Thursday, January 21. The meeting was held using the Zoom meeting system. It is necessary to go to the PCPB.net website and register to attend the meetings in advance. The link to join the meeting is in the agenda.

As a side note, in comparison, the Midway planning group also uses Zoom but does not require registration. An Issue with registration is that attendees are not required to sign in when they attend meetings in person. There is a sign in sheet but it is voluntary and includes very little private information. The on-line registration system actually runs counter to the Brown Act privacy requirements.

A highlight of the meeting was a presentation by a volunteer group concerned about the city’s proposals for the Parks Master Plan component of the Complete Communities plan. The lowlight was the board’s decision to support a request to place a four-way stop at Froude and Cape May despite having a city engineering decision that the intersection did not rate a four-way stop.