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Stories by Tony de Garate

Ocean Beach library termite-tented

On December 28, a work crew from Cartwright Termite and Pest Control enveloped the historic Ocean Beach library with a giant, dark green fabric and posted signs alerting to the use of Vikane, a brand …

January 1, 2016
Renewal of Newport Avenue soon to come

Newport Avenue is the most important commercial corridor in Ocean Beach. The avenue’s historic buildings, bars, eateries, and antique shops rate high on the funk scale, drawing people from all over San Diego and beyond. …

December 8, 2015
O.B.'s best rent deal slated for demo

The days are numbered for a cave used as an illegal shelter that the city says in danger of collapse at the foot of Orchard Avenue in Ocean Beach. By next week, police will dislodge …

October 15, 2015
Who to teach the tots?

Dozens of kindergartners at Ocean Beach Elementary may have to separate from the only teacher they’ve ever known and undergo the uncomfortable task of transferring to another class — just weeks after beginning their public …

October 6, 2015
Get me into the ballgame

Walk-through metal detectors, electromagnetic hand wands, and other new airport-style security measures led to confusion and a slower-than-usual entry for thousands of fans at the Padres’ annual home opener April 9. New security and screening …

Last-minute Obamacare scramble

People still scrambling to buy government-mandated health insurance after the February 15 deadline were surprised to find zero-hour assistance February 18 at the weekly Ocean Beach Farmers’ Market yesterday. Tucked between a live reggae band …

February 19, 2015
Zapf’s left turn into O.B.

San Diego City Councilmember Lorie Zapf is a Clairemont Republican, but she can get her O.B. on with the best of them. She enjoys Ocean Beach eateries and taking family and pets to Dog Beach, …

February 7, 2015
Confidence high, but store remains dry

Maybe it’s no Boston, but the city of Lowell, Massachusetts, is not without its charms. It’s the fourth-largest city in the state and has been home to such notables as Ed McMahon, Bette Davis, and …

December 5, 2014
Too much salt of the earth in O.B.

Like a bowl of bad soup, there’s too much salt in the soil at the North Ocean Beach Gateway Project — and the flaw could push into next year the long-awaited completion of the quarter-acre …

November 17, 2014
Biker-friendly holiday

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial, with its two, 247-foot-long stone walls with the names of more than 50,000 Americans who died or went missing in that war, was dedicated in Washington DC this month in 1982. …

November 13, 2014
Ixnay on Plan B, says SDG&E

Moving electricity from one place to another doesn't have to be unsightly. What would Walt Disney do if he was in charge of designing electrical infrastructure? That was the reaction from Kurt Sullivan, vice chair …

September 25, 2014
Drugstore booze permit still in limbo

Two bright red banners at the former Apple Tree market in O.B. read “CVS Pharmacy – Coming Soon” but the future has become unclear because of protests to a pending application to sell beer, wine, …

Peaceful bees forcibly removed from Ocean Beach

While the rest of the country was getting ready for the Fourth of July, city parks employees worked to remove a few hundred bees that had collected under a picnic table at Brighton Street Park …

Zapf eludes O.B. Town Council

It's not uncommon for a roster of participants in a debate for elected office to include a representative for one of the candidates. Last October, when a previous engagement prevented Nathan Fletcher from attending a …

Showers closed at Robb Field Fitness Club

If you break a sweat during a workout at Robb Field Fitness Club — or if you're homeless and looking for a place to clean up — you'll have to find someplace else to take …

March 5, 2014
No drinking water at desert campground

Picnic tables — check. Fire pits — check. Hot showers — check. Flush toilets — check. Wash basins — check. Drinking water — check. Wait — go back to that last one. Turns out the …

Ocean Beach hosts visit by David Alvarez

With the mayoral election less than two weeks away, both candidates David Alvarez and Kevin Faulconer say they want to be a partner in the effort to build a new Veterans Plaza in Ocean Beach. …

January 31, 2014
Ocean Beach CVS store a "public convenience or necessity"

CVS Pharmacy, which wants to set up shop in the long-abandoned Apple Tree supermarket in Ocean Beach, can breathe a long sigh of relief following a decision by the San Diego Police Department to not …

January 25, 2014
Stop-sign war in Point Loma’s Wooded Area

The Peninsula Community Planning Board (PCPB) last month voted to remove three stop signs in the Wooded Area of Point Loma, but after allegations that the board violated the the state's open-meetings law (the Brown …

New Ocean Beach restroom to close at night?

Should the restrooms at the foot of Brighton Avenue in Ocean Beach be locked up at night? The city has given itself a time extension to decide, and some members of the public are none …

Ocean Beach ashcans cut down on cigarette litter

If you're still addicted to cigarettes but you're within easy reach of a place to dispose of that nasty stub, there's a good chance you're in Ocean Beach. Since launching the “Hold On To Your …

Ocean Beach residents decide on new sign design

There must be something special about that soaring seagull and that great big red letter O, which, like much of the community of Ocean Beach, leans to the left. The results of a long-awaited vote …

Homeless people drawn to former Apple Tree store in Ocean Beach

Police and members of the Ocean Beach Town Council say they're going to turn up the heat on the property owner who once leased to the former Apple Tree market: they say little is being …

Community garden at Robb Field?

An unremarkable dirt lot at the extreme northwest edge of Robb Field could make a dandy place for people who want to grow their own vegetables if an Ocean Beach man has his way. Just …

San Diego police to be booted from O.B. parking lot?

Should the police trailer in the Ocean Beach pier parking lot go somewhere else? Next week, the people will have their say. The trailer has been in the middle of the parking lot at the …

RV parking ban planned for streets west of I-5

An ordinance to ban recreational vehicles, boats, and trailers from parking overnight on public streets west of I-5 is in the works, said Michael Patton, representative for District 2 city councilmember Kevin Faulconer, at the …

Bilbray a No-Show, Peters Appreciative at Ocean Beach Forum

Brian Bilbray, Republican candidate for the 52nd congressional district on the November 6 ballot, was a no-show at a scheduled forum hosted by the Ocean Beach Town Council on October 24. With Bilbray absent, Scott …

October 31, 2012
Backyard Chicken Movement Scratches Around Ocean Beach

Would it be okay if an O.B. resident kept a couple chickens in their backyard? Rachel Hiner of the Urban Food Network posed that question last week at the monthly meeting of the Ocean Beach …

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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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