Owls and emotions in South Park canyon

No, 28th Street, which is on the west side of the five ravine parcels, would not be the access and wouldn't be paved. If you click on the photo you'll see how Fir dead ends; the City would grant an easement for a little segment beyond that, which would be the access point for the new homes, via a paved segment extending Fir into an access driveway for all of the homes, starting at the house closest to Fir. Then the access drive would extend on to the other four homes, each having their own entry driveway off of the access drive. The access drive to all five homes would be taking the place of the usual sidewalk/easement width seen in front of South Park houses throughout the area.
— December 27, 2015 1:22 p.m.

Owls and emotions in South Park canyon

"Portions of it are popular among joggers, hikers, and dog-walkers." Well, not really. The 50x100-foot parcel beyond Kipperman's rear property line and chain-link fence is a ravine; it and the other four parcels south of it are buildable with grading, but not easily usable or enjoyed by anyone as of now (except for the 1800-block Granada property owners, who enjoy not having rear neighbors). The unpaved segment of 28th Street, west of the ravine lots and bordering Park land, is what gets the foot traffic (see photo). Like the Granada lots and all other lots in South Park, these five lots were first mapped out in the early 1900s, based on the early San Diego Pueblo Lots offered for sale by the city to investors in the 1800s, after California was granted statehood and San Diego was handed over by Mexico to the US. As usual, early land investors promoted the sale of lots by creating parcel maps that were drawn up without the benefit of a surveyor. All over South Park, there are mapped lots on slopes and ravines. Some are built, some aren't. Some have been declared Open Space by the city (such as along the 1800-block of Bancroft, on Juniper Canyon). Just north of Kipperman, on the other side of Fir, the ravine has a very nice house and outdoor area. I can relate to a Granada resident not wanting the new property owner to build on the lots behind Granada, but it's important to not exaggerate the facts. This isn't about preserving open space or protecting a canyon or owls. There are owls and all sorts of birds and critters in every tree, yard, ravine, and canyon in South Park. The only thing endangered here is the privacy and status quo of the Granada property owners. http://www.sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2015/d…
— December 24, 2015 12:42 p.m.

Christina Chadwick has more than a friend at city hall

"Kris Michell ... also spread a little political wealth, kicking in $250 for city-council candidate Chris Ward" Sad to learn that. Chris Ward is much better educated and more capable in every way to represent D3, compared to Gloria's toadie, Bernal. But if Michell doesn't find Bernal enough of a willing toadie to serve her interests, and prefers Ward, then maybe Ward won't be such a great choice. The lesser of two evils is what we are tired of having to choose.
— November 18, 2015 12:24 p.m.

Green invasion

The worst, ugliest introduced invasive plant in San Diego is Bermuda grass. It cannot be killed or removed easily. The rhizomes live on underground even when the surface growth is dead-looking, brown and ugly. With any moisture - or none! - the aboveground growth resumes and spreads messily for great distances, festooning shrubs and flower bed with messy, ugly strands. The grass destroys the appearance of every garden; it grows in cement and asphalt cracks in curbs and streets. Kate Sessions warned early San Diegans against introducing it. I wish they had heeded her warning.
— October 1, 2015 9:19 a.m.

SEC kicks Ray Lucia's "Buckets of Money" ploy

A few mornings recently I've turned on local CBS Channel 8, to see a financial-advisory/investment sales pitch infomercial by Ray Lucia, Jr. How does Lucia, Sr. cease "associating with an investment advisor, broker, or dealer" if that includes his son, with whom he is living? And who in the San Diego market would NOT have negative associations with the name, junior or senior? Richard II: > "That owes two buckets, filling one > another, The emptier ever dancing in > the air,..."
— September 7, 2015 5:09 p.m.

Online community helps police in bike theft bust

South Park neorealism: "You live and you suffer. ...Why should I kill myself working when I'll end up just as dead?" "I've been cursed since the day I was born....Your mother and her prayers can't help us." -- Lamberto Maggiorani, as Antonio Ricci, 1948, in *The Bicycle Thief*.
— August 6, 2015 10:49 a.m.

Country breakfast? Ribs and cornbread

Ribs sound great! But i wish that the cornbread would be salty, not sweet. So much better. Too much sugar is too much sugar. Really, Kenny and Bonnie jean: try it. Just leave out the sugar - make the cornbread a **contrast** to the other sweet items. you will LOVE it!
— August 5, 2015 6:21 p.m.

Pacific Beach revolt against Deco Bikes

Ponzi: What is of interest here is the completely untransparent nature of the San Diego government and Deco Bike's interactions with the neighborhood residents/business people. For starters, there was no RFP. Deco Bike got a deal with San Diego's Department of Corporate Partnership (Natasha Collura, Director of Strategic Partnerships). There was no community input, and the City revealed in the Council Exec Summary that marketing of the agreement would occur only **after** the partnership was made. San Diego's Natasha Collura is quoted in "I[nside the Evolving World of Marketing][1]," which states that > While public/private partnerships can > be mutually beneficial, municipalities > face several significant hurdles in > getting programs up and running. Those > include the following: > > Gaining buy-in from government officials and the public > A Reluctance by marketers to use the RFP bidding process > The lack of dedicated staff to manage relationships [1]: http://www.sponsorship.com/iegsr/2014/02/03/Insid… San Diego side-stepped one of these problems, by not bothering to get any buy-in from the public prior to inking an agreement. The problem in Long Beach, NY, appears related to the son-in-law of Long Beach's Assistant Corporation Counsel Noreen Costello. He is Liam Murphy, founder and CEO of Real Change Productions, a marketing firm that has Deco Bike as a client. There was an investigation, but the City Manager said neither Murphy nor Costello would benefit (really?), so it was OK. Well, it didn't turn out OK, evidently. A Long Beach blog, http://www.seabythecity.com, has various stories about Deco Bike's failure, claiming that the company lost a lot of money there before the City terminated the deal. I'd love to know who in Deco Bike knew whom, in San Diego government. The founders of Deco Bike have a few instances of shaky financial histories in Miami.
— July 29, 2015 4:28 p.m.

Pacific Beach revolt against Deco Bikes

The agreement, May 7, 2013, between City and Deco Bike LLC is in the following link: http://docs.sandiego.gov/councilcomm_agendas_atta… On page 13, the financial agreement is detailed. It's very hard to find out much about Deco Bike's finances, but I suspect they are not doing well. Deco Bike has struggled financially in the Miami area over the past few years. They charge more than any of the other bike-sharing companies, per the Boston Globe: http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/04/17/hubwa… Deco Bike's contract with Long Beach, New York, was terminated and the city gave the contract to Social Bicycles (SoBi): http://liherald.com/stories/Social-Bicycles-launc…
— July 29, 2015 12:37 p.m.

Faulconer's political guru out as stadium lobbyist

Delaware North outbid San Diegan Diane Powers in 2005 and took control of the stores/restaurants in Old Town. They lasted about 3 years. Powers had many years of success operating the concessions before she was outbid. Out-of-towner Delaware North had no clue about what anyone - residents and tourists alike - wanted to experience in Old Town, and the park facilities and number of visitors quickly declined. Interesting that Faulconer thinks that DN can do better than another local concessioner. Or maybe the idea is to make Qualcomm fail.
— July 24, 2015 3:19 p.m.