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Already this month, we’ve enjoyed a supermoon, with a “blue moon” yet to come. Our planes are flying. The number of daylight minutes is growing.
Traffic and Weather Together…
- Our early Tuesday “bomb cyclone” was at least not icy, and it dropped the first meaningful rain in months.
- Motoring up or down the Peninsula, choose Chatsworth or Sunset Cliffs. Avoid Catalina and Rosecrans. (Details ahead)
Get a flu shot if you have not. Remember, next Monday is Martin Luther King Day. Trash will be picked up, mail will not. That day you could read a book about civil rights at the library, if it were open. It is not.
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The week between December 25th and January 1st is often a lull. The eye of the social storm. This year some folks on the website, Nextdoor, livened up the lull by considering this question:
“Are homes located in the Point Loma Heights neighborhood that have a 92107 zip code considered to be in Point Loma or Ocean Beach?”
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Mostly it was good fun and casual conversation. Although as with any public forum where people are not required to look other people in the eye before speaking, a few contributors got snarky.
Here’s a sample of the civil comments:
I might be wrong, but I believe that the term 'Point Loma Heights' was created for realtors purposes, but is part of Ocean Beach.
We have lived in the 92107 zip code for 56 years, yet we do not have a vote in the Ocean Beach community plan.
The way it was explained to me is that the entire peninsula is "Point Loma" but everyone loves small neighborhood names, thus Loma Portal, Sunset Cliffs, La Playa, Ocean Beach, Roseville
I'm 92107 and I say Point Loma. I live a block from PLHS and it's silly to say OB when I live the furthest from the area but closest to the high school.
If you have "an attitude, not an address," you're in O.B.
We live right on Chatsworth, which has the 92107 zip code on our side of the street. Across the street it is 92106. If I am talking to young people and want to be hip I say I live in OB. If I am talking to older people and want to be more sophisticated, I say I live in Point Loma.
Who cares!
Good point. 92106 or 07 are a lot more desirable and considerably safer than some addresses across the nation. People living in 60612, 19123 or 44104 have serious issues to discuss.
PLA is an organization striving – along with many other Peninsula groups – to highlight what we have in common. We advocate celebrating uniqueness of people and places while embracing one another as friends and neighbors.
We were going to write something about that. But this Nextdoor post from Nancy McHenry of Northeast Ocean Beach says it perfectly:
Long, long before “zip codes” we were a community of “one” neighborhood! Seems like we’ve lost that somehow over the years not only at the OB/PL level but nationwide. We attended our “local” schools, no choosing, attended church either on one side of the hill or the other, no one’s address meant you were a have or a have not and I speak from experience. We definitely hung out together, partied together and watched out for each other. 92107 or 92106 like Karen said “who cares” I think maybe the newer members of our neighborhood might. It would be great to shake off this stigma that has developed and again become one neighborhood. Happy New Year to all my 92106 friends from a proud 92107 local.
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It’s almost like, let’s all stand together or…
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Where Am I?
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This cowboy is new in town. But he’s not keeping a low profile. We wonder who he’s after. Where have you seen him? Or have you?
Another hint a bit later, and as always, the full answer at the end of this letter.
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Utility Box Art
PLA makes it possible, and we thank local artists who make it happen. We’ll highlight a few recent additions in this letter.
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Miguel’s parking lot Artist: June Rubin
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Point Loma Park on Catalina Artist: Taylor Aldrich
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Channel Changing
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The City and the Navy are working on the waterway beside NTC Park at Liberty Station.
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They’re dredging to remove hazards after decades of runoff from the military base and airport.
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When work is completed, opportunities for boating will increase. That could include ferry or water taxi service between the Public Market / Stone Brewing area (northern end) of Liberty Station and hotels to the south and even San Diego Bay.
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The sign says the work will continue until March.
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When we learn more, we’ll tell you about it in a new feature we’re calling, The Dredge Report.
This is cool. We’re not sure where these pilings came from or may be going, but it was too good a picture to pass up.
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Need an easel? Start with a tree.
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Hugh Story always did things in a big way. A lot of those things benefit our community to this day.
"Hugh was more dedicated to Point Loma than any individual I know. He was a legend, really, an innovator and a genius in accomplishing what he wanted done."
That’s a quote from Dick Lareau, former Chair of the Point Loma Association. Among Hugh’s many accomplishments was creation of the Mean Green Team, the volunteers who work to beautify the Peninsula.
Hugh Story is credited with planting about 700 trees in our community.
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So when the PLA needed easels, rather than going to Staples, Hugh looked to trees.
He hand crafted sturdy easels!
Easels that could stand firm in gale force winds.
Really big easels to hold and display really big whatever, that needed holding and displaying.
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If you’re thinking Hugh built easels using the same heavy-duty poles he used to stake pine trees in the Nimitz median…you’re right!
But these big, sturdy Lincoln log easels really needed big, sturdy Lincoln loggers to lift and move them.
We could have used them on the windy Kona Kai deck at our dinner party last fall.
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But Hugh’s easels were a bit overbuilt for most occasions. So they faded deep into PLA storage.
Good news!
Westminster Presbyterian Church – on the breezy slopes of Point Loma – has a large park, a neighborhood garden and an ampitheater, so sturdy easels are perfect for displaying stuff at those locations.
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The church is pleased to receive our gift, and we are so happy the easels have a new home, where they’ll be used and appreciated as the creator intended!
(But if one begins to topple, run away fast!)
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Commodore Hugh Goodman Story, Sr. passed away in August, 2006, at age 85.
Hugh helped preserve a rose garden at the Naval Training Center during the transition from military base to the Liberty Station community.
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In 2010, in his memory, the city unveiled the Hugh Story Memorial Rose Garden at NTC Park.
These roses are lovingly cared for by the PLA Mean Green Team. We even have a Rose Team!
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This time of year there is much to do to insure a future of beautiful flowers. Lack of rain for many months stressed the plants, allowing insects and disease to attack.
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Who you gonna call?
Debbie Hall…
Bug Buster!
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Team members pruned bushes last week.
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They also replaced some roses.
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Getting rid of plant debris is an important part of the job. Complete removal prevents infected clippings from affecting healthy bushes.
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Hugh Story was a submariner. The periscope in the Point Loma Hervey Library was his idea and accomplishment. We think he would appreciate that the Hugh Story Memorial Rose Garden is close by the 52 Boats Memorial honoring sailors and subs now on “eternal patrol.”
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Completing this circle of life, the PLA Mean Green Team also diligently tends the sub memorial.
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It’s not just landscaping.
They are cleaning and polishing the granite monuments.
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Here is Jan Heidt working hard to make sure everything passes inspection.
Visiting the 52 Boats Memorial is a moving experience. Pause to read the stories. Remember that, many of the men honored here, once marched the same ground on which you stand.
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Dorothy Lord
In our year end newsletter we wrote about Ed Streicher and Blanche Welch, two Mean Green Team members who passed away in 2017.
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Another loss this past year was dedicated volunteer Dorothy Lord.
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After years of teaching, participating in activities with her three daughters, planning amazing family trips and working with numerous community organizations, Dorothy accomplished more in “retirement” than many people do in a lifetime.
We at PLA are so happy and thankful that she shared her energy, talents and personality with us along the way. The MGT misses Dorothy mightily, but joins her husband. Alan, and extended family in celebrating the life of Dorothy Lord.
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Last month, PLA members placed wreaths at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery.
Through the holiday season they looked beautiful!
Unlike a year ago, when winter storms battered the red and greenery, the 2017 wreaths survived intact.
Still, the time arrived to gather and remove them. Again, PLA answered the call.
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Pete Buerger and Becky Wieder, filling Mr. Ed’s bed.
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Our thanks to all who helped and everyone who contributed to Wreaths Across America.
Our Green Team members have come up with a wonderful idea for wreath placement at another location for the 2018 winter holidays. We’ll tell you about it in the months ahead.
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You won’t believe how easy it is
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Point Loma High School Artist: Belinda DiLeo
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Optimist Club box on Catalina
Artist: Linda Churchill
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Where Am I?
Clue
We don’t usually give you clues, but this is your lucky day.
Do ya feel lucky? Well, do ya?
The dude we showed you earlier is often seen alongside this gunslinger.
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New Board Members
Please join us in welcoming the latest additions to our Point Loma Association Board of Directors…Branden Boysen and Mike McCurdy. Click on their photos to learn more about them!
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Branden Mike
(Neither one is the silhouette in the window above. Pretty sure)
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The owners of the new Dunkin’ Donuts on Rosecrans replaced the previous water-guzzling landscaping…
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with water-wise vegetation...
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That inspired Sabatini’s Liquor Store next door to join the party.
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Things are lookin’ good in the neighborhood!
(Ooh. We just got a slight whiff of Applebees.)
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Kiwanis & Lions on Catalina Artist: John Busher
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Lollipop Trees
These perfectly manicured trees in Loma Portal remind us of lollipops.
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Funny thing. In searching for a photo to illustrate our observation, we made an interesting scientific discovery.
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Click the green pop and see if you think it might work with Raider’s fans.
There is also a song called Lollipop. But if you are under age fifty, please, please do not click here to listen to it. It might hurt your sensitive ears and it definitely would embarrass all of us.
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A tip of the hat to Point Loma Assembly and La Playa Books for collecting more than 400 books for pre-k through fifth grade students at Cabrillo Elementary School.
Nicely done!
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We welcome La Playa Books to the Point Loma Association. They are now a Silver Business Member. We appreciate their support and look forward to partnering with them on projects and events to benefit the community.
After all, our members share their motto…
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Hire the Homeless?
Helping people whose street address is just, “the street”, takes complex effort. Food, shelter, physical & mental medical attention, counseling – so many basics must be offered and accepted to clear a path to stability.
How about a job? Meaningful work is a blessing. But even just having “a job” can make a person feel blessed, valued and happy to be alive.
Not everyone living on the streets wants to move off. But for those who do, earning some money and rediscovering the satisfaction of accomplishment might be a key to starting over.
Cites like Denver, Colorado, are testing that theory. Denver Day Works began in November, 2016. In the past year, more than 280 people had work opportunities. They worked over 10-thousand hours, generating more than $100,000 in wages. The program provides temporary jobs. And 110 of the participants now have found permanent employment.
The Denver pilot program was inspired by a similar one in Albuquerque. Dallas and Tucson have such programs, and Sacramento is exploring the idea.
Locally, thanks to funding from City Councilmember Lorie Zapf, Pacific Beach has a similar program. It’s run by the Pacific Beach Street Guardians.
The councilmember told us, “The PB Street Guardians create transitional employment opportunities for those experiencing homelessness to earn a wage and gain experience for future long-term employment. I couldn’t be more supportive of this idea and stand ready to assist any organization looking to replicate their efforts.”
We wonder…
Would such a program work on a larger scale in San Diego?
If so, could a collaboration of City, County, State and Federal agencies provide the framework and resources to make it happen?
In addition to Councilmember Zapf, we asked these questions of the Mayor and our county, state and federal government representatives.
A spokesperson for Mayor Faulconer responded quickly, expressing support for Lorie Zapf’s program but adding, “I don’t believe a program of that nature would work in San Diego because we can’t take work away from city workers due to union contracts.”
County Supervisor Ron Roberts spoke of the need for a comprehensive effort, not just short term work: “I’m not convinced this program would be effective in our region due to the fact that low-wage work is unlikely to be successful in addressing the problems that keep many on the streets. Our efforts are best focused on getting people into housing, pairing them with the right intervention, and investing in existing workforce reentry programs to produce successful outcomes. The Supervisor singled out Veterans Village Group as an example.
State Assemblymember Todd Gloria also touted existing services: “I am grateful for local programs such as the Alpha Project’s Take Back the Streets that offers employment opportunities to homeless and formerly homeless individuals, and I commend communities that come together to find real solutions to this complex issue.”
Representative Scott Peters did not respond directly to our questions, but wrote, “In San Diego, we know innovation is often the key to solving problems and our city has a lot to teach the world about leading through collaboration. Addressing homelessness requires getting San Diego our fair share of resources, but while we work toward changing the HUD formula and other federal opportunities, we should also explore solutions right here at home. It will require all levels of government to work together toward the same goal, and our office is able and ready to help.”
As part of this discussion, we have a question for you.
Do you, or would you, donate to a program that hires homeless people to work on public projects for a limited time as part of a larger effort to help them get off of the streets?
Please, share your thoughts.
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A Two State Solution
No. We are not wading into the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.
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That is not something we are willing to weigh in on.
However. We have found a wonderful illustration of cultural differences supporting the idea that we are not one, big homogenous Golden State.
Below are two vehicles, each expressing the owner’s (creator’s?) life-view. Neither wants to settle for ordinary. But what constitutes creative improvement differs greatly.
Guess which of these creations was captured in Northern California and which on Shelter Island.
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Okay. The background gives it away. But still.
Happy motoring.
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Rosecrans across from Ralphs Artist: Linda Churchill
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Enjoy these two boxes now! Soon they will be gone.
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City crews are beginning, what’s described as, an improvement project at the intersection of Rosecrans and Nimitz. It will create double turn lanes north and south bound for vehicles turning left on Nimitz.
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Real estate needed for widening will come from here.
Decorated boxes will disappear.
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When the dust settles, perhaps Ms. Churchill could beautify the replacements.
The traffic mitigation project is required by the City as part of the development of Liberty Station. Really.
For the next eight months or so, this crucial intersection will be one to avoid. Many of us will forget and, out of habit and routine, wade into the mess.
If you want to prevent that, we suggest you print a copy of our PLA 2017 Sign of the Year and tape it to your dashboard…
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You can also use that sign to remind you of another road to avoid: Catalina. They’re baaack!
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On Monday (January 15) construction will resume on the City’s Emergency Pipeline Replacement Project.
Most work is scheduled from 7:00 am to 3:30 pm.
Here’s the area affected and the planned detours.
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Liberty Station Arts District
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To see what’s happening this month, click the photo above!
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Naturally Speaking, the Cabrillo National Monument science education series continues a week from today.
Check it out!
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The PLNU Writers Symposium by the Sea begins soon.
Dr. Dean Nelson has lined up some amazing guests!
Details here.
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These guys hit town (actually the Village) just before the holidays. Old paint brought ‘em here. Not the horse. Actual, old paint.
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The Village Store on Rosecrans needed a new coat of paint and the buckskin buddies showed up in the process.
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What’s their backstory? You decide. Summon up your inner Larry McMurtry, Elmore Leonard or David Milch and spin a western yarn.
Just don’t write a scene where either of these guys gets thrown off the balcony. Usually there are cars below.
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Archived we are!
Here’s a great way to turn back time and check out previous editions of our Point Loma Association e-Newsletter.
It's also an easy way to send a link to a friend.
Visit our PLA e-News Archives.
Thanks for letting us into your day. Have issues, comments, suggestions or story ideas? Please let us know.
YOU ARE THE POINT!
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PLA Membership - Join Us!
Are You A PLA Member? Need To Update Your Membership?
You can do that right here!
We have both personal and business membership plans to fit your every need. We hope you'll consider joining us!
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