Bar Pink was the first victim, replaced by dark velvet, hipster vinyl and $15 cocktails. Next was the Lafayette, a beloved remnant of old Hollywood that sometimes smelled like the dampness of a museum. But its faded pink parasols and post-war architecture was a haven for locals looking for a summer pool dip or affordable lodgings.
The last straw was Gilly’s, El Cajon Boulevard’s pukiest karaoke dive bar, where you had to work to win over the bartenders who rarely looked anyone but regulars in the eye.
All three fell into investors’ “fat fingers,” writes our Will Huntsberry.
Huntsberry takes you on a journey crossing enemy lines into Bar Pink’s grave – now called Part Time Lover. He bought a drink and brooded:
“Part Time Lover is what happens to the world when investors and their capital descend on the beloved dive bars of this fine city. It is happening all around us. And we react with the apathy of a lush, too deep in his cups to care.”
This is a beef shared by many writers and bar flies who feel like they’re losing their homes to corporate takeover, rebrand and glow-up.
Read the full story here.
Beef Week is a special Voice of San Diego reporting theme week. Our reporters are following the biggest battles in the region. Read all the stories here.
Enforcement Numbers Low in Initial Months of Camping Ban
Police say they made just two arrests and issued nine citations for violations of the city’s new camping ban in the ordinance’s initial four months. They also reported giving 177 warnings between July 31 and Nov. 25.
The ordinance bars camping in all areas when shelter is available and in certain areas including in parks and near schools even when it’s not.
For now, police Capt. Shawn Takeuchi said, police are prioritizing enforcement in parks and near schools based on community and City Council office input.
“Enforcement of the unsafe camping ordinance is occurring in certain parks and schools in a phased approach,” Takeuchi wrote in an email. “This is to ensure outreach is occurring first prior to enforcement and emergency shelter capacity is not exceeded.”
In a statement to CBS 8, which first reported the enforcement statistics, Mayor’s Office spokeswoman Rachel Laing wrote that the enforcement has been “conducted consistently day in and day out” despite the low initial numbers. Laing also noted that city-backed homeless outreach workers are interacting with homeless San Diegans before the enforcement process begins, contributing to what she described as “the success of the Unsafe Camping Ordinance in clearing unlawful encampments.”
What’s also still happening: Police continue to cite homeless San Diegans for encroachment, which is essentially blocking a sidewalk with a tent. Police data provided after a public-records request showed that officers issued 22 citations and made two arrests for this offense from Nov. 2-14 alone.
Mayor Urges County to Proceed with Conservatorship Expansion
In a letter to County Board Chairwoman Nora Vargas, Mayor Todd Gloria argued her proposal that supervisors vote next week to delay implementation of a state bill expanding conservatorship eligibility would cost lives and be “an abdication of the county’s responsibility to provide the critical mental health services to the most vulnerable in our communities.”
What it is: SB 43, which would otherwise take effect Jan. 1, makes people struggling with severe addiction eligible for conservatorships. It’s expected to put more pressure on a treatment system now often unable to deliver immediate voluntary care.
The argument to postpone: Vargas, San Diego’s hospital association and others have argued that absent new treatment options, SB 43 could lead more people to cycle through hospital ERs without getting the care they need. They say more time and preparation are needed.
In Other News
- The Union-Tribune reports on new city data showing the city must more than triple its housing production to meet a state goal to deliver 108,000 new homes by 2029. Worth noting: As we’ve reported in the past, city data on new middle-income housing has long been unreliable.
- 2023 is sizing up to be another record- and back-breaking year for the number of people injured falling off San Diego’s border wall since the Trump Administration raised its height from 17 to 30 feet. (KPBS)
- A record number of migrating people entered South Bay Community Service’s doors Thursday. The center picks up people from border patrol processing centers in Otay Mesa after a screening process. (CBS 8)
- Embattled Chula Vista Councilwoman Andrea Cardenas has missed two City Council meetings since District Attorney Summer Stephan’s office filed criminal charges against her. KPBS looked into whether she could be removed for absences.
- The Union-Tribune got a peek inside San Diego’s new Amazon package sorting center which processes 18,000 packages an hour using robots and human labor.
The Morning Report was written by MacKenzie Elmer and Lisa Halverstadt. It was edited by Andrea Lopez-Villafaña.
So VOSD has discovered minimal enforcement and citations for the illegal sidewalk camping by the criminal vagrants. But you will be excited to learn that the traffic cops eagerly give citations to cars “illegally” parked on city streets, while right in front of the illegal camps. Todd G. would be proud.