The City Council Meeting last night brought encouraging results. Three members voted to have the new Sheriff Department Captain research ways to continue the 2-deputy patrol on foot downtown from his existing staff and two members voted for hiring a new Deputy. In the case of a new hire, all 5 members of the City Council must agree [actually, a 3-2 majority would suffice].
Another piece of good news is that Encinitas's new Captain Maryon will head up the Encinitas Sheriff's Department. He has worked a beat in Encinitas in the past and so is "hitting the ground running." He is eager to continue former Captain Hydar's 2-deputy team and will be working on ways to show City Council how that can take place -- both with and without a new hire. Either way, it's a win/win situation for the Encinitas Citizens Committee.
Also good news is the City's hire of Karen Burst who is now the City Manager. She impressed us as someone who will have an emphasis on public input, and will meet with citizens to listen to their concerns. The ECC will schedule a meeting with her soon.
We are encouraged that the City seems more committed than ever to protecting its citizens and to take necessary actions to curb the disturbances that plague Encinitas.
For instance, the City recently issued citations to Shelter/Saloon. The owner disputed the citations the Bar was given for excessive noise and obstruction of the sidewalk. An administrative hearing by an independent hearing officer determined that the owner's defense was baseless. He had to pay the $300.00 for the three fines and comply with direction to follow the codes in the future. Surely this will serve to set the example to bar owners that the City means business.
Stay tuned for more encouraging events.......
Friday, October 30, 2015
And now for something completely different
From the Inbox, from the Encinitas Citizens Committee (downtown residents group):
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It's going to take more than a $300.00 fine to change the behavior of a bar that makes that much money. You need to get the ABC to come in and charge them as a disruptive house. Until they have the threat of their liquor license being revoked, you're not going to see a big change...
ReplyDeleteKeep being optimistic, but the reality is that the council has delayed action for 3 years. On Wednesday, they put it off for another 6 plus months. Kranz, Shaffer, and Blakespear don't want to spend money on sheriff enforcement. Muir and Gaspar protect the bar owners. This problem with the bars and unruly patrons should have been stopped immediately years ago.
ReplyDeleteWe need a new council.
We need law enforcement that makes better use of their $48 million per year we pay them.
DeleteSheriff's deputies exchange shifts, with the intent of getting overtime. This practice needs to be reviewed for legitimacy and stopped if it is just a money enhancement scheme.
DeleteDo explain
DeleteIt's going to take an action by the ABC, or the cops sitting on the bar 24/7 at night to effect a real change. Don't think for a minute that a different council is going to make a big difference. No council wants to shut down a business in this city without a huge amount of provocation, like a stabbing or a huge riot.
ReplyDeleteDon't get me wrong, I feel bad for the folks that live downtown, but I always knew this day was coming, that there would be a critical mass of bars downtown and then the party would be on. You need more than 2-3 cops to make a change, try at least 10 in cars around downtown. Only when the threat of a lost liquor and/or drivers license is at stake will you see behaviors change.
It is the council that is leading this parade. Yes, a new council could make a difference. This council has proven that their interests do not include preserving the residential community. As for the sales tax income from the bars, no information has been proven. The council can also ask for ABC's help. Encinitas is over the limit of bars.
ReplyDeleteThe goal should be to encourage both patrons and proprietors of a handful of problem establishments to be better neighbors.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, the ETL loses credibility when the pitchfork and torch crowd starts calling for shutting down many businesses.
I think the email to EU was well written. I'm also optimistic that pressure is slowly building on the few bad apples. Let's hope they make a few changes and become better neighbors.
This is 1:46 again.
ReplyDeleteI also think it's curious that the only bar to have its license suspended for a serious offense (bartenders dealing hard drugs to undercover cops) is never mentioned here.
Why is that?
I suspect it's tribal and nativist. In other words, some degree of the outrage directed at "vibrancy" is actually code for anger that new people with more money are coming in.
Is it possible that jealousy or generational bias is coloring the debate?
Totally different neighborhood.
DeleteThose neighbors aren't bothered enough to organize.
Not really true. While Leucadia is a totally different neighborhood, we haven't got the amount of bars nor the scale of the issues they have downtown.
DeleteI think the actions of some of the neighbors was what got the cops to put an undercover officer in the bar we're apparently not going to name. So people are involved, but that bar doesn't have that many houses around it and a lot of people consider it the community spot.
DeleteThere's another bar in Leucadia that's worse on the dealing, but it's a smaller, older crowd, so you don't hear about it.
We have a problem in this problem with binge drinking and a lack of consideration, and it's not just younger people.
Hopefully they can weed out the bad apples downtown and figure it out, because you aren't going to run those corporate owned bars out of town.
I made a conscious effort not to move down that way, because I knew this day was coming. Apparently other people didn't....
"a lot of people consider it the community spot."
DeleteThat's exactly my point about nativism.
We tend to be much more aware and outraged when some group outside our own circle does wrong. When it's our "local" watering hole, that we go to (or did when we were younger), we might overlook much more serious crimes.
Imagine if Union got caught with bartenders dealing drugs. How would the response here compare to the BL response?
That wasn't my point. I personally went there only to see bands. Haven't really been in there much in 10 years, maybe once or twice. Clearly I had no idea the bartender was dealing, although apparently a lot of regulars did.
DeleteAs a bar owner, you have to know what' s going down at your place. That's the ultimate no-no, up there with serving minors. So they got what they deserved. The old owner ended up selling out, and now it's a new owner. Not okay to have dope dealing at a bar or restaurant. Not ok for the Union or anyone in town.
My point was the XXXX is not the Union, or the Daley Double or whatever it's now called. If you run a disorderly house, you should be nailed. But thanks to cutbacks (yes in the government) of ABC officers, apparently there's no chance of catching them will a real violation.
Like I say, you either have to cops sitting on the bar (?Like they did to Sharky's back in the 1990's after a bouncer hit a cop) or you have to have the ABC leaning on the joint. Those are your two options...
4:16,
DeleteI agree with everything you said. Not trying to contradict you. I was just making a different observation. Namely that public opinion, and the subjective perception of "vibrancy" problems is probably influenced by factors other than the frequency and severity of real violations.
Remember the days of Officer Shultz? He and his wife sort of shook down local businesses downtown in order for them to remain on his good side. He'd go into the Daily Double and harass patrons. He was definnbitely on a power trip, but those were quieter days downtown. Someone would probably clock him in today's vibrant atmosphere.
ReplyDeleteFred would remember - he recalls when dinosaurs roamed the area.
DeleteToday @6:10 PM
ReplyDeleteMan carjacked at gunpoint outside Oggi's Pizza on Encinitas Blvd.
Desperately trying to get to Scripps after eating at Oggi's!
DeleteWe could actually make a docu-drama about what happened when the Lumberyard allowed Dan Trifone of DEMA, Dan's Easy Money Association, to share an office with the Deputy Sheriff where Christy would recount all the violations of the constitution she had witnessed as a Darkside Deputy and Dan and Christy would blew smoke rings that hovered over Dave Schultz's desk, each somnambulant ring rising to the ceiling giving proof to the frictional relationship between the psychologically mismatched duo of 'Dave and Dan'.
ReplyDeleteMaybe Michael J. Fox as Dan and Cait Jenner as Dave, Sharon Stone as Christy with Omar Sharif occasionally dropping by playing Shoja and Randy Quaid and Dennis Quaid as the two brothers running a lawn mower repair shop.
And a released Charles Manson portraying Bob Nanninga and Gincarlo Gianini playing Pino, with Mark Grant doing an occasional episode as a Danish Baker with plans
Great scripting!
DeleteAw, Dave Schultz. I remember a photo of him on the front page of a local paper holding a man on the ground at gun point. Turned out the man on the ground was a plain clothes officer. Those were the days my friend. But the sharing of the DEMA office with the Sheriff's Dept. to save money was doomed from the start and never happened.
DeleteBob N. would have his own show, there's not enough room on that marquee. Encinitas misses that guy....
Deletesomnambulant,
ReplyDeleteBeautiful!