That was then

Encinitas, 1967.

New bike lanes from Kook to Swami’s

Fox 5:

Local surfers are frustrated with the idea of altering an area that always struggles with parking.

“What they’ve done is they’ve kind of made a war on surfers. You’re going to see a lot of guys really upset,” said Paul Ambrogio, a longtime Swami’s surfer.

The bike lanes can seem complicated and it may take some time for people to get use to the new system. For example, FOX 5 witnessed a driver driving in the protected biking lane.

Blakespear raising funds for legal defense of her illegal censorship of constituents

Lost Coast Outpost:

A first-term state senator is raising money from interest groups to fight ongoing litigation related to complaints that she blocked critics on social media in her previous job as a mayor.

Sen. Catherine Blakespear, an Encinitas Democrat who was elected to the Senate in November, opened the legal defense fund at the end of January and has raised $17,500 so far, in addition to receiving legal assistance from the California Democratic Party, according to campaign finance records.

Blakespear appears to be the only legislator with an active legal defense fund. The contributions include $12,000 from the Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters and $5,500 from the Pechanga Band of Indians, both of which lobby at the state Capitol.

Blakespear declined to discuss the case in depth because it is still active, but she defended using her legislative position to fundraise for her legal bills.

Senator Blakespear appears to be the only member of the legislature who is collecting a legal defense fund.

5/24/23 City Council meeting open thread

 Please use the comments to record your observations.

New multi-million-dollar condos above downtown Encinitas featured in San Diego Magazine

San Diego Magazine:

Taste is subjective, but it’s no secret that established beachside communities, like Encinitas, are resistant to topographic shifts—particularly when height and population density are involved. The question is how to mitigate the fear of change with the necessity of housing in these legacy communities.

Scott M. Maas is the principal architect at Field X Studio, the firm behind the F Street Residences. He concedes that there was accrued ambivalence from both the citizens and the city.

“The Highlands [is] the oldest neighborhood in the city, for sure, and you don’t see a lot of new projects there. It’s very old houses that have been there for a long time, and many people who live in those houses are multigenerational and don’t really like to see the change,” Maas explains.

Encinitas Undercover comments spark criminal investigation

Coast News:

Law enforcement has opened an investigation into a slew of anonymous posts threatening physical and sexual violence against several local women in an online discussion board, according to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.

Both law enforcement and residents have reported parallels between the language used in several anonymous posts on the Blogger forum Encinitas Undercover and public Facebook statements by former Encinitas mayoral candidate Jeff Morris.

Sgt. Heather Bruton of the sheriff’s North Coastal Station confirmed they had received multiple complaints of online harassment related to the anonymous posts and continue to investigate the matter.

EU readers are well aware of the recent explosion of abusive comments. We've tried to monitor and moderate, but it's been a herculean task with the time and energy a few people seem to have for posting vitriol.

EU is in contact with law enforcement and will help identify IP addresses.

5/17/23 City Council meeting open thread

 Please use the comments to record your observations.

5/10/23 City Council meeting open thread

 Please use the comments to record your observations. 

Plans for another crosswalk on 101

Encinitas Advocate:

All the recent improvements to trails, walkways and cycle paths at the Solana Beach/ Encinitas city limits are tempting upwards of 200 pedestrians a day on weekends to dash across Coast Highway at a spot where there’s no crosswalks.

Encinitas and Solana Beach are now exploring options for solving this problem and the consultant they’ve jointly hired has produced three proposals, city traffic engineer Abe Bandegan told the Encinitas Mobility and Traffic Safety Commission Monday, May 8. However, he said, each option has its downsides.

Aging in place

Jim the Realtor discusses the low inventory of houses for sale and the aging of the local population.

If you’ve got a low mortgage, massive capital gains, and a low Prop 13 tax base, where else you gonna go?

City wants more money from Little League families

After blowing $10 million on an "arts center" that has remained vacant and dilapidated for almost a decade, city government now wants to put the squeeze on Little League families.

Encinitas Advocate:

One big proposed change would be the increase in field rental costs for recreational youth sports groups. These groups currently don’t pay a field rental fee, unless they need to use the field lights. Under the new proposal, groups with 70 percent or more of their members living in Encinitas would pay a $5-an-hour field use fee, plus a $5 per-person fee for the non-residents in their organization. Groups who don’t meet the 70 percent standard would pay $10 hour, plus the $5 per-person, non-resident fee.

Encinitas Little League President Ted Haberfield told the commissioners the proposed changes would likely add 10 percent to 20 percent to his organization’s annual budget. Most of the organization’s funding comes from the participating families and “I couldn’t imagine having to increase fees,” he said.

The league, which represents some 700 families, has paid for many improvements to the fields over the years and that ought to be considered in the city’s calculations, he stressed.

Local blog features prominently in shocking conspiracy

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Shatto rebuilds

Coast News:

ENCINITAS — The once cherished 100-year-old building that burnt down in a two-alarm fire over three years ago has been replaced by former tenant Jim Shatto with a modern structure featuring a sizeable exterior mural by local artist Kevin Anderson.

After months of hard work, the Shatto Building, located on the corner of Daphne Street and North Coast Highway 101, is nearing the finish line. The longtime Leucadia business owner is hopeful to open by July 1.

Before the fire, multiple tenants, including Shatto & Sons T-Shirts, Mozy Café, Cali Life and Peace Pies, resided in the building.

“The original building was over a hundred years old, and we were here in our family business for 44 years before it burned down,” Shatto said.

The family t-shirt business will not be reopening at the new location, but Shatto has confirmed three tenants have already agreed to move into the building this summer.

Peace Pies, Leucadia Barbershop, and a yet-to-be-determined restaurant from Encinitas-based entrepreneur Mario Guerra, owner of Corner Pizza, Moto Deli, and Valentina, will all be tenants in the new location.