Pipeline replacement to close Cañon Street
Work began March 21 on a Point Loma pipeline replacement project that will close Cañon Street from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. through expected completion on May 15.
“The project started in October 2017 and is ongoing,” said city spokesman Alec Phillipp. “Work on Cañon Street just began, and is on-schedule to be completed in mid-May. There will be other, miscellaneous closures between May 15 and project completion in fall 2018 due to trench repair, street resurfacing, striping, etc,” Phillipp said.
The public will have advanced notification of all street closure dates, according to Phillipp. Planning board vacancy
The Peninsula Community Planning Board has a vacancy for a remaining one-year term and the public is invited to apply.
The position on the 15-member advisory board will be filled by a vote of the seated planning board members at the Thursday April 19 meeting (6:30 to 9 p.m. in the Point Loma /Hervey branch library at 3701 Voltaire St.)
The vacancy was created by the recent resignation of board member Laura Miller. The board just concluded an election to fill five seats that already was in process.
Persons interested in being considered for the position must meet several requirements:
– Be at least 18 years of age.
– Reside, own property or operate a business within the PCPB boundaries.  (The district includes Point Loma except for Ocean Beach north of Adair and west of Froude.  A map and vacancy-filling details are on the website [email protected].)
– Submit a completed application to election chair Fred Kosmo by April 16 at [email protected].
The board meets the third Thursday of each month, typically going dark in August and December. It gets first crack at advising on projects and planning issues on the Peninsula.
For more information, visit pcpb.net or email Fred Kosmo at [email protected]. Easter Sunrise Service
The Kiwanis Club of Point Loma will again present an ecumenical Easter Sunrise Service at the Cabrillo National Monument. The services will be held in the lower parking lot, giving those who attend a great early morning panoramic view of San Diego Harbor and the city.
Club president Joanna DaCosta points out that this year’s services will mark the 69th consecutive year that the Kiwanis Club of Point Loma has provided this popular community service for San Diego.
 Gates to Cabrillo National Monument will open at 6 a.m. with the non-denominational service beginning at 6:30 a.m.  There is seating for approximately 700 attendees and the public is encouraged to arrive early. The speakers this year are Capt. Christopher J Cavanaugh, commodore, Submarine Squadron Eleven, Kiwanis Division 21 Lt. Gov. Doug Beckham, and Gary Jander, past governor Kiwanis Cal-Nev-Ha District. Chaplain Michael Williams, Fleet Chaplain, Third Fleet, will conduct the service. The soloist will be Jojo Cadwell and she will be accompanied by Danny Green, who will also provide the musical prelude to the service. $9,000 reward offered in Point Loma homicide
Authorities offered a $9,000 reward Saturday, March 17 for information leading to the arrest of a man suspected of gunning down a romantic rival last month outside a Point Loma Heights workout center.
Ernesto Castellanos Martinez, 41, allegedly killed 27-year-old Alexander Mazin of San Diego in a parking lot behind 24 Hour Fitness, 3675 Midway Drive, shortly before 11 a.m. Feb. 25, according to police.
Police soon identified Martinez as the suspected assailant and determined that he might have fled to an apartment in the 3000 block of Upas Street in North Park.
About an hour after the shooting, officers surrounded the residence and tried in vain to contact Martinez. Following a roughly six-hour standoff, a SWAT team forced entry to the apartment, discovering that the suspect was not there.
The victim’s parents told reporters their son had been going out with a woman that Martinez previously had dated and that the suspect had assaulted her several weeks prior to Mazin’s slaying.
Family and friends of Mazin have added $8,000 to a $1,000 reward in the case previously posted by San Diego County Crime Stoppers. Anyone who might be able to help investigators track down the suspect is asked to call the nonprofit agency at 888-580-8477.
– City News Service Women’s Museum sets #METOO art exhibit 
Just as the #metoo movement has commanded a place in the mainstream public debate, so does it seek to inspire the private forces that fuel its fight against sexual abuse. From Friday, April 6 to Sunday, April 29 at noon, that inspiration takes the form of #METOO, a Latin American Art Festival exhibit at the Women’s Museum of California, 2730 Historic Decatur Road on the Naval Training Center campus.   
“#METOO,” the festival says,” is not a fight born of anger; it is not a declaration of war against men, and it is not a witch-hunt. #METOO is a strong, unified, voice that seeks to put an end to silencing those who have been hurt and to say out loud, “No more!”
The ten female artists include Nuria Bac, known for her deadpan, square-featured female characters, and San Diego’s Haydee Laborin, whose art embraces oils, acrylics and mixed media in creation of the figurative and conceptual.
“It is time to put an end,” Mexican author Aracell Martinez Rose said in a festival statement, “to suffering in silence, to avoiding the reality of abuse and to hiding in pain. Now is the time to yell the truth, because truth becomes beauty, freedom, dignity and equality for all of humanity.”
Tickets are $3 and $5. For more, see womensmuseumca.org or call 858-233-7963. Peninsula Community Conversation A PLA Peninsula Community Conversation will take place 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 17, at UPSES Portuguese Hall.
It’s like NextDoor but without the typing. Meet, face to face, in person… and talk. So it’s more like getting coffee. But instead of coffee, there will be free food and a bar.
Leaders from Peninsula, Ocean Beach and Midway planning boards, Ocean Beach Town Council, Ocean Beach MainStreet Association and the Point Loma Association will discuss things that affect all residents.
Find out what each group does. Discover how they work together, sharing concerns, collaborating on solutions, learning from one another and speaking with a unified voice to advocate for neighborhoods. 
– Greet friends and neighbors;
– Free food;
– Open bar;
– Community organization displays;
– Program begins at 6:45 p.m.
– Submit questions that night.  Barons Market launches community-intensive website
Barons Market, an independent, family-owned grocery that numbers a Point Loma location among its seven Southern California stores, has announced the launch of its new website, featuring interactive elements designed to reflect the communities it serves.
The site features community events calendars; recipe sections; announcements on weekly price deals; and photos, videos and a social media feed that showcase daily activity at the stores.
“We want to create memorable experiences that go beyond a transaction,” marketing vice president Rachel Shemirani said. “This launch is a testament to our love of community and the personal touch points that come with being infused into the community.”
The Point Loma Barons, noted for its specialty, organic and natural foods, is located at 4001 W. Point Loma Blvd. The group also has a North Park franchise and five other outlets from Alpine to Murietta. The site address is baronsmarket.com. Battle of San Diego fete set  at Naval Base Point Loma
On Saturday, April 14, history will repeat itself for the 214th time at the Battle of San Diego Anniversary Celebration, which commemorates the only Pacific Coast ship-to-shore battle between an American vessel and a Spanish fort.
The event, hosted by Balboa Park’s House of Spain in conjunction with Naval Base Point Loma, will run from noon to 4 p.m. at Naval Base Point Loma, at the end of Rosecrans Street.
A flag-raising ceremony and the American and Spanish national anthems will open the program. Capt. Brien Dickinson, Naval Base Point Loma commanding officer, will welcome the attendees and Javier Vallaure, Los Angeles consul general of Spain. 
Keynote speaker is California State University San Marcos archaeology Prof. Adolfo Muñiz, who will speak about the battle’s history and its artifacts. 
On March 17, 1803, Capts. William Shaler and Richard Cleveland sailed into San Diego Bay on the American brig Lelia Byrd to buy sea otter pelts, although such trading was forbidden by governing Spain. Five days later, Spanish soldiers captured members of the ship’s crew, fueling a gun and canon battle at Fort Guijarros, today’s Naval Base Point Loma. 
A hat was eventually waved, and both parties ceased firing. No injuries were reported.
The Fort Guijarros site was designated as California Registered Historical Landmark No. 69 in 1982.
A Spanish dance performance by Doña Juanita Franco’s Classical Dance Academy will be performed following the ceremony, which will include a variety of historical, cultural and maritime displays, historical costumes, children’s craft activities and food and beverages,  including paella, chorizo, beer, sodas and Sangria.
Reservations are required to enter Naval Base Point Loma and must be made no later than March 30. They may be made through e-mailing a list of attendees to [email protected]. Reservations for children under age 18 accompanied by an adult are not required if accompanied by an adult. Literacy council fundraiser to serve food for thought at ninth Eat.Drink.Read.
More than 20 chefs representing local restaurants including Point Loma’s Solare Lounge will create a culinary journey inspired by the chefs’ favorite books and literary characters at the San Diego Council on Literacy’s ninth annual “Eat.Drink.Read. A Culinary Event for Literacy,” set for Thursday, May 17 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at Balboa Park’s San Diego Air & Space Museum.
San Diego brewers, distillers and winemakers will also bring their products to the event, which will feature live music and a battle between the chefs, with awards for best dish, best dessert, best display and people’s choice.
Past works of inspiration have yielded creations from Dr. Seuss’ “Green Eggs and Ham” and F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby.”
The event raises funds to support the nonprofit council’s 27 literacy programs, campaigns and referrals that serve 180,000 residents a year at no cost.
More than 520,000 adults in San Diego have difficulty reading – and most of them are native English speakers. Many of these are parents, and their children are said to be adversely affected by low-level literacy skills in the household.
Tickets go on sale March 26, with the early bird price of $60 available through April 12. Tickets increase to $75 beginning April 13.
The museum is located at 2001 Pan American Plaza. For more, see literacysandiego.org or call (619) 574-1641 ext. 103. Vanessa Davis named general manager at Broadway/San Diego
Vanessa Davis, former president of the San Diego chapter of Executive Women International and a member of National Broadway Leagues’ group sales ticket committee, has been named general manager of Broadway/San Diego, Nederlander Organization executive vice president Nick Scandalios announced.
Davis, who currently oversees Broadway/San Diego’s President’s Club, group sales and patron services, will also assume the duties of current vice president Joe Kobryner, who announced his retirement in January after 22 years with the Nederlander Organization local office. Kobryner will remain with Nederlander through July 13.
Nederlander, established in Detroit in 1912, has produced dozens of live Broadway shows and has presented hundreds of top entertainment headliners in San Diego and elsewhere. 
Of Davis’ appointment, Scandalios said, “I have been impressed by Vanessa’s work in all capacities over the years, and nothing makes me happier than to promote her to our executive team.”
Kobryner added, “I have worked with Vanessa for over 20 years,” Kobryner added, “and am thrilled that she will succeed me in overseeing the important San Diego market. Over the years, she has demonstrated a tremendous ability to learn and excel at everything in which she is involved,” he stated.
Davis remarked that “It will be a privilege to serve as general manager in our vibrant San Diego arts community, and I look forward to leading the incredibly talented team at Broadway/San Diego into the next chapter.”
For more on Broadway/San Diego, see broadwaysd.com.