2021 Lake Murray fireworks cancelled

As California moves from tier system restrictions to limit the spread of COVID-19, the Lake Murray Fireworks & MusicFest committee has been in contact with city and county officials about the feasibility of hosting a July 4, 2021 event. Based on permit restrictions, liability concerns, and public health risks, the committee has made the difficult decision to postpone the festivities until 2022.

“We are not comfortable hosting an event that encourages people to gather, while the city would require us to set up the area for gathering,” said event chair Tracy Dahlkamp. “Overall, we decided that we would be unable to host a high-quality event that we could be proud of and the community deserves.”

To host just the fireworks portion of the annual event, the San Diego Parks and Recreation Department would have required organizers to obtain an event permit, insurance, lake staffing, trash cans, dumpsters and portable toilets, traffic safety measures, and a police presence for crowd control.

Furthermore, legal counsel advised it would be difficult to enforce social distancing and mask-wearing at a fireworks event with gatherings around the lake and visible throughout the region.

This is the second Lake Murray Fireworks & MusicFest canceled since the coronavirus pandemic began in March 2020. Previous Independence Day music festivals at Lake Murray Community Park drew a rotating crowd of an estimated 3,000 people. The evening fireworks show could be seen by an estimated 100,000 people throughout La Mesa and San Diego’s Navajo neighborhoods of Grantville, Allied Gardens, Del Cerro, and San Carlos.

The committee looks forward to organizing the event for 2022.

Alvarado offers vaccination house calls for homebound

Alvarado Hospital, working with the County of San Diego, will send teams out to vaccinate home-bound people who, for whatever reason, cannot travel to remote vaccination sites. San Diego County has identified patients in need and staff from Alvarado hospital have followed up with each with a telephone call.

“We offered to come to their homes to vaccinate them and verified with each which vaccine they preferred. Offering these patients the option of having vaccine brought to them decreases risk factors and brings them peace of mind,” said Joie Trautman, director of Alvarado Hospital’s Vaccine Clinic.

Since January, Alvarado Hospital has been working diligently to vaccinate as many people in the community as possible. The hospital has been partnering with local community organizations and San Diego County to hold COVID-19 vaccination clinics at the hospital campus and remote locations throughout central and East San Diego to reach vulnerable populations where they are.

“COVID-19 is a tenacious enemy that we’ve all been fighting for over a year now,” said Alvarado Hospital CEO Robin Gomez. “These vaccines have been created with new, exciting technology, and it’s taken a national and international effort to create and distribute them. They’re wonderful tools, but we need to vaccinate as many people as we can for them to work the way that they’re designed to.”

Gomez went on to explain that many people who need the vaccine the most may not have the means to travel to central locations to obtain vaccine. Seniors, for example, may find it difficult to reach one of the vaccination super-sites around San Diego county. “Our clinics aren’t meant to replace the super-sites,” Gomez added. “We’re meant to complement them. In this case, we’re bringing Mohammad to the mountain.”

In March and April alone, the Alvarado Hospital Vaccination Team has given over 5,000 vaccination shots, with an eye towards reaching the goal set by the county of vaccinating 2 million San Diegans. In addition to holding clinics on-campus, the hospital has held clinics at the La Mesa/Spring Valley School District, Santee School District, San Diego Catholic Diocese, San Diego Lutheran Diocese, and Jewish Family Services to name just a few.

Those wishing to reserve an appointment to receive a vaccination shot should speak to their physician or healthcare provider. If that’s not an option, visit the MyTurn website to make an appointment (MyTurn.ca.gov). The San Diego Health and Human Services website also has resources you can use. You can also visit the Alvarado Hospital website, AlvaradoHospital.com, for information about COVID-19 and the vaccines.

City approves lease, improvements at Montgomery-Gibbs

In a step toward modernizing the Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport and strengthening its role as an economic engine in the region, the City Council voted unanimously April 27 to approve a lease and redevelopment of 26.2 acres at the airport. The $16 million project, which will include new hangars and a flight club lounge with a viewing area, will help bring the 84-year-old airport into the 21st century.

“Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport is one of the nation’s busiest airports and a major transportation hub for residents as well as business and leisure travelers,” said Penny Maus, director of the city’s Real Estate Assets Department, which oversees the airport. “This approved project is a great addition of world-class facilities at a general aviation airport that represents the eighth-largest city in the United States.”

Executive Airpark, known in the industry as a fixed-based operator (FBO), has agreed to make pavement improvements, construct parking facilities, and refurbish and build 69,800 square feet of new hangar space. It also plans to create a 5,850-square-foot flight club lounge with a public viewing area, a fuel farm and a community aircraft wash rack.

Preparing for the future, Executive Airpark will also set aside space for an Urban Air Mobility hub that, once technology and regulation allow, will support a new type of energy-efficient aircraft. Long-term plans also include the creation of an aviation museum for the public.

Executive Airpark will be located in the southern portion of the airport near Aero Drive, at the former home of Gibbs Flying Service. The April 27 announcement comes as several other airport lessees recently unveiled their new facilities to the public and airport users.

MYF Properties LLC, doing business as Executive Airpark, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Crownair Aviation, which also recently made $15 million in improvements at the airport. Its new facility provides fuel, hangar space and aviation services to the airport’s critical users. Improvements include a new airport beacon and a 3,600-square-foot city operations garage.

Coast Air Center, the airport’s newest tenant, also invested $9 million in improvements with new state-of-the-art hangars, a service center and fueling facilities. It houses one of the nation’s largest flight schools, which trains youth and aspiring pilots from all around the country to support the airline industry and the local economy.

Corporate Helicopters of San Diego, which leases hangar space at the airport, is in the planning stage of building a Helicopter FBO. From the new facility, the company will continue to provide helicopter-related services such as aerial tours, flight training and filming and photography. Some of their clients include the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, the County of San Diego, General Dynamics and Southern California Edison.