Uptown businesses create holiday drive for Downtown’s Monarch School

Nine businesses in San Diego have begun collecting winter wear to donate to Downtown’s Monarch School.

San Diego’s Kool Tool, along with North Park’s Bollotta Entertainment and Hillcrest’s Martinis Above Fourth, will be collecting new scarves, hats, beanies, gloves, mittens, underwear and socks to donate to keep students warm during the winter season. These locations will also be accepting $25 Target gift cards to provide students the opportunity to shop for holiday gifts for their friends and family.

Opened in 1986, Monarch School is an accredited K – 12 school dedicated to serving children impacted by homelessness, and provides children with after-school programs, counseling, healthcare and other assistance.

Drop-off locations:

– Martinis Above Fourth Table + Stage in Hillcrest at 3940 Fourth Ave, second floor
–  Bollotta Entertainment in North Park at 4443 30^th St., Suite 110
– Pret-a-Porter Salon & Spa in La Mesa at 8043 La Mesa Blvd.
– Femme Power U in Carlsbad located in the HeraHub at 5205 Avenida Encinas
For more information contact Sher Krieger at [email protected]

Mayor Gloria touts Juniper Street improvements

On Tuesday, Dec. 3, Interim Mayor Todd Gloria held a ribbon cutting ceremony along with City Engineer James Nagelvoort to celebrate the completion of 1,500 feet of new sidewalk along Juniper St. between Felton St. and Westland Ave. This stretch in South Park, long been referred to as the Juniper Dip, received a $450,000 makeover, according to the U-T San Diego, which includes a new sidewalk, retaining walls, a chain-link fence and a new metal guard rail.

“One of the very first community coffees or town hall meetings I held as a council member in 2009 there was a group of young mothers who live on the east side of South Park who were demanding access to the west side, to the businesses that they frequent,” the U-T reported Gloria saying at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. “They didn’t feel safe crossing the canyon without a sidewalk and they wanted to see some action done. Because of the great work of our city employees we were able to deliver a project that I know those women and many others will appreciate.”

Three deputy chief operating officers appointed

In an effort to streamline city operations, Interim Mayor Todd Gloria created three new positions to serve as intermediaries between San Diego’s Chief Operating Officer Scott Chadwick and the directors of city departments.

Director of the Public Works Department Tony Heinrichs was named DCOO of Public Works, Director of the Financial Management Department Jeff Sturak was named DCOO of Internal Operations, and the DCOO of Neighborhood Services will be Ron Villa, who previously served in an administrative role in the San Diego Police Department

“These individuals are all well suited for their new roles, and I trust them to work with our dedicated city employees to serve San Diegans proudly and effectively,” Gloria stated in a press release. “I appreciate their willingness to step up to these leadership positions and assist me, our chief operating officer, and our assistant chief operating officer in accomplishing our shared goals.”

The COO reports directly to the mayor and is responsible for managing the city’s daily operations.

San Diego World Trade Center CEO resigns

The Chief Executive Operator of San Diego’s World Trade Center Steven W. Weathers announced his resignation, effective Dec. 4, citing “personal reasons” for his departure after just one year in the position.

According to the San Diego Daily Transcript, Weathers moved to San Diego shortly after Thanksgiving, leaving his family to join him later from Savannah, Georgia, where he served as the head of Savannah’s WTC. His family never made the move out west.

VP of Marketing Samuel R. Kephart will serve as interim president and chief executive officer until the WTCSD board fills the position permanently.

According to the press release announcing the change, WTCSD “provides comprehensive research, international trade services, and key introductions to facilitate and expand business opportunities for regional and worldwide business members and corporate clients.”

Green Flash to open new location in San Diego

San Diego’s Green Flash Brewing Company announced they will open a new restaurant focused on beer and food pairings, which will also include a tasting room serving to expand the brewery’s barrel-aged program. Eater.com reported that while the brewers have yet to announce an official location, a Green Flash representative said the new restaurant will be south of their current tasting room and production facility in Mira Mesa—making the Uptown communities a likely landing point

City Clerk narrows down mayoral election date

KPBS reported San Diego City Clerk Elizabeth Maland tentatively narrowed down the date of the election to replace Bob Filner to early February, most likely on the 4th or 11th, although she noted that it will ultimately be up to the City Council to set the date.

The election date will be set once San Diego County Registrar of Voters Michael Vu certifies the results of the primary election, in which City Councilmembers David Alvarez and Kevin Faulconer finished in the top two spots. According to KPBS, Vu hopes to have this done “sometime after Tuesday, Dec. 10,” although he has until Dec. 17.

Hillcrest Holiday Potluck

The Hillcrest Town Council and the Hillcrest History Guild are joining forces once again for their annual Hillcrest Holiday Potluck Dinner. The dinner will be held in place of the regular Hillcrest Town Council Meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 10 from 6:30 – 8 p.m. at the Joyce Beers Community Center, located at 3900 Vermont St. in the Uptown Shopping Center. The turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, stuffing, plates, cutlery and napkins will all be supplied, and attendees are asked to bring a vegetable dish, salad or dessert to share. UC San Diego Medical Center and Bread and Cie are among those donating food items.

Also planned is a short presentation by the local artist who created the life-sized sculptures located at Balboa Park Drive and Laurel Street, of San Diego legends George Marston, Kate Sessions, Alonzo Horton and Ephraim Morse. For more information call 619-260-1929.

The Center gets big donation from Pride

San Diego Pride has donated $40,000 to the San Diego LGBT Community Center in honor of the organization’s 40th anniversary. This “birthday gift” is part of Pride’s annual community giving program. San Diego Pride annually raises funds through ticket and beverage sales during Pride weekend and then distributes the support to LGBT-serving organizations.

“We are pleased to contribute funding to The Center each year to support the many vital services they provide to the community every day, year-round,” said Stephen Whitburn, San Diego Pride’s general manager. “These funds are made possible by the hundreds of thousands of Pride participants each year, and we are grateful to them for helping us support our community for 40 years.”

The $40,000 grant will be split among four of The Center’s programs and the general fund, including $10,000 to transgender services, $10,000 to family matters, $10,000 to HIV services, and $5,000 to sobriety programs. The remaining $5,000 will be placed in The Center’s general fund. For more info, go to sdpride.org.

HBA seeks volunteers

The Hillcrest Business Association is seeking volunteers to help staff their booth at the Hillcrest Farmers’ Market on Sundays, from 8:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. Volunteers would be responsible for assisting with set-up and tear down of the booth, helping  shoppers, answering general questions about the Market, selling HBA swag and promoting the many projects that the HBA is involved in. Those interested are asked to fill out an application online at hillcrestbia.org or contact Cassandra Ramhap at [email protected] or 619-299-3330 for more information.

Uptown Community Plan Update pushed back to January

At the Uptown Planners’ monthly meeting on Dec. 3, the board voted to push the plan update back from Dec. 10 to Jan. 7 to avoid overlap with the Hillcrest History Guild/Hillcrest Town Council’s Holiday Potluck, which was also scheduled for December 10th. The Dec. 3 meeting also featured a lengthy, though primarily informational, discussion on the issue of height limits in the Uptown community plan update.

Present at the meeting on behalf of the San Diego Planning Department was Community Planner Marlon Pangilinan, who presented and distributed the draft of a map visualizing height limits recommended by residents during a series of community input meetings held in 2010 and 2011, although Pangilinan stated that the draft was not necessarily representative of the current sentiments of the communities, as some communities had relatively small turnouts. The maps also predated the Interim Height Ordinance recently passed by City Council.

Hillcrest stood out on the map as an area with a variety of differing opinions on what the height limit should be. At the Jan. 7 meeting, the planners will hear presentations from Hillcrest’s residential and business communities—which are generally regarded as holding opposing viewpoints on the issue—the latter being supportive of less restrictive height limits in the name of growth and development. Residential groups, on the other hand, have historically favored low height limits as a way of preserving neighborhood character.

The update isn’t expected to be finalized until late 2014. The Jan. 7 Uptown Community Plan Update will take place at the Joyce Beers Community Center.

Editor’s note: This brief was amended to state the correct meaning for the meeting’s rescheduling. It originally stated the meeting was moved because of the holidays.

San Diego elected officials comment on the passing of Nelson Mandela

The internationally renowned, former South African President and Nobel Peace Prize Winner Nelson Mandela passed away on Thursday, Dec. 5 after spending three months in a South African hospital with a recurring lung infection. He was 95.

Mandela spent 27 years as a prisoner in South Africa for apposing apartheid before becoming the country’s first black president.

San Diego’s elected officials released statements following the announcement of the human rights leader’s passing by South African President Jacob Zuma.

“The moment the news came I felt both saddened and thankful,” said Congresswoman Susan Davis (D-San Diego) in a press release. “While we mourn one of the world’s most consequential contributors to humanitarian progress, we thank Nelson Mandela for what he taught us about sacrifice, freedom and equality.”

“Nelson Mandela’s resilience—and his relentless dedication to the principles of justice and human rights—have served as an inspiration to people around the world,” said Interim Mayor Todd Gloria in a press release. “Let’s mourn his passing but also celebrate his extraordinary life and his indelible contributions to humankind.”