By Barbara Zaragoza / South Bay Compass

Community activist and veteran Jack Gechter noticed graffiti on the veterans memorial in Chula Vista. When he called the city, initially he received no response. Then he called the Turko files. When the piece aired, the city immediately remedied the problem.

A similar situation happened with the veterans memorial in Kimball Park a few years back when plaques were pried off a wall at D Avenue and later found in an apartment complex of San Ysidro.

These acts against veteran commemorations have been occurring for decades, perhaps with very little media attention. In the 1940s a marble commemoration was erected in front of the San Ysidro Public Library to honor San Ysidrans who served in WWII. At some time during the 1950s the marble structure vanished and nobody knows how or why.

Now, a small group of old-timers from San Ysidro–known as Los Amigos–hope to re-erect the WWII memorial in front of the library. However, they are still asking community members to locate the history of the memorial and all the names that originally appeared.   [Read more…]

By Barbara Zaragoza / South Bay Compass

The community group Crossroads II reported that the City of Chula Vista received a letter from the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) that said they would like to turn the Olympic Training Center (OTC) over to Chula Vista. It has been costing the USOC $8 million a year to operate the OTC.

Crossroads II weighed in: “The City and the USOC drew up a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) about what the basic agreement would be. To make a long story short, the MOU makes it clear that the OTC must remain a training site for for the Olympics. The USOC will continue to control certain of the facilities, including the gift shop, but most importantly, the City will not be able to make any significant changes without the approval of the USOC. However — while the USOC will contribute $3 million, the City is responsible for all the rest of the financing and management of the rest of the OTC site — BUT, it must be maintained as a training site for elite athletes.   [Read more…]

By Barbara Zaragoza / South Bay Compass

Because there’s so much to do North of the fence…. but not much North of the I-54.

This week, many activities feature awareness of our environment, including at Olivewood Gardens, Wild Willow Farm, Suzie’s Farm and the Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve.

Chula Vista has been in the news lately, with reporters taking a closer look at the massive development going on. Sometimes believed to be divided between the poor West and the rich East, the city council is trying to attract developers to the West. They’re also trying to create a “smart” Bayfront full of never-before-seen technology.   [Read more…]