San Diego Free Press

Grassroots News & Progressive Views

Live in North Park, City Heights, University Heights, Normal Heights, Rolando or other nearby areas? Like to ride a bike? Like to ride a bike without fearing for your life?

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If some or all of the above apply to you mark your calendars for Wednesday, March 6, from 6 to 8:30 PM.  SANDAG is holding the second open-to-the-public meeting soliciting community input for the North Park – Mid-City Bike Corridors Project.  The meeting will be held at the Sunset Temple in North Park at 3911 Kansas Street, San Diego, CA  92104.  If you’re looking for a spot to park your bike one of the city’s 4 bike corrals is conveniently located two short blocks away at the corner of North Park Way and 30th Street.  Bonus: the corral is right outside The Linkery restaurant which features Belgian-style drafts for $4 on Wednesday nights.

Think this is just another meeting to attend, voice your opinion, and have no real-world result for the investment of your time and efforts?  Well, you might be right.  But SANDAG has ponied up approximately $1 million for the planning and preliminary design stages of this project.   [Read more…]

SD For Free: Lake Miramar – Great for Bicycling, Running, Rollerskating

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A weekly column dedicated to sharing the best sights and activities in San Diego at the best price – free!  We have a great city and you don’t need to break the bank to experience it.

  1. Directions: From Interstate 15 southbound: take Mira Mesa Boulevard east, turn right on Scripps Ranch Boulevard, then left on Scripps Lake Drive. The reservoir entrance will be on your left.  From Interstate 15 northbound: take Carroll Canyon Road east, turn left on Scripps Ranch Boulevard, then right on Scripps Lake Drive. The reservoir entrance will be on your left.
    1. Map link for directions
  2. Free Hours: 5:30 AM to 6:30 PM and beginning March 10th 5:30 AM to 8:00 PM
  3. Best For: Bicycling, walking, running, chatting with a friend, enjoying a cool breeze

Nestled comfortably below hillsides topped with the suburban dream, Lake Miramar (officially Miramar Reservoir) is a great place for getting some fresh air and exercise.   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Brilliant! New San Diego Schools Superintendent Selected from Community

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The grapevine was humming yesterday as word seeped out that San Diego Unified would make an early evening ‘major announcement’ following news of current Superintendent Bill Kowba’s resignation on Tuesday. Many folks, including KPBS news, thought the Board of Trustees would simply be announcing their selection process. Or naming the high priced consulting firm to sort through resumes and vet the next candidate for the job.

The announcement that Principal Cindy Marten had already been unanimously nominated by the school board as the next leader for SD Unified was indeed a shocker. A figurative “gasp” went up from many members the news media, who’ve spent the last few years crafting a narrative about the dysfunctionality of the elected Board of Trustees.

This is simply a brilliant decision. I speak from personal knowledge, having worked with Ms. Marten on education issues through my association with the parent-centric Educate for the Future. Her personal mantra (and the slogan for her school): “Work Hard. Be Kind. Dream Big. No Excuses.”

INSIDE: Filner’s Wish List, Man Bites Dog, the Sequester Conspiracy Parts 1 & 2   [Read more…]

Today’s College Graduates: In Debt and Unable to Find a Job

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The American mythology that getting a good job requires a college degree is turning out to be a hollow promise, a mythology devoid of any connection to reality. Today’s college graduates are being weighed down with tens of thousands of dollars in student loan debt, and many of them are either unemployed or working in jobs that don’t require a college degree.

A recent study has shown that half of recent college graduates can’t find jobs. Those who graduated since 2009 are three times more likely to not have found a full-time job than those from the classes of 2006 through 2008. Of those who did find a job, the study indicates that 43 percent had jobs that didn’t require a college degree. Sure the top 10% will get jobs right out of college, but for everyone else disappointment in the job search abounds. Even recent PhDs are facing stiff competition for fewer available jobs, and many of them end up driving taxis for a living.

At the same time that college graduates are not finding work, there are 3.7 million job openings, but these are the kinds of jobs college graduates aren’t equipped to do.   [Read more…]

Screwed Again – And Not By Any Man –This Time by Dollar Rent A Car

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Several days ago my granddaughter had to make a fast trip to Arizona to see her ailing father. She is leaving for Australia in a few days to be with her children and wanted to see Jimmy before she left. Unfortunately she does not have a credit card and “DOLLAR RENT A CAR” would not accept her debit card as payment for the one-way rental.  She called her mother and asked if she would sign the rental agreement but her mother – my daughter Michele – was suffering the ill effects of a nasty case of Shingles and could not get out of bed.

Guess who was next on Kyla’s list.  Grandma.

Although reluctant to do so, I felt sorry for her and didn’t want to have the guilt if something happened to Jimmy and she did not get to say “good-bye” so I agreed to do so.   [Read more…]

Sex in San Diego: 9 Fascinating Things You May Not Know About the Penis

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By Liz Langley / Alternet

“Isn’t it awfully good to have a penis,” Eric Idle mused in the greatest 35-second song ever written and I believe he’s telling the truth: having a stiffy is probably spiffy. Erections are such hopeful things, like carrying a little optimist around in your pocket, one imagines.

The penis provides lots of pleasure and keeps the human race going in its capacity as a reproductive organ. There’s all kinds of interesting facts and facets to the human penis and there are some in the animal world that could easily have been designed by Dali. Now’s your chance to get to know them a little better.   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Civil Rights Under Fire; Bigotry Being Tested at the Bench

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The Supreme Court is at the core of the news about struggles for human dignity and rights this week. The bad news is they’re hearing a case today challenging the part of the Voting Rights Act that forces places with a history of discrimination to get approval before they make any change in the way elections are held.

The last time such a case was argued before the court (2009) Chief Justice John Roberts opined that the law’s past success “is not adequate justification to retain the pre-clearance requirements.” The court sidestepped the question of the law’s constitutionality with that decision, but many observers believe that won’t be the case this time around.

The good news on the judicial front is the increasing support for gay rights as the court nears the dates to hear arguments about marriage equality and the Defense of Marriage Act.   [Read more…]

Welcome to North Park. Let’s See What Kind of Stuff We Can Stir Up….

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Part of our mission here at the San Diego Free Press is the reporting on and encouraging the reporting of news from neighborhoods around San Diego. For the next few weeks we’ll be focusing our energies on North Park.

We’ve been going through the process of building our contacts and coming up with story ideas for our coverage of North Park. It’s very incomplete, a work in progress. So we’d like to start our by inviting your participation. Got a story idea? Want to contribute? Drop us a line: contact@SanDiegoFreePress.org

Given that I happen to reside in North Park, the task of introducing this topic has fallen upon my shoulders. Most of what’s going on here isn’t ‘sexy’ stuff.

Yet this story line is a fine example of the kind of involvement that’s necessary if we as citizens want to reclaim our lives and our futures from the demoralized and disenfranchised landscape that characterizes our society these days.   [Read more…]

North Park’s Never Ending Renewal

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by Council President Todd Gloria

I am a lifelong San Diegan and have witnessed changes of all kinds to several local communities. My mom still refers to CityHeights as East San Diego, and I can easily remember when Downtown was a place avoided by most locals and all tourists. The neighborhood of North Park has been home to tremendous revitalization in the past 15 years, and its welcome renewal seems never-ending.

As is the case throughout District Three, North Park’s homeowners, renters, and business people are truly invested in the neighborhood.

They have made change happen, but not at the expense of history. From redevelopment in the commercial corridors to the historic residential districts surrounding them, community character is obvious and unique.   [Read more…]

Restaurant Review: Rancho’s Cocina, North Park

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Rancho’s Cocina, North Park
3910 30th St, San Diego, CA 92104
(619) 574-1288

I used to say that I could eat Mexican food every day and enjoy the 7th day as much as I enjoyed the first day. That is not totally true anymore, but I do like Mexican food and eat it often.

Therefore, when you read this review, you might think it sounds familiar. That is because a few days ago I ate at Rancho’s Cocina in Ocean Beach and wrote a review for the OBRag. But today I ate at one of the other restaurants in the Rancho chain – the one in North Park.

As it happened, the San Diego Free Press had a meeting of many of its contributors this afternoon. Following the meeting, 10 of us decided to have a bite to eat and the closest place was Rancho’s. They were able to accommodate us in the back part of the restaurant without any problem.   [Read more…]

San Diego and the TMD

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It’s time for the San Diego City Council to work within the law instead of desperately searching for ways around it.

Can’t we all just get along?—Rodney King

Yesterday the San Diego City Council heard comments on the city’s Tourism and Marketing District. You might have heard about it in recent weeks, because it’s been the source of a lot of controversy down at City Hall.

The TMD became a major news item last week when Mayor Bob Filner crashed a news conference called by City Attorney Jan Goldsmith. Let’s just say that the two men don’t agree on a whole lot, and the exchange was one of the more entertaining political back and forth’s in San Diego history.   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Republican Support for Gay Marriage Emerging as Supreme Court Hearing Nears

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There are cracks emerging in the GOP social issues bulwark over the issue of gay marriage. The New York Times is up with a story this morning about 75 prominent Republicans who have signed on to a legal brief arguing that gay people have a constitutional right to marry.

The Times calls this move “a position that amounts to a direct challenge to Speaker John A. Boehner and reflects the civil war in the party since the November election.”

The Supreme Court, which unexpectedly agreed to hear an appeal over California’s Proposition 8 and another case that challenges the 1996 federal Defense of Marriage Act, is currently receiving briefs and rebuttals. Oral arguments are scheduled for March 26th, and a decision is expected in late June.

INSIDE: Tourism Tax Generates More Lawsuits, How Much Damage Will Brown Do to CEQA?, About Those High Paying Tourism Jobs…   [Read more…]

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