CELEBRATING
100 YEARS
Vol. 101, Issue 27 • July 4, 2013
Happy Independence Day INSIDE
View the best pics in our ‘Best People Photos’ contest, A3
ENLIGHTENING LA JOLLA SINCE 1913
Mayor calls Cove cleanup a ‘success’ By Pat Sherman The first phase of the city’s effort to eradicate the odor at La Jolla Cove is a success, said San Diego Mayor Bob Filner. In a statement released Thursday, June 27, the mayor’s office said Blue Eagle Distribution, the contractor hired to cleanse the excrementcovered rocks, was able to substantially reduce odors related to bird guano deposits — that were between two and three inches thick in some areas. A more extensive, second phase of the cleanup is scheduled to begin in early August. “There has been an amazing change since we got started out here,” Filner said, in the statement. “I told the guys from Blue Eagle that I wanted this See Cove Cleanup, A20
Birch Aquarium opens shark exhibit, B1
Online Daily at lajollalight.com
Residential Customer La Jolla, CA 92037 ECRWSS
Spreading Goodwill
A security guard manages the flow of bargain-hunting customers lined up to enter the new Goodwill store at 7631 Girard Ave. on June 27. Pat Sherman n See the grand opening story and photos, A4
The city attorney’s office has opined that posting signs such as these on the beach is a violation of city municipal code. File
Traffic board OKs Old Town Trolley stop in La Jolla, A5
PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID SAN DIEGO, CA PERMIT NO. 1980
Filner ramps up enforcement against seal harassment and unpermitted beach signs By Pat Sherman San Diego Mayor Bob Filner has issued a memorandum strengthening and clarifying existing city policy on the enforcement of illegal harassment or disturbance of harbor seals at Children’s Pool beach. Following issuance of the memo, several people contacted the La Jolla Light to complain about the policy. Filner’s May 14 memo to Police Chief William Lansdowne and Park and Recreation Director Stacey LoMedico states that the city will continue to enforce municipal code 63.0102(b)(10), “which makes it unlawful to disturb any animal on a city beach.” The code does not require that the harassment be intentional or result in harm to the animal, only that the animal’s “tranquility or composure” be disturbed
(such as when people cause seals on the beach to flush into the water). “The mayor stating the position is new, but the fact that no intent is necessary is not new — that’s been in the law the whole time,” San Diego Police Northern Division Captain Brian Ahearn said. What is new, said Ken Hunrichs, president of the pro-beach access group, Friends of the Children’s Pool, is the mayor’s “misapplication of a municipal code ordinance” to enforce the disturbance of seals. Hunrichs said it is a law enforcement function “strictly reserved to the federal government unless specifically delegated to a state agency.” He added, “The Mayor is stepping beyond his authority when he asks city personnel to
See Enforcement, A14
Wishing You and Your Family a Safe and Happy 4th of July! 858.454.SELL (7355) · www.BrantWestfall.com ·
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