EYE ON SC (Cont. from page 3) them in a lawsuit that has been pending in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California. Memorial Health Services’ lawsuit challenged the city’s zoning of MemorialCare’s former hospital campus located at 654 Camino De Los Mares in San Clemente. The hospital complex has sat empty since it closed more than three years ago. According to the press release, MemorialCare has agreed to dismiss the suit, and Memorial and the city have agreed to release all claims against each other pertaining to the subject matter of the litigation. Mayor Pro Tem Dan Bane and Tony Struthers, Vice President of Memorial, issued the following joint statement: “We are pleased that the litigation has been settled on mutually satisfactory terms. While City officials and Memorial Health Services continue to have different views about potential healthcare uses for the campus, the settlement will better allow each of the parties to explore and consider solutions that will best serve the health needs of the community.” In a statement to the San Clemente Times, Struthers said, “The settlement provides each organization with additional time and opportunity to find a solution that best serves the ongoing healthcare needs of the community. We have and will continue to offer contemporary solutions for the campus that best serve the needs of the community. We remain convinced that there are alternatives to an acute care hospital that will provide residents with access to high quality care.” Bane told the San Clemente Times that the city is happy about the settlement. “I think it was a very fair agreement for everyone involved,” he said. “The zoning for the property remains the same. It remains zoned for a hospital with an emergency
room. We were able to avoid trial, which was supposed to start last Monday, and we saved anywhere from $200,000 to $300,000 dollars in legal fees in not having to go forth to trial.”
dress peace, safety and welfare concerns. On June 18, the council introduced a “Consideration of Ordinance Relating to Rules for Transitional Camps.” According to the city attorney’s report, the ordinance seeks to codify rules and regulations relating to transitional camps as part of the city’s municipal code, thus making the violations “citeable” and “prosecutable,” as other code violations are. Councilmember Laura Ferguson, who voted no on the ordinance, said she was surprised to see the item on the agenda. Her concern is that the ordinance may appear to be targeting a specific population—those experiencing homelessness. “I wonder if this would be no different than targeting someone for their race or religious beliefs,” she said. “The city manager stated at the meeting that law-enforcement already has been going on site and enforcing the laws we already have on the books that apply to everyone in the city,” she said. In response, City Attorney Scott Smith said the ordinance provides a tool the Sheriff has requested in order to address issues law enforcement has with citing people for violations within the camp. “These rules are in fact different from the rules that apply out on the street because they are intended to address, really, the residency of the inhabitants of this camp,” Smith said. “It’s not really to criminalize behavior, but to provide for the peace and welfare of the occupants there— put more control in their lives and rules of respect for the occupants there— as you would in a campground,” he said. The city’s Transitional Camp Rules, also known as the “Community Safety Plan” for the Pico encampment include rules such as mandating campers to check in and register with the onsite security guard upon first arrival to the site, providing their name and last location of residence and
WHAT’S NEXT: The city’s settlement with MemorialCare calls for a one-year period in which the city and the hospital provider can discuss their own deals for the land. If nothing has been decided after one year, the city has six months to try to take the land through eminent domain. Memorial has agreed not to fight the action, but it can contest the price of the property. Bane said there is still opportunity for the city to look for other hospital providers that may be interested and willing to operate the hospital. If there’s not, he said the city can either return the zoning so that Memorial can find some other use for the property, or keep the zoning the same. Then the city would be responsible for paying maintenance costs on the property at up to $15,000 per month. —CH
A Consideration Passes to Codify Homeless Rules into City Law THE LATEST: San Clemente City Council voted 3-1 to consider adopting an ordinance No. 1677 that would formalize a list of rules and regulations for homeless campers at the Avenida Pico lot into city law. On May 21 and on June 4, San Clemente City Council approved ordinances to prohibit camping on public property within the city and designated a cityowned area where transitional camping is permitted. The city then developed rules and regulations for those campers to ad-
naming any guests who stay with them. Other rules prohibit weapons, alcohol, drugs or drug paraphernalia and other illegal substances, and ban violence, harassment, bullying, theft and damage to property. View the full list of rules and regulations in the full city report online. WHAT’S NEXT: According to City Clerk Joanne Baade, the ordinance will appear on the council’s August 20 agenda for a second reading. If approved, the rules would be codified into city law.—CH
San Clemente 4th of July Festivities THE LATEST: The city of San Clemente is hosting its 15th annual 4th of July Potluck for active duty service members and their families. The potluck will take place at the Marine Monument in Park Semper Fi on Thursday, July 4 from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Guests will also be able to watch the city’s fireworks show later in the evening. The event is free for all those attending, but reservations are required due to the limited amount of space. Guests are welcome to bring their own potluck dish of choice; no alcohol is allowed at the event. San Clemente’s annual fireworks show is hosted at the San Clemente pier. Guests at the Marine Monument potluck will be able to enjoy the show from Park Semper Fi. The fireworks show is scheduled to start at 9 p.m. If placing an RSVP for the Park Semper Fi potluck, be sure to specify USMC/ Navy current unit and party size. For more information or questions, please call Wayne Eggleston at 949.498.4958 or email heritage@marinemonument.com. For information on the fireworks show, visit san-clemente.org. —Haley Chi-Sing, for the SC Times
‘Unstoppable’ Documents Surfer Hamilton’s Life BY ZARA FLORES, FOR THE SAN CLEMENTE TIMES
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aron Lieber, a San Clemente resident, has been following his filming passion for years and will be premiering his first feature-length documentary, Bethany Hamilton: Unstoppable, next month. Lieber’s interest in film developed early on in his life through school projects and making highlight reels of his friends and even his school’s soccer team. While in college at Long Beach State, Lieber became an intern at TransWorld SURF Magazine, which really kicked off his surf filmmak-
San Clemente Times June 27-July 3, 2019
ing career. After college, Lieber landed a job with Nike 6.0 and worked on surf film Leave a Message, which featured six upand-coming female surfers. In 2012, Lieber founded his own San Clemente-based production company, Lieber Films, and released his first documentary on surfer Lakey Peterson. During the filming and trips for the films he worked on, Lieber met Bethany Hamilton and the two became good friends. The idea for Bethany Hamilton: Unstoppable was to document Hamilton training and competing as one of the best surf-
ers in the world. Along the journey, she married and started a family, and so the documentary evolved into a film about her life, the many obstacles she faced, and her triumphs. Unlike other films that have focused on the shark attack and aftermath of Hamilton’s early teens, Unstoppable follows her life as it evolves as a surfer and a mother. Unstoppable premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2018 and is set for release in selected theaters on July 12. For more information and theater listings, visit UnstoppableTheFilm.com. SC
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San Clemente resident Aaron Lieber. Photo: Courtesy
sanclementetimes.com