Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Ocean Beach residents decide on new sign design

They want it to be the same

There must be something special about that soaring seagull and that great big red letter O, which, like much of the community of Ocean Beach, leans to the left.

The results of a long-awaited vote are in, and it turns out few could bear the thought of revamping, renewing, or updating in any way the blueprint of the entryway sign that greets southbound traffic heading into Ocean Beach on Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. After nearly a year of discussion, eligible members of the Ocean Beach Town Council have overwhelmingly decided to stay with the familiar, and keep the sign the way it is.

Nearly 58 percent of voters preferred the design that has been in place since the town council put up the sign in 1984; that’s more than three times the support of the option that came in second, a design virtually identical but for the addition of two parrots.

Sponsored
Sponsored

In all, 76 people — roughly 52 percent of the amount eligible to vote — spread their votes among the five designs in an email vote conducted April 1–8. To be eligible, voters were required to have their $20 annual dues paid up as of March 30 and live in the 92107 zip code. Results were released at the town council’s monthly meeting on April 24.

After nearly three decades of sun, ocean air, termites, and rot, the decision was made last year to replace the sign and a request help from the community, which generated 20 designs. By year's end, that total was whittled down to 4 plus the original design. The 5 finalists were posted on the town-council website for several months before being taken down last week.

“I think having the designs available on our website for several months gave everyone in Ocean Beach the opportunity to review and comment on their preferences,” town-council president Dave Martin said in an email. “It also served to offer guidance to our members in voting for the most popular option. It was overwhelmingly obvious the most folks wished to maintain OB’s identity as it is.”

To generate interest in the vote, the sign was covered up with a tarp that had a red question mark and the town-council web address on it. The tactic worked — in March, membership enjoyed its largest ever one-month spike.

Now comes the hard part — raising the estimated $10,000 to construct and install it — triple what it cost for the old sign, said Jim Musgrove, who chairs the council's Community Enhancement Committee.

The last sign was about 80 percent funded by private donations, Musgrove said. District 2 city councilman Kevin Faulconer and District 4 county supervisor Ron Roberts have also expressed interest in locating funds. Musgrove suggested selling off pieces of the old sign as souvenirs.

The project has already benefited from this bit of good news: the upright posts holding the sign are in good shape. Not only does that save money — replacing the posts would have triggered a requirement to reapply for permits, Musgrove said.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Pie pleasure at Queenstown Public House

A taste of New Zealand brings back happy memories

There must be something special about that soaring seagull and that great big red letter O, which, like much of the community of Ocean Beach, leans to the left.

The results of a long-awaited vote are in, and it turns out few could bear the thought of revamping, renewing, or updating in any way the blueprint of the entryway sign that greets southbound traffic heading into Ocean Beach on Sunset Cliffs Boulevard. After nearly a year of discussion, eligible members of the Ocean Beach Town Council have overwhelmingly decided to stay with the familiar, and keep the sign the way it is.

Nearly 58 percent of voters preferred the design that has been in place since the town council put up the sign in 1984; that’s more than three times the support of the option that came in second, a design virtually identical but for the addition of two parrots.

Sponsored
Sponsored

In all, 76 people — roughly 52 percent of the amount eligible to vote — spread their votes among the five designs in an email vote conducted April 1–8. To be eligible, voters were required to have their $20 annual dues paid up as of March 30 and live in the 92107 zip code. Results were released at the town council’s monthly meeting on April 24.

After nearly three decades of sun, ocean air, termites, and rot, the decision was made last year to replace the sign and a request help from the community, which generated 20 designs. By year's end, that total was whittled down to 4 plus the original design. The 5 finalists were posted on the town-council website for several months before being taken down last week.

“I think having the designs available on our website for several months gave everyone in Ocean Beach the opportunity to review and comment on their preferences,” town-council president Dave Martin said in an email. “It also served to offer guidance to our members in voting for the most popular option. It was overwhelmingly obvious the most folks wished to maintain OB’s identity as it is.”

To generate interest in the vote, the sign was covered up with a tarp that had a red question mark and the town-council web address on it. The tactic worked — in March, membership enjoyed its largest ever one-month spike.

Now comes the hard part — raising the estimated $10,000 to construct and install it — triple what it cost for the old sign, said Jim Musgrove, who chairs the council's Community Enhancement Committee.

The last sign was about 80 percent funded by private donations, Musgrove said. District 2 city councilman Kevin Faulconer and District 4 county supervisor Ron Roberts have also expressed interest in locating funds. Musgrove suggested selling off pieces of the old sign as souvenirs.

The project has already benefited from this bit of good news: the upright posts holding the sign are in good shape. Not only does that save money — replacing the posts would have triggered a requirement to reapply for permits, Musgrove said.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Ramona musicians seek solution for outdoor playing at wineries

Ambient artists aren’t trying to put AC/DC in anyone’s backyard
Next Article

Trophy truck crushes four at Baja 1000

"Two other racers on quads died too,"
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader