On March 25, 2010, the Reader published a story titled “What's Up with the Big Cortez Hole?” The hyped Atmosphere condo development had fizzled and left a giant construction hole between Fourth and Fifth avenues …
May 8, 2015
News & Stories
Atmosphere project no longer up in the air
Texas-sized b.s.
Alfred Louis "Bobby" Vassallo, former La Jollan and inveterate name-dropper, has confessed to wire fraud and will be sentenced August 24. He pleaded guilty in federal court in Santa Ana in April. The Texan blew …
May 8, 2015
It's not you, it's me, Carmina
As I listened to Carmina Burana it occurred to me that it wasn’t the greatest music in the world. In fact, it’s something of a one-hit-wonder. What else did Orff write? Think about it — …
May 8, 2015
Walmart gets charitably cozy with mayor
As the coming takeover of U-T San Diego by Chicago-based Tribune Publishing threatens to upend the city's old establishment order, a nonprofit corporation set up to advance the agenda of Republican mayor Kevin Faulconer continues …
May 8, 2015
I live with dinosaurs
The property rights of a longtime resident have come head-to-head with City of Escondido zoning laws. School buses bringing students and scouts to a local museum will no longer be allowed to park in the …
May 8, 2015
They Might Be generous Giants
Solana Beach got a treat with two full sets and a double-dose of encores from popular alt-rockers They Might Be Giants. The band had no problem filling the extended time by taking a heaping helping …
May 8, 2015
Myung In Dumplings opens on Convoy
The big problem with watching TV shows about food is that, no matter how absurd the show might be, they often leave you hungry and unable to satisfy the craving they’ve just ignited. For example, …
May 8, 2015
Baja zen: Guadalupe Canyon's oasis
It's midafternoon, and the hot sun beats down on a remote desert road laying before me. I'm deep in the Mexican desert, thinking of shinrin-yoku. Shinrin-yoku is the Japanese practice of "forest bathing" to enhance …
May 8, 2015
A Fool to Care, by Boz Scaggs
I first saw Boz Scaggs in 1966 at the Matrix in San Francisco. He was playing in a jazz-rock combo with some cat named Steve Miller. Fast-forward 50 years and they are both award-winning senior-citizen …
May 8, 2015
Floodgates at fire department remain closed
A San Diego firefighter who has accused the department of racial discrimination and harassment has filed a new complaint against the city and department for refusing to provide testing materials for a captain's exam that …
May 8, 2015