Oceanside Stories
A sprawling tent camp near Oceanside Boulevard and I-5 that was home to about 50 homeless people was upended Tuesday morning when a phalanx of some 40 police officers descended on the campsite built on …
In 2010, when Kelsey Shande Carpenter was 20 years old, she was arrested for possession of heroin and burglary. “She has been dealing with drug addiction for over ten years,” a prosecutor said in court …
Apparently nothing will stop beachfront property owners in Oceanside from dropping in huge riprap boulders in front of their house. Not even a stop-work order from the state coastal commission. At about 2 pm Friday, …
Some city hall watchers are claiming a recent filing with the state Fair Political Practices Commission is proof that Oceanside has become a “pay-to-play” city where wealthy developers can build what they want as long …
What does it take to become a member of the Oceanside City Council? One might be surprised to know how easy it was for the newest member of the the five-person body that controls a …
Martin Ramirez was born on Thanksgiving Day, 1975 in Mexico, which he eventually left for the U.S. He married a sweet woman and in 2004, when he was 28, his wife Rosa gave him a …
David hunches over the ocean, elbows on rail, playing his harmonica. He holds long notes. “See? They like it,” he says. “See? See?” And wow. I’m looking below, and two dolphin fins come knifing through …
The Aussies are invading North County with foreign-made surfboards. “It’s like freaking locusts descending on us,” says one local surf shop owner who declined to be named. “It’s like they have a scorched earth plan …
About 100 skaters a day show up to Oceanside’s Prince Park. On weekends it’s twice as many. Because it's free to use and because skating is cool. Josh Carson says the cement bowls are doing …
It’s been a hell of a year, and it’s not over yet. First, in San Diego County as elsewhere in these Divided States, we’ve been treated to a masquerade ball, courtesy of a generous host. …
According to some named in a defamation lawsuit filed by Oceanside City Council candidate Michelle Gomez, the suit is a way to silence those who claim she ripped them off. The lawsuit arose when Gomez, …
Bree Shook says a kind of class warfare has erupted between her 1,000 neighbors in the Cavalier Mobile Home Estates and the traditional homeowners who live in the South Oceanside neighborhood that overlooks them. “They …
One person close to the Helgren’s sportsfishing saga describes the struggle over city property at the Oceanside Harbor as an ongoing “soap opera,” filled with “hate and discontent.” And while the major players won’t speak …
Anyone with a TV may get the impression Oceanside is more Green Acres than Baywatch. Developer Integral Communities has so far dumped $1.4 million on TV ads and other promotions to convince locals that a …
I had my eye on this cake all summer. Friends kept heading into Oceanside to get a piece of it, their every photo set to stun. A 23-layer cake, really a tower of crepes, stacked …
Beach fire rings are a beloved beach tradition for families and youth groups to roast marshmallows and tell stories. Or are they an attractive nuisance drawing in transient drunks who fight and make late night …
Little did an Oceanside historian know, when she was researching the history of the longtime exclusive beachfront neighborhood of St. Malo, that she would run across perhaps the first murder of California’s infamous Zodiac killer. …
The pandemic has not slowed the big dig at El Corazon, the 465-acre clump of mostly undeveloped mid-city parkland owned by the city of Oceanside. The heavy equipment work continues on the 2.2-acre Oceanside Aquatic …
Surfer Brian Thompson had not yet heard the news: Linden Surfboards was getting squeezed out of the Cleveland Street headquarters in Oceanside it has used for 43 years. “It’s ruining years of culture,” says Thompson, …
AUG. 22 UPDATE A court trial that was thought to last for weeks was terminated after only about one hour Friday August 21 when a Vista Superior Court judge issued a ruling that immediately snuffed …
San Marcos City Manager Jack Griffin begins his annual June letter to the mayor and city council, “It is kind of my pleasure to submit the Fiscal Year 2020-2021 Operations and Maintenance Budget.” That “kind …
By playing by the rules and turning in an estimated $175,000 a month in extra tax dollars the city of Vista has rewarded its six pot dispensaries with a remarkable thank you gift. “They told …
The restaurant business, as Bette Davis once said about growing old, ain’t no place for sissies. The hours are long; the profit margins, razor-thin. Customers are notoriously fickle, and a few bad Yelp reviews can …
KB has been helping feral cats for ten years. She traps them and then gets them spayed or neutered. Sometimes others in her rescuer network brings them to her. “You keep them in a separate …
Homes at end of Oceanside Blvd. claim emergency The city never got approval,” says Mackin. “They just started doing it. These homeowners had carte blanche to put as much rip rap as they wanted on …
Latest figures show that only three of San Diego County’s 18 cities (Poway, Santee, Coronado) are majority Republican. In five cities, Republicans are the third-largest voting group surpassed in numbers by those who claim “No …
Since the ‘80s downtown Oceanside’s Unisex House of Style focused on a Marine clientele. Ex-Marine Richard “Pops” Sanders launched the shop in the historic Dolphin Hotel on Coast Highway to serve men and women. But …
Of the 1,000-plus who attended the Black Lives Matter rally last Sunday afternoon in downtown Oceanside, about a third displayed their emotions on a cardboard sign. Some hoisted self-made posters that referred to bad cop …
I’m witnessing something this week I never imagined I’d see: local restaurants, already hurting due to the covid-19 shutdown, are openly promoting other restaurants. It’s due to the fact that injustice against African-Americans is on …
Behind the scenes, a labor union connected with the city of Oceanside is spending thousands of dollars to elect a candidate who left a number of unpaid vendors from her last election. The Oceanside Firefighters …
Since Sunday April 26 the water in the Oceanside harbor has taken on a rich brown hue. Although the coffee-colored water looked like it could be a briny fecal stew, harbor fisherman explain that it …
Is the pandemic bringing more pain to poorer, ethnic neighborhoods? Yes and no. For Sandra Mora, the Covid shutdown is a unique opportunity to bring hot meals seven days a week, to the families of …
“The state got us last time, and apparently a pandemic got us this time.” David Newman admits that his second attempt to allow legal pot shops to open in Oceanside is now dead on the …
COVID-19 has, “…unleashed an economic war on our city. We must go on the offensive and support struggling businesses and the thousands of employees they support.” With that, Oceanside city councilman Christopher Rodriguez unveiled his …
Once upon a time, before people wore protective masks outside the home, there was a new North County restaurant at the top of everybody’s must-try list. Given another week of open dining rooms, I would …
Local gangsters allegedly video-recorded beatings intended to “jump in” new members and kept those videos on their Snapchat accounts, according to experts who testified in San Diego County superior court on March 10. “They use …
In the weeks since American public life was officially put on pause in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, too much the news out of the restaurant industry has been dire. Dining rooms closed, millions out …
It’s a Friday night in (pre-pandemic) south Oceanside. An eclectic crew has come out for the monthly “In the Round” showcase, a night “dedicated to songs, the songwriters, and their stories.” Up on stage, Kimmi …
Because he fixes their equipment, Ken Corwin knows how good it’s been for fishermen based in the Oceanside harbor. “Blue fin started really showing up five years ago,” says Corwin from behind his work bench …
San Diegans willing to venture out from home quarantine are noticing some positives. Freeways are wide open, and the price of gas is dropping like a rock. In the traditional time of year when SoCal …
The controversial North River Farms project that promises to build 585 homes on Oceanside’s last remaining agricultural district hit a serious roadblock on Thursday. The county registrar certified that the self-described “anti-sprawl” group called Let …
What lowers property values and forces people to leave town? Gangs, poor schools, and overcrowding are the usual culprits. The newest suburban bane may be the escalation of low-hanging 5G antenna which some medical professionals …
Every time Oceanside’s police chief appears at a community forum to speak with irate residents about the homeless, he makes it clear that his hands are tied. “We can no longer arrest people for being …
Enough with the palm trees already! Joan Bockman is known to many locals as Oceanside’s unofficial Johnny Appleseed for native plants. She celebrates and encourages homeowners who introduce cottonwood or desert willow trees in their …
People who do not have drug issues or mental health issues usually do not dance on the hood of automobiles,” a judge said during a pre-trial hearing on Monday, February 10, 2020. Witnesses told Oceanside …
Those signature gatherers in front of Home Depot or Ralph’s are usually in it for the money. They might get $3 to $5 per signature. They may or may not care much about the point …
Was the North County San Diego Women’s March Rally a progressive woke-fest where strident speakers and organized flash mobs railed against guns, sexual abuse and inequality? Where lefties get to wear rainbow flag capes and …
An episode of Nan Sterman’s “A Growing Passion” show on KPBS-TV mentioned the idea that unlike trees and grass, synthetic turf causes a “heat island effect.” She showed how one spread of ersatz lawn measured …
The registered owner of the red Nissan 2016 Rogue was part of a group who woke up last June 9. He was staying in a vacation home the group had rented in the 800 block …
Both of Oceanside’s high school football teams made it to the CIF finals last month. But according to youth coach Jason Mageo, that feat was achieved in spite of the support youth football gets from …
Even though mobile homes remain the largest form of affordable housing in California, a state of California/Stanford University report said that because mobile home park property is worth five to six times more if it …
Disneyland has relied on themed neighborhoods like Fantasyland or Tomorrowland for decades. Now developers who want to build big in Oceanside have also tied their housing projects to enticing themes. Orange County’s Integral Communities pitched …