Volume XV, Issue 29
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Transportation officials to pursue four-lane I-5 expansion
Del Mar council passes ordinance that restricts taxicab parking
■ Hot Shotz Sports Center moves next to Pelly’s. See Page 4
■ Local company designs portable bridge for Army. Page 11
BY JOE TASH CONTRIBUTOR Complaints about taxicabs taking up public parking spaces and drivers loitering and behaving rudely along city streets prompted the Del Mar City Council to pass an urgency ordinance prohibiting taxicabs from parking anywhere in Del Mar between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. daily. The Council approved the urgency ordinance on a 5-0 vote at its meeting on Monday, July 11, and also approved the first reading of a permanent ordinance enacting the taxicab parking ban. The law took effect immediately, and signs announcing the ban were expected to be installed beginning Tuesday, said Patrick Vergne, director of community services. Parking enforcement officers will begin issuing warnings this weekend for violations of the new rules, and citations, which carry a fine of $43, SEE TAXICAB, PAGE 14
July 14, 2011 Published Weekly
Not just a great football player Cincinnati Bengals Cedric Benson played a pick-up game recently at Fletcher Cove Park. Photo/Jon Clark
BY JOE TASH Contributor State and federal transportation officials have decided to pursue a four-lane, $3.5 billion expansion of Interstate 5 between La Jolla and Oceanside, rather than a larger expansion plan that had been previously considered. Some who had opposed a larger, six-lane expansion of the freeway that was studied as part of the project’s environmental review hailed the July 7 announcement as a victory. But others remained unsatisfied, advocating for public transit improvements before more freeway lanes are built. “It’s certainly a step in the right direction toward the no-build option, but there’s a very strong sentiment in San Diego that transit must come before more major freeway building,” said Lane Sharman, a Solana Beach resident and member of Citizens Against Freeway Expansion. Sharman wants to see San Diego County establish a new agency headed by a
directly elected board to oversee creation of a lightrail system to serve the region. Currently, transportation money generated by a voter-approved sales tax increase is administered by the San Diego Association of Governments, or SANDAG, which is governed by elected officials from local cities and the county. Widening I-5, said Sharman, is “not going to make San Diego a world-class city.” Rather, he said, San Diego should work with neighboring counties to create a transit system similar to the Bay Area Rapid Transit, or BART, system in the San Francisco region. “We need to get started on this now.” The I-5 plan approved by both the California Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration involves adding four express lanes to the freeway’s existing eight lanes between La Jolla and Oceanside. The project would be built in phases, with construction of the first seg-
SEE I-5, PAGE 6
‘Favorite’ track beckons trainer
Marijuana dispensary ordered to shut down Judge issues temporary restraining order to close 1105 Cooperative
■ It’s almost time to get back to the track. Page B1
BY JOE TASH Contributor A San Diego Superior Court judge Tuesday ordered the closure of Del Mar’s first and only medical marijuana dispensary, just over three months after it opened for business. Last month the city sued Patrick Kennedy, the owner of the 1105 Cooperative, as the dispensary is called, and the owners of
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the building on Camino Del Mar where the cooperative is located, seeking to shut the operation down. At a hearing Tuesday, Judge Judith Hayes issued a temporary restraining order directing that the cooperative be closed immediately. She also set a hearing for Aug. 4, when the city will argue its case for
SEE DISPENSARY, PAGE 14
Trainer Jenine Sahadi kisses Gotta Have Her after winning the $100,000 Harold C. Ramser, Sr. Handicap at Oak Tree at Santa Anita Park. ©BENOIT PHOTO
BY JULIE SARNO Contributor Trainer Jenine Sahadi looks forward to bringing her stable to Del Mar every summer. She will be bringing 14 horses this year and enjoys spending time at her home in Del Mar. “Del Mar is my favorite track,” said Sahadi, who spends most of her year at Los Angeles tracks. “I love being there with my family, my mother and my younger brother, Steve, who lives in Solana Beach with his family. It’s as close to a mini vacation as I get.” How did Sahadi select training raceSEE TRACK, PAGE 6
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