Friday, April 19, 2024

Highlights from the City Manager’s Weekly Update: City to remove diseased eucalyptus trees

Each week, the City of Coronado City Manager’s Office provides an update that includes information on programs, services and issues within the City, as well as news, project updates and follow-up information when applicable. Featured below are highlights from that update. The entire City Manager’s Weekly Update can be found on the City’s website.

Eucalyptus Tree Removal Notice

After careful review and consideration of the public’s safety, the City has decided to remove four of the 18 mature Sugar Gum eucalyptus trees from the public right of way in the 100 block of E Avenue. The nearly 60-foot-tall trees provide beauty and shade but pose an unacceptable risk to public safety and private property. On Wednesday, September 10, the City held an informal neighborhood meeting to discuss the work. City staff members as well as the certified arborist recommending the tree removals were on hand to answer questions and hear concerns. About 30 people attended the meeting. In addition to City staff providing general information about the process and the factors that were considered in the City’s elected officials arriving at the decision to remove the four trees, the certified arborist gave detailed explanations at each designated tree on how it was evaluated and the principal factors that led to the assigned risk rating. City staff also discussed the matter of tree replacement options at the City’s Street Tree Committee meeting held yesterday. The community was invited to attend. The City created a notice it released Tuesday, September 9, explaining in greater detail the reasons behind the planned tree removals. Read the full notice here.

9/11 Ceremony

On Thursday morning, September 11, City staff, members of the military and the community joined together at the Coronado Fire Department. A memorial ceremony was held at 6:53 a.m., in recognition of the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. This year marks the 13th anniversary of the terrorist attacks in New York, Pennsylvania and Washington D.C. The City’s American Flags were all flown at half-staff on Thursday.

Portable Restroom

The new portable restroom installed in late August near the beach end of Avenida del Sol has proved popular with the beach-going public. In the first 10 days of operation, which included the Labor Day holiday weekend, the restroom had approximately 4,500 patrons. That number may be low because the restroom was out of service for several hours at a time when it reached capacity, as it shuts down automatically, and when it was being emptied. Now that Public Services has a better idea of how often the restroom needs to be pumped, the company providing the service has a regular schedule of three times per week. With the continued hot weather, the frequency may need to be increased. The restroom has one ADA-compliant stall and two single use stalls. It is operational seven days a week and unlocked when the Public Services Beach/Special Services crews first service the area in the morning, before 8 a.m. It is locked after the final janitorial cleaning of the day, sometime after 8 p.m. Once usage drops for the summer, the trailer will be stored at the Public Services yard when it is not in use and will be available to support special events within the City throughout the year.

Navy Construction

The Navy will be conducting work along the fence line at Dog Beach in the upcoming weeks. A majority of the work is expected to occur during the week of September 22. However, to perform some preparation work, the Navy will be on the Dog Beach side of the fence next week, from Wednesday through Friday, September 17 – 19. They will be using either a backhoe or a front-end loader to move some large rocks.

Bike Theft Arrest

On Tuesday, September 9, Patrol Officers arrested a 56-year-old man, identified as Robert Defalco of San Diego, on burglary charges. Defalco was identified as the suspect in the theft of a bike from the secure parking garage at 1760 Avenida Del Mundo on September 4. Before the bike could be reported stolen to the Police, Coronado Police Officer Darren Hamilton contacted the suspect on the bike and noted the serial number and description in the contact. The bike was reported stolen an hour later but by that time officers were unable to locate Defalco. The investigation developed information of Defalco’s whereabouts and he was arrested. The bike was not recovered.

Pedestrian Vehicle Collision

On Monday, officers responded to a traffic collision involving a vehicle and a pedestrian at H Avenue and Third Street. The vehicle struck the pedestrian in the crosswalk after stopping at the stop sign. The driver was looking to the right for the one-way traffic along Third Street and did not see the pedestrian crossing in front of the vehicle from the left. The pedestrian was struck at slow speed and fell and was transported to the hospital with minor injuries.

Community Teens

The Community Teens class kicked off this week with a visit to the Coronado Senior Center for some “Smart Phone 101” instruction. Participants of the class sat one-on-one with members of the Coronado Senior Center and walked through the basic functions of their smart phones, tablets and laptop computers. The students were also able to help troubleshoot some problems with the Senior Center members. The Community Teens class is held every Monday, from 3-5:30 p.m., and includes volunteer work with different organizations each week. The class still has spaces available for sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students. If you are interested in registering, please call (619) 522-7342. The registration fee is $20 per student.

Upcoming Meetings

– The Naval Complexes Coordinating Group meeting for September 15 has been rescheduled to 3 p.m. on Tuesday, September 23, at City Hall, 1825 Strand Way.
– The City Council meeting is set for 4 p.m. on Tuesday, September 16, at City Hall.
– The Historic Resource Commission meets at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, September 17, at City Hall.
– The Planning Commission meets at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, September 23, at City Hall.
– The Design Review Commission meets at 3 p.m., on Wednesday, September 24, at City Hall.
– The Traffic Operations Committee meets at 2 p.m. on Thursday, September 25, at City Hall.
– The Golf Course Advisory Committee meets at 3 p.m. on Thursday, September 25, at the Golf Course, 2000 Visalia Road.
– RSIP-3 Committee meets at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 25, at City Hall.



Managing Editor
Managing Editor
Originally from upstate New York, Dani Schwartz has lived in Coronado since 1996. She is happy to call Coronado home and to have raised her children here. In her free time she enjoys reading, exercising, trying new restaurants, and just walking her dog around the "island." Have news to share? Send tips or story ideas to: [email protected]

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