As you walk around Orange Avenue at lunchtime or if you enjoyed taking in a Sunday concert at the park, you may have noticed a new face wearing the uniform of Coronado’s Police Chief. Beginning in July, after the retirement of Police Chief Jon Froomin, Edward Aceves joined the Coronado Police Department filling the role as Interim Police Chief while the City of Coronado recruits applicants to fill the permanent position.
A La Mesa resident, Aceves is well known for his distinguished career serving in La Mesa Public Safety for almost 30 years prior to retiring as their Chief of Police in 2015. Aceves chose to retire to spend more time with his family and decompress after a fulfilling career.
While Aceves was fully enjoying his retirement, traveling and spending time with family, he couldn’t pass up this short term opportunity. He shared that when City Manager Blair King asked him to act as the interim police chief, Aceves thought, “Coronado is the only place that I would agree to come back to work full time. I did some consulting with the department in the past and was incredibly impressed with the level of service to community every member of the team is willing to deliver.”
Aceves has been filling the job since July and will likely remain in place for the next couple months as the city makes their decision on a permanent Chief. “I was brought in to keep the department moving forward and set the stage for a new chief,” said Aceves. “I didn’t make any sweeping changes and don’t intend to. I love this job, it is a great environment and I love the community. I was lucky to walk into a great situation.”
I asked Chief Aceves what his favorite thing about Coronado is and he said, “It reminds me of the small-town connected community feel I grew up with in La Mesa. Everyone in Coronado is very nice and they are well-informed citizens. I didn’t really ever come for the concerts in the park prior to serving in this position, but I love them and will be back even after I’ve moved on from the job.”
While Aceves is enjoying the job, he is also looking forward to getting back to his retirement routine with his wife and two children who both live in the San Diego area.
