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News 8 covers the history of Ocean Beach and how it is today. We visit the Newport Avenue shops, pier and people introduced in 1987.
SAN DIEGO – If we look back in the 70s and 80s, a lot has changed in Ocean Beach, but not the people and the size of the corner shops along Newport Avenue.
“Look around, it’s still peace, love, and happiness,” said Gregory Longway.
The eclectic character is the same as always.
Over the years, News will unearth 8 vintage videos of Ocean Beach.
In 1987 Ocean Beach was featured in a community special with the Lowens department store.
“I used to knit and crochet and get all of my yarns in OB. I used to go to Lowens and Cornet, ”said Gail Hathaway Dunn.
Lowens is now Creations and Trendsetters and next door is Denny Knox’s store, the Cabrillo Art Center, at block 4900 on Newport Avenue – now it’s OB Surf and Skate.
“It’s been like an old home week all along,” said Knox, executive director of the OB MainStreet Association.
In 1978, Knox founded the OB MainStreet Association when there were fewer buyers and more parking was available.
“The business is much stronger today than it was ever in the ’70s or’ 80s – early ’80s,” said Knox.
Now there is the farmers’ market on Wednesday evening, which OBMA launched in 1992, the drum circle in Veteran’s Park and the dog beach on the jetty.
While the small scale of the buildings has remained the same, the storefronts have changed.
“When I was growing up, it was Peninsula Bank that no longer existed and is now a Starbucks,” said Steven Phillips, a native of Ocean Beach and a writer.
It’s the only Starbucks in OB and it wasn’t originally welcomed by the community.
People protested when it opened in 2001. Many tend to resist change. Phillips moved to OB in 1952. He has written several books about OB and remembers protests, including against the Target, where Cornet once was.
“We don’t want change and we dig in every step of the way,” said Phillips.
Houses are much bigger and more expensive. Twenty years ago a house on the hill was maybe less than $ 500,000; today it’s $ 2 million or more.
“I would love to come back and visit you. I could never afford to live here again, ”said Phillips.
Step back in time on Newport Avenue and you’ll see new storefronts.
“Almost everything is gone and has changed,” said Hathaway Dunn.
Chris’ Liquor has been on the corner of Sunset Cliff Boulevard and West Point Loma Boulevard since 1956.
“I started with a broom and worked my way up to being the owner and it was a good life,” said Gregg Stravos, owner of Chris’ Liquor.
His father opened the liquor and deli in 1956 and Stravos bought it in 1986. The classic red sign is gone.
“I remember when the city forced me to take my sign off because it wasn’t coded,” said Stravos.
65 years later, Chris’ liquor is still a staple in Ocean Beach.
“So far, it’s good. It was good business,” said Stravos.
Down on Sunset Cliffs Boulevard you can see the churches, the Shell petrol station – petrol is much more expensive today than it was in the 1970s.
The Olive Tree Marketplace, Gregg’s brother’s store, is still on Sunset Cliffs Boulevard and Narragansett Avenue, with Victory Wines and Spirits across the street.
“Victory Liquor – I worked there for 10 years,” said Stravos.
Down Newport is the famous smoke shop The Black, which has been in OB since 1967, there is another line across the street at Hodads, there is the annual quirky Christmas tree at the foot of Newport and Abbott Street and the Christmas parade.
The barbershop next to the Old Town House Restaurant is gone, but not the cafe or some of its staff.
Forty years later, Danny Nunez, his brother Jose Nunez, and the waiter Sandy Shanely are working a few doors down at the Margaritas Family Restaurant that Jose owns.
“If I don’t die, I’ll be here,” said Danny Nunez.
In 1978 the late Cathy Clark reported on the new parking lot at the pier. She said residents didn’t like it and were concerned about people passing through and wanted police to do something about it.
In 2021, people are still complaining about the homeless and drugs going down the wall.
“Those were the good old days. There is nothing like what it is now. Some people would say it’s utterly rotten, ”said Phillips.
The longest concrete pier on the west coast is still there, but it is dilapidated and so is its future.
Where the Ferris wheel stood in 1958 is now Veteran’s Park, which is overrun by street vendors.
OB’er like to call themselves Obecians, but some people want to disagree.
“Obezians?” said Hathaway Dunn.
Still, there is so much funk to love about Ocean Beach.
“There’s something special about the magnetic field or something,” Phillips said.
One thing is still certain, peace, love in OB.
“Always changing, but still the same,” said Longway.
CELEBRATE THE SAN DIEGO SERIES
Celebrate San Diego was a 1986/1987 series about neighborhoods in San Diego County. CBS 8 anchor reporter Connie Healy and a team of photographers roamed the county providing detailed profiles of several cities and towns in the area. They were history lessons focused on change and progress.
Many of the longtime residents she spoke to thought about what it was like to grow up in their city and what they thought of all the changes they had seen. You really get a feel for what the character and personality of the community was like in each profile – and how diverse the county really is.
Thirty-five years later, we’re sending out a team of reporters to see how things have changed or stayed the same in each of the nearly 20 neighborhoods we studied in the mid-1980s.
Connie shares her memories of working on this fantastic series below:
“I love talking to people. People make the news, not news anchors. They simply tell how we live our lives. In the 1980s, Celebrate San Diego did just that. It painted a picture of everyday life very different from what we live in today and a city many of us would not even recognize.
Talking to people, listening to their stories is what reporters do every day. But these stories about life in San Diego 50 to 100 years ago were amazing. This city has come a long way in the past 30 years, but some of the people in these stories saw change at the speed of light. I encourage you to take some time to peek into our past, indulge in the present, and celebrate the wonderful city we all call home. “
MORE RETURNS FROM OCEAN BEACH
MORE THEN & NOW
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=videoseries
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