Does a Planning Department Truly Exist in IB? Construction Is Destroying Small Businesses

Does Imperial Beach truly have a Planning Department and if they do, does that department understand the meaning of planning?

As a resident of Imperial Beach and one who cares about the local economy, the City of Imperial Beach is committing economic suicide or many would say 1st degree murder on the small businesses who are located on Seacoast Drive.  

All one has to do is walk down Seacoast Drive from Daisy Avenue to Evergreen to see the destruction, not construction, of the local economy.  

The city has lost its mind if it ever had one.

They took away parking spaces on the side streets, they took away parking along the beach, then they decided to change the street corners so they stick out and make it even more difficult for drivers to make right turns.

If that isn't enough, they chose to shut down the sidewalks during one of the busiest weekends of the year, Labor Day weekend.

Both residents and visitors had to walk in the street from Daisy to almost Elm St. because they did not plan the construction properly and they had the sidewalks torn up in front of the poorly planned hotel and on the other side of the street, the and .

This in itself is a safety violation. There was no safe manner for pedestrians to walk down Seacoast.

Now they are putting in new street lights right next to the old ones that were working just fine. Is this a great way to use the money we have? Did we really need these lights?

They have disrupted the local businesses and also Friday's . I know the mayor doesn't care about the Farmer's Market because he has never been there, but those who truly enjoy this weekly event are very satisfied that it exists.

The mayor is supposed to be doing what is best for the people not serving his own agenda. Maybe if we moved his barstool closer to the pier he might take an interest in our local government. 

Seacoast Drive is constantly under destruction and it has hurt the local businesses greatly.

Who wants to walk down a street where dust is flying and noisy equipment makes it hard for you to talk to your friends who are right next to you?

Parking is limited as it is being taken up by the constant destruction of the street. In talking with a number of local businesses they all say business is down by an average of 30 percent and during an economic downturn that is serious.

To make matters worse, I was walking down Seacoast and the equipment operators were cleaning up by using their street brush they were making huge dust clouds which were going into the local businesses. I was in Bibbey's Shell Shop when large cloud of dust entered his front door.

For a moment I thought we were in a Lone Ranger episode...with a cloud of dust and a "Hi-Ho Silver!", the masked construction workers were polluting the entire neighborhood. 

The real question here is why the city and their notorious planning department chose to do all of this construction during the busiest time of the year? The local businesses had a hard enough winter, but to create an economic disaster during a time when the local businesses could re-coop some of their losses, the city decides to destroy any possibility of having a successful summer season.

THIS IS A STRONG SUGGESTION THAT THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT OF IMPERIAL BEACH TAKE THEIR HEADS OUT OF WHERE THE SUN DOESN'T SHINE and rethink their next project with a maximum amount of thinking. Yes thinking, a process that they don't seem to have used. Maybe they should talk to the local business owners to see what they need!!