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24 January 2002
“Alcohol-Free Beaches–Good for Families, Great for San Diego”
San Diegans Want Alcohol-Free Beaches
USupporters Launch Citywide Educational Campaign on Underage Drinking, Public Safety and Economic Impact of Alcohol Consumption on the Beach

SAN DIEGO, CA – Santa Barbara County doesn’t have it. Ventura County does not allow it. Los Angeles and Orange counties prohibit it as well.

“It” is alcohol on the beach.

As matter of fact, most San Diego County beaches forbid it. Oceanside does. Carlsbad too. Encinitas, Leucadia, Cardiff, La Jolla Shores, Coronado and Imperial Beach do as well.

Why?

Because the residents in those neighborhoods and surrounding communities got tired of all the problems created by people who drink at the beach.

Underage drinking, drunk driving, public drunkenness, fights, urinating and defecating in public, sexual assaults, and verbal abuse are just a few.

San Diego parks had the same problems, yet they greatly diminished when the city prohibited drinking in public parks in the early 1990’s. Now they are alcohol-free and much safer.

Public health experts, law enforcement, community residents and youth want to see those problems disappear from Mission and Pacific Beach. That’s why today, they launched a citywide educational campaign aimed at getting citizens to support alcohol-free beaches. The campaign will consist of public forums, rallies, debates, mass mailers and public presentations.

“We would love to see what happened at the parks take place on the beach,” said Ray DiCiccio, executive director of the San Diego County Policy Panel on Youth Access to Alcohol. “After alcohol was eliminated, the parks are a lot safer,” added DiCiccio, whose Policy Panel’s Number 1 recommendation is for the county to have alcohol-free parks and beaches.

“We want people to understand the drain that alcohol on the beach represents to police, lifeguards, and communities,” said Jill Galante, co-chair of the San Diego Safe Beach Task Force. The Safe Beach Task Force was created to educate San Diegans about the problems created by alcohol consumption on the beach.

“Our goal is for citizens to understand the issue through education, not emotional appeals. We want them to look at the facts and make an educated decision based on what they would like to have their families experience at the beach,” added Galante.

Vince Jimno has seen first hand the difference between an alcohol-free beach and one drowning in alcohol. As the former chief of police for the City of Carlsbad, he helped city officials pass an ordinance prohibiting drinking on the beach in the mid 80’s.

“When Carlsbad Beach went alcohol-free, it was like night and day,” said Jimno. “The problems at the beach dropped significantly. Before we spent a lot of manpower patrolling the beach area, especially on Friday and Saturday nights and during the summer months. Afterwards, we saw a significant change in calls for services and moved the beach units into residential neighborhoods.”

San Diegans have also seen the changes that can happen when a beach is saved from drowning in alcohol. La Jolla Shores is a perfect example.

When La Jolla Shores was made alcohol free in 1991, crimes dropped 80 percent and arrests diminished by nearly half. Today, only two officers are assigned to patrol the beach during summer time.

When a beach turns dry, one of the first things to disappear is underage drinkers. That’s because teens no longer have a source of alcohol—older friends, strangers and their own parents who party on the sand.

“The beach is one of the favorite places for teens to drink,” said Pureza Bacor, from the Union of Pan Asian Communities. “They like the beach because they know they can get alcohol very easily.”

Teens like drinking at the beach because the large crowds camouflage their behavior from law enforcement.

“The beach has become the biggest club in San Diego and no I.D. is required,” said Suzy Shimasaki, a junior at University City High School and a member of the San Diego Youth Council.

Between 1998-2000, only 2,583 minors were cited for possession of alcohol. Police believe that for every minor that gets arrested, many more go undetected along with the adults who give them the alcohol.

Underage drinking is not the only problem caused by alcohol consumption at the beach. Alcohol in crowded beaches creates major public safety and economic problems.

During the same time period, San Diego police recorded 17,293 arrests and citations for alcohol violations; that’s over one third such citations for the entire city. Among those cited were 1,361 people arrested for drunk driving.

Also, Mission Beach consistently comes up on top on the list of San Diego communities with high “violent and property crime rates.”

The reason? Alcohol.

In fact, during the summer months, up to 20% of the entire San Diego police force is assigned to the beach area; that’s 50-60 officers on busy weekends.

Since officers are reassigned to patrol beach communities, other areas in the city have to be patrolled at reduced levels.

“Research has shown that alcohol-free beaches are safer for everyone,” added DiCiccio, from the Policy Panel. “Alcohol-free beaches are a good move. Go take a look at Imperial Beach during the summer months. Spend a day at La Jolla Shores. Alcohol-free beaches are good for families, great for San Diego.”

San Diego parents also want safer and booze-free beaches. They are tired of their children constantly being exposed to drunks on the beach.

“They are so loud and obscene that you can’t take your kids out,” said Jannine Davey, a six-year resident of Mission Beach and mother of three small children.

“Parent’s wouldn’t think of taking their children to a bar. Why would they take them to a beach full of drunks? It’s time to choose. Lose the booze,” added Benita Trujillo, a San Diego resident and a prevention specialist with Episcopal Community Services.

“Public beaches are for everyone’s enjoyment. We are asking San Diegans to support alcohol-free beaches and give us the opportunity to see how good things can be,” concluded Trujillo.

Background: In April, the San Diego City Council approved an 18-month trial ban on alcohol in Mission Beach and parts of Pacific Beach. Opponents, supported primarily by alcohol retailers, collected enough signatures to prevent the temporary restriction from going into effect. Then in July, the City Council voted, unanimously, to place the initiative on the March 2002 ballot and let voters decide whether alcohol should be eliminated from the beach. If approved, Mission and Pacific Beach will adopt temporary 24-hour alcohol restriction until December 31, 2002. Currently, drinking is prohibited from 8:00 p.m. until noon.