By David R. Shorey, East County Program Manager, Institute for Public Strategies

Photo:  Creative Commons

November 3, 2021 (San Diego’s East County) -- As we move into the holiday season and pandemic restrictions are loosening in the East County, in-person gatherings are going to become more common. For many, this will be the first time in a couple of years that families will all be able to gather and there may be increased temptation to party hard this year to make up for lost time. Thanksgiving, Chanukah, Christmas, New Year’s, Festivus and winter solstice are all opportunities to celebrate with alcoholic beverages. While traditions of celebrating the holidays with fancy cocktails, good food and reminiscing about past experiences can be done responsibly, the opportunities for increased access to alcohol by youth presents a challenge to those gathered. This is the season to become even more diligent about reducing kids’ access to alcohol.

Source:  San Diego Sheriff's Department

November 23, 2019 (Lemon Grove/San Diego) - Sheriff's Deputies, San Diego Police Officers and California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Agents conducted a joint drunk decoy operation in Lemon Grove and the College Area on Saturday, November 23rd from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

By Miriam Raftery

August 2, 2017 (El Cajon) — The El Cajon Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on Tuesday, August 15 at 7 p.m. to consider termination of the former Broadway Market sit'es Deemed Approve Status and Revocation of a Conditional Use Permit for the off-sale of beer, wine and distilled spirits.

New law goes into effect July 7; summer concerts and movies in parks to begin soon

Source:  East County Community Change Project

June 17, 2017 (Lemon Grove) -- Alcohol and marijuana are about to be prohibited at Lemon Grove’s eight city parks, just in time for summer family fun, according to city officials. The city council voted unanimously in May to take local control and make parks off limits to the use of marijuana in any form and all alcohol. While California’s new law under Prop. 64 makes recreational marijuana use legal for adults over 21, it is not legal to do so in public places. The council thought it was important enough to include it in the law.

October 20, 2013 (San Diego’s East County) – On October 17, a shoulder-tap operation was conducted by the Sheriff’s Department and other agencies to see if retail outlets are illegally selling alcohol to minors in Santee, Alpine, Lakeside, Spring Valley, Lemon Grove, and unincorporated El Cajon.

Deputies from the San Diego County Sheriff's Department, Agents from Alcohol Beverage Control, and three minor decoys conducted a "Minor Decoy" and "Shoulder Tap" Operation at various locations in the East County. The operation involved minors who tested "on-sale" and "off-sale" establishments. The minor decoys tested retailers and servers at a number of locations in an attempt to purchase alcoholic beverages inside their establishments. Three employees sold alcohol to the decoys.

March 25, 2013 (Lemon Grove) – Lemon Grove Academy joined local efforts to educate students and parents of the dangers of drugs and alcohol in East County by hosting its first Underage Drinking Forum on Thursday. The event, which took place on March 21, featured a complimentary pizza dinner, a presentation by a local drug and alcohol expert, as well as a separate break-out session for youth.

Retired narcotics officer and Executive Director of The Proactive Network Against Substance Abuse, Phil Hubbs, educated a group of nearly 40 parents about current drug and alcohol trends. He also showed parents a display of various household items such as hand sanitizer, whipped cream canisters and keyboard cleaner that kids use to get drunk or high.

By Janis Mork

“I’m very close to the homeless. They’re people. Not all are troublemakers….. I know several who need help. We need to get tools together for a community committee, so we can get people off the streets and into homes.” – Clifva Budke, Medical Billing Enterprise

“I’ve stated many times that Santee is not a social services business. We’re in potholes, we’re in law enforcement, and we’re in fire fighters. .. I have a problem with the homeless industry.” – Mayor Randy Voepel

March 15, 2013 (Santee)- At Wednesday’s Santee City Council meeting, City Manager Keith Till brought up a report on strategies to reduce  problems related to the transient [homeless] population, sparking a robust discussion on how best to address homelessness in Santee—and whether the solutions should be purely punitive, or include services to help those in need. 

By Janis Mork

February 1, 2013 (El Cajon) -- El Cajon’s City Council voted 5-0 on January 22 to ask staff to draft options for an ordinance with tougher licensing regulations for off-site sales of liquor at markets and liquor stores.

“El Cajon has changed a lot since I was a kid in the 1960’s,” said Councilman Gary Kendrick, who introduced the proposal. “Unfortunately, as we grew, we acquired problems big cities had. One is alcohol abuse. We’ve struggled with it for 30 years now,” he said, adding that his proposal is modeled after ‘deemed approved’ ordinances that have, “...become very popular in cities that have it.” 

January 17, 2013 (El Cajon) – Councilman Gary Kendrick will introduce a measure on Tuesday, January 22 that would implement a “deemed approved” system to regulate liquor licenses n El Cajon. 

“It enables a city to put a whole host of new conditions on existing liquor establishments,” Kendrick told ECM.  “It even covers those grandfathered in that don’t have a conditional use permit, so we could stop a liquor store from creating a nuisance in the city.”  The measure would cover all off-site liquor stores, type 20 and 21 licenses, he added.

The proposal would also allow the city to charge a fee to liquor stores to funds sting operations against alcohol sellers as asll as pay for a full-time alcohol enforcement officer.

By Miriam Raftery

December 8, 2012 (Bonita) – Today Sheriff’s deputies, with help from Alcoholic Beverage Control agents, conducted drunk decoy operations in Imperial Beach and Bonita.  Of 11 retail outlets visited, six sold alcohol to individuals who appeared to be intoxicated.

An undercover Deputy Sheriff was sprayed with alcohol for the operation, then entered the establishments acting intoxicated and reeking of alcohol.  Where alcohol was sold to the decoy, plainclothes deputies entered and provided informational handouts to the persons who made the sales; no enforcement actions were taken.