MISSION BEACH (KGTV) — County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer and Council President Joe LaCava have partnered to allocate $135,000 from a county grant program to save Mission Beach's fire pits through 2026, following Mayor Todd Gloria's proposal to remove them as a cost-cutting measure.
The funding will preserve the popular beach amenity that was targeted for removal in the Mayor's April budget proposal, which aimed to address the City's $258M deficit.
Mark Mattas, who was enjoying a bonfire at Mission Beach with his family to celebrate his niece's graduation on Friday, expressed relief at the news.
"Don't take them away," Mattas said. "When you light that fire, everybody comes and sits around it, and they enjoy it. It's the best time."
While many San Diegans are pleased that the beach tradition will continue as a public amenity, not all Mission Beach residents are satisfied with the decision.
Martin Zimmerman, a long-time Mission Beach resident, has concerns about the environmental and health impacts of the fire pits because the public often abuses them.
"The issue with the fire pits is all that smoke blows downwind to someone like me," Zimmerman said.
Zimmerman reports that the most significant impact he and his family have felt is on their health, mainly having trouble breathing.
The root of the problem: the trash Zimmerman has found in the fire pits, which also revealed the toxic chemicals cluttering the atmosphere around the beachfront homes.
Zimmerman and his neighbors have found numerous inappropriate items discarded in the fire pits and shared photos.
"Scooters, scooter batteries, computers, printers, chairs..." Zimmerman said.
He also noted that the fire pits often become sites for late-night disturbances and altercations.
The Parks and Recreation Department previously confirmed that many of their cleanup efforts are linked to these problems.
"We're not against the fire pits per se, we're just against the pollution that they import on the environment. We're saying make them propane or some other clean fuel that will be less of an environmental impact," Zimmerman said.
