Dude, Not the Fire Pits!

The fire pits on city beaches could fall victim to the budget axe according to one published report.

San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders is proposing to remove 186 pits to save $173,000 in maintenance costs. According to the San Diego Union Tribune, the city staffs two full-time positions to take care of the pits that are cleaned weekly in the summer and biweekly in the winter.

Other budget cuts that have been proposed have included closing or shortening hours at city libraries, shutting down recreation centers, cutting staff of the city clerk and City Council and the elimination of the Office of Ethics and Integrity.  Sanders has proposed cutting 217 jobs citywide, 102, which are already vacant.

β€œSan Diego's identity is intimately tied up with the ocean and beach culture in general, and it seems to me the damage done to the robust beach culture that we now have – by removing the rings – is not worth saving $173,000 a year,” Michael Roberts, an assistant professor at San Diego State University who studies the sociology of surfing told the San Diego Union Tribune.

The City Council will meet Monday to discuss the cuts.

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