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Summer is officially here – the perfect time to announce that five Carlsbad beaches received A+ grades from the annual Heal the Bay Beach Report Card. I’ll share more information below, along with tips for how you can help keep our beaches in top condition. More on that, plus these updates below:



• Progress in our efforts to reduce homelessness
• Explore Carlsbad’s A+ beaches 
• Completing a grant-funded study along the coast
• Excellent use of data earns Carlsbad What Works Cities Certification
• Apply to serve on the Palomar Airport Advisory Committee
• New exhibition at Cannon Art Gallery
• Summer fun at Art in the Village
• Summer Reading Adventure
• Stories of Pride 
• Get involved: Upcoming meetings

More progress on efforts to reduce homelessness reported

Reducing homelessness and its impact on our community is a top city priority. The city’s homeless response team provided an update to the City Council at this week’s meeting, noting our progress in the first half of the fiscal year, which lasted from July through December 2022. Here are some highlights:



• 65 people experiencing homelessness transitioned into permanent housing
• 61 encampments cleaned up
• 38 people placed in temporary shelters
• 381 people provided with information, referrals and other services to help them get off the streets  

When comparing data to the same period in Fiscal Year 2021-22, Carlsbad has made significant progress. Highlights include:

• 12% decrease in the number of people experiencing homelessness
• 11% decrease in dispatched police calls related to homelessness
• 53% decrease in veterans experiencing homelessness
• 71% increase in the number of people transitioned into permanent housing

The data echoed some of the findings in the 2023 annual Point in Time Count, which showed the number of people experiencing homelessness in Carlsbad has decreased by nearly 13% since 2022 and 30% since 2020.

At Tuesday’s meeting, agreements were approved for two ongoing programs that provide outreach and case management services, and rapid re-housing assistance for people experiencing homelessness in Carlsbad. Both programs have contributed to the city’s progress to reduce homelessness and its impact on our community.

Explore Carlsbad's A+ beaches (and help keep them in top shape)

Summer officially started Wednesday and Great Outdoors Month is still in full swing, so it’s the perfect time to explore Carlsbad’s world-class beaches. We’re especially proud of them right now because five spots just received A+ grades (again!) in the annual Heal the Bay Beach Report Card.

• Each summer, Heal the Bay releases this statewide ranking on water quality. As usual, Carlsbad beaches received some of the highest ratings across San Diego County in the 2022-2023 report. 
• This year, beaches at Poinsettia Lane, Ponto Drive, Encina Creek, Palomar Airport Road and Cerezo Drive all received top marks.

Clean beaches don’t happen by accident. The City of Carlsbad invests significant resources into preventing runoff and other sources of pollution that can get into our streets, gutters and storm drain system, where they travel, untreated, to our lagoons and the ocean. Here are a few ways you can help keep our beaches in top condition:

Skip the plastic

• Plastic trash is one of the top sources of ocean pollution, so reducing plastic waste is key to keeping our beaches clean. 
• Choose reusable items instead of single-use plastic products whenever possible. If you already use a refillable water bottle and reusable bags at the store, you can take it a step further and bring your own mug, thermos or cup to the coffee shop.

Prevent runoff

• Always pick up after pets and dispose of pet waste in the trash.
• If you wash your car at home, park it off the street and on grass or gravel if possible. Use a hose with a shut-off nozzle or fill a bucket with soapy water.
• Regularly check sprinkler systems for overspray and leaks. Keep all water on your property to prevent runoff and overwatering.

Completing grant-funded study along coast

This week, the City Council provided direction staff needed to complete a grant-funded study to move a portion of south Carlsbad Boulevard, from Manzano Drive to Island Way, away from the cliffs to make it more resilient to coastal flooding, cliff erosion and other sea level rise impacts.

Following recommendations by the Traffic & Mobility and Beach Preservation commissions, the City Council approved a roundabout option for the roadway design to support environmental sustainability and traffic safety along the coast.

Next steps

• Staff will finish work on tasks for the grant by February 2024, which include a 30% conceptual design of the roadway and a long-term management plan that includes triggers for adapting the roadway now or in the future.
• The grant does not fund environmental analysis or construction, though more grant funding opportunities may be available in the future.
• Staff will return to the City Council in March 2024 with an update on options for when to move the roadway.

Excellent use of data earns Carlsbad What Works Cities Certification

I’m excited to share that earlier this week, the City of Carlsbad was selected as one of seven new cities internationally to receive the Bloomberg Philanthropies What Works Cities Certification for 2023.

• The What Works Cities Certification program was launched by Bloomberg Philanthropies in 2017 and is led by Results for America. It’s the first-of-its-kind standard of excellence for data-driven, well-managed local government.
• The certification recognizes cities for exceptional use of data to inform policy decisions, allocate funding, improve services, evaluate program effectiveness and engage residents.

Some examples of our city’s effective use of data include:

• Achieving a 19% decrease in all injury collisions by using road collision heatmaps and other data to inform engineering, education and enforcement efforts as part of the Safer Streets Together Plan.
• Evaluating the city’s staff telecommuting policy, and finding the policy saved between $300,000 - $400,000 and reduced employee commute time by 47,000 hours. It also helped improved traffic conditions for residents and eliminated 424 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, supporting the city’s sustainability and Climate Action Plan goals.

As part of this achievement, the city will get access to additional resources to help us continue to improve the way we use data, and identify new ways to evaluate city services, programs and policies.

Apply to serve on Palomar Airport Advisory Committee

If you’re looking for a way to get involved in our community, applications are now being accepted for the San Diego County Palomar Airport Advisory Committee.

While the airport is located in Carlsbad, it is operated by the County of San Diego. The committee meets every two months and advises the San Diego County Board of Supervisors and the County Chief Administrative Officer on matters related to McClellan-Palomar Airport, including:

• Noise control issues at Palomar Airport
• Land use within the airport influence area
• The development and operations of Palomar Airport
• Providing an open forum between the communities and the county on matters pertaining to Palomar Airport
• Any other items that may be assigned to the committee by the Board of Supervisors

The deadline to apply is 5 p.m. Monday, June 26.



Apply to serve

New exhibition at Cannon Art Gallery

Join us Saturday for the opening of Breaking Glass Boundaries, our new exhibition at the Cannon Art Gallery, curated by Barrio Glassworks owner Mary Devlin.

Breaking Glass Boundaries

Cannon Art Gallery

1775 Dove Lane

June 24 to Sept. 2

Opening night reception

Saturday, June 24

6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Barrio Glassworks is a public glassblowing studio and retail gallery in the historic Barrio community at 3060 Roosevelt Street. The Cannon gallery exhibition captures the magic of glassblowing and sculpture, fusing the two with complex material reimagined as swimming sea creatures, teardrops and even dramatic sentries.

The opening night reception will include light refreshments and live music from a jazz quintet.

More outdoor fun at Art in the Village

If you’re looking to combine art and outdoor fun this weekend, stop by the 25th annual Art in the Village festival.

City staff will be on hand at our Pop Up Art booth to help you create a colorful, glass-like “masterpiece” to hang on your wall or window. All materials are provided. This family-friendly activity is inspired by the new Barrio Glassworks exhibition in the William D. Cannon Art Gallery, which opens Saturday.

Art in the Village

Sunday, June 25

9 a.m. to 5 p.m.



Pop Up Art: Corner of Beech and State Street

Bike valet: Corner of State Street and Christiansen Way

The city is teaming up with the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition to offer a complimentary bike valet at the festival, so if you ride your bike, we’ll handle the parking. Think of it like a coat check for your bike. Your bike or e-bike will be kept safe, so you can enjoy the festivities worry-free.

Whether you bike, walk or drive to the event, please remember to follow the rules of the road and give yourself plenty of time to get there.

Join our Summer Reading Adventure

School might be out but summer is a great time to exercise your brain with our annual Summer Reading Adventure, a popular library program. You can earn incentives by reading and exploring library programs now through Aug. 5.

This year's theme, "Find Your Voice," encourages people of all ages to share stories, create art, make music and use their voices for good. Enjoy virtual, in-person and pre-recorded performances and engaging educational programs.

Here’s how to participate:

• Register at carlsbadlibrary.beanstack.org or use the Beanstack Tracker app for Android or iOS. Log into your account, or create one if you are a new reader, and sign up for the Summer Reading Adventure challenge that matches your age.
• Record your progress in Beanstack to earn special rewards linked to your successes. 
• Rewards are a fun way to celebrate your progress and are available at Carlsbad libraries while supplies list. Last day to pick up is Aug. 19.

Stories of Pride at Carlsbad library

Speaking of the library, our next Human Library event is happening Monday at the Cole Library highlighting diversity in our community in honor of Pride Month.

Human Library: Stories of Pride

Monday, June 26, 6 p.m.

Georgina Cole Library Community Room

1250 Carlsbad Village Drive

The Human Library program is a panel discussion where real people are the "books” and “reading” is a conversation. The guest panel Monday will include local college professors, a drag queen and local LGBTQ+ historians. At this event, you’ll learn more about the intersection of LGBTQIA+ history and the arts and you’ll have a chance to ask questions.

Get involved: Upcoming meetings

The next City Council meeting will take place Tuesday, July 18, starting at 5 p.m. in the City Council Chamber. A link to the full agenda and staff reports will be available on the city’s website by the Friday before the meeting.

There’s one city meeting happening next week:

• June 28, 4 p.m. – Library Board of Trustees

That’s all for this week! If you’re headed out to enjoy summer fun this weekend, please remember to take extra care and look out for each other on the road.

Scott Chadwick