The rope barrier at Children’s Pool will reappear indefinitely, as the San Diego City Council voted to close off the beach every year from Jan. 1 to May 1 to protect the pregnant seals and newly born pups. Council members voted 7-1 to reinstate the rope cordoning off the seals from humans, with District 1 City Councilman Scott Peters dissenting, on April 18.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Office for Law Enforcement first urged Mayor Jerry Sanders to reinstate the rope barrier on March 21, saying that the agency had received more than 60 hotline phone calls citing harassment of the marine mammals. Between January and March of 2005, NOAA received 131 hotline calls.
Peters rejected NOAA’s recommendation, saying he disagrees that there is enough evidence of harassment to block access to the beach for four months.
“This vote is consistent with his other votes in favor of joint-use at the children’s pool,” said Pam Hardy, spokeswoman for Peters. “Ultimately the problem isn’t that people can’t get along with seals; the problem is that people can’t get along with people.”
The vote will proceed to the city clerk’s office and then to the mayor, who has 10 days to approve or veto the item. The earliest the rope might be reinstalled is Monday, April 24, according to officials with the city’s Park and Recreation Department.