What a difference a year makes Last year, after the temporary alcohol ban was in place, there were still many who kept chanting that it was wrong. They said it would harm the business community because no one would want to come to the beach. Then when the permanent ban passed overwhelmingly, they still stood firm to their beliefs that people wouldn’t come to the beach if they could not drink alcohol. Memorial Day last year was predicted to be cold and cloudy and the beach only drew about 250,000 people. The chanters got louder, saying that it didn’t have anything to do with the weather – that people weren’t coming because of the ban. Then we had the Fourth of July and the beach drew quite a significant crowd and Labor Day was pretty average. Memorial Day this year drew a record crowd of over 750,000 people. The notable difference was the absence of foul language, lewd behavior and drunken brawls on the beach and boardwalk and there was respect for private property. Property owners didn’t have to stand guard and thousands of families with kids were playing in the sand and walking on the boardwalk. And yes, young adults have also come in droves, young, respectful adults that don’t have to drink alcohol on the beach to have a good time. There was plenty of trash, but the beach wasn’t trashed – people brought it to the trash receptacles and filled them up. What a difference a year makes – the pro-alcohol chanters have all but silenced, the beach has drawn the type of people that actually eat in the restaurants, buy things in the shops and enjoy the city’s culture. The bars are thriving. The frosting on the cake, so to speak, is the fact that crime is down significantly. Talking with Capt. Shelley Zimmerman of San Diego Police Department’s Northern Division, she indicated that there are so few infringements now that when one occurs, it stands out so clearly that curtailment is quick and easy. She also noted how the crowds would cheer when a violator would be escorted out. I need to give thanks once more to Councilman Kevin Faulconer for his bold effort to do the right thing, to Mayor Jerry Sanders and all of the council members who voted for the alcohol ban and to San Diego Police Chief William Lansdowne and Capt. Zimmerman and her team for the great enforcement they have provided. Yes, our beaches once again will be the jewel of San Diego that will continue to help draw tourists to this fine city of ours as well as good clean fun for our residents. Who would ever have believed that we were actually looking forward to the Fourth of July. Karen Kohn Mission Beach Resident Member of Mission Beach and Pacific Beach town councils