San Diegans still reeling from the permanent closure of the OB pier, the "pending" repairs on Crystal Pier that closed it last winter and the inferno that destroyed the iconic restaurants and "hammerhead" at the tip of the Oceanside Pier were informed this week that repairs are needed on Imperial Beach's pier.
IB residents were happy to see significant improvements undertaken during the pandemic, including a fresh coat of paint on the railings and buildings, the installation of a shade canopy at mid-pier and the replacement of some wood railings with stainless steel cable for better ocean viewing.
This time around, though, the Port of San Diego says the work is structural, with the replacement of a pair of pilings, some deck replacement and some utility-piping work on the list.
Prep work kicks off on Nov. 18, with the full pier slated for closure two days later — but, at least for now, just for two days. Officials plan to briefly re-open the pier that weekend, Nov. 23-24, then resume a partial closure mid-pier with public access open for the full pier, and then, on Nov. 28, the pier is scheduled to be back open again completely.
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The piling replacement is aimed at maintaining structural integrity, according to officials, and will require the aerial acrobatics of a helicopter to install. Because of that element, the repair workers will need good weather, so, authorities forewarned, it might need to be rescheduled.
That deck and piping work could continue till next summer, according to a news release sent out Thursday by the port, and could prompt additional closures up until that time.
It's not the first time crews have given attention to the IB Pier's decking: Ten years ago, about 1,500 planks were replaced.
Farther north, progress is being made in the city of San Diego and the community of Ocean Beach to replace their aged-out structure, which survived heavy winter storms and the loss of a piling, but authorities eventually decided the structure had lived out the end of its useful life. In late October, authorities unveiled the final design concept for the replacement of the iconic but beleaguered Ocean Beach Pier.
Meanwhile, in Pacific Beach, the OB Pier's neighbor to the north, Crystal Pier, is closing in on a year of being closed to the public. The culprit, once again: big winter storms.
The front half of the pier, where the cottages are located, remains open to hotel guests, but the outer portion, which the city owns, remains "temporarily closed," with no workers in sight.
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Meanwhile, up in Oceanside, demo work has finally begun on its fire-ravaged pier. An inferno in April destroyed a small to-go restaurant called the Brine Box; a larger, vacant restaurant space formerly occupied by Ruby's Diner; and heavily damaged the pier’s deck.
On Oct. 7 crews began adding a scaffolding to help them build a subfloor underneath the damaged portion of the pier so that they were able to catch any falling debris during demolition. The reconstruction is likely to take several years and cost roughly $17 million.
