SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — San Diegans will have the chance to enjoy long walks on the Ocean Beach Pier for the first time this year.
Friday morning, the City of San Diego announced on Twitter the OB Pier is fully open, after months of repairing damages caused by January 2021 storms.
Great news! The OB pier is fully open after months of closures for emergency repairs. 🙌 This morning, crews removed fencing and reopened the pier. Repairs started in December to fix damage caused by storm conditions. pic.twitter.com/27ewYKIM7X
— City of San Diego (@CityofSanDiego) July 8, 2022
Crews began working on the 55-year-old pier in late December 2021, after high surf battered the pier and damaged parts of the railing. The high surf also led to some coastal flooding in low-lying areas, boardwalks, and parking lots.
Last year, the city reported crews were making repairs to make a portion of the pier safe for the public, including several new railings, and repairs to service lines for the pier's cafe.
While the repairs will allow the pier to reopen, a recent report warns that the pier is in need of desperate rehabilitation. The firm Moffatt and Nichol says the Ocean Beach pier “has reached the end of its service life."
The report warns that the city's repairs won't stop degradation and estimates the necessary fixes would cost $30 to $50 million.
A longer-term plan for the future of the pier is still in the works.
The OB pier is the second-longest on the West Coast and attracts more than 500,000 visitors annually.
