If you weren’t a believer before, you will be now: America’s favorite soft-rockin’ storyteller, Neil Diamond, is coming back to town!

That’s right: Diamond just announced tour dates for his 50th Anniversary Tour, and San Diego is on the list. Mark your calendars for Aug. 8, 2017, because that’s when he hits -- and believe us, there will be hits -- Valley View Casino Center.

While details are still rolling in, on Friday, SoundDiego and NBC7 will be rolling out a chance to win four front row seats -- which would otherwise go for a hefty $1,200. The contest runs through Dec. 9 -- the same day tickets go on sale to the general public -- so check back and don’t miss out! (American Express Members can purchase presale Dec. 5 at 10 a.m. through Dec. 8 at 10 p.m.)

Diamond has crafted nearly 40 Top 40 singles over the years, but he’s more than just a hitmaker -- he’s in the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. His last name seems to suit his career quite nicely.

Last time Diamond played America’s Finest City was May 15, 2015, in support of his 2014 release, "Melody Road," and he must have been on whatever diet Bruce Springsteen is on, because his marathon set was a two-hour hit parade woven intricately throughout with captivating narratives. Expect nothing less this time around.

Aug. 8 may be nine months out, but we’re thinking it’s worth the wait -- if you know what we mean.

The North Course at Torrey Pines Golf Course was recently reopened following a comprehensive nine-month, $12.6 million renovation of the city-owned property.

A statement from the city of San Diego said the renovation was designed by famed golfer and course architect Tom Weiskopf. All 18 greens were completely reconstructed to U.S. Golf Association standards, with existing poa annua grass replaced with 100 percent bent grass.

Officials said the course’s front and back nine holes were also reversed, allowing golfers panoramic ocean and canyon views as they finish their rounds. The renovated course’s bunkers were reduced from 59 to 41, and the average green size increased from 4,500 to 6,400 square feet.

The renovation also included replacement of car paths and improvements to irrigation systems. Work was completed on time and on budget.

Weiskopf heads Arizona-based Weiskopf Design Group, which has completed 60 golf course design projects in the U.S. and Europe since 1985.

“Switching the nines is very significant because the back nine is so iconic with its incredible views,” Weiskopf said in the statement. “The larger greens allow for more pin placements and more variety, and we’ve taken out bunkers but kept others that are strategically placed.”

Officials said the North Course has been lengthened in total by nearly 200 yards from the tips. There are now five sets of tees, allowing the course to play as long as 7,258 yards or as short as 5,197 yards.

The North Course was originally designed by William F. Bell and opened in 1957. Torrey Pines is a public course owned and maintained by the city, and its more famous South Course has hosted events including the 2008 U.S. Open and the upcoming 2021 U.S. Open.

Officials said the North Course averages approximately 82,000 rounds of play annually.

Kerri Strausbaugh, a victim Monday's bloody attack at Ohio State University, was on her way to class that morning when she was suddenly surrounded by people screaming and running for their lives, NBC News reported.

After turning around to see what was happening, she says she locked eyes with Abdul Razak Ali Artan, the 18-year-old student who attacked several students on the OSU campus. Strausbagh said he told her, "I’m going to kill you," before slashing at her left arm and slicing through her skin.

She ran away from the attacker, finding safety in a nearby locked computer lab. Once inside, someone used a scarf to create a tourniquet for Strausbaugh’s bloody arm, which needed 12 stitches.

Police say a Philadelphia assistant city solicitor was involved in anti-Donald Trump graffiti that was spray painted on a grocery store in the Chestnut Hill section of Philly.

On November 25 at 12:10 a.m. two men were captured on surveillance video vandalizing the Fresh Market at 8200 Germantown Avenue. The video shows one of the men spray painting the words ‘F*** Trump’ on the building while the other appears to take pictures or video. One of the men in the surveillance video also holds a glass of wine.

The two men then left the area on foot on Germantown Avenue. Investigators say the estimated damage the vandalism caused is between $3,000 and $10,000.

Police say Duncan Lloyd, an assistant city solicitor in the city of Philadelphia Law Department, is one of the men in the video though they have not yet confirmed whether he was the man who spray painted the building or the man who recorded the vandalism.

“We received a variety of tips,” said Northwest Detectives Captain Malachi Jones. “We’re talking to a variety of people and trying to bring this thing to rest.”

Craig Straw, the First Deputy City Solicitor, told NBC10 the Law Department is aware of what their employee is accused of doing.

“To my knowledge, Mr. Lloyd has already contacted the Philadelphia Police and is cooperating with them,” Straw wrote in a statement. “We will decide on a course of action once we obtain more information about the investigation. We do not condone this type of behavior from our employees.”

Joe DeFelice, the chairman of the Philadelphia Republican Party, said that Lloyd should be fired for his actions.

“If the image of an upper-middle class city attorney clad in a blazer and sipping wine while vandalizing an upscale grocery store with an anti-Trump message strikes you as perhaps the most bourgeois sight imaginable, that’s because it is,” DeFelice wrote. “Nothing can better represent the hysterical pearl-clutching of the 'progressive' elite in response to this earth-shattering election, when residents of Chestnut Hill and similar neighborhoods across the country discovered – gasp – that other people have a voice too. The assistant city solicitor in question had ostensibly taken the law into his own hands, since a democratic election didn’t yield his preferred outcome.”

“For somebody with extensive legal training to feel entitled to vandalize a newly opened super-market strikes us at the Philadelphia Republican Party as an astonishing feat of idiocy. Did the extra glass of Shiraz give him some sort of delusional confidence that there are no cameras on Germantown Ave? The taxpayers should be entrusting exactly none of our faith into this man. He should be fired from our city’s law department immediately.”

Police continue to investigate the incident. If you have any information, please call the Northwest Detective Division at 215-686-3353/3354.

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The camera maker plans to reduce its jobs and close its entertainment unit as part of its efforts to turn the company around, CNBC reported.

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The camera maker plans to reduce its jobs and close its entertainment unit as part of its efforts to turn the company around, CNBC reported.

In total, 15 percent of GoPro's workforce, or 200 people, were served with pink slips.

The company has offices in San Diego, though it was unclear how or whether any local workers were impacted.

The layoffs came just weeks after GoPro reported a significant sales decline and net loss.

Rapper Kanye West has been released from the hospital following a more than week-long stay, E! News confirmed Wednesday.

He was admitted to a Los Angeles hospital Nov. 21 for exhaustion.

West was under observation at a Los Angeles hospital after he abruptly canceled the remaining dates of his national tour.

The admission followed a week of bizarre incidents during which the provocative rapper publicly railed against fellow music stars Beyoncé and Jay Z and retroactively endorsed President-elect Donald Trump.

It's hardly the first time West has found himself in hot water for combative, self-aggrandizing behavior.

The artist known for hits such as "Gold Digger" and "Jesus Walks" once famously interrupted Taylor Swift at the MTV Video Music Awards, insisting that her award should have gone to Beyoncé. Last year, he declared that he would run for president in 2020.

E! News is owned by NBC's parent company, NBC Universal. 

Cate Kingston's parents call her the Warrior Princess. 

Watching the first grader run around the playground this November is a little like watching a Christmas past, her parents say. That's because, Kingston's parent's say, up until a little over a year ago, she had as much energy as ever. 

That was part of the reason it was easy for them to see when something was wrong, they said. 

"She would say, I'm tired, and sit down," her father, Brian, said. 

"She would have a couple episodes of night sweats. She wouldn't be able to move her arms or her legs," her mom, Stephanie, recalled. "So, automatically you're thinking that something is very, very wrong."

The blood tests confirmed what no parent wants to imagine. Cate was diagnosed with Leukemia. 

"You're devastated," Stephanie said. "It's just the most paralyzing feeling I've ever felt."

She lost her hair and her entire year of kindergarten.

"It made me feel sad a little," Cate said. "It kinda hurted a little when I kinda brushed it a little, my hair."

Cate has been through seven in-patient stays and she will be going on her 35th round of chemotherapy soon. They are on day 470.

While it's a grueling time that any adult patient would have a hard time handling, Cate's parents say she is no ordinary patient.

"She understands. She knows what's going on and she couldn't be a better patient," her father said. 

"I think just innately she has a resilient spirit. I don't think even we knew how strong her will could be until this happened," Stephanie said. 

They call her their warrior princess, and credit the staff at Rady Children's hospital as being her soldiers in this battle.

The family says they are so grateful for the treatment they have received.

"To have strolling musicians come into your room, or therapy dogs, I mean the therapy dogs are huge," Stephanie said. "Cate is especially close to our dog, Sam."

While there's still almost a year of chemotherapy left, some days, life is starting to look a little like it used to.

"Well, I don't have to wear a hat that much. I don't like wearing hats that much," Cate said.

Her hair is back, and her spirit never left.

"We're just incredibly blessed that she's as tough as she is, incredibly proud of her," Stephanie said. 

Cate and her family will be at Liberty Station Wednesday night for the Fantasy on Ice tree lighting.

The event starts at 5 p.m. and the tree will be lit at 6 p.m. All of the proceeds to benefit Rady Children's Hospital.

Law enforcement authorities are looking for three suspects they say fired shots at a tow truck driver returning from repossessing a vehicle, carjacked a Good Samaritan and attempted to carjack a third victim. 

San Diego County Sheriff’s Deputies are investigating the shooting and traffic collision reported at 4 a.m. in the area of Gopher Canyon Road and East Vista Way.

The incident began when a tow truck driver was heading northbound on Interstate 15, deputies said. The man saw two cars - described as a black colored late 90s Acura Integra and a black late 90s Honda Civic - speeding on the northbound ramp of the freeway near El Norte Parkway, entering the highway. 

When the tow truck driver drove to the Gopher Canyon Road off ramp, he spotted the Honda Civic ahead of him in the same lane, with its hazard lights on. The Acura followed closely behind him; combined, the two cars forced him to stop. 

The tow truck driver stopped in the middle of the road, deputies said. When he did, the driver of the Honda got out of his car with a shotgun and racked a round, pointing the weapon at the driver. 

The driver  described the about 5 feet 10 inches tall with a medium build, light complexion and facial hair on his chin. He described the driver of the Honda with the shotgun as a man in his mid-20s, about 5 feet 10 inches tall, with a thin build and a mustache. 

Fearing for his life, the driver stepped on the gas pedal and steered his car toward the center of the road, avoiding the Civic in front of him. As he drove away, he heard a gunshot. 

The tow truck driver continued westbound on Gopher Canyon Road, deputies said. As he drove, the Acura caught up and passed the driver, speeding at approximately 80 miles per hour, and crashed into a hill at East Vista Way and Gopher Canyon Road. 

A Good Samaritan spotted the crashed Acura in the ditch and pulled over to see if the driver needed help. At the time. the black colored Honda has pulled up and parked next to the Acura. 

The woman saw a man walking from the crashed car with a shotgun pointed at her, deputies said. The suspect carjacked her car, deputies said. The woman got out and the suspects drove her car and the Honda Civic away, deputies said.

The carjacked vehicle was a 2005 Grey Dodge Neon, California Highway Patrol officers told NBC 7.

The men were last seen driving northbound on State Route 76.

Later, deputies found the Honda Civic unoccupied on SR 76 near Olive Hill Road in Bonsall. 

Hours later, at approximately 5:30 a.m., two men and a woman in the Dodge attempted to carjack a truck from a man in Temecula at a park and ride parking lot, deputies said. 

The man drove his car into the side of the Dodge, deputies said, and the man shot two rounds at the side of the victim's truck. 

The driver escaped the attempted carjacking, deputies said. 

Deputies previously said they took several suspects into custody in connection with the shooting, chase and carjacking at a convenience store at Olive Hill Road and Mission Road in Fallbrook.

However, deputies later said the two men and the woman were outstanding, as was the gray colored Dodge Neon. 

No other information was immediately available.

Balboa Park December Nights, billed as the nation’s premiere holiday festival, will take place for the 39^th consecutive year on Friday, December 2^nd and Saturday, December 3^rd. This is the largest free community festival in San Diego. It takes a massive numbers of things and people to put on, and attracts hundreds of thousands to Balboa Park.

With that in mind, here is December Nights by the numbers.

350,000 visitors over the two days.

7 Santa Clauses

700 poinsettias

9 stages

105 musical and holiday performances

2 huge Christmas Trees

9 different restaurants

75 food vendors

163 volunteers

39 consecutive years December Nights has occurred

34 International cottages participating with holiday programs

29 participating institutions

And after all those large numbers, we must also pass this numerical fact along.  There are very few parking spaces.

Tomas Herrera-Mishler, the President of the Balboa Conservancy, recommends “Coming early and consider parking remotely. We have a free shuttle running to the park from a parking structure on Ash Street between 4^th and 5^th.”

Maybe the most important numbers about December Nights involve when it takes place. December Nights is Friday, December 2^nd from 3-11pm and Saturday, December 3^rd from noon-11pm.

School Districts across our state report the number of students graduating from high school every year to the California Department of Education.

Now, the U.S. Department of Education has singled out two states to audit to make sure those numbers are accurate and reliable.

Alabama is one and California is the other.

The U.S. Department of Education Office of Inspector General (OIG) is performing the audit. In an email to NBC 7, the office wrote:

“The OIG is responsible for the detection and prevention of waste, fraud, abuse and criminal activity involving Department of Education funds, programs or operations.”

In its plan for 2017, the OIG states it is working with the state to make sure it has systems of “internal control over calculating and reporting graduation rates.”

Although there is not a district singled out in the federal plan, last year the San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD) reported a 92 percent graduation rate. The report was made on the heels of research done by the University of California, San Diego, which expected a lower rate.

The Voice of San Diego has reported on whether on-line classes are rigorous--the fact that SDUSD allows students to pass requirements with grades of D's as opposed to C's. Voice of San Diego also questioned how students were doing academically before they left the district to attend charter schools.

“It's very important in terms of federal money coming in as to how many children are truly graduating from our public schools,” said Sally Smith, a community activist. “Millions, billions of dollars are being pumped into schools. San Diego Unified is no exception."

Andrew Sharp, a spokesperson for the SDUSD said: “The district submits our graduation rates to the California Department of Education every year. Every year those results are certified by the state. Historically, the internal number released by the district has closely tracked with the number certified by the state.”

“We have a very high level of confidence in these results. Teachers and students work hard every day to accomplish these results. They should be celebrated," he added.

Sharp also sent information to NBC 7 so the public can understand how the graduations rates are calculated. You can see that information here.

In an answer to a question about whether the OIG was investigating online courses as part of its audit, they said:

“The OIG is responsible for the detection and prevention of waste, fraud, abuse, and criminal activity involving department of education funds, programs, and operations. As such, we are concerned with reports of cheating scandals as they may have an impact on federal education funds. We are interested in hearing about and looking at allegations of cheating. However, we do not comment on what allegations we receive, nor do we confirm or deny investigative activity. These longstanding policies are in place to protect the integrity of any investigation and the privacy of any individuals that may be associated with an investigation. You can find more information on the OIG, copies and information on our completed work, which we do discuss, on our web site at www.ed.gov/oig."

The U.S. Military is honoring a California woman who sent more than 7,200 care packages to troops and soldiers overseas. 

Wednesday, Maxine Russell was presented with an American Flag that flew in Afghanistan, along with a proclamation, during a ceremony at the First Marine Division Headquarters at Camp Pendleton. 

Russell has been making personalized packages with snacks, drinks, personal items and letters for more than 25 years. 

“It's very special because we have a lot of military in our family and the Marines have been so kind," said Russell, who told NBC 7 she does not like to be in the spotlight. 

“It just validates what I'm doing, even though it's a small part, that makes a big difference,” she said. 

That flag also means a lot to Russell, as many of the packages she has sent over the last decade and a half were delivered by a helicopter drop there.

Many of the soldiers under retired Army Lt. Colonel David Kramer’s command received the packages. 

“It's a piece of home, and you miss that, it makes you feel a little more human for a little while, while you open up the package,” Kramer said. 

The care packages all started when Russell's husband was deployed during Operation Desert Storm in the early 1990's.

Since then, her home has been filled with snack, personal items, and goodies - all ready to go. 

The most popular items, she says, are healthy things like unsalted almonds and protein drinks. 

The Commanding General of the 1st Marine Division, Major General Daniel O'Donohue, said the deliveries mean more than just getting something to munch on. The packages, especially the letters that come with them, mean so much more. 

“You know that you're fighting for something, you understand freedom and it's got a face to it, and that's been Maxine for us,” O'Donohue said. 

Russell’s mission only became more meaningful a decade ago, when tragically, she lost her son.

Darren was a San Diego State graduate who had been teaching in China when he suddenly died. She says Darren used to help her put the packages together in the early years of the project.

Today, she says making the packages helps her connect with him.

"It keeps his memory alive in a positive way,” she said. 

Care in the form of packages isn’t the only thing Russell, a therapist and grief counselor, does for the military. She also cares for the troops as a volunteer counseling the military, veterans, and families, as well as giving support to those with Post Traumatic Stress.

She is a woman on a mission to help the military, here at home and while they are deployed many miles away.

Three people were taken to the hospital after two crashes spread out across two sites near each other on Interstate 5 near Torrey Pines, officials said. 

The crash happened at approximately 6:34 p.m. on I-5 near Carmel Mountain Road, California Highway Patrol (CHP) officers said. 

There are two separate crash scenes near each other that happened at the same time, CHP officers said. 

Two people were initially reported unconscious inside the car, though medics were on scene assessing. 

Three patients, two in one car and one in the other, were taken to Scripps Hospital in La Jolla. 

No other information was immediately available.

Check back for updates on this breaking news story. 

Protesters marched through the streets of Charlotte, North Carolina, Wednesday night, angered by the news that the officer who fatally shot a black man will not face charges, NBC News reported. 

Warnings of powerful thunderstorms in the area did not deter protesters, who gathered outside of the city's police headquarters. Flanked by officers on bicycle patrol, nearly a hundred people marched through the streets of Uptown Charlotte chanting "No Justice, No Peace!" and "Tell the truth and stop the lies, Keith Scott didn't have to die."

Several members of the local clergy also marched in the crowd asking protesters to remain peaceful. One chanted "The blood of Jesus" over and again.

Despite the anger that rippled through small pockets of the crowd, protests remained peaceful. Charlotte Mecklenburg Police tweeted that three protesters had been arrested for obstructing traffic.

A top security company warns about a new cyber attack that is infecting about 13,000 mobile devices every day.

So far this hack has taken control of over 1 million Google accounts since August.

Downloading apps and opening unknown email that contains malware is what allows hackers to take over your Google account.

The most recent malware attack campaign for Google account holders is known as Gooligan. Tech analysts say it's the largest breach of Google accounts to date, with more than a million accounts compromised.

The Gooligan hack primarily infects older Android phones, which still account for about 74 percent of the market.

The problem is caused by malware often hidden in free apps, which entice people to download them rather than paying fees to use Google Play apps that are considered more secure. The malware can also infect your account by clicking on links to apps in e-mail messages, known as phishing.

Once the app is downloaded it can access all your Google accounts, bombarding you with advertising and increasing the rank of other legitimate games on Google Play.

The director of security for Google says the purpose of Gooligan hacks is promoting apps, not stealing information.

So how do you protect your Google accounts?

First, make sure you have the latest operating software from Google.

You can also reinstall your operating software. If you don't know how to do that, take your phone or tablet to a retailer that sells Androids and a technician should be able to help you.

You can also check your device by going to gooligan.checkpoint.com and entering the email address associated with your Android.

Thanks to the generosity of the surrounding community, wheelchairs worth thousands of dollars destined for disabled adults and children overseas that were once stolen from a nonprofit’s Van Nuys warehouse will soon be replaced.

Global Mobility, a humanitarian nonprofit that provides custom wheelchairs for free to those in need, reached out to NBC4 after discovering thieves had broken in Tuesday night and stolen 80 wheelchairs.

The wheelchairs cost an approximate $12,000 total, the nonprofit said.

They were going to be loaded into a shipping container heading for Yogyakarta, Indonesia, when they were stolen in the night. Staff at Global Mobility said they were left to fill the void of the stolen chairs.

"It breaks my heart to consider that many children and adults will be denied the gift of mobility because of this brazen act," president and founder of Global Mobility David Richard said in a statement.

A police report was filed, and the nonprofit was asking the community for help in finding the stolen wheelchairs.

Their story caught the eye of state assemblyman Matt Dababneh, who tweeted NBC4 hoping to replace the wheelchairs. He said he raised over $15,000 as of Wednesday night and is expecting more donations to pour in. 

"I was just horrified," Dababneh said. "How could someone be this callous to steal those wheelchairs?"

The nonprofit was thankful for Dababneh's generosity and told NBC4 80 new wheelchairs will be shipped to Indonesia on Friday.

Three new freeway connectors near Otay Mesa will help ease traffic coming from the U.S.-Mexico border crossing. 

The connectors, linking State Route 905 and State Route 11 to the northbound South Bay expressway and State Route 125 toll road, opened to traffic on Wednesday. 

The route will give the more than 7.8 million cars that drive through the area each year direct access to the less congested State Route 125. 

“The new connectors will make a difference in the lives of tens of millions of people who cross the San Diego-Tijuana border each year for work, family, business, shopping, entertainment, education, and other reasons,” said SANDAG Chair and county Board of Supervisors Chair Ron Roberts in a statement. “By enhancing the border infrastructure system, we also help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution associated with traffic congestion.” 

The freeway connectors will have a second purpose: to help expidite the future South Bay Rapid, a high-frequency transit service between the Otay Mesa Port of Entry and Downtown San Diego. Construction on the project began in February and service is expected to begin in 2018. 

Residents living in various South Bay neighborhoods, including southern San Diego communities and eastern Chula Vista communities, will now have the option of taking SR-905 or SR-11 to avoid congestion on Interstate 5 or Interstate 805. 

Construction on southbound connectors is scheduled to begin in 2018.

When construction on the Otay Mesa East Port of Entry is completed, the connectors will serve that entry as well. The new port is part of a plan to reduce wait times at the border to 20 minutes, instead of the multi-hour wait many encounter in the area. 

The northbound connectors project cost approximately $21 million, SANDAG officials said. Funding came from a variety of sources, however, the largest chunk of the funding - $16.1 million - came from Proposition 1B's Trade Corridors Improvement Fund. 

Rogelio Chavez, one of two inmates who escaped from the Santa Clara County Main Jail on Thanksgiving Eve, was taken into custody late Wednesday, according to the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies and a SWAT team were searching a home near Coy Park in San Jose when Chavez was nabbed, which comes just after U.S. Marshals on Tuesday night captured 26-year-old Laron Desean Campbell in Antioch.

The SWAT team was called in after detectives noticed a person trying to conceal themselves in the attic of the home. Chavez's arrest came at 8:25 p.m., Sheriff Laurie Smith said during a news conference Wednesday night.

Smith added that Chavez was found in possession of narcotics and was under the influence at the time of his arrest. He was transported to a hospital, she said.

A female resident at the home, Carla Fernandez, also was arrested by detectives for resisting and obstructing an investigation, being a felon in possession of a firearm and an accessory to Chavez's escape, Smith said. The investigation is ongoing, and there may be addtional arrests of people who harbored Chavez while he was on the loose, Smith said.

Both Campbell and Chavez made national news on Nov. 23 about 11 p.m., when they made a daring escape from Santa Clara County Main Jail, using bedsheets to rappel down their second-story jail cell window.

Sources tell NBC Bay Area the search on Coy Road was at the home of a "known associate" of Chavez. Sources also said tear gas was used during the search.

The capture of Campbell on Tuesday night came hours after Santa Clara County sheriff's deputies swarmed an east San Jose neighborhood in the afternoon looking for one of the inmates— it wasn't immediately clear if that search was for Campbell or Chavez. On Sunday, deputies swarmed a Gilroy Days Inn, hoping to find Chavez, which they didn't.

Campbell had been held since February 2015 on various charges including robbery, false imprisonment, criminal threats and firearms violations.

Chavez had been in jail since Aug. 17 on various charges including burglary, extortion, false imprisonment, resisting arrest, and firearms violations.

If you're looking for a festive gift idea this year that will also help fill Balboa Park with the holiday spirit, this might be the answer.

The Friends of Balboa Park organization is asking people to consider giving someone a $25 poinsettia dedication donation, to help fill the Botanical Building with the traditional holiday flowers.

"Balboa Park is one of San Diego's top destinations during the holiday months, and the poinsettia display is a special and time-honored San Diego tradition that we are happy to give the community to help celebrate the season," said Friends of Balboa Park Executive Director John Bolthouse.

The group is partnering with the City of San Diego's Park & Recreation Department for the annual poinsettia display, which opens the first weekend in December and runs through the first week in January.

Donors will have their names placed in the "Poinsettia Honor Roll" inside the Botanical Building and on the Friends of Balboa Park website.  

Donations are tax deductible.  They must be received by Friday, December 2nd, and will also be available at the Friends of Balboa Park booth at December Nights.

For more information, visit this link or call (619) 232-2282.

Authorities are cracking down on illegal marijuana dispensaries in San Diego, shutting down one of them in the Barrio Logan neighborhood on Wednesday morning.

The business, located on the 1900 block of Una Street, is the fifteenth shop to get shut down in the last six months.

The San Diego Police Department (SDPD) Narcotics Unit seized approximately three pounds of marijuana, edibles, and an undisclosed amount of concentrated cannabis during a search warrant. Authorities also confiscated $25,000 in cash and business records.

According to SDPD, the crackdown has nothing to do with Prop. 64, which legalized recreational marijuana in California. But the push to shut down illegal dispensaries is because businesses are not paying taxes or filling out the proper paperwork for permits, and are disrupting neighbors.

"We've been here for 47 years and we've owned the business 3 years. And we've seen a lot more activity--broken windows in cars, we've seen more of the prostitutes coming around here, the drug people, we've even seen people coming through here with cars parked in the driveway there and they would be handing out marijuana through the fences," said Michael Huelsbeck, a local business owner in that area.

Huelsbeck told NBC 7 he believes petty crime increased after the illegal dispensary opened about a year ago.

Two employees were also issued citations and could face heavy fines.