These were the most popular Voice of San Diego stories for the week of Feb. 25-Mar. 3.
1. How SoccerCity Dies
Soon, signature-gatherers will get to work on behalf of the plan to build an MLS stadium and development on the Qualcomm Stadium site. If the City Council green-lights the project, you can likely expect to see a new round of signature-gatherers in town, this time as part of an effort to kill the plan by forcing it to the ballot. (Scott Lewis)
2. The Most Memorable Acts of Protest Art at the Border
There’s been an uptick in art projects happening at the border now that President Donald Trump is in office. With so much attention on the border, it’s worth taking a quick look at some of the art that’s attempted to tackle the prickly issues surrounding it. Here are 20 instances of gutsy, controversial art that has explored the border. (Kinsee Morlan)
3. Struggling Students Moved to Online Charters, Boosting District’s Record Grad Rate
Data provided by five charter schools offers a window into the way San Diego Unified benefited from a system that allows it to unload its lowest-performing students and maintain a graduation rate above 90 percent. (Mario Koran)
4. An Idea to Help the Homeless Languished for Years — Then Two Powerful Businessmen Got on Board
Proposals for a homeless intake facility for years failed to gain traction but the idea is now a central piece in Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s plan to address homelessness. What changed? For one, two powerful business leaders who have the mayor’s ear took a strong interest in the idea. (Lisa Halverstadt)
5. Why High Home Prices Don’t Necessarily Mean High Home Payments
While San Diego homes are unusually expensive, low rates have been keeping a lid on monthly mortgage payments. But low rates don’t assure high home prices — the two have actually had a very inconsistent relationship in the past. (Rich Toscano)
6. There’s One Money-Saving Move San Diego Unified Won’t Try — Here’s Why
As San Diego Unified moves to cut more than $100 million from its budget, there’s one avenue to potential savings the district doesn’t seem to have explored – perhaps because it’s one of the most controversial and least popular moves in the book: closing schools. (Mario Koran)
7. Jacobs Center, Southeastern San Diego Landholder, Sheds Key Staff in Upheaval
The Jacobs Center for Neighborhood Innovation, which promised years ago to develop 60 acres in southeastern San Diego, has been forced to fundamentally change its development vision and to significantly pare down operations. (Lisa Halverstadt )
8. City Says Sewage Is Hard to Find, Pushes Water Recycling Plan That Has Neighbors Nervous
Mayor Kevin Faulconer is making Pure Water, the city’s plan to turn sewage into drinkable water, a top priority. But the mayors of Coronado and Chula Vista, city council members in Poway and Lemon Grove, and officials from water agencies in San Diego’s eastern and southern suburbs are all trying to rein in the project. (Ry Rivard)
9. Three Big Outstanding Questions on San Diego Unified’s Budget Cuts
What does a $6 million cut to “Property” or a $1.5 million cut to “Civic Center” entail? On those and a number of other issues, parents, community members and even employees are struggling to understand what the cuts mean. (Ashly McGlone)
10. SANDAG Approves Investigation Into Forecasting Scandal
The investigation will attempt to determine who in the agency knew its forecasts were wildly overestimating how much revenue an existing sales tax, and another proposed one, would generate for regional transportation projects – and when they knew it. (Andrew Keatts)