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The Coronado City Council last week overrode a decision by its staff to deny an application to host an alternative prom at its community center. The issue seemed poised to explode politically until elected officials intervened and effectively welcomed LGBTQ kids from across the South Bay to dance and socialize.
The Council also took the opportunity to request that the city manager review their own facility use policies. The implication being that, after a couple of high-profile controversies, it wanted to avoid disputes like this one in the future.
The city may have escaped another controversy with some deft management, but its experience provides a lesson for others that have similar rules on the books.
In his Fine City column, Jesse Marx analyzed Park & Rec policies across the region and found that many — but not all — municipalities make a distinction between residents and non-residents, creating a hierarchy in the form of fees and accessibility.
In defense, officials argue that locals deserve the perks because locals build and maintain the facilities. But it also turns geography into a factor when prioritizing public space.
One city has stopped charging residents and non-residents a different fee because it concluded applicants would often lie about where they were from. It’s completely reasonable, Marx writes, that a city wouldn’t want to spend its time investigating where people really reside, turning clerks into cops.
Read the column in its entirety here.
Former Del Mar Principal Says He Was Pushed Out By District
The former principal of Del Mar Heights School, Jason Soileau, who left the district in March, said during the Del Mar Union School District board meeting Wednesday that he was pushed out by district leaders.
Soileau, who had been principal of the school for more than three years, said he was approached by Assistant Superintendent Ryan Stanley in February and given two options: resign or be demoted.
He never received anything in writing about poor performance, in fact, he said that in his last review the superintendent allegedly praised his work.
Soileau said that after 10 years of being a principal, he couldn’t take a demotion and felt he had to resign. He still has been given no clear explanation of why he was forced out.
After his sudden departure, parents of the district expressed their confusion and skepticism at a March 16 board meeting, praising Soileau for the great work he had done for the school and district.
Soileau said at Wednesday’s meeting that it was time for him to “right a wrong and clear [his] name.” He told the board and the parents in the room that he didn’t want to leave and that the district intimidated him into giving up a position he cared deeply about.
Read more for Soileau’s full remarks about his departure.
New San Diego Eviction Ban Coming Next Month
A moratorium to keep landlords from evicting tenants who are up to date on their rent is now set to go into effect on May 22.
Last Friday, Mayor Todd Gloria signed the so-called no-fault eviction moratorium pushed by City Council President Sean Elo-Rivera to try to protect tenants as the region grapples with a surging cost-of-living crisis. The City Council took a crucial second vote to approve the moratorium early last week.
Once enacted, the moratorium will bar landlords in the city from forcing out tenants to take properties off the market or make significant upgrades not ordered by government agencies or that tenants have agreed to. It will stay in effect until Sept. 30 or 60 days after the end of the local state of emergency, whichever comes first.
Read more about the city’s no-fault eviction moratorium here.
In Other News
- Migrants living in Tijuana while they seek asylum in the U.S. under the federal government’s “remain in Mexico” policy continue to live in inhumane conditions, according to experts and advocates, despite the Biden administration’s pledge to improve the program while its attempt to end it is before the U.S. Supreme Court. (KPBS)
- A California Highway Patrol officer was shot Wednesday by a bullet from his own gun, officials confirmed, though it is not yet clear who pulled the trigger. The officer, Tony Pacheco, was in a struggle with 25-year-old Yuhau Du when the round fired. Pacheco was taken to the hospital in stable condition. (Union-Tribune)
- A Mexican federal official said Thursday that two journalists murdered in Tijuana earlier this year were targeted by the same criminal cell, composed of the remnants of the Arellano-Felix Cartel. (Union-Tribune)
- Julian was founded by Confederates who moved West, but soon turned into an opportunity for people of color. In fact, in the late 1800s, most African Americans in San Diego County, lived in Julian. Compared to other Western towns that had large populations of people of color, Julian was well integrated, too. That’s all from a fascinating piece of history published Thursday in Smithsonian Magazine.
- Council members Monica Montgomery Steppe and Vivian Moreno are asking the city to speed up its graffiti response times, and to prioritize gang-related tags that can lead to violence in the southern San Diego communities they represent. The city’s response time for graffiti complaints has doubled since 2013. (Union-Tribune)
- San Diego County now offers free legal representation for individuals with immigration cases. (Union-Tribune)
This Morning Report was written by Jesse Marx, Tigist Layne, Andrew Keatts, Lisa Halverstadt and MacKenzie Elmer. It was edited by Megan Wood.