From the 1940s through the 1980s Carlsbad and other North County cities were littered with farms that hired temporary agricultural workers — many who came from other countries.
These crucial workers faced a lot of challenges, and having secure housing in an expensive city was a major issue. Farmers were supposed to guarantee free housing through the federal program that allowed them to hire temporary workers from outside the United States, but some failed to provide it, leaving many farmworkers homeless and vulnerable.
In a new story, Tigist Layne details how a nonprofit stepped up to house many of these workers in 1992 — and still does today.
There are fewer farms in the region now, but La Posada de Guadalupe, a homeless shelter in Carlsbad operated by Catholic Charities, continues to shelter workers.
The farm that employs the farmworkers pays for them to live at the shelter. The men spend their days working in order to send money to their families back home. When they return from their shifts, they call their families and then prepare to do it all again the next day.
Politics Report: How Big Will the Cardenas Fallout Be?
For many years siblings Jesus Cardenas and Andrea Cardenas have been balancing two trades that are impossible to balance: the lobbying and advocacy for companies and interests while also trying to be public officials charged with regulating some of those same interests. It’s a dicey juggling act.
Now that District Attorney Summer Stephan has charged the siblings with multiple felony counts for an allegedly fraudulent application for a Covid relief loan from the government, the web of trades in which the Cardenas siblings were involved could ensnare many.
The Politics Report put together a quick guide on a few things the Cardenas have been involved in. Read the Politics Report here.
VOSD Podcast: In the latest episode, our hosts catch up with former Voice of San Diego editor Andrew Donahue to talk about the past and future of the San Diego Union-Tribune. The paper is now in Alden Global Capital’s hands. What happens now? The crew gets into that and more.
Listen to the full episode here or wherever you get your podcasts.
With Suit Out, Search Continues for Next County Public Defender
The county will continue its search for a Public Defender without considering one applicant who sued to apply for the job — a San Diego Superior Court judge.
Let’s rewind: San Diego Superior Court Judge Michael Washington, a former deputy public defender, filed a lawsuit against the county after officials told him they could not interview him for the job because of a 1947 state law that dictates eligibility for the post.
Washington argued that the law was “ambiguous” about a requirement that a candidate had to be a practicing lawyer in the year “immediately” before applying for the job. He was a public defender for 19 years before being appointed to the bench.
Voice contributor Greg Moran reports that a court didn’t see it his way.
Latest Downtown Census Shows Small Drop in Street Homelessness
A downtown business group’s latest monthly census shows a 5.5 percent month-over-month decrease in street homelessness in downtown and its outskirts. The Oct. 25. count represents a 38 percent decrease from the record 2,104 people counted in May.
The camping ban effect: It’s unclear. The Downtown San Diego Partnership’s census has hovered around 1,300 since police began enforcing the city’s controversial camping ban. Police also cleared homeless camps in an area at the edge of downtown soon before camping ban enforcement kicked off.
What this census doesn’t reveal: This census doesn’t shed light on where unsheltered people have relocated outside the downtown area. As our Lisa Halverstadt has reported before, homeless residents often simply move elsewhere when police crack down.
In Other News
- Uptown residents are suing to stop a 17-story development in Bankers Hill.(CBS 8)
- NBC7 shared the story of a MTS trolley rider that was attacked by another passenger.
- The Union-Tribune reports where Oceanside’s sand replenishment efforts stand.
The Morning Report was written by Andrea Lopez-Villafaña, Lisa Halverstadt and Hannah Ramirez. It was edited by Andrea Lopez-Villafaña.