Managers of a Rolando affordable-housing complex ravaged by last week’s storm asked the city to clean a nearby channel nearly four months before 57 families were displaced by flooding.
But city officials decided cleaning the channel adjacent to the Village Green Apartments wasn’t a top priority.
This week, as our Lisa Halverstadt and Juan Estrada report, city crews showed up to do emergency maintenance ahead of more forecasted rain that it feared could cause more damage.
Meanwhile, Village Green residents are continuing to process what happened and question whether the flooding could have been prevented.
The city says it ranks channel projects after assessing a number of factors and conducting annual inspections, but noted that the Stormwater Department’s annual budget only allows it to pursue only four clearing and maintenance projects in its roughly 200 channels each year. A spokesman also said regulatory approvals are required for projects like the one Village Green managers requested, a claim at least one agency is disputing.
San Diego Storm Watch
Thursday’s storm was nothing like last week’s.
San Diego got between 1.8 and 2.75 inches of rain in the last 24 hours, according to the National Weather Service. But more rain is on the horizon for the weekend into early next week.
Mayor Todd Gloria said during a Thursday press conference that he plans to lift the evacuation warning tomorrow, but now “is not the time to remove your sandbags.”
The city’s deputy chief operating officer, Kris McFadden, said Thursday’s storm was the kind the city could expect to get once every 10 years – so a much more typical type of rain event. But what the city experienced last Monday – when multiple neighborhoods fell beneath six feet of water – was much more unexpected.
“What affects us is getting that over one inch of rain in an hour. Last Monday there was upwards of three inches of rain within an hour. And that’s something that no infrastructure is designed to hold,” McFadden said.
Too little, too late?: The city of San Diego posted on social media that crews were monitoring Chollas Creek from a bridge on 40th Street to show that recent cleanup efforts were allowing the stormwater to flow. The post sparked some debate over why that didn’t happen last week.
As our MacKenzie Elmer reported, city officials explained that the city can’t just dredge or deep clean a channel when it wants to, they need special permits and the OK from several government agencies. Elmer found out, though, that one agency disagreed with that point. Read more here.
Gloria called the city’s $1.6 billion stormwater infrastructure deficit the city’s “biggest liability.”
San Diegans are resilient: KPBS profiled a Logan Heights flower shop business owner who lost everything in last week’s flood. Jackie Jo Lopez sought refuge at Lincoln High School because her shop and home were ruined. The shop owner saved some of the flowers in the shop and planned to sell them for Valentine’s Day from a cart. “I’m trying to keep my spirits high,” Lopez told KPBS.
Poway Unified Puts Superintendent on Administrative Leave
Poway Unified officials informed district staff on Thursday that embattled Superintendent Marian Kim Phelps has been placed on paid administrative leave.
Phelps has been under scrutiny for months following allegations that she harassed members of Del Norte High School’s softball team, of which her daughter is also a member. The harassment was purportedly due to members of the team not clapping for Phelps’ daughter during a softball banquet in May 2023.
One member of the team claimed Phelps had called them late at night and tried to pressure them into admitting they’d bullied her daughter. Students have also claimed the superintendent has threatened their graduation privileges. Phelps has denied the accusations.
“In an effort to avoid distraction and to ensure continued focus on the district’s business and commitment to serving our students and community, the Board (of Education) is placing the superintendent on paid administrative leave, effective immediately,” wrote Christine Paik, Poway Unified chief communications director in an email to district staff.
Oceanside Has a Plan to Rebuild its Beaches
Oceanside has a plan to keep its beaches from disappearing into the Pacific Ocean.
The City Council on Wednesday agreed to move forward with plans to pump sand from offshore deposits onto the beach. The proposal comes from an Australian firm International Coastal Management. The company was one of many that participated in the sort of beauty pageant beach replenishment and preservation competition.
Next steps: The California Coastal Commission needs to OK the proposal as well as other agencies, the Union-Tribune reports. Plus, the city needs to find money to pay for it all.
A bit of history: As our MacKenzie Elmer reported, Oceanside’s beaches were once so wide that car enthusiasts would race on the sandy shore. That all changed when the federal government built Camp Pendleton and its harbor. Read the story here.
In Other News
- The Beta Street resident that sued and settled with the city of San Diego in 2018 over failing to protect the neighborhood from floods is suing the city again. (CBS 8)
- Home sales in San Diego dropped to historic lows in December, the slowest year ever recorded. (Union Tribune)
- A San Diego federal judge blocked a state law requiring background checks for people purchasing ammunition. (KPBS)
- San Clemente covered a failing coastal cliff with plastic tarp to try and protect it against rains after the hillside gave way in early January. (CBS 8)
The Morning Report was written by Lisa Halverstadt, MacKenzie Elmer, Andrea Lopez-Villafaña and Jakob McWhinney. It was edited by Andrea Lopez-Villafaña.