Del Mar’s City Council voted to censure Councilmember Dan Quirk for the second time in just five months. The most recent censure comes after an independent investigation found he violated public meeting rules by discussing confidential information from a closed session with members of the public.
Here’s what happened: Repeated complaints from Del Mar’s city manager prompted the investigation. The findings include that Quirk spoke disparagingly about Ashley Jones and other staff and pressured them on how to do their work. That kind of direction falls outside the responsibilities of Del Mar councilmembers, who operate in a council-manager form of government wherein councilmembers set policy and do not work on daily implementation.
“Councilmember Daniel Quirk’s self-interested, reckless and potentially malicious behavior not only poses immediate legal risks but also has the potential to compromise the city’s strategic objectives and erode the public’s trust in its leadership,” the investigator wrote in the report.
Quirk disagreed with the findings. He told our Tigist Layne that he emailed the city manager questions and that, “If you read those you will find them pretty ‘boring,’ but indicative of a council member who is engaged and cares about his city and its residents.”
Del Mar Fairgrounds Bid-Rigging Lawsuit Reaches Settlement
Speaking of Del Mar, it’s been nearly three years since a lawsuit was filed against the agency that runs the Del Mar Fairgrounds alleging bid rigging in one of its contracts. That lawsuit has now reached a settlement, inewsource reported.
The 22nd District Agricultural Association, the agency that operates the Del Mar Fairgrounds, was the subject of a lawsuit brought forward by Talley Amusements, a carnival operator that provides rides and games to carnivals. Talley sued the 22nd District over the awarding of a contract to Ray Cammack Shows, another carnival operator.
Talley alleged the 22nd District changed the scores during a 2021 bid selection process to ensure that Ray Cammack Shows would win the contract.
In 2022, a San Diego Superior Court judge issued an injunction against the 22nd District stopping the contract from going into effect. There were fears at the time that the ruling would cancel the fair altogether.
After years of back and forth, the parties reached a settlement agreement on March 22 that gives Talley 17 rides and games slots on the Fairgrounds for the next five years, as well as $500,000.
Related: Want some background on the Fairgrounds bid-rigging scandal? Read the story here.
For Two Years, Newly Homeless San Diegans Have Outpaced Newly Housed
It’s now been two years since San Diego County’s efforts to house homeless residents outpaced the number of people falling into homelessness for the first time.
The Regional Task Force on Homelessness reported Tuesday that 1,337 people became homeless for the first time in March and 1,226 exited homelessness.
What this means: For the past 24 months, local programs trying to combat homelessness haven’t been able to keep up with the flood of people losing their homes.
One community leader’s take: “This sobering anniversary reveals the continued impact of high housing costs, and low housing stock, on our region,” Task Force CEO Tamera Kohler wrote in a statement. “We must work together to reverse this troubling direction across our region by building abundant housing for people of all income levels, keeping people in their homes and quickly ending someone’s homelessness if they experience it.”
Song of the Week
The Havnauts, “Down Not Out”: Lots of bands describe their music as infectious, mostly because they think their songs are just that catchy. I don’t always agree, because what part of what makes a song truly infectious to me is whether it feels like the band’s actually having fun.
The Havnauts have never had that problem. The band’s stripped down “pink punk,” as they refer to it, has always struck me as incredibly genuine, and a genuinely good time. “Down Not Out,” is a wonderful example of how The Havnauts can divine joyful bits of tuneage out of even a deep feeling of malaise.
Read more about the song of the week here.
Like what you hear? Check out The Havnauts at the Whistlestop on Thursday, April 18.
Do you have a “Song of the Week” suggestion? Shoot us an email and a sentence or two about why you’ve been bumping this song lately. Friendly reminder: all songs should be by local artists.
In Other News
- Democrats in California’s Public Safety Committee squashed a bill that would’ve taken a version of San Diego’s camping ban statewide. The bill was put forth by San Diego Senators Brian Jones and Catherine Blakespear. “All of the levels of government who are responsible for this are all saying that the other level of government needs to more and what it means is that no one is owning the problem,” Blakespear said after the bill’s failure.
- Solana Beach has settled its lawsuit against KAABOO, clearing the way for the music festival’s return this summer. (Fox 5)
- A wrongful termination suit filed by a former nurse at the Otay Mesa Detention Center operated by CoreCivic alleges that consistent understaffing has led to lapses in proper medical care for the center’s detainees. (KPBS)
- The San Diego Ethics Commission fined Mayor Todd Gloria $10,500 for not properly reporting tens of thousands of donations made at his request. (Union-Tribune)
- A nonprofit devoted to protecting America’s rivers named the Tijuana River as one of the ten most endangered in the country. (Union-Tribune)
The Morning Report was written by Jakob McWhinney, Tigist Layne and Lisa Halverstadt. It was edited by Andrea Lopez-Villafaña.