What’s life without a little bit of beef?
I don’t mean the kind you find between two burger buns. This is the kind of beef that fuels local rivalries and inspired our annual Beef Week series.
This year our reporters uncovered so much beef, we had more than a week’s worth of stories. If you missed any them, here’s are your 2024 Beeves Wrapped.
Why is it so hard to pee in San Diego? If you have to pee outside of your home, it’s nearly impossible to do it in San Diego. Sure, you could buy a latte, in exchange for a bathroom code, but not everyone can.
The truth is, residents and visitors do not have enough access to public restrooms and that fact has led to gross streets and at least one major public health crisis. Our MacKenzie Elmer explored why it’s so hard to pee in San Diego. Read the story here.
No longer “Norita.” After a series of events and votes, some South Bay residents are getting fed up with San Diego County Supervisor Nora Vargas. They don’t feel she’s doing enough for her constituents and many are tired of waiting for her to fulfill promises she made when she was first elected.
Still, voters re-elected her to the board this November, so maybe there’s hope? Read the story here.
No one wants homeless shelters, but everyone does. This is an old beef. Everyone wants the region’s leaders to do something about the homeless crisis, but no one is open to housing solutions in their communities.
This year, leaders presented several options for homeless-serving projects that could offer unhoused residents a path off the street, but they faced significant backlash from neighborhoods. Read the story here.
More beefs: Our Bella Ross explained the rivalry between those who thrift for themselves and the flippers of the world. Then, Tigist Layne dug into what happens when we lose beloved local hangouts to more housing.
Read all the Beef Week stories here.
If They Knew What it Takes to Run a City
If you told me I’d be quoting Kim Kardashian to San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria this week, I would not have believed you. But I did.
Gloria joined us on the VOSD Podcast to talk about the city’s most pressing issues. He’s going to have to deal with a huge budget deficit, a growing homeless crisis and so much more. You can listen to the full conversation here.
We recently started a segment on the podcast where hosts and guest share a hot take. The mayor came prepared with a hot one and it was inspired by one of our Beef Week stories.
Gloria’s hot take: “When the residents of La Jolla understand what it is to have to run a city, they would not support seccession.”
He went on: “If there is a separation, there is a separation. So, the city of San Diego will not be providing policing services, landfill services, sewage services, we will not be contracting.”
In other words, if La Jolla dumps us, this is going to be a no-contact breakup, honey.
Let me back up. As our Jakob McWhinney wrote for Beef Week, La Jolla is a neighborhood in the city of San Diego. But it doesn’t want to be. It wants to be its own city. This isn’t the first time seccession has been floated around, but there are current efforts to divorce the city of San Diego and proponents are feeling confident. McWhinney has everything you need to know. Read more here.
‘Beeves’? Sarcasm, yes? I need this explained.
The mayor is turning down the chance to milk La Jolla for even more money, using contracts they will desperately need to become a city, just to keep them in the fold? Why not create a gravy train for decades while they figure out it would’ve been cheaper to just keep complaining about city government and ask to be re-annexed? It’s a long process, so Gloria won’t even be mayor by the time it comes up for a city-wide vote – it’s easy to talk big when you know you won’t be around for the follow up.