When a social media account created an animation comparing a homeless service provider in Encinitas to someone feeding rats and attracting more of them, it brought condemnation from city leaders. But it was just the ugliest version of a wave of blame the provider has absorbed as the supposed cause of homelessness in the beach town.
Homelessness in Encinitas has become more visible than ever, and some residents say the Community Resource Center, based in downtown Encinitas, is attracting people from other cities. But the rhetoric, the leader of CRC says, has crossed a line that should never be crossed.
How it started: CRC provides free food distribution, housing assistance, domestic violence programs and more. Officials are hoping to expand the nonprofit’s downtown space.
Some residents, though, don’t want that to happen. They argue that CRC is worsening the homelessness issue in Encinitas. Complaints of loitering, littering, public indecency and other illegal activities have increased from nearby residents and business owners.
A social media account called Save Encinitas Now has been posting controversial videos and photos of unsheltered people near CRC urging its followers to speak out against the nonprofit’s proposed expansion and accusing CRC of intentionally seeking to bring in clients from other cities. CRC leaders deny these claims.
Trump Replaces IBWC Commissioner Maria-Elena Giner
The federal agency in charge of managing and treating Tijuana sewage before it hits San Diego now has a new leader, according to a report by the Union-Tribune.
The International Boundary and Water Commission or IBWC manages a treatment plant at the San Diego border built to clean 25 million gallons of Tijuana sewage per day. But years of mismanagement, aging equipment and insufficient funding have consistently resulted in contaminated ocean water and ongoing beach closures.
President Joe Biden appointed now-former commissioner Maria-Elena Giner to the top post in August of 2021, and most people thought she was doing a pretty good job. She was lauded for improving transparency at the agency, securing more funding and significantly improving its operations.
Now, Giner is out, and William “Chad” McIntosh – who previously served under the first Trump administration as head of the Environmental Protection Agency’s International and Tribal Affairs – is in.
Read more about Giner’s time at the IBWC here.
Most of Palomar Health’s Board Is Still Backing CEO
Despite rapid financial decline and worsening bond ratings from credit agencies, a majority of Palomar Health’s board still supports CEO Diane Hansen, according to a report by the Union-Tribune.
Hansen oversees the public healthcare system, which includes Palomar Medical Centers in Escondido and Poway.
In February, Board Director John Clark sent an email to Hansen and other board members requesting that she resign in light of Palomar Health’s financial struggles.
“Your leadership has been ineffective,” wrote Clark in the email, followed by examples, including the public hospital system’s worsening financial position, a controversial management agreement she spearheaded that raised fears of privatization, a previous vote of no confidence she received from doctors and nurses and more.
But so far, the rest of the board hasn’t joined in on the calls for resignation. Some board members cited the Covid-19 pandemic, and nationwide hospital declines as considerable factors in Palomar’s current financial situation.
In 2023, Voice of San Diego was the first to report that Palomar Health’s financial health was rapidly deteriorating. Last December, Palomar reported a $165 million operating loss in its previous fiscal year.
In Other News
- KPBS examined the cuts to library hours that San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria has proposed to balance the city’s budget.
- Vulgarity and insults at public meetings has grown more prevalent in San Diego in recent years. A study from University of San Diego last fall found that two-thirds of respondents have been targeted while holding public office, and 31 percent of women said they face intimidation tactics on a weekly basis. (Union-Tribune)
- San Diego apartments are getting smaller. San Diego’s average new apartment size is now 827 square feet, a 16 percent reduction over a decade, according to a new study from RentCafe. It is the eighth largest drop in the nation out of 100 cities. (Union-Tribune)
- San Diego County’s first on-site cannabis consumption lounge opened in National City over the weekend. (Union-Tribune)
- San Diego-area Catholics are mourning the death of Pope Francis, who passed away Monday at age 88.
The Morning Report was written by Tigist Layne. It was edited by Scott Lewis.