This post has been updated.
They’re going for the wholesale workaround.
San Diego lawmakers are pushing new legislation to protect the Midway Rising project from environmental lawsuits. It is a new, separate push from the one that would protect it and other projects around the state from lawsuits challenging the adequacy of their analyses of impacts from taller buildings.
The Midway Rising plan involves a 16,0000-seat arena and roughly 4,250 housing units.
Under the new proposal, the city’s own study of the project’s environmental impacts would be enough to meet requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act, according to proposed amendments of the bill obtained by Voice of San Diego.
A public hearing on the bill — which amended previously unrelated legislation about human remains — is expected to take place later this week. Lead author Sen. Akilah Weber Pierson could not be immediately reached for comment.
Assemblymember Chris Ward, who’s a co-author on the bill, said lawmakers are introducing the bill now after facing roadbacks locally.
“We’ve had years of public conversation around trying to do something good for the sports arena, for community development in that area,” Ward said. “And to any extent that I feel the public process has been over-exhausted and abused, we have a chance to step in here and help to guide what it’s going to be.”
Correction: This section previously stated that the Midway Rising project would receive an exemption from CEQA, California’s landmark environmental law. It doesn’t receive an exemption from CEQA. Instead, the bill would shield the project from future CEQA lawsuits.
Environment Report: The Buzz Around California’s Bee Competition
May the best bee win.
One group has launched a statewide competition to select California’s first state bee.
Our environment reporter MacKenzie Elmer writes that the group wants to make sure the prize goes to a native species. No hate to honeybees, but they aren’t native and might be crowding the other species out, Elmer writes.
The public has until Sept. 8 to vote on 19 native bees. You can see the full list here.
Read the Environment Report here.
Oops! No ‘Yes’ Argument for Oceanside Sales Tax
Oceanside wants voters to approve a sales tax hike in November to pay for repairs to its pier, roads and sidewalks, and to add sand to its beaches.
There’s just one problem: No argument supporting the measure will appear on the voter’s guide to the ballot.
Terry Gorman Brown, the communications manager for the Oceanside City Clerk’s Office, told Voice that a collection of groups including a neighborhood association, a group working on sand efforts and several public safety associations were planning to submit arguments in favor of the tax but their “wires got crossed” and they somehow missed the Aug. 13 deadline to submit.
“It’s an unfortunate situation,” she said, adding that there will be no opportunity to submit additional arguments.
Meanwhile, voters will see a heated argument in opposition of the measure.
“We just approved a sales tax two years ago… Now they want another $200m!… Unfair, unfair, unfair!” reads the opposing argument, signed by a number of residents.
Measure S proposes increasing Oceanside’s existing half-cent sales tax by another half cent for the next 10 years. The city said it would put the funds toward infrastructure projects like road repairs, constructing a new police department headquarters, continuing the city’s sand re-beaching efforts, replacing the 100-year old Oceanside pier bridge and building a new fire station.
It will need a simple majority vote, anything above 50 percent, to pass in November.
Padres’ New Owners
In an unsurprising move, Major League Baseball owners on Monday approved the new owners of the Padres.
The Union-Tribune reports that José E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones will be introduced as principal owners at a news conference next week. The ownership group also includes some current minority owners and members of Peter Seidler’s family.
But already we got a hint at what the couple wants to do with the team: “Our ambition is clear: to bring a World Series championship to San Diego and build an enduring organization capable of competing for championships year after year,” Feliciano and Jones said in a statement.
Politifest Weekend!
Why celebrate politics and civic engagement in one day, when you can do it in two? This year we’re hosting Politifest on Oct. 3 and satellite events on Oct. 2.
Be there or be square.
- Hear candidates for public office go head-to-head, and attend debates on hot topics like the countywide half-cent sales tax.
- Join an exclusive “San Diego Voters 101” lunch session with political data expert Paul Mitchell, on voting trends, housing status and the data consultants use to shape their strategies.
- Attend North County and South County satellite events, featuring discussions with county supervisor candidates for District 5 and National City mayoral candidates.
Get early bird pricing before it’s gone! Buy your tickets today.
In Other News
- Police arrested a 30-year-old man for arson in connection to the 141-acre Sorrento fire that started on Sunday. (Union-Tribune)
- San Diego County owns or leases a couple of gun ranges and has let ICE and CBP officers use them to practice and get certified. County leaders want to end that arrangement. (Union-Tribune)
- Live Nation, a live entertainment company, wants to turn an old, historic building in San Diego into a mid-sized concert venue that holds about 4,000 people (NBC 7 San Diego)
- San Diego lawmakers are demanding answers from the Trump administration over the 260-day deployment of the San Diego-based aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, after reports last week indicated less than ideal conditions, including some service members attempting to jump off the ship. A new carrier is currently on its way to relieve the USS Lincoln. (KPBS)
- The city of La Mesa is preparing for El Niño, fixing its drains and asking residents to clean up their gutters and storm drains too. (Times of San Diego)
The Morning Report was written by Nadia Lathan, Fiona Bork, Naomi Granata and Andrea Sanchez-Villafaña. It was edited by Will Huntsberry.