Homelessness and housing issues are dominating the contentious race to represent many of the county’s coastal communities.
The race between Democratic District 3 Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer and former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, a Republican who hopes to oust her, will determine which political party dominates the now-Democratic majority board. It’ll also tip the scales on the county’s approach to the region’s homelessness and housing crises foremost on voters’ minds.
Today our Lisa Halverstadt tackles two talking points coming up often as Lawson-Remer and Faulconer argue they are the best candidate to represent the district.
First up: Lawson-Remer’s Big Shelter Claim
Lawson-Remer has repeatedly touted the more than 900 shelter spaces she claims the county has added since she took office in 2021.
Did the county really add hundreds of shelter beds? The region has added hundreds of shelter beds since Lawson-Remer took office in January 2021, but her statements gloss over the county’s struggles to deliver shelter. The supervisor is also counting vouchers and safe parking lots that aren’t traditional shelter options in her totals.
Next up: Faulconer’s Housing Slowdown Claim
As he seeks to take Lawson-Remer’s seat, Faulconer has often bemoaned what he describes as a “de facto housing moratorium” in the region’s unincorporated areas since the county implemented rules meant to minimize driving and greenhouse gas emissions.
So is there a moratorium? Unfortunately, the county wouldn’t release the data needed to assess the impact of the controversial mileage policy – and to fully vet a wonky talking point that has gotten politicized.
Halverstadt did find that uncertainty surrounding the rules seems to have had a chilling effect since state law forced the county to start implementing them in 2020.
Looking for more? Our MacKenzie Elmer previously wrote about how the two candidates differ on housing policy and batteries. Halverstadt dug into their homelessness pledges and Faulconer’s homelessness track record.
Mayoral Race Funder Breaks Silence
Steven Richter’s donations to support Larry Turner’s campaign has made the San Diego mayoral race much more interesting. This week, he gave another $50,000 to make his total drop $1.5 million and more is rumored to be on the way.
Richter had been silent on what was motivating the donations other than the obvious desire to see Mayor Todd Gloria replaced. Sunday, he issued a statement to La Prensa. He said his wife and he had no business interests in the city and they would both be voting for Kamala Harris in the presidential election.
“We need a Mayor not dependent on the financial contributors who are responsible for everything from 101 Ash to the City’s homeless debacle,” reads the statement. “The City deserves a Mayor who is not beholden to the usual downtown power players or anyone else but the voters.”
Border Report: Untapped Civic Potential
Since 1986, U.S. citizens living outside of the country have had the right to vote in federal elections. The problem is this population of voters is often overlooked by political parties.
The potential is huge, with more than 2.8 million overseas citizens being eligible to vote in 2022. But, as Voice contributor Sandra Dibble writes, political parties and politicians don’t focus enough on getting those millions of people to register to vote and cast their ballots.
This election season, though, interest in voting among U.S. citizens living in other countries has started to grow as expats around the world tune into this year’s tight presidential race.
In Mexico, there are around 90,000 potential voters, and organizations like Vote for Abroad have been working tirelessly to get the word out.
Newsom Visits San Diego’s Border Sewage Crisis
Gov. Gavin Newsom made a surprise stop Monday at the U.S.-Mexico Border specifically to tour both countries’ progress on stemming Tijuana sewage from spilling into San Diego.
For many months now, South Bay mayors pleaded with Newsom to declare the issue an emergency at the state level, one of the final hurdles toward getting a federal emergency declaration. Official federal emergencies catalyze the government to send additional aid. But he hasn’t yet and he didn’t Monday.
He made a stop at the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant in San Diego, which is struggling to work properly, and San Antonio de los Buenos, another treatment plant that’s being rebuilt by the Mexican military.
Baja California Gov. Marina del Pilar Avila posted photos on her Instagram embracing the governor at the Mexican plant, which is slated to be done by Dec. 31.
At a press conference after his visit, Newsom told reporters both sides of the border were “making progress” on projects to stop sewage flows off the coast but “not fast enough.” He said “working very closely” with the Biden Administration to “prioritize investments” on the problem. But he didn’t address the emergency declaration question.
In another press release, Supervisor Nora Vargas, whose district encompasses the Tijuana River valley, said she briefed the governor on the status of the pollution crisis.
In Other News
- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is reviewing a petition signed by hundreds of San Diego County residents and some elected officials asking for the Tijuana River Valley to be eligible for the Superfund program, a federal program used to clean up hazardous waste sites. (Union-Tribune)
- There are two bidders being considered to remake 101 Ash St. into affordable housing: One has been accused of violating lease terms of an affordable housing complex called Windsor Pointe in Carlsbad, and the other is run by a political appointee of Mayor Todd Gloria. (Union-Tribune)
- Mental health care workers for Kaiser Permanente locations throughout Southern California have entered their second week on strike. (KPBS)
- In a new op-ed for Voice of San Diego, City Council President Sean Elo-Rivera and Deputy City Attorney Heather Ferbert make the case for a law that protects San Diego renters from price fixing. Read it here. Elo-Rivera plans to introduce an ordinance to the City Council’s Rules Committee on Wednesday.
The Morning Report was written by Lisa Halverstadt, Tigist Layne and MacKenzie Elmer. It was edited by Andrea Lopez-Villafaña.