Efforts to rename a street in Barrio Logan are underway.
After sexual allegations surfaced against Cesar Chavez, agencies, schools and municipalities rushed to remove his name from everything. I heard this week that city officials are considering renaming Cesar E. Chavez Parkway to Chicano Park Boulevard. I reached out the the Mayor’s Office but didn’t hear back.
Freelance journalist Roberto Camacho wrote for Caló News that a representative for Mayor Todd Gloria told community members at a recent meeting that the city was taking the steps required to rename the street after the historic park. They are in the process of collecting signatures from property owners and businesses that would be impacted.
The mayor’s representative, Lucero Maganda, told Camacho that the name change needs to be intentional and they must work to truly engage community members as much as possible.
Meanwhile: A city spokesperson told me the city renamed a recreation center in San Ysidro already. It’s now the San Ysidro Larsen Field Community Center. Ben Cartwright said that the community could consider changing that name using the city’s process.
Sort of related: I went to a show by Teatro Izcalli this week at Barrio Station in Barrio Logan. The show touched on subjects of racism, sexism and the history of Chicano Park. It was an awesome show and I highly recommend catching the next one if you can.
OK, grab some cafecito. Here’s what you need to know to start your week.
The Chula Vista Mayor’s Race
For a while, we were wondering if someone was going to step up to challenge Republican John McCann for Chula Vista mayor. Now, we know.
This week, our Jim Hinch profiled Francisco Tamayo, a trustee with the Chula Vista Elementary School District, who threw his hat in the ring two hours before the filing deadline.
Dems who want to a Democratic mayor in South Bay are excited and hopeful about Tamayo’s chances. But others are not so sure and cite skeletons in his closet. You can read the profile here.
I had some questions for Hinch, here’s what he said.
Jim, how nasty do you expect this race to get?
Hard to predict. Both candidates say they intend to focus on the positive before a June primary.
After that? The gloves could come off. Last year’s race for a South County seat on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors turned pretty harsh.
Already both candidates’ campaign managers are talking up their opponents’ negatives in private conversations. I’m pretty sure attack ads will play a role at some point.
Were you surprised that Tamayo decided to run?
I didn’t see that coming. The election will be Tamayo’s third in four years. In 2024, he unseated a fellow Democrat on the Chula Vista Elementary School District school board just two years after winning his own seat.
That unorthodox move landed him in hot water with county Democrats. They came close to censuring him. Now they enthusiastically back his candidacy. Politics!
Besides all that, Tamayo has no previous experience in city government and his years on the Chula Vista school board have been dogged by controversy.
But I’m told he’s a relentless campaigner. And he’s never lost a race during 12 years in politics. So who knows?
What will you be watching?
What issues end up being most important? The race is viewed as McCann’s to lose because he’s mostly well-liked in Chula Vista and the city has prospered under his leadership.
But national political trends have given Democrats momentum this year. And Tamayo says he plans to make McCann’s handling of immigration issues a central theme in the race. That could make a difference.
We Are Suing the County
We are suing the county of San Diego to get them to release public records we requested about complaints against an ex-county contractor.
Our Lisa Halverstadt has been following the story of a county contractor who is accused of stealing public money for personal expenses like plastic surgery and trips.
Halverstadt requested a January 2023 whistleblower report that District Attorney Summer Stephan said highlighted red flags with the contractor. The county refused to hand over that report, saying releasing the documents would be an invasion of privacy and would discourage whistleblower complaints.
But as Halverstadt writes, the denial “conflicts with state law requiring the release of misconduct records when allegations are substantiated” and fails to acknowledge that the county could “redact records to protect names of those who made whistleblower complaints or accusations it couldn’t confirm were accurate.”
Read more about the lawsuit here and why it matters.
Off the Record
I couldn’t help but wonder … is our Off the Record event going to be the best celebration of investigative storytelling and an opportunity to see our local leaders get roasted?
The answer is yes! Join us on April 30 for a wonderful night filled with political satire. You can get your tickets here. (Visit the page to enjoy a hilarious video.)