The United States and Mexico are teaming up to build a desalination plant and water distribution system in Rosarito that would reduce Mexico’s reliance on the dwindling Colorado River.
They want to break ground next month, but as our MacKenzie Elmer and Voice of San Diego contributor Vicente Calderón report, they haven’t selected a builder yet.
So, can they do it?
Building a desal plant in Rosarito isn’t a novel idea, in fact, there have been several failed attempts in the past. But all parties seem committed to building it and they already have $114 million from an international bank to get it done.
The Making of a Ballot Measure Flop
Take one government reform proposal, add giving councilmembers a huge pay raise, throw in a crowd of angry residents and sprinkle in a quid pro quo accusation.
That’s what it takes to stall a government reform effort in Chula Vista.
Our Jim Hinch has been following a labor union’s push to change how city leaders are paid, elected and do their jobs. Local 89 of the Laborers International Union of North America wanted councilmembers to put the measure on the November ballot.
That isn’t going to happen.
This week, councilmembers voted to send the measure to the city’s Charter Review Commission.
Hinch explains how the effort fell apart in his latest newsletter.
Found in the Scroll: Seal Outrage Edition
Every couple of months, new footage of dangerous or worrying interactions between people and seals pops up from somewhere in San Diego. Let’s be honest though, it’s almost always La Jolla.
You can mark this clip as both of the above.
On Thursday, the Sierra Club Seal Society of San Diego, an organization that advocates for humane treatment of seals and just generally spreads seal love, shared a video of a young man repeatedly kicking a lone seal. In the background, his buddies can be heard giggling away.
As you can imagine, the post has gone viral, racking up tens of thousands of views within an hour or two of it being posted. It’s just one more example of the tense relationship that’s for years simmered between San Diegans (and tourists) and seals. Here’s to hoping something good comes out of it.
Dear Reader: When Lifeguards Have to Pee
Earlier this week, a Voice reader reached out after city officials decided to close half the bathrooms at Mission Bay as part of this year’s budget cuts.
“My greatest concern is the impact on lifeguard operations. The lifeguard assigned to Ventura Cove no longer has access to a restroom at their station. When they need to use the restroom, they must either walk to the nearby hotel or cross a busy street to another park with an open restroom. During that time, the lifeguard’s post is left unattended.”
So we asked the city what lifeguards do if they gotta go number one or two.
City spokesperson Candace Hadley said San Diego Lifeguards maintain uninterrupted observation over beachgoers. They have a system to make sure someone is always on duty. (No pun intended.)
They don’t leave their posts even if they really gotta go.
“In the event of an urgent, unscheduled need, lifeguards coordinate via radio dispatch to secure immediate coverage before stepping down from an observation tower,” she said.
We didn’t hear back from the parks department.
In Other News
- It’s hot. (KPBS)
- Ten years after passing zoning rules allowing medical marijuana dispensaries, La Mesa’s lower tax rate and high pot shop density have made it a destination for tokers. (Times of San Diego)
- After a lack of funding forced a hiatus, a San Diego County program that distributes air purifiers to locals impacted by stench from the Tijuana River is back up and running. Officials expect they have funding to distribute 17,000 more devices. (Union-Tribune)
- Lemon Grove’s City Council passed a new tenant protection ordinance that restricts when landlords can evict tenants. (KPBS)
- San Diego County paid $3 million to the widow of a diabetic man who died in San Diego Central Jail after his need for insulin was reportedly ignored by deputies at the jail. (Times of San Diego)
- San Diego Pride may be over, but Hillcrest still has more pride to come. After more than a year of construction, the Pride Promenade at the corner of Normal Avenue and University Avenue is set to be completed by the end of this year. (KPBS)
- The San Diego Zoo’s got a new mother. An echidna named Kathryn laid twin eggs earlier this year, a rare occurrence biologists say. Echidnas are pretty odd creatures. They’re mammals, but they lay eggs, which they then stow away in a pouch for ten days. Those pouches are only present when a mama-chidna is pregnant or raising a baby, which are called puggles (lol). When the eggs hatch, the puggles (lol) are about the size of a jellybean. They then spend a couple of months living mostly in those pouches before venturing into the outside world, only to be buried in a burrow by mama. (Smithsonian)
The Morning Report was written by Andrea Sanchez-Villafaña, Jakob McWhinney, Fiona Bork and Mariana Martínez Barba. It was edited by Andrea Sanchez-Villafaña.
