By Scott Rodd / KPBS / December 3, 2024
Earlier this year, Mayor Todd Gloria chose one of his biggest platforms to unveil his administration’s latest initiative to solve homelessness.
“Tonight, I’m announcing a philanthropic campaign to help the city carry out our ambitious plans to end our homelessness crisis,” Gloria said at his State of the City address in January, as the name of the new initiative appeared on a giant screen behind him. “Called San Diegans Together Tackling Homelessness, this campaign already has commitments for a quarter of a million dollars.”
In the following weeks, the city laid out a bold plan involving everyone from regular residents to San Diego’s largest philanthropic organizations. City leaders vowed to turn that initial $250,000 into $370 million in donations by the end of 2024, setting the stage for more robust prevention efforts and the building of a 400-unit affordable housing high-rise downtown.
“This initiative aims not just to manage, but to resolve the homelessness crisis in San Diego,” the city stated on its website. The city’s top bureaucrat even floated the idea that the initiative — if successful — could help replace the city department focused on homelessness.
Nearly a year in, however, the city has tempered this lofty vision after falling woefully short of its initial goals. San Diegans Together Tackling Homelessness has raised only $1.3 million — a tiny fraction of its target for 2024. The initiative’s lone expenditure so far did nothing to address the root causes of homelessness. It spent $2,400 on t-shirts for a volunteer cleanup event downtown in July.
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Empty words.
Hot air.
Emerald City & the Wizard.
Complacent Clowncil enablers.
That’s a good one — “Clowncil”
Now it’s time to circle the wagons.
We had the same thought – I saw the Times post when you did.
Great story, glad to see a KPBS investigative report. The City has spent a fortune fighting a homelessness crisis that keeps getting worse —and somehow a lack of public involvement is to blame? Our tax dollars aren’t enough; now we’re asked to give private donations to a public entity with a sorry record of fiscal mismanagement.
The tone-deaf arrogance is what we’ve come to expect from Todd Gloria’s City Hall. Did Eric Dargan actually say, “You’d be amazed how many people in the city are not doing anything”? Solving the homeless problem is YOUR job, Mr. Dargan, not ours.
Kate, I’m hoping our readers will be able to see a more thorough unveiling of the high figures Todd’s friends make in our city government.
Eric Dargan’s salary for 2023 was $383,291.00.
It would be nice if our government official’s salaries were based on performance metrics.
25% base salary, 75% when roads are fixed, crime is down and homelessness is solved.
Fundraisers have been talking about how ill-conceived this plan is since the day it was announced. The city continues to tout private philanthropy as the public-private solution to these issues, but they don’t actually practice development. They aren’t building relationships, they aren’t demonstrating impact, and they aren’t transparent enough for donors to trust the flow of capital to impactful actions. To go into a budget year where the city’s many incredible nonprofits will lose funding while also competing with the city for philanthropic dollars is a surefire way to crush the nonprofit sector and lose a number of crucial, on-the-ground organizations.
“Dargan remains confident that the city can still convince San Diego residents to chip in.
‘”You’d be amazed how many people in the city are not doing anything”’ to help address homelessness, he said.”
Yeah, except working full time and paying the taxes that fund Toads homeless programs which have no accountability. Really connected to the every day citizens there, Darian.