By Chris Jennewein / Times of San Diego / Feb. 7, 2025
Mayor Todd Gloria on Friday, Feb. 7, dropped plans for the controversial, giant homeless shelter at Kettner Boulevard and Vine Street near the San Diego International Airport.
“After a year of negotiations and multiple hearings, we have come to the conclusion that the proposed homeless shelter campus at Kettner and Vine can no longer advance,” Gloria said. “As a result, we will present alternative solutions to the City Council on Feb. 10.”
He said three new options are:
- a privately owned property on Second Avenue that would require lease negotiations and two city-owned properties,
- the Old Central Library and
- the City Operations Building.
The mayor had proposed a 30-year-lease on a 65,000-square-foot commercial building that could have housed up to 1,000 homeless individuals. The plan faced opposition from nearby businesses, and council concerns over the cost of the lease.
“While I continue to believe the proposed shelter at Kettner and Vine was the best and most cost-effective option for a permanent shelter program, I remain firm in my commitment to expand shelter,” Gloria said. “Getting people off the streets and out of the riverbed and canyons is not optional.”
Creating city-owned tenement projects has repeatedly proven to be an enormous waste of public money. Cramming homeless people into the same buildings strips the people of human dignity and is a trap they may never escape. I am personally impressed with the federal Section 8 program that places families among economically capable households such that dignity is maintained and there remains hope of moving on. However, I expect Elon Musk and Felonious 47 will terminate the Section 8 program in the weeks to come. I suggest the City of San Diego develop a housing program that uses funding to rent suitable homes to embed the homeless within the City of San Diego with the long-term hope they will get back in traditional employment can move into their own homes. Please heed my warning that a much bigger problem is looming on the horizon when the federal government emasculates the Housing and Urban Development program and our streets are flooded with people no longer protected by the United States government. Wasting money on new construction and adapting asbestos laden buildings never designed for housing is a bad idea.
From the first discussion of this terrible idea it was clear that it was fiscally irresponsible and without examples of successful similar efforts. Can anyone imagine 1,000 homeless individuals being housed in a 3-stack set of endless bunks? Sounds like a dangerous and unsafe living environment.
It was also absolutely ridiculous to commit the City to funding multiple decades based of a half—baked concept. This mayor has proven himself multiple times unable to solve problems, his time has come to be replaced. I’m frankly done with his half-baked ideas supported by a team of incompetent staffers.
I bet Gloria’s buddy that bought that building, anticipating it would be his get rich quick scheme, is hating life.
From Toad’s mind, While I continue to believe the proposed shelter at Kettner and Vine was the best and most cost-effective option for a permanent shelter program, I remain firm in my commitment to expand shelter.
87 million to rehab the library. At least the city op building is DOA. I’m curious if Kettner/ Vine was the most cost effective, as per Toad, how this compares. And wonder why these inexperienced people continue these inept deals.
Rep. Scott Peters is an abject failure. Peter’s office has flat our refused to make any effort to expand the very effective Section 8 Housing Program in San Diego. And he advocated for the elimination of Net Neutrality.