Category: Civil Rights

August 4, 2025

PRESS ADVISORY

City Council Attempts To Give Away Mission Bay Park Land  – Committee Meeting Tuesday, 6 pm., at Paradise Point.

The Mission Bay Park Committee (MBPC) will meet at 6:00 p.m., on Tuesday, August 5, 2025. The meeting will be at Paradise Point (Mission Bay Room)
It is reported that multiple City Councilmembers will be appearing in an effort to explain why the City is trying to sell parklands (potentially for upscale condominiums). The meeting will be held in Paradise Point’s Mission Bay Room.

Without input from the MBPC or San Diego Park Board, the Council attempted to move forward to declare three separate parcels in Mission Bay Park as “surplus land,” under State law, in order to put them out to bid. Under State law, once land becomes surplus, priority has to be given to low income housing projects. Most likely, any “low income” project would simply put expensive condominiums in Mission Bay Park, with the developer building low income housing elsewhere as a credit to get the long-
term lease.

This would be first time that the City of San Diego has sold off park land for residential development.

Dozens of Pacific Beach residents and supporters gathered Monday, August 4th, at the site of a controversial large-scale ADU development planned for the corner of Pacifica and Bluffside as an attorney announced a lawsuit against the City of San Diego.

The neighborhood group Neighbors for a Better Pacific Beach is the chief plaintiff in the suit, designed to halt the planned Chalcifica project, with more than 100 units.

The suit argues the planned project would harm the environment and public safety, and the group behind it points out it’s on the site of a well-known Kumeyaay coastal village.

In today’s San Diego Union-Tribune, writer Jemma Stephenson reports:

According to the plaintiffs, the city should have processed the project application on a discretionary basis but instead has handled them all on a ministerial basis, based on set standards rather than individual judgments. They also say the city never responded to the Kumeyaay Cultural Repatriation Committee’s request to meet about the issue.

On Monday, August 1, 2025 at 11:00 AM at the intersection of Pacifica Drive and Bluffside Avenue, Pacific Beach, members For a Better Pacific Beach will announce to the filing of its suit against the City to stop the processing of Christian Spicer’s 136 ADU project, “Chalcifica.”

The community group “Neighbors for a Better Pacific Beach” and dozens of supporters will announce the filing of the lawsuit to stop the proposed development on a parcel of land that sits atop the site of a significant historical Kumeyaay village in a Very High Fire Hazard Zone.

The project developer, Christian Spicer, is the subject of intense criticism by community groups. Spicer consistently ignores neighborhood concerns when he crams massive, multi-story ADUs with no parking in single-family areas.

“Christian Spicer’s proposed 136-unit ADU project is a poster child for bad planning, inadequate city review, the rejection of valid community concerns, and predatory practices,” said Merv Thompson, Chair of Neighbors for a Better Pacific Beach.

By Paul Krueger

More than 50 Middletown residents and their supporters waved signs, marched, and demonstrated their vehement opposition to a proposed high-rise in one of San Diego’s oldest residential districts.

The scene of Saturday, August 2nd’s demonstration was the 3600 block of Columbia Street, just up the hill from El Indio, the Shakespeare Pub, and other restaurants and businesses on India Street. It’s a quiet, densely populated neighborhood of single family homes and moderately-sized two- and three-story apartment buildings. The streets are narrow. Parking is scarce.

Scott Case, his Middletown neighbors, and business owners on India Street love their neighborhood, and are working tirelessly to stop a proposed 14-story, 161-unit apartment tower that would be crammed into two residential lots on Columbia Street.

Only 32% Approve of Israel military action in Gaza — Americans’ support for Israel in Gaza plummets to record low, new Gallup poll finds

Americans’ approval of Israel’s military action in Gaza has fallen 10 percentage points since the prior measurement in September, and it is now at 32%, the lowest reading since Gallup first asked the question in November 2023. Disapproval of the military action has now reached 60%.

These findings are from a July 7-21, 2025, Gallup poll, as Israel’s campaign against Hamas stretched into its 21st month. Americans supported Israel’s actions in Gaza in its initial reading in 2023, taken several weeks after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack. Since then, disapproval has outpaced approval in each survey, peaking at 55% in March 2024 before dipping to 48% in two readings later in the year. Gallup Poll

Immigration — Support for Deporting All Undocumented Migrants Dropped to 38%

Americans’ views of immigration have swung drastically upward in the past year, with a new poll showing record-high support for immigration amid President Donald Trump’s controversial mass deportation campaign. A record 79 percent of American adults think immigration is good for the country,

Every Saturday at 10:30 am. San Diego Climate Mobilization Coalition Meetings August 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd and 30th

Every Saturday 10 am – 12 pm Peace Vigil for Palestine:

The San Diego River Park Foundation has volunteer opportunities in Ocean Beach: Point Loma Native Plant Garden Club

August 2nd. Saturday  11:15 am – 2 pm Protest at Del Mar Racetrack #2  

August 2nd Saturday 8 pm – 9 pm Voice for Peace: A Call for Change film

August 3rd Sunday 4 pm Racial Justice Coalition General Body Meeting O

August 4th Monday 6 pm One Million Rising

August 4th Monday 12 pm – 1 pm Interfaith Vigil for Earth Justice

August 5th Tuesday 11am – 12:30 pm Environmental Justice, Extreme Heat, and the Future of Energy Assistance Programs

August 5th Tuesday and August 12th Tuesday 5 pm – 6 pm Solidarity & Rapid Response:

August 6th Wednesday 2pm – 4 pm  Copy of Rising Voices: Youth4Climate Fundraiser  Event by SanDiego350

A few days ago, KPBS ran a story entitled “San Diego is building a lot of new homes, but not always in places that need them most” by Jake Gotta, which was picked up by their media partners at Voice of San Diego. Gotta interviewed our good friend Bonnie Kutch, the head of UC Peeps who is also a steering committee member of the San Diego Community Coalition.

However, mainly Gotta quoted Colin Parent extensively, the head of Circulate San Diego, a group that masquerades as pro-envirionment and pro-mass transit advocates but who are mainly paid lobbyists and pro-development shrills. Gotta made Kutch out to be the “bad guy” in his totally uncritical “gotcha” YIMBY piece. Here below, Bonnie responds:

Hi Jake:

In case you’re doing more stories focusing on housing issues, I wanted to make a few points that weren’t covered in your story that aired today.  I wasn’t clear on what the focus of today’s story would be, thinking it was housing in general, so I failed to point out a few things:

• First, the City of San Diego spent $2.1 billion of taxpayer money building the Blue Line Trolley Expansion alone so it could supposedly bring people who work in UTC back and forth.  Yet, the City has failed to advocate for new affordable housing near all 62 trolley stops to serve that purpose.  Building all the housing in UTC or Sorrento Valley alone is a huge waste of the trolley expense and negates its intended purpose.

Come Inside to Order Your San Diego Community Coalition T-shirt

When a majority rules without offering a rationale, we can’t know if they are following the law.

By Erwin Chemerinksy / Contributing writer Los Angeles Times / July 23, 2025

“Because I said so” never is persuasive or satisfying. And it certainly should not be regarded as acceptable when it is the Supreme Court resolving important issues — up to and including matters of life and death — without the slightest explanation. Yet, that has been the pattern in recent weeks, as in a series of significant cases the court has handed down rulings without opinions or explanation.

For example, on June 23, in Department of Homeland Security vs. D.V.D., the court majority lifted a district court order that prevented individuals from Venezuela and Cuba who were in the U.S. from being deported to South Sudan. The district court had issued a preliminary injunction against so-called third country deportation, finding that the individuals were not given due process: They were not provided sufficient notice or a meaningful opportunity to challenge their deportation based on their fears for their safety. The judge was understandably concerned the individuals could be subjected to torture or death upon arrival. Federal law is specific on where people can be deported to, and there is a strong argument that the Trump administration would violate the law in sending these individuals to a country where they had no prior contacts.

Government Executive: Trump administration reminds federal employees they can proselytize in the office

By JW August

FROM THE TRENCHES

It is now permissible for supervisors “in federal offices to  post invitations to employees to join his church” on an agency bulletin board. ”

Also allowed is recruitment of others to a religion, all outlined in a five page memorandum released July 28th by Director Scott Kupor of Trump’s Office of Personnel Management (OPM).

Eric Katz, “Senior Correspondent”  for the “Government Executive” website reports that OPM is telling federal employees “they can proselytize in the office” adding that supervisors “can solicit employees to attend their church.”  OPM describes it as a new guidance.

By Kate Callen / July 28, 2025

This Thursday, July 31, YIMBY Democrats of San Diego are holding a “Summer Soiree” fundraiser at 6:30 p.m. at the Town and Country Resort. YIMBY politicians like Congressman Scott Peters and Assemblymember Chris Ward will be there, along with developers, lobbyists, law firms, and … representatives of Airbnb.

The event flyer gives a big shout-out to the vacation rental conglomerate: “We would like to extend a special thank you to Airbnb, our presenting sponsor this year.”

Come again? Why would a local group dedicated to boosting the housing supply embrace a global conglomerate that shrinks that supply by converting residential units into vacation units?

Airbnb may rightly believe that more housing production will deliver more opportunities for future vacation rentals. And YIMBYs are understandably happy to take the corporate money.

The short-term rental behemoth has been courting density advocates since at least January 2024, when it launched the Airbnb Housing Council. Like its new YIMBY allies, Airbnb expressed concern about the shortage of affordable housing.

“An Injury to one community is an injury to all.”

The San Diego Community Coalition– which has been in existence a little over 3 months — will hold its second public meeting on Saturday, July 26. Members will be meeting in the community room at the Pacific Beach Library at 4275 Cass Street, from 10 am to noon.

The network of community activists and leaders include people from 25 neighborhoods across San Diego, from Encanto to University City, from OB and Point Loma to Talmadge and Linda Vista. In addition, some members are from Neighbors for a Better San Diego and SOHO, Save Our Heritage Organization.

Initially spurred to action to fight against the city’s abusive Bonus ADU program, it is now focused on giving support to individual projects that are threatening neighborhoods, like the 23-story Turquoise Tower in PB and the 17-story tower proposed for Columbia Street in Middletown. In fact, the Coalition is helping to sponsor a protest rally against the Columbia Street project on Saturday, August 2. And at least 30 members of the Coalition attended the July 19th rally in Pacific Beach.