Category: History

By Kate Callen and Paul Krueger / OpEd San Diego Union-Tribune / March 15, 2026

In 1926, the city of San Diego embraced a farsighted plan by landscape architect John Nolen to preserve Balboa Park as what he called “one of the most strikingly beautiful parks in the world.”

Exactly 100 years later, the mayor and six City Council Members looked at Balboa Park and saw a source of ready cash to help fill a budget deficit.

The decision to monetize San Diego’s “crown jewel” by charging visitors to park there was arguably the City’s biggest political blunder in recent history. The mayor and the council didn’t anticipate how fiercely San Diegans would fight to protect their jewel.

That miscalculation could secure Balboa Park’s future if it galvanizes citizens to demand a new public-private governance structure. And a commissioned 2020 report that was never publicly circulated offers encouragement for doing just that.

The dire effects of paid parking – fewer visitors, declining revenues, staff layoffs – have worsened a problem with deep roots.

For decades, City Hall has put the Park on a starvation diet. San Diegans kept hearing about master plan updates that would make the Park more vibrant. But then we kept seeing the Park decline as those plans were relegated to file cabinets. The result has been filthy restrooms, rundown buildings, and wilting greenery.

This Week at City Hall

The San Diego Community Coalition publishes this email bulletin to keep our members and the San Diego public informed about important Council and Planning Commission hearings and other city public meetings.

Wednesday, March 18: Rules Committee, 9:00 a.m.

Agenda:

Item 2: Amendments to the Rules of Council Governing Public Comment During Council Meetings

Why it matters: This is intended to comply with Senate Bill 707 to modernize the Brown Act in an age of growing telecom sophistication. To include equal time for in-person and virtual speakers, the proposal includes:

• A notice will indicate whether public comment will be allotted 1 minute of 2 minutes per speaker
• Organized presentations will be taken before individual comment and must be 15 minutes or less, Presenters must give 24-hour notice to the City Clerk. Electronic presentation materials must be provided 2 hours in advance.
• Finally, “proposed amendments will provide for recording closed sessions [to] eliminate the requirement of costly transcriptions.” Audiotapes are less accessible than written transcripts, which can be searchable and excerpted. This keeps the public at a greater remove from Council deliberations.

Item 3: Review of Ballot Measure Proposals for the November 2026 Election

Why it matters: A measure proposed by Councilmember Raul Campillo would establish free parking at beaches and bays in the City of San Diego. The measure states, “Ensuring equitable public access to these coastal resources remains an important component of the City’s commitment to maintaining a high quality of life for San Diegans.”

Wednesday, March 18:  Community and Neighborhood Community Services Committee, 2:00 p.m.

Agenda:

Item 4: Resolution in Support of AB 2525 Surplus Lands, Mission Bay

Why it matters: The City Charter prohibits housing development in Mission Bay Park. But the State Surplus Land Act requires the city to prioritize affordable housing in Mission Bay Park to lease certain park properties for a period that exceeds 15 years. To ensure that housing is not allowed, Assemblymember Chris Ward has introduced this legislation to exempt Mission Bay Park from the Surplus Land Act.

Here’s the Long List of Groups That Opposed Package A

By South OB Girl

This was truly a remarkable accomplishment for so many people to come together in our efforts to defeat “Package A” of the so-called Preservation Reforms. The warped San Diego political scene pulled the decision making in favor of Package A, despite dozens of inconsistencies in the handling of the policy (no Package B for certain, then a Package B under way), legal violations specified by multiple organizations, and constituent opposition.

As a comment in The OB Rag recently suggested, are some of our City Council members paid a salary beyond their capabilities?  Are City Council representatives exercising the same precision, thoroughness, moral excellence, and skills of logic and deduction when analyzing and evaluating policies and municipal code that judges exercise when presiding over their court rooms?

Additionally, perhaps some of our City Council representatives are pulled in too many directions.  City Council members have an extensive gamut of responsibilities — from fiscal decisions pertaining to every aspect of the city to policy decisions pertaining to every aspect of the city.  It is clear that some facts and details are getting lost along the way with such extensive agendas for City Council week after week.

Judge Admonishes SDSU Lawyer for “Uncivil Comments” about Publisher

From La Prensa News Desk / March 11, 2026

La Prensa San Diego Publisher Arturo Castañares won a lawsuit last week against San Diego State University over its failure to release documents related to an offer for a free sports arena in Mission Valley, with the judge admonishing the University’s lawyer for making “uncivil” comments about Castañares in an official court filing.

The lawsuit was filed after SDSU failed to provide records Castañares requested about a trip to Texas taken by SDSU officials and local civic leaders to tour the University of Texas sports arena in Austin in May 2021.

That trip was scheduled by Oak View Group, which developed the Austin arena, and had indicated interest in entering into a similar deal with SDSU to build and operate a sports arena alongside Snapdragon Stadium at no cost to the University.

The disclosure of the trip and subsequent offer of interest from Oak View Group helped put important events regarding a potential sports arena in San Diego into perspective.

After the trip to Texas in May 2021, California State University trustee Jack McGrory, who went on the trip, met with San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria to relay the news about a potential deal for a new sports arena.

McGrory later testified in a sworn deposition that Gloria asked him not to pursue the offer because he was about to move forward with an alternative plan at the existing site of the Sporta Arena in the Midway area of the City.

By Judi Curry

First of all, I want to thank the Readers of the OB Rag for your calls and visits re: the health problem I had one year ago today.  I woke up one morning blind in one eye. The doctor said that the vision might come back so not to cover it, but it has been a year now and there is only a peripheral vision, and not all the time. But don’t feel sorry for me – comparing it to the alternative, I am still able to see my 20+ grandkids, and although no longer drive and depend on others, am aware of what is going on in the world – and District 2!  I find that although I seldom go to the meetings I used to go to, I frequently have meetings at my home where many topics are discussed.

About 4-5 months ago I had the opportunity to “meet” Richard Bailey through a “Next Door” post originally written by my handyman Glenn Millar.  We had a conversation, of sorts going, and I even told Mr. Bailey that I hoped that Glenn would run for the mayor’s job because I thought he was the best candidate for the position! Mr. Bailey told me agreed – that Glenn should run. I liked him already!

However, as time passed, and we are coming closer to the race, I decided to take a closer look at Mr. Bailey as a candidate (because I had already done extensive investigation into some of the candidates and had decided to vote for Mandy Havlik) and wanted to give him a chance.  And let me tell you why I was doing so much investigative work: I probably have voted a minimum of 70 times in governmental elections. (Yes, I am OLD!

Editordude: The following is an account of the background to the City’s efforts to close De Anza Point in Mission Bay, and was originally submitted as an attachment to the Mission Bay Park Committee agenda by Dep. City Manager Beth Murray on Feb. 14, 2005.

By Judy Swink

Property History

In 1945 approximately 70 acres of land and 6 acres of water located at De Anza Point in Mission Bay Park were conveyed to the City of San Diego by the State of California for the primary purpose of park and recreational uses. In 1953, the City entered into a 50-year lease with De Anza Harbor Resort and Golf’s predecessor for the purpose of operating a transient tourist and recreational vehicle park area which was consistent with the use restrictions under the tidelands grant. In 1962 the property was included in the dedication of Mission Bay Park to park and recreational use pursuant to Section 55 of the City Charter.

Kapiloff Legislation

In the late 1970’s the issue of legality was raised, and in 1978 the City Attorney opined that use of State tidelands and dedicated park for permanent private residences was not a legal use. The legality of the mobile home park use was addressed by state legislation sponsored by then Assembly member Larry Kapiloff and adopted in 1981 (AB 447, the Kapiloff Bill).

The Surplus Land Act needs exemption for leased land

Editordude: the following was a Letter to the Editor in today’s SD Union-Tribune in response to a Feb. 28 UT article entitled, ““Bill aims to stop Mission Bay Park housing” .

By Sue Taylor

This article describes a proposed solution to a broader problem in how the Surplus Land Act is applied to leased public land. The Mission Bay exemption is a start but doesn’t go far enough.

Changes made to the Surplus Land Act in 2020 expanded it to include leased public property, allowing land to be treated as “surplus” simply because a lease is expiring. Before 2020, the city routinely leased public land for approved uses that provided amenities while generating revenue for city services.

Measure Would Be on November 2026 Ballot

By Donna Frye

It seems that every 10 years or so, the city comes up with a proposal to charge people to park at the beaches and Mission Bay Park as a potential revenue source. Thankfully, once the public gets involved, the elected officials usually back off this very bad idea.

Most recently, on November 10, 2025, The San Diego Union-Tribune’s David Garrick reported that four members of the city council were proposing entry fees for Mission Bay Park and paid parking at the beaches.

The public rallied against charging anyone to enter/park at Mission Bay Park or our beaches and on November 18, the paid parking proposal was not included as part of the council resolution being sent to the mayor’s office for consideration in preparing the FY 2027 budget.

At that time, the only councilmember who spoke at any length about the issue was Campillo and he made it clear he would not support charging residents or non-residents to park at Mission Bay Park or our beaches.

Trump’s Assault Undermines Protections of Our Coastal Waters

By David Helvarg / The Progressive / March 11, 2026

My half-century as a journalist and two decades as an ocean advocate has taught me that democracy is not a guarantee of environmental protection for our public seas or people—it’s a prerequisite.

That’s why, in advance of what will be the third No Kings Day of mass protest against President Donald Trump’s increasingly authoritarian and unpopular administration, on March 28, a few activists from my organization, Blue Frontier, among others, are pushing for a greater focus on ocean-related issues, including clean beaches, safe and sustainable seafood, and oil- and plastic-free public seas.

While previous administrations have promoted offshore drilling and attacked climate science, the Trump Administration stands alone in ignoring the law and Constitutional separation of powers to undermine protection of our coastal waters.

Among other assaults on legal precedent, it has acted to undo the U.S. Civil Service Act during mass firings at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and elsewhere. It has also thumbed its nose at the Congressional War Powers Act and the military code of conduct in the September 2 killing of two survivors of a shipwreck, as part of a wave of deadly attacks on alleged drug-runners at sea.

From The Washington Post / March 11, 2026

The Iranian elementary school building where scores of children were killed as the U.S. and Israel began their massive aerial campaign was on a U.S. target list and may have been mistaken for a military site, multiple people familiar with the strike told The Washington Post.

The deadly attack occurred in the first few hours of the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran — just as parents were hurrying to the two-story schoolhouse to take their kids home to safety — and killed at least 175 people, many of them children, according to Iranian state media.

It is still not clear why the building was hit, but one person familiar with the school strike said the building had been identified as a factory and had been an approved strike target. A second person familiar said there was an arms depot target located in the same area and did not know if the United States hit the school by mistake, or if U.S. officials had the wrong intelligence and thought the building was the arms depot.

“Initially there was some confusion on why it was on the target list,” said a third person familiar with the strike. The individual would not go into further detail, citing the military’s ongoing investigation into the strike.

By Tyler Faurot / Point Loma – OB Monthly SDU-T / March 11, 2026

Dozens of road segments on the Point Loma Peninsula have been identified in a city of San Diego analysis as candidates for speed limit reductions. And as city leaders review the study, some members of community planning boards in Point Loma and Ocean Beach are bemoaning what they see as an ineffectual approach for their neighborhoods, despite welcoming the idea of lower speeds.

California Assembly Bill 43, signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2021, allows municipalities to reduce speed limits, provided the reductions are justified by an extensive analysis. The city of San Diego compiled a 135-page speed management plan that was published in February and presented to the City Council’s Active Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

All four members of the committee voted Feb. 19 to recommend that the full council approve city staff’s proposals for new speed limits on the streets specified in the plan.

By David Garrick / SD Union-Tribune / March 10, 20226

San Diego took a key step Tuesday toward cementing long-term control of the Liberty Station mixed-use complex — despite objections from the company that manages much of the area.

The City Council unanimously approved payouts to the county and some other local agencies — mostly school districts, community college districts and health districts — that have a financial interest in Liberty Station. The council’s approval shifts the power to those agencies, which now must approve the payouts they will receive in exchange for relinquishing to the city their long-term rights over the sprawling property east of Point Loma.

Of the 13 agencies with a financial stake, four have approved their compensation agreements, one was slated to vote Tuesday night, three are scheduled to vote next week and five haven’t taken action. Those approvals are crucial to finalizing the city’s efforts to declare Liberty Station a “future development” site, which will allow the city to continue owning it, instead of a “liquidation” site that the city must sell.