OB Rag

Developer claims state laws allow projects to exceed local restrictions if they include low-income housing

by Dave Schwab / Times of San Diego / Oct. 23, 2025

The developers behind a plan to transform the area around Pechanga Arena into a dense, urban nightlife district say a court ruling that retained a 30-foot limit on building heights there won’t stop the project.

Four years ago, they weren’t so sure.

Midway Rising, the proposal to build a new sports arena and 4,000 homes — with half reserved for low-income residents — includes buildings up to 85 feet tall.

Accommodating those taller buildings was part of why the city in 2020 and again in 2022 asked voters to rescind the coastal height limit for the Midway-Pacific Highway Community Plan area, which includes the 48-acre project area.

But a citizens group opposing that measure, and the taller, denser buildings it would allow, scored a legal victory last week when an appellate court ruled the city failed to follow the California Environmental Quality Act by not adequately informing the public of the environmental effects of removing the height restrictions.

In response, both the developers and Mayor Todd Gloria said the decision would not stop the project.

By Phillip Molnar / San Diego Union-Tribune / October 23-24, 2025 

Thousands of city of San Diego residents have flooded county offices over concern about increased property taxes but, in some cases, there is a simple explanation: trash.

After decades of offering trash collection for free, city of San Diego will now charge many residents for trash collection. Residents got their first-ever annual trash charge of $523.20 in property tax bills that went out in early October.

San Diego County Assessor Jordan Marks said his office, and the tax collector’s, have been inundated with in-person visits and phone calls about higher bills. He said there have been more than 2,000 inquiries over the charge, but it was hard to pinpoint an exact number because it’s been a steady stream for weeks. Residents who call the office, at 619-236-3771, get sent to an automated phone tree with the first option to ask about the trash fee.

“The city of San Diego levied and controls this trash fee on your property tax bills,” says a voice recording. “They are the only party that can answer your important questions and address your issues.”

Here is an update from the folks who organized the campaign, “Stop Columbia St. High Rise” from an email announcement dated Oct. 23.

Thank you for your support this past year to advocate for responsible development in our Middletown residential hillside neighborhood, and to specifically oppose the proposed 3677 Columbia Street high-rise.

Here are some highlights since our last status:

The 3677-3687 Columbia St high rise project is “paused”, according to the developer. The City also confirms there has been no recent progress on this project. After hiring several different firms over the last year, the developer’s geotechnical earthquake fault report is not completed and has outstanding actions. You may recall that the most recent California Geological Survey peer-reviewed official report accurately locates an active fault on these two lots.

Our August protest event was successful to draw much-needed attention to the issues for this ill-conceived project — parking, traffic, egress, fire safety, earthquake safety, airport obstruction, community character, little/no affordable housing. One result is that we have started to dialog our issues with the developer, Elda Developments,

From SanDiego350

Students will call on lawmakers to pass the Polluters Pay Climate Superfund Act to protect schools and communities, to force Big Oil to pay for climate damages.

San Diego students, including those at Point Loma High, will join others at 50 schools across California will walk out of classrooms to fight for their future. Youth are calling on decision-makers to hold polluters accountable for the climate damages they’ve caused. This statewide day of action, co-organized by Youth v. Oil, a part of SanDiego350, will bring thousands of students together to call for lawmakers to pass the Polluters Pay Climate Superfund Act — sending a clear message that California’s young people refuse to let Big Oil write the rules of their future.

19 Middle schools, high schools, and colleges across San Diego 50 across the state, with major hubs at:

Editordude: In the U-T today, Thursday, Oct. 23, they ran a commentary by Harry Bubbins entitled, “Opinion: Time to change San Diego’s outdated coastal height limit” . The Rag has called to our community for a response. Bubbins is a former president of the La Jolla Community Planning Association. Here’s the first rebuttal by Lisa Mortensen.

By Lisa Mortensen — My Rebuttal:

While I am not married to the 30ft height limit, there is the ability to apply for a variance in order to build a building that exceeds the 30ft height limit.

The development industry wasn’t born in 2020 when Todd Gloria became mayor.  Development has been part of our growing city for time and memorial.  However, the current local development industry has donated to the mayor and wants to cut regulations so that they can build unimpeded and increase their profits.  In the process, removing all stakeholder input.  That’s what this is really about.

The statement of a type of ‘redlining’ is a false assumption that everyone wants to live ‘West of highway 5’.  How narrow-minded but interestingly enough coming from a La Jolla resident.  Looking outside of one community, the adjacent communities are all a viable alternative for those who may not be able to purchase a property suitable for their needs in the beach area.  I can assure you, after 49 years as a Realtor, there are wonderful communities all over our city regardless of which side of a highway they are located.

The lifting of the height restriction is not about views, it’s about access. 

by Cayla Mihalovich / Cal-Matters / October 13, 2025

Gov. Gavin Newsom on October 13 signed a set of bills meant to recognize incarcerated firefighters, including a historic measure to raise their pay to meet the federal minimum wage during active fires.

The wage increase, funded through the state budget, follows years of advocacy to improve pay and working conditions for incarcerated labor. That effort took on a new urgency after hundreds of incarcerated firefighters were deployed to battle deadly wildfires that hit Los Angeles in January.

State lawmakers this year introduced a seven-bill “Firefighting to Freedom” package to protect incarcerated firefighters and support job opportunities upon their reentry. Five of those bills were signed into law today, marking the most comprehensive changes to incarcerated firefighting in the state’s history.

Incarcerated firefighters previously earned between $5.80 and $10.24 per day, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. During active emergencies, Cal Fire pays them an additional $1 per hour. Now, they will earn $7.25 per hour when they’re on a fire.

By CBS News – Sacramento /  October 22, 2025 

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday that he will be deploying state National Guard members as well as California Volunteers to help staff food banks amid the ongoing government shutdown.

Newsom said the action mirrors a step he took early in the COVID-19 pandemic when he also dispatched California National Guard members, again to support food banks.

The governor stated that the Guard troops won’t be acting as law enforcement during the deployment.

“I’m expediting state funds for food banks and directing the California National Guard and California Volunteers to help distribute this food to families,” Newsom stated.

Newsom has been warning that the continued government shutdown could disrupt the CalFresh program, known federally as SNAP, which provides food benefits to around 5.5 million California residents. Food banks across the state have said they are bracing for the potential increase in need.

The governor called out President Trump in his Wednesday announcement of the deployment.

Opponents to dense housing developments in Los Angeles turned their attention to transit after Gov. Newsom signed SB79 — a law encouraging high-rise construction near bus and rail lines.

by Ben Christopher / Cal-Matters / October 22, 2025

For years Burbank residents, business owners and elected officials have been squabbling over a plan to run a speedy new bus line through the middle of town.

The North Hollywood to Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit project is slated to carve a bus-only corridor linking the eastern edge of the San Fernando Valley to the western extent of the San Gabriel Valley while connecting two of LA County’s most well-trafficked rail lines. To do so, LA Metro plans to take away a lane of traffic and a ton of parking spaces along most of the 18-mile route, which includes much of a four-lane stretch that runs through downtown Burbank.

Ever since the agency floated the project in 2017, a vocal coalition of ticked-off Burbankers, Glendalians and denizens of the northeast LA neighborhood of Eagle Rock has been protesting, petitioning and (unsuccessfully) suing to block, delay or revamp the plan.

Now, with the sweep of his pen, Gov. Gavin Newsom has turned this long-simmering battle over a bus into a full-fledged war over housing, local control and the future of the single-family neighborhoods.

The following was published as a Letter to the Editor in the San Diego Union-Tribune on October 22, 2025 

By Paul Krueger

Re “Gloria: Building height fight is not over” (Oct. 21):

Mayor Todd Gloria says he’ll now persuade City Council members to petition the state Supreme Court and attempt to overturn a well-reasoned, strongly worded, unanimous appellate court ruling that reinstated a 30-foot height limit on new development in the Midway District.

Our mayor claims that accepting the appellate court ruling would be a “failure,” and that “failure is simply not an option.”

Many San Diegans would respectfully disagree.

by Ernie McCray

We as a country
should keep alive
the brief firing of Jimmy Kimmel,
remembering it for what it was:
a vicious attack
on his Freedom of Speech,
the most precious right
of citizens of a free society,
taken from him
on the whim
of a president
who lives in fear
of any negative words that are spoken about him
or spoken about anyone or anything
that represents him.

Republicans in Texas and other states are making a power grab to keep Trump in unchecked control for two more years. Californians must mobilize to pass Proposition 50, which would level the field by approving temporary new districts in our state. Passing this ballot measure in the November 4 special election is urgent for our democracy — and we need all hands on deck!

Learn more and sign up to help at sddems.link/prop50.

San Diego County Democratic Party HQ
3934 Murphy Canyon Rd
Ste B103
San Diego, CA 92123

Saturday, October 25, 10–11AM

Oct 26 — Monthly Meeting, Shut ALPRs Down
Monthly Meeting Sunday, October 26, 4:00-5:30PM, Pt Loma Assembly
Point Loma & OB Dems

Automatic License Plate Readers (ALPRs) are being used to track all of us, and the data is being illegally shared with Federal departments. It has been used to track immigrants and asylum seekers, as well as women seeking abortions.

Nancy Relaford of the TRUST San Diego coalition will give a presentation and answer your questions about ALPRs — and what we can do to help our elected officials  —Shut ALPRs Down.

The San Diego Police Department (that uses a system made by FLOCK) says it stopped sharing surveillance data with federal authorities and other out-of-state agencies but only after state Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office told the department it was likely violating state law. — KPBS.org