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Dear Neighbor,
Almost as if on cue, the dreary grey skies cleared last week on June 21 for the official first day of summer. San Diego’s famous sunshine brings tourists to our city – and brings a big boost in local tax revenue.
The San Diego Tourism Authority has announced that last year tourists spent more money than ever in our region – approximately $1 billion in tax revenues across the county – including more than $260 million in Transient Occupancy Tax for the City of San Diego.
This tax that tourists pay on hotel rooms and other vacation accommodations helps fund essential services – parks, libraries, street repair and police and fire-rescue.
As we head into July – our busiest month for tourism, with Comic-Con, LGBTQ Pride and the ESRI User Conference – remember that the extra crowds at the beach and local attractions help fund the very things that make San Diego a better place for everyone.
As always, it’s an honor to serve as your Mayor.
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Free ‘Parks After Dark’ Summer Fun is Back!
When communities come together, they create better neighborhoods.
That’s why the City, County, Price Philanthropies and the San Diego Parks Foundation have teamed up once again to bring back our popular “Parks After Dark” program.
Parks After Dark is a series of free, fun outdoor celebrations that work to activate public parks, which reduces crime and builds community.
The City's Parks and Recreation Department have been working hard to put together nearly 100 outdoor events for this year’s Parks After Dark program, including movie screenings, concerts, classes, games, tournaments and more.
The events are happening every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, from July 6 through August 26, at four parks in four neighborhoods across the City of San Diego: City Heights, Linda Vista, Skyline Hills and Memorial.
Every San Diegan of every age is invited and encouraged to come out to help transform these parks into some of the biggest and best free parties in town.
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Calling for a State of Emergency in Our Region’s Tijuana River Valley
I recently joined the mayors of the 18 cities located in San Diego in calling for more resources to help our region combat the ongoing sewage pollution in south San Diego County.
Together, we sent a letter to the Biden Administration asking them to declare a state of emergency due to the 150 billion gallons of untreated sewage that continues to pollute our beaches and waterways in the Tijuana River Valley. Our local southern beaches have been closed 550 consecutive days because of recent studies showing alarmingly high levels of coastal pollution.
These ongoing sewage spills require mobilization of critical resources and interagency coordination to address this huge environmental and public health crisis.
I am proud to join other leaders in this latest effort to ask that we treat this situation like the emergency that it truly is. Thanks to Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre for her consistent, unflinching leadership on this important issue.
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Mayor Signs $5.17 Billion 'Getting It Done' Budget
After the City Council unanimously approved my Fiscal Year 2024 “Getting It Done” budget, I have officially signed it into law. This budget keeps service levels steady and increases the City’s investment in a few key areas: public safety, street repair, and addressing homelessness.
Budgets are unambiguous statements about the city we want to be, about what we want to invest in and what we want to fix. The budget I just signed reflects our commitment to helping homeless folks get off the streets, and on a path to permanent housing
All told, we're putting over $200 million toward addressing our homelessness crisis, including the work of the Housing Commission. We’re funding a new safe sleeping program, the first of which will open early next month at our 20th and B operations yard. We’re also providing an additional $1.4 million for our Environmental Services Department to support new positions and vehicles for waste removal from the public right-of-way in areas heavily affected by encampments.
This budget demonstrates that we understand our most important role is to keep our residents safe, so we’re heavily investing in our police, firefighters and lifeguards – giving them the staff and equipment they need to make sure San Diego remains one of America’s safest big cities. It adds 21 civilian positions to take on some of the administrative duties that are currently performed by sworn personnel – ensuring our well-trained sworn officers can be on the streets patrolling and responding to emergency calls. We also included an additional $3.5 million for our Smart Streetlight program to aid our police in solving crimes.
This budget also says that I hear and agree with San Diegans who are tired of driving on streets that are crumbling from decades of underinvestment. For the third year in a row, we’ve significantly increased our investment in road repair. We’re allocating nearly $140 million dollars toward street repair and repaving. This investment will allow us to resurface 157 miles of city streets – equivalent to the distance from here to the Arizona border.
This budget is balanced, on time and fiscally prudent.
I want to thank the Department of Finance staff who so smartly and competently put together the budget each year; the City Council for running a robust and transparent review process; and members of the public who participated and let us know their funding priorities.
The new budget takes effect on July 1.
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Dramatically Expanding Parental Leave Benefits for City of San Diego Employees
I have signed into law a package of resolutions championed by City Councilmember Raul Campillo to expand parental leave benefits for City employees.
This will double paid parental leave from four weeks to eight weeks, make it much easier for employees to access pregnancy disability benefits, and eliminate the 30-day waiting period for disability benefits.
The City’s benefits for expecting parents have long been insufficient and complicated. This package fixes those issues for our current workforce, and will help better attract qualified applicants to come work for our City.
San Diegans deserve a high-quality workforce that gets things done, and offering competitive benefits like this helps attract and retain the most effective employees.
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GETTING IT DONE: FIXING OUR STREETS | |
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Wrinkle Repair in Golden Hill
City crews smoothed out the wrinkles on 33rd Street in Golden Hill earlier this month. Next stops for this ongoing slurry-seal project include smoothing out roads in the neighborhoods of Skyline, Paradise Hills, Normal Heights, Mira Mesa, Serra Mesa and Pacific Highlands Ranch.
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Celebrating and Empowering Homeownership
Urban League of San Diego is celebrating “Homeownership Month” in June. I was happy to take part in their community event that celebrates homeownership, empowers future homeowners and elevates industry professionals and community leaders who are making it easier for more people to become homeowners.
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Honoring Standout Girl Scouts
Each year, Girl Scouts San Diego holds a ceremony to honor those in their ranks who are working hard to make the world a better place through community service projects. I was happy to join the Girl Scout Gold Award event and help encourage and empower girls to continue their leadership by taking on issues that are important to them and creating sustainable projects that help make San Diego better for all of us.
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Job Readiness Grads Head Toward a Better Future
Second Chance’s Job Readiness Training program helps San Diegans who have been incarcerated find work and build pathways to self-sufficiency and financial independence. I was honored to speak at the most recent program graduation and help encourage participants to use their new skills and résumés to build a better life for themselves.
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New Assurance Baptist Church Turns 16
New Assurance Baptist Church has grown to become a community staple, serving hundreds of San Diegans in and around the Rolando neighborhood. I had a great time celebrating the church’s 16th anniversary on Sunday.
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What Do You Want for Your Neighborhood?
Does your neighborhood need better sidewalks? Park updates? Library upgrades? The City’s planning department wants to hear from you
Infrastructure is not just the buildings, roads and spaces that surround us—it is the essential fabric that connects us to opportunity. Our city's infrastructure - roads, sidewalks, parks, libraries, public safety facilities, water facilities and more - shapes the health, safety, economic vibrancy, environmental well-being and overall quality of life in our neighborhoods. Because of this, equitable infrastructure investment is essential to achieve equal opportunity to employment, health, education, recreation and more for all San Diegans.
The City wants your input to help prioritize infrastructure investment and ensure infrastructure goes where it will best meet community members' needs and improve their lives.
Give us your input by filling out the survey in English or Spanish.
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Help Inspire San Diego’s Creative Future
We have launched our engagement efforts for the citywide cultural plan. We’ll host our first public events to help shape Creative City, the City of San Diego’s first-ever citywide cultural plan.
The cultural plan's development starts with a robust community engagement process to hear what San Diegans envision for their creative lives and to set a strategic framework for guiding the arts and cultural sectors. Discover our Creative City June schedule of forums and public pop-ups across the city. Creative City public events are free and open to all.
All San Diegans are invited to join the launch of the cultural planning process tonight, Tuesday, June 20, and the Pop-Ups happening June 21-22. Click here for details.
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Be Part of Our Far South/Border North Grant Opportunity!
The City’s Far South/Border North program provides grants to artists and cultural practitioners living and working in San Diego and Imperial counties to support the creation of media, outreach, and engagement campaigns that increase public awareness of pressing challenges facing the region via a regional, open-call process.
In the first phase, which is now closed, grants were awarded through a competition open to individual artists and cultural practitioners. In the second phase, now open, grants will be awarded to nonprofit organizations, units of government and tribal governments to participate in Far South/Border North and hire artists and cultural practitioners from San Diego and Imperial counties.
The second phase of the Far South/Border North application ends on at 5 p.m. Wednesday, July 19. Apply now.
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Partnering for Progress
The City of San Diego’s Planning Department is launching a new initiative called “Partnering for Progress” to bring the City and community organizations together to improve planning and implementing infrastructure projects.
Partnering for Progress will allow public, private and nonprofit entities to collaborate and help the City better understand and identify deficiencies and barriers that individuals and organizations face when working on an infrastructure project with the City. We welcome the public to share their experiences of working with the City on public projects by completing this survey by July 31. Questions and comments are welcome by email to publicspaces@sandiego.gov.
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Easily Track Your Permit Requests’ Progress
The City of San Diego is excited to announce the launch of the Permitting Center Dashboard, a dynamic, interactive platform designed to provide up-to-date information on DSD's permit, inspections and code enforcement activity. This tool, part of the #DigitalDSD initiative, aims to enhance transparency, increase access to essential data and empower users with valuable insights into DSD's operations.
Navigating the dashboard is simple and intuitive, with options to switch between different permit categories, including overall permitting applications, residential permitting applications and Accessory Dwelling Unit/Junior ADU applications. Users can filter the data to match their needs, using the search parameters section.
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Host Operating Requirements of STRO Ordinance in Effect as of May 1
The Building & Land Use Enforcement (BLUE) Division of DSD is now enforcing host operating and licensing requirements for the Short-Term Residential Occupancy (STRO) Ordinance. The STRO Ordinance requires a license when renting a dwelling unit, or part thereof for less than one month within the City of San Diego. To determine if your property is located within the City, reference the City of San Diego Council District Map.
Short-term rentals can only occur at a dwelling that was built with all permits, approvals and inspections and at a dwelling free of code violations. Accessory Dwelling Units, Junior Accessory Dwelling Units, affordable housing units, guest quarters, tiny homes and outdoor tents/sleeping areas are prohibited from being used as short-term rentals.
BLUE will focus enforcement mainly on STRO licensing and operation requirements. The enforcement team includes five field staff personnel who work Wednesdays through Sundays from 1:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. Complaints about violations can be submitted through the Get It Done app.
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Get to Know Your Green Bin
The City of San Diego is hosting a series of free informational presentations for residents on the new green bin and collection schedule.
These presentations are offered as virtual Zoom webinars or in-person workshops at select locations. Residents are encouraged to register after they have received their official notifications from the City that their home will be onboarded into this new service.
Translation services are available upon request; attendees must let their language preferences during registration at least 3 days in advance of the event to provide time to book an interpreter. If you have special language needs or require additional assistance, please email sdrecyclingworks@sandiego.gov or call 858-694-7000.
Free informational Zoom webinars – “Your Home’s New Green Bin”
July 5, 2023 from 6 to 7 p.m.
July 19, 2023 from 6 to 7 p.m.
Free informational in-person workshops – “Your Home’s New Green Bin”
Rancho Bernardo Library (17110 Bernardo Center Dr, San Diego, CA 92128)
July 15, 2023 from 11 a.m. to noon
Mira Mesa Library (8405 New Salem St, San Diego, CA 92126)
July 29, 2023 from 11 a.m. to noon
Register for the workshops and webinars here.
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Summer Reading Program Begins!
Grab a new library card and get reading during the City of San Diego Public Library’s 2023 Summer Reading Program! This year’s theme is “Discover Your Voice” and readers of all ages are encouraged to share their stories, express themselves and spark change.
The program began June 1 and runs through Aug. 31. Participants can earn prizes by completing 10 books, 10 hours of reading or a combination of reading and activities. Activities include attending a library storytime or Summer Reading event, starting a journal or recommending a book to a friend.
The Summer Reading Program offers age categories for children (ages 0-5 and 6-11), youth (ages 12-17) and adults (ages 18 and up). After completing the program, readers will be eligible for prizes including free books, meal vouchers and passes to local museums. Reading and activities can be tracked online or on paper logs printed at home or picked up at any SDPL location.
Last year, more than 24,000 people participated in the Summer Reading Program, reading nearly 366,000 books. To register online and view lists of recommended books and activities, visit sandiego.gov/summerreading.
Also, for the first time, the library is offering a Padres-themed library card for patrons this summer. Starting Monday, June 5, new users can get the Padres card by signing up for a library card for free at any of the City’s 36 libraries. Existing patrons can replace their current cards at no cost.
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Office of the Mayor
202 C St., 11th Floor
San Diego, CA 92101
619-236-6330
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