… Homes Might Be Built Next To Truck Traffic In Otay and Migrants Flee to U.S. on Bikes
By Barbara Zaragoza / South Bay Compass
Chula Vista’s Pot Shops Face Legal Action
The Chula Vista Star News reported that a string of medical marijuana dispensaries operating in the city of Chula Vista are facing legal action to permanently cease their operations. Deputy City Attorney Megan McClurg said dispensary owners in Chula Vista do not have a business license to operate and if they applied for one they would be denied.
Also Inside CV:
- Focus on Chula Vista reports that the Board of Ethics made a proposal on February 17th that would require lobbyists to register with the city, something that other cities, such as San Diego and Oceanside, already require. That means, any individual paid to discuss business with the City would need to report their name, the company they represent, the subject matter, and the time & location when they spoke to a city official.
- According to a San Diego Reader report, the City of Chula Vista needs $600 million for infrastructure repairs. As a consequence, the city is considering a November ballot measure that would include either a half-cent sales tax or a $200 million bond.
- The Chula Vista Elementary School District says a charter school is operating illegally in its boundaries. The Union Tribune reports, “District officials are at loggerheads with the Julian Union Elementary School District over its authorization of the Otay Ranch Academy for the Arts, opened in 2014 on the campus of Mater Dei Catholic School in Chula Vista as part of the Harbor Springs Charter School portfolio.”
- Councilmember Pat Aguilar posted on facebook that “the Chula Vista City Council unanimously approved the city’s first restricted parking district, in the College Estates neighborhood across the street from Southwestern College. Residents there have complained for years that students who are seeking to avoid paying to park on campus are parking in their neighborhood, restricting access to their homes. Now street parking will be prohibited on weekdays between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., except for residents who have a permit.”
And Councilmember Pat Aguilar Answers “Show Me The Money?” for the OTC:
The City Council unanimously approved the transfer of the Olympic Training Center to Chula Vista on Tuesday, February 23rd. Councilmember Pat Aguilar posted the information on facebook, to which W Leonard Cox asked, “Where is the Money to maintain this facility coming from? Please post a accurate and truthful answer here.”
Councilmember Aguilar replied, “The Olympic athletes who train there pay a fairly high price to live on site; also the plan is to rent out the facilities for banquets, community events, sporting events and tournaments, which has not been done in the past. Also the US Olympic Committee has promised to put in $3 million a year for at least 4 years. The plan is for it to be self-sustaining.”
A Court Order Will Release Student Data
Notices went out this week from the Sweetwater Union High School (SUHSD) district informing guardians that their students’ personal data is being released by the California Department of Education as part of a court order. Unless students opt out, their data will be released to private litigants, even though SUHSD is not involved in the lawsuit and is not subject to any of the suit’s allegations.
According to the notice, “In April 2012, two organizations, the Morgan Hill Concerned Parents Association and the Concerned Parent Association, filed a lawsuit against the CDE alleging widespread, systemic non-compliance by local education agencies with special education laws.” The CDE denies the allegations.
The district has posted more about the case. They have attached a news story about the case and provided the link where students can opt-out by April 1st.
Residential Homes Next To Otay Mesa Truck Traffic?
The Otay Mesa Chamber of Commerce has reported that “the City of San Diego is moving forward with a Central Village Specific Plan located west of Cactus Road that would allow between 4,500 to 4,700 new homes. The village is located south of SR-905 and north of Siempre Viva. This plan is required as part of the Otay Mesa Community Plan Update.”
Otay Mesa has heavy truck traffic going through its Port of Entry and also has a large number of industrial buildings along the U.S.-Mexico border. In addition, Otay has vast tracks of undeveloped land. (If you wonder where all the open land is within San Diego County, look no further.) The Chamber writes in its newsletter, “Currently, property owners who are developing the plan, still have to provide a traffic access and air quality analysis. If you have a business along this area, we encourage you to review the plan carefully and provide comments to the City of San Diego and to the Otay Mesa Chamber of Commerce.”
The Border
- The federal government is using eye scans and facial recognition technology for the first time to verify the identities of foreigners leaving the United States on foot.
- Author Kimball Taylor’s book The Coyote’s Bicycle is out, describing how migrants made their way illegally from Tijuana into the U.S. riding bicycles. Those bicycles wound up by the thousands in the Tijuana River Valley and Kimball investigated how the bikes got there. Here is his interview with the Union Tribune.
San Ysidro Robotics & Math Champions
For the first time ever, San Ysidro High School’s Robotics Team is going to the National Championships in Iowa. I say, it’s all part of “San Ysidro Rising”. Their elementary schools have already been named champions in each grade level of a countywide math competition for five years in a row.
Imperial Beach & National City
A few quick news snippets:
- Mar Vista High School in IB was put on temporary lockdown on Wednesday when a boy threatened to cut himself with a knife.
- National City will renovate its council chamber, the first time in more than 60 years.
- The Union Tribune wrote an inspiring report about the National School District’s mariachi after-school program and its approximately 75 student musicians.
Throw More Money At Low-Income Schools?
A little tidbit from Slate: I recently wrote that declining enrollments for three South Bay School Districts means budget cuts, but should it? A balanced article in Slate says that a recent working paper from economists at University of California-Berkeley and Northwestern University finds when court decisions force states to increase their funding, “test scores gradually improved for pupils in low-income districts, both in absolute terms and relative to their peers in wealthier districts. The improvements in student achievement were fairly large and, according to some of their calculations, pretty cost-effective.” Other educators within the article disagree.
That truck traffic waiting to cross the border is formidable. It was a nightmare when I got lost down there and got stuck in it looking for the SENTRI pass office. I wouldn’t want to live anywhere near it.