Hello Lydia,

There is a humbling irony to elected office when the problems we’re working hardest to solve are also those that we simply cannot solve on our own. No matter how much I wish it were not true, I have to acknowledge that neither I nor the whole District 9 office can solve homelessness, poverty, violence, or climate change.

That truth does not change our effort, because we know we can do things to improve the situations related to these problems, but it is something that wears on me. At my core, I am a fixer and I want to know (not just think) that what I am doing and what our office is doing is helping solve the problems our community is struggling with.

Often times — especially when we are dealing with the big issues — the most effective actions require collaboration and teamwork. We take the big problem we’re facing and join forces with others who share responsibility for, and an interest in solving, that problem and see how each of us can do our part.

Yesterday, was an example of our efforts. For the first time in 22-years, the City Council convened with the County Board of Supervisors. Our focus was on the housing affordability crisis and we committed to taking action to do our parts to make housing more affordable for San Diegans. I’m under no illusions that the City and County can solve this problem on our own. Federal and state government will need to take action and other cities in our region must start pulling their weight. However, I’m equally confident that the County is an essential partner if housing is going to become affordable for San Diegans again and I’m very appreciative of the partnership from Board of Supervisor Chair Fletcher to join forces in advance of the common good.

With gratitude,

Sean

D9 Office Hours

The District 9 Office is now taking requests to meet with the Council President during our Office Hours. These are opportunities for D9 residents to speak directly with the Council President for a 15-minute one-on-one meeting, offered in-person or virtually (Zoom). 

Office Hours appointments are RSVP-ONLY. To be added to the interest list, please email your community representative (find yours here) with the following information: 

• Full name 
• Email address 
• Phone number 
• Preferred time 
• In-person or virtual 

Your Community Representative will then follow up on your submission and the Director of Office Administration will send an appointment to confirm the meeting the week of Office Hours.     

October Office Hours:   

• Friday, October 21, 10am-12pm

Budget Update

Thank you to everyone who participated in the District 9 Budget Survey. We had over 650 submissions from residents. We have included the full results of the survey with our Budget Priority memo which was finalized and submitted last week.  I’ll be sure to share it with everyone once it's available. We did have a few upcoming deadlines we wanted to highlight:

• Friday, October 7 - Councilmember CIP priorities are due to Engineering & Capital Projects staff for inclusion in FY 2024-2028 Five-Year Capital Infrastructure Planning Outlook.
• Thursday, October 13 - Office of the Independent Budget Analyst releases report on FY 2024 City Council Budget Priorities.
• Monday, October 31 - Council reviews and approves the FY 2024 Budget Priorities Resolution, presented by Office of the Independent Budget Analyst.

Checkout the full list of budget related dates and deadlines by visiting sdd9.info/iba24