Council District 9 News

June 13, 2023

Hello Lydia,

City Council will be considering an ordinance to ban homelessness encampments in our city. As part of our significant research of this issue, our office has spent time seeking feedback from constituents. Thank you to those of you who have offered your feedback. The perspective provided by our constituents has helped inform how I will make my decision at the meeting. Top of mind for us will be three considerations:

the direct impact on District 9 neighborhoods;
the impact of the ordinance on the most vulnerable people who are experiencing homelessness (for example, people with disabilities and seniors);
the Constitutionality of the ordinance and what legal challenges could cost our City.

As always, we appreciate your engagement and commitment to our community.

With gratitude,

Sean

Council District 9 Updates

Honorary Farmer Bill Drive

Earlier this month, we joined the City Farmers Nursery family for the unveiling of Honorary Farmer Bill Drive. Together we celebrated Farmer Bill, who was a father, husband, and lifelong City Heights resident.

Born in La Mesa in 1956, Bill Tall took an early interest in horticulture, helping his father tend to their backyard gardens in Clairemont. In 1972, at just 16-years-old, Mr. Tall started City Farmers at the produce stand his father ran at 3110 Euclid Avenue in City Heights. Over five decades, Mr. Tall grew City Farmers Nursery into a local landmark and a leader in organic and sustainable products. In that time, Mr. Tall became a leader in the City Heights community and embraced its diversity, often selling hard-to-found products familiar to San Diego’s immigrant and refugee communities. He also added to the property Nate’s Garden Grill, a restaurant in his father’s memory.

Mr. Tall passed in 2021 after a long battle with cancer. The honorary street name honors his lifelong service and commitment to the City of San Diego. Thank you to the Tall family and everyone at City Farmers for sharing Bill with us.

Let’s not forget Farmer Bill’s mission to unite, inspire and change our communities for the better.

June Office Hours

The District 9 Office is still taking requests to meet with Council President Elo-Rivera during our June Office Hours – happening this week! These are opportunities reserved especially for D9 residents to speak directly with the Council President for a 15-minute one-on-one meeting.

Office Hours will be held on Friday, June 16th from 2:30pm-5:30pm either in-person or virtually, and 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

Your Community Representative will then follow up on your submission and the scheduling team will follow up on availability for this month’s Office Hours. We look forward to hearing from you!

CPPS Survey

The City’s Community Projects, Programs & Services (CPPS) process is currently ongoing as the application window for organizations closed on May 31st Eligible proposals are being vetted before council offices get to weigh in on funding allocations. As always, District 9 will look to our community on helping to inform the priorities we should fund.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be releasing a survey where you can vote on which CPPS project(s) you want to see supported. Stay tuned!

Additionally, the City’s Arts, Culture & Community Festivals (ACCF) will open its application window from June 30th to July 17th. Learn more at www.sandiego.gov/citycouncil/accf

City of San Diego Crime Briefing

San Diego experienced significant decreases in crime in 2022 compared to the previous year. The Annual Crime Review was presented by San Diego Police Chief David Nisleit in a presentation to the San Diego City Council on Tuesday, May 23rd. The report summarized the January through December 2022 index crimes, as well as domestic violence cases, gang, and hate crimes statistics.

The report showed that number of murders dropped by over 10%, rape fell by 13% and theft fell by nearly 15%. Robberies increased by 18% but theft, hate crimes and crimes by gang members also saw significant double-digit drops.

The numbers make it clear that San Diego is one of the safest major cities in the United States.

Review the Staff Report and Crime Briefing prepared by the San Diego Police Department HERE.

City's Creative City Initiative

The City is launching the Creative City cultural planning process to capture the power of our diverse art and culture as a fresh force for creative life, vitality and economy. The public engagement for Creative City will be occurring in June and July.

The upcoming District 9 pop-up event will be happening June 22, 5:30pm-7:00pm at the City Heights Performance Annex. We hope you’ll stop by to learn more about the Creative City initiative and help shape the creative future of your community. Click here to RSVP!

RSVP HERE

Strive Future Leaders Education Advancement Partnership

STRIVE Future Leaders Education Advancement Partnership (LEAP) focuses on addressing educational and employment barriers faced by justice impacted young adults. LEAP helps young adults develop life skills and in demand occupational skills needed to obtain livable wage jobs.

LEAP begins with a four-week workshop and meets three days per week for four hours each day. Participants then move into either the workforce, education, or training experience portion of the initiative.

To get involved or learn more, contact Cassandra Simon at (619) 356-0332

Colibri MX Scholarship

The Consulate General of Mexico in San Diego, in partnership with MAAC, has once again launched the Colibrí MX Scholarship. This $1,000 dollar scholarship aims to provide Mexican or Latinx students in San Diego County with the resources and support they need to start and/or continue their journey towards a college degree.

Students who are eligible for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program or are undocumented can also apply for a supplementary $500 USD scholarship.

The application is open until June 30, 2023. For more information on how to apply, visit: maacproject.org/colibrimx

El Consulado General de México en San Diego, en alianza con MAAC, ha lanzado una vez más la Beca Colibrí MX. Esta beca de $ 1,000 dólares tienen como objetivo proporcionar a los estudiantes mexicanxs o latinxs en el condado de San Diego con los recursos y el apoyo que necesitan para comenzar y / o continuar su camino hacia un título universitario.

Aquellos estudiantes elegibles dentro del programa de Acción Diferida para los Llegados en la Infancia (DACA, por sus siglas en inglés) o son indocumentados también pueden solicitar una beca suplementaria de $ 500 USD.

La solicitud estará abierta hasta el 30 de junio de 2023. Para obtener más información sobre cómo aplicar, visité: maacproject.org/colibrimx

What We're Reading, Watching, and Listening

In this section, Council President Elo-Rivera and our team share a few things we’ve seen and heard that have influenced or impacted us since our last email. Take a look and give these items a read or watch:

Read: "Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century" – Alice Wong

Watch: "A Small Light" – National Geographic

Listen: "Why You Can’t Find a Damn Parking Spot" – Decoder Ring