Connect with us

San Diego, CA

Federal Funding Cuts Could Impact SD’s Natural Areas | San Diego Magazine

Published

on

Federal Funding Cuts Could Impact SD’s Natural Areas | San Diego Magazine


A reader recently reached out to tell me that a few weekends ago, she went to Joshua Tree National Park for a weekend of hiking and camping. This was after the news that the federal government was cutting funding to national parks, and that Joshua Tree would lay off six employees, leaving its job vacancy at about 30 percent. She said there was a very long line of cars to check into the park, and they had to wait about 40 minutes to get in.

I wasn’t able to reach anyone at Joshua Tree to see if this long wait time is unusual or whether there’s a link to the reduced staffing. However, according to a spokesperson for the National Park Service, “The [NPS] is hiring seasonal workers to continue enhancing the visitor experience as we embrace new opportunities for optimization and innovation in workforce management. We are focused on ensuring that every visitor has the chance to explore and connect with the incredible, iconic spaces of our national parks.”

Unfortunately, this still left me with questions, so I checked in with Mark Eller with the nonprofit Leave No Trace who says it’s clear that funding cuts are impacting hiking and camping across the state and around the San Diego region.

Courtesy of Joshua Tree National Park

“A lot of frontline workers that normally would be doing trail maintenance work to keep trails in good shape for the public may not be available, or might be getting pulled to other duties,” says, Eller. “We’ve definitely heard from a lot of our land manager partners that they’re concerned. Of course, there’s no clarity yet because the cuts are still subject to some lawsuits, and we’re not really trying to prognosticate who’s going to get cut or if it’s too early to say.”

Advertisement

Another example he’s heard repeatedly is trash piling up and overflowing in park trash cans. When staffing is reduced, everyday activities like getting litter into a receptacle can be more complicated. This can lead to stuffed trash cans and, when visitors are in the park, they’ll need to start carrying their own trash out themselves. Eller suggests bringing plastic or garbage bags with you the next time you visit. 

“This has a big impact on the health of wildlife. If there’s trash being left out that normally would be emptied by a land manager, be prepared to deal with it yourself,” he says. “You don’t want to add to it because that’s going to draw in new wildlife trying to find that food, and that’s not healthy for them.”

Additionally, there will be no expansion to new lands and the cuts could also have a ripple effect to local and state parks. “Parks and natural areas around the country get different types of assistance from federal funds, or states can get into financial trouble in times like this, and they may have to divert resources from one thing for another,” he says. 

San Diego's Carbillo National Park which is in jeopardy after the federal government cut funding and jobs
Photo Credit: Cole Novak
Cabrillo National Park’s Tidepools

In San Diego, it’s unclear whether there has been an impact on places like Cabrillo National Monument—a spokeswoman for the foundation says they can’t comment and referred questions to the federal national parks system. 

Jennifer Morrissey with the Mission Trails Regional Park Foundation, a nonprofit that supports the park, says during times like these, local governments can lean more on nonprofits.

“The MTRP Foundation has provided more than $15 million in support to the park since our founding in 1988,” Morrissey says. “Some of this funding has been for capital projects and, more recently, for land acquisition, but we are a consistent source of funding to ensure Mission Trails can continue to be maintained and improved. With the city’s current budget shortfall, we will be able to help keep park projects going and fences mended.”

Advertisement

Eller says lean times are also good opportunities for people to think about how they personally impact trails and parks. He encourages locals to continue getting outdoors and spending time in natural areas but to be mindful of how they are protecting the places they love most.

One way to do that, he says, is to follow the seven principles of Leave No Trace including planning ahead, camping on durable surfaces, and disposing of waste properly. He adds that volunteering with your local park is a great option, too, and make sure that you’re always staying on designated paths.

“People [should] stay on the trail or walk in the middle of the trail, as opposed to taking switchbacks or taking shortcuts, [because] those behaviors just add to trail erosion. A lot of people come to parks [with an] attitude of, ‘Well, somebody else will fix it,’” he says. “But that’s increasingly not true. And every time you do a little bit better in terms of your leading the safe behaviors, that helps protect the natural world from the impacts of people out enjoying it.”

Advertisement





Source link

San Diego, CA

Game 21: San Diego Padres at Los Angeles Angels

Published

on

Game 21: San Diego Padres at Los Angeles Angels


San Diego Padres (14-7) at Los Angeles Angels (11-11), April 19, 2026, 1:07 p.m. PST

Watch: Padres.TV

Location: Angel Stadium – Anaheim, Calif.

Listen: 97.3 The Fan

Advertisement



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

San Diego, CA

Solans, Luna, Guilavogui help RSL beat slumping San Diego, extend unbeaten streak to 6 games :: WRALSportsFan.com

Published

on

Solans, Luna, Guilavogui help RSL beat slumping San Diego, extend unbeaten streak to 6 games :: WRALSportsFan.com


— SANDY, Utah (AP) — Sergi Solans had two goals and an assist, Diego Luna added a goal and two assists, and Real Salt Lake beat San Diego FC 4-2 on Saturday night to extend its unbeaten streak to six games.

Morgan Guilavogui scored his first goal in MLS and had an assist for Real Salt Lake (5-1-1). The 28-year-old designated player has five goal contributions in his first six career games.

RSL hasn’t lost since a 1-0 defeat at Vancouver in the season opener.

Advertisement

San Diego (3-3-2) has lost three in a row and is winless in five straight.

Luna opened the scoring in the fifth minute when he re-directed a misplayed pass by Duran Ferree, San Diego’s 19-year-old goalkeeper, into the net.

Moments later, Solans headed home a perfectly-placed cross played by Luna from outside the right corner of the 18-yard box to the back post to make it 2-0. Solans, a 23-year-old forward, flicked a header from the center of the area inside the right post and past the outstretched arm of Ferree to make it 3-1 in the 37th minute.

Guilavogui slammed home a first-touch shot to give RSL a three-goal lead in the 45th.

Marcus Ingvartsen scored a goal in the 14th minute and Anders Dreyer converted from the penalty spot in the 66th for San Diego.

Advertisement

Ingvartsen has five goals and an assist this season and has 10 goal contributions (seven goals, three assists) in 16 career MLS appearances.

Rafael Cabral had three saves for RSL.

Ferree finished with five saves.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/soccer

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading

San Diego, CA

How San Diego Has Quietly Emerged as One of America’s Great Dining Destinations

Published

on

How San Diego Has Quietly Emerged as One of America’s Great Dining Destinations


When John Resnick opened Campfire on a quaint little street in Carlsbad, Calif., in 2016, some locals weren’t sure what to think. The coastal enclave wasn’t exactly awash in innovative, chef-driven establishments, so it was a shock to see the dining room consistently full. Early on, one woman wondered aloud to Resnick, “Where did all these people come from?”

It’s a moment he remembers vividly. “I was struck by her statement, because I think she was surprised that so many other people in Carlsbad were there,” Resnick says. 

The rest of the culinary world would take some time to catch up to what was happening. In 2019, when Michelin expanded to rate restaurants throughout all of California—not just the San Francisco area—Addison was the only one in San Diego to earn a star. But since emerging from the pandemic, the region’s food scene has grown dramatically. Driven by outstanding farms, ingredients, a bumper crop of talented chefs, and a G.D.P. approximately the size of New Zealand or Greece, San Diego County has become one of America’s most underrated dining destinations.

Campfire’s octopus, chorizo, and celery-root entrée.

Advertisement

Gage Forster

Perhaps no single restaurant is a better emblem for this shift than chef William Bradley’s Addison, which opened in 2006. After landing his first star, Bradley knew he wanted more. To get them, he transformed his French-leaning fare to serve what he calls California Gastronomy, which combines the cultures of SoCal with impeccable ingredients and wildly impressive techniques, prizing flavor over flair. Michelin responded, awarding Addison a second star in 2022, and making it the first Southern California three-star restaurant just a year later. The accolade has created a halo effect, attracting culinary tourists from around the world.

Berry beet tartlets at San Diego’s three-star stalwart Addison.

Berry beet tartlets at San Diego’s three-star stalwart Addison.

Eric Wolfinger

“Earning three stars forces the global dining community to pay attention to a place that may not have been on their radar before,” says chef Eric Bost, a partner in Resnick’s four Carlsbad establishments. 

Advertisement

Resnick recruited Bost, who spent time at award-winning outposts of Restaurant Guy Savoy, to run Jeune et Jolie, which he led to a star in 2021. They’ve since taken over an old boogie-board factory down the street and converted it to an all-day restaurant and bakery, Wildland. The space also hosts an exquisite tasting-counter experience called Lilo, which was given a Michelin star mere months after opening in April 2025. And as Resnick and Bost grew their successful Carlsbad operation, chef Roberto Alcocer earned a Michelin star for his Mexican fine-dining spot Valle in nearby Oceanside.

The stylish tasting counter at Michelin one-star Lilo in Carlsbad.

The stylish tasting counter at Michelin one-star Lilo in Carlsbad.

Kimberly Motos

About 25 miles to the south, another affluent coastal community is going through its own culinary glow up. In La Jolla, chef Tara Monsod and the hospitality group Puffer Malarkey Collective opened the stylish French steakhouse Le Coq. Chef Erik Anderson, formerly of Michelin two-star Coi, is preparing to launch Roseacre. And last year, Per Se alums Elijah Arizmendi and Brian Hung left New York to open the elegant tasting-menu restaurant Lucien, lured by the ingredients they’d get to serve. “A major reason we chose San Diego is the quality and diversity of the produce,” Arizmendi explains. “San Diego County has more small farms than anywhere else in the U.S., and its many microclimates allow farmers to grow an incredible range of ingredients year-round.”

Wildland’s spicy Italian sandwich.

Wildland’s spicy Italian sandwich.

Advertisement

Gage Forster

Chef Travis Swikard has also been a tireless advocate for the region’s ingredients since he returned to San Diego, his hometown, and opened Mediterranean-influenced Callie in 2021. There’s no sophomore slump with his latest effort, the French Riviera–inspired Fleurette in La Jolla, where he’s serving his take on classics like leeks vinaigrette and his San Diego “Bouillabaisse” with local red sheepshead fish and spiny lobster. Its food is bright, produce-driven, and attentive in execution, while the dining room maintains a relaxed and unpretentious style of service. And Swikard sees that approach cohering into a regional style with a strong network of professionals behind it.

“It’s really nice that we are developing our own identity, not trying to be like L.A. or any other market, just highlighting what’s great about the San Diego lifestyle and ingredients,” he says. “Similar to New York, a chef community is starting to develop where chefs are supporting each other. There is a true sense of pride to be cooking here.”

Top: In La Jolla, Lucien serves ocean whitefish with tomatoes turned into concasse, sabayon, and other expressions.





Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading
Advertisement

Trending