New documents show that the superintendent of Chula Vista Elementary School District and a company he pushed as a prospective district contractor have been connected since at least 2018.
Al Renteria, the operator of Dr. Build, donated $100 to Superintendent Eduardo Reyes’ campaign for school board in 2018.
Reyes, allegedly pressured a district employee multiple times to award a contract to Renteria, as our Will Huntsberry revealed earlier this week. The district employee who made the allegation is also under investigation for allegedly having an unusually close relationship with a separate company.
A district spokesperson has repeatedly not answered questions about how long Reyes and Renteria have known each other. The spokesperson previously said they have no personal relationship.
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“The idea that Dr. Reyes would be influenced by a publicly disclosed $100 contribution is preposterous,” the spokesperson wrote.
Read the full story here.
Two D1 Candidates Push for Delayed County Budget Vote
San Diego County Administration Building / File photo by Brittany Cruz-Fejeran
A quiet campaign to delay the county’s annual budget vote got a lot louder on Wednesday but also didn’t seem to get any more likely to succeed – at least directly.
Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre and Chula Vista Deputy Mayor Carolina Chavez, who are both vying for the open District 1 supervisor’s seat, argued that county supervisors shouldn’t approve a budget until the South Bay seat is filled.
One big complication: A now politically divided County Board of Supervisors would need to vote to agree to formally shift a budget timeline now scheduled to end with a vote by the end of June – and Supervisors Joel Anderson and Terra Lawson-Remer told Voice of San Diego they don’t want to do that.
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But also: District 1 candidates may get their wish anyway. While Lawson-Remer doesn’t want to change the county’s budget timeline, she also doesn’t expect the political divided board to pass a budget by the end of June. She predicts the winner of the District 1 race, widely expected to be decided in a July 1 runoff, will be the deciding vote on the county’s budget.
Read the full story.
The Learning Curve: What Trump’s Cuts Mean for One University
University of California San Diego in La Jolla on Feb. 14, 2023. / Photo by Ariana Drehsler
UC San Diego Chancellor Pradeep Khosla is calling attention to how funding cuts proposed by the Trump administration could impact the university.
In the email sent to staff on Tuesday, Khosla wrote university officials had received notices of the disruption of funding sources to around 50 UCSD researchers. The university has also seen a “concerning rise,” in delayed payments for projects not paused or cut.
The actions pose a “significant financial risk to the university,” Khosla wrote. Still, they were “unable to predict exactly what the losses will be,” he continued.
The university leader also laid out a series of actions the school is taking to deal with the shortfall, Jakob McWhinney writes in the latest Learning Curve.
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Read more here.
Save the Date: Politifest 2025
That’s right, Politifest is back, baby!
Mark your calendars for Politifest 2025 on Saturday, Oct. 4, at University of San Diego. We’ll be back with a great lineup of speakers and panel discussions.
In Other News
The San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce has a new CEO: Chris Cate, a former San Diego councilmember. Axios San Diego spoke to Cate about what’s next and what this means for the Chamber. (Editor’s note: Chris Cate currently serves on Voice of San Diego’s board.)
National City has replaced security guards with police officers at its library. (inewsource)
It should come as no surprise that newly built homes are hard to come by in San Diego. A new report found that last month the region only saw 50 developments of single-family homes, condos and townhouses. (Union-Tribune)
Chula Vista and the Port of San Diego are celebrating more access to the bay with a new park near the Gaylord development.(KPBS) Also, the Port is planning to increase parking rates along the bay. (NBC 7)
Speaking of fees: The city of San Diego’s Environmental Services Department will recommend to the City Council that the city’s new monthly trash fee be $53. (NBC 7)
In 2018, a couple called on police to get their son help. He was making threats to drive his sports car the wrong way on the freeway. San Diego police said they couldn’t do anything. Later that day, he followed through and died after colliding with a van – the woman and daughter in that car died as well. Following several lawsuits from both families, SDPD has made policy changes to how officers respond. (CBS 8)
The Morning Report was written by Will Huntsberry, Lisa Halverstadt and Andrea Lopez-Villafaña. It was edited by Andrea Lopez-Villafaña.
Four suspects were behind bars Friday for allegedly beating a man to death two months ago during a fight at Linda Vista Park.
Arrested Wednesday on suspicion of murder in connection with the violent death of 59-year-old Ruben Rimorin were Juan Garcia Alavez, 21, Juan Manuel Lopez, 26, Brian Reyes, 20, and Franklin Joseph Tuell, 21, according to the San Diego Police Department.
Rimorin was found gravely injured about 3:45 a.m. Oct. 18 on a sidewalk in the 6800 block of Osler Street, just west of the park, SDPD Lt. Chris Tivanian said. Paramedics tried in vain to revive the victim before pronouncing him dead at the scene.
It remains unclear what sparked the deadly fight.
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The suspects were being held at San Diego Central Jail without bail pending arraignment, scheduled for Friday afternoon.
National City’s Pepper Park can soon expand in size by nearly 50%, thanks to a ruling this week by the California Coastal Commission to approve the National City Balanced Plan.
The approval of the plan at the CCC’s Wednesday meeting, developed by the Port of San Diego, means that not only will the popular park have the ability to increase in size, big changes are coming for commercial, recreation and maritime uses on the National City bayfront.
“We are grateful to the California Coastal Commission for its support of the National City Balanced Plan,” said Danielle Moore, chair of the Board of Port Commissioners. “The progress we have made has been anchored in tireless collaboration with the community, business leaders and, of course, the city of National City. It’s about bringing more recreational opportunities to the bayfront while also streamlining and strengthening maritime operations, and we are eager to bring these projects to life.”
Other components of the balanced plan include:
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Realigning Marina Way to serve as the buffer area between commercial recreation and maritime uses
The closure of Tidelands Avenue between Bay Marina Drive and West 32nd Street, and West 28th Street between Tidelands Avenue and Quay Avenue, around six acres, to increase terminal efficiency by eliminating redundancies
The development of a recreational vehicle park, tent sites, cabins and the “ultimate development of up to two hotels with up to 365 rooms, as well as dry boat storage,” a port statement read
A connector rail project to connect the existing rail and loop track located on the National City Marine Terminal to additional rail car storage spots at the existing Burlington Northern Santa Fe National City Yard east of the National Distribution Center
The Board of Port Commissioners must accept the CCC’s certification, then the port and city can begin the process of completing the above projects.
“I am proud of the work we have done to help create a lasting legacy for National City, the Port of San Diego, and the entire region,” said Port Commissioner GilAnthony Ungab. “Nearly a decade in the making, this plan balances the interests of the community and many other stakeholders, addresses public access, maritime, and recreation uses, and expands waterfront access in my community.”
The National City Bayfront is 273 acres of waterfront land and 167 acres of water, and includes the National City Marine Terminal, Pepper Park, Pier 32 Marina, the Aquatic Center and pieces of public art.
Mayor Todd Gloria announced an initiative Wednesday intended to expand housing options in neighborhoods by integrating small-scale residences such as townhomes, rowhomes and cottages into an area’s existing character.
The Neighborhood Homes for All of Us initiative is also intended to support community land trusts — nonprofit organizations that acquire land to create permanent affordable housing.
“Since Day 1 of my administration, I have been focused on building more homes that San Diegans can actually afford — and getting them built faster,” Gloria said at a news conference Wednesday. “‘Neighborhood Homes for All of Us’ is the latest piece of that puzzle. This innovative program will break down the barriers that have gotten in the way of building the type of housing that I believe is ideal for young families and first-time homebuyers for whom the dream of homeownership has long felt out of reach.”
Around 80% of land zoned for housing in the city is restricted to single-family homes, which continue to increase in price, Gloria said. And a significant portion of new housing being built consists of apartment buildings with primarily studio and one-bedroom units, leaving working-class families fewer and fewer options for homes.
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Neighborhood Homes for All of Us is intended to increase the housing supply and allow community land trusts to keep housing affordable in disadvantaged communities for low- to middle-income families.
“San Diego is an incredible place to raise a family, and more families need the opportunity to do that in San Diego’s existing, highly desirable single-family neighborhoods where their kids can learn and play in a great community,” City Planning Director Heidi Vonblum said. “But today, that comes at a price that is out of reach for too many. Integrating more options for families requires careful and thoughtful planning, with input from existing and future community members across the city, to ensure these new home opportunities for San Diego’s families are built in ways that best enhance and benefit San Diego’s amazing neighborhoods.”
The initiative will roll out in two phases. In the first phase, beginning this week and continuing through next summer, San Diegans can help determine what the neighborhoods can look like. The public will be able to see renderings showing small-scale neighborhood homes within San Diego’s existing communities, along with new regulations that “provide a clear pathway for building these homes,” according to a statement from Gloria’s office.
Phase 1 will also include an open house and ways for the community to provide feedback and concerns.
Phase 2, scheduled for the second half of 2026, will be for city staff to develop regulations allowing for the building of more neighborhood homes in a way informed by the public feedback.
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The initiative is partly funded through a Regional Early Action Planning grant from the San Diego Association of Governments.
