SAN DIEGO: The city's independent budget analyst yesterday called on San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders to hold off on his proposed closures of 17 libraries and recreation centers, but Sanders pressed on.
Analyst Andrea Tevlin said the city should wait for a multiyear plan that addresses issues such as usage, maintenance costs for closed buildings and plans for facilities that are under construction.
Sanders said that every week the city doesn't close its $43 million budget gap adds $330,000 to the problem.
“They're not going to be any more palatable in six months than they are right now,” he said of the closures.
The City Council takes up the cuts at 2 p.m. today for the second time, at City Hall, 202 C St.
For the most part, Sanders and the council brushed aside outgoing City Attorney Michael Aguirre's suggestion to explore bankruptcy protection.
“I'm just taking it off the table for now,” Sanders said. “I don't know what will happen in a year.” –M.T.H.
City's water rates set
to increase 8.4 percent
SAN DIEGO: The city's water rates for the average household will rise by $4.43 to $57.31, an 8.4 percent increase, on Jan. 1, following the San Diego City Council's approval yesterday.
The council voted unanimously to cover the rising costs of the city's water purchases and voted 5-3, with councilmen Kevin Faulconer, Tony Young and Brian Maienschein in opposition, to raise rates to pay for a pilot project that would examine turning treated wastewater into drinking water. –M.T.H.
Council lets development
replace mobile home park
SAN DIEGO: A mobile home park in Allied Gardens must make way for a large-scale residential development, the City Council decided last night.
All was not lost for the residents, who pleaded with the council to protect their homes. Council members helped shape a plan for developers to give the residents larger rent subsidies if they cannot find a new mobile home park and more aid to move to one if they can.
The proposal for the 10-acre site in eastern San Diego calls for a 444-unit apartment building to replace the mobile homes, most of which are occupied by low-income seniors.
Critics say the project breaks city codes and zoning regulations. Defenders of the proposal say it will boost redevelopment and help the region meet the need for new rental housing.
Council members also noted the private property rights of the land owner, Archstone, and said they could do little to scuttle the project.
No timetable has been set yet for the residents to move.–J.V.
City College student
is diagnosed with TB
SAN DIEGO: A San Diego City College student has been diagnosed with tuberculosis, and about 190 students and faculty members have been notified that they may have been exposed, county officials said yesterday.
The student attended classes from Aug. 25 to Nov. 3.
All of those possibly exposed have been notified by mail, said Leslie Ridgeway, a spokeswoman for the county Health and Human Services Agency.
Last year, there were 280 known cases of tuberculosis in San Diego County. So far this year, there have been 201, Ridgeway said.
Symptoms include persistent cough, fever, night sweats and unexplained weight loss. Most people exposed do not develop the disease, Ridgeway said.
Students who received notices can get a tuberculosis skin test from a family doctor, at county public health centers, or from the college's Student Health Services.
For more information, call the county's tuberculosis control program at (619) 692-8621. –S.S.
Record highs set, but
cooler weather coming
Despite the forecast of a cooling trend, two record high temperatures were set for the date in the county yesterday.
El Cajon reached 91 degrees, surpassing a record of 88 degrees set in 2005, and Ramona's 88 exceeded 86 degrees set in 1995. Two highs tied records: 91 at the Wild Animal Park matched the mark set in 2002; and Borrego Springs reached 91, the same as it did in 1990.
Five record highs were set Monday, and El Cajon had the highest temperature in the nation with 96 on Sunday.
A marine layer is forecast to increase today, bringing with it cooler weather. Highs along the coast today should be in the low 70s. Inland valleys and the desert should reach the low 80s, and the mountains should hit the mid-70s. Temperatures are expected to drop a few more degrees tomorrow. –A.V.
Staff writers Matthew T. Hall, Jennifer Vigil, Susan Shroder and Adrian Vore contributed to this report.
