Candidates seeking to represent some of San Diego’s beach neighborhoods and Clairemont sparred this week over city pensions, vacation rentals and other issues.
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In their last forum before the June 2 primary, the race’s seven candidates also debated how to respond to homeless people living in RVs and deal with traffic congestion on the coast during large events.
The city’s pension debt prompted a spirited exchange between Nicole Crosby, a deputy city attorney who lives in Clairemont, and Richard Bailey, a former mayor of Coronado who now lives in Point Loma.
Bailey called the city’s annual pension payment, which reached a record $563 million this year, an unsustainable burden that should be addressed by shrinking city staff to 2015 levels.
Crosby stressed that city employees pay into their pensions and don’t receive Social Security.
“Misinformation and boogeymanning of pensions is actually a disgusting way to talk about the topic,” Crosby said. “Big corporate interests have put a stain on workers.”
Josh Coyne, a former City Hall staffer who lives in Point Loma and now works for the Downtown San Diego Partnership, said pensions shouldn’t be cut or changed because employees rely on them.
Jacob Mitchell, a chemist from Point Loma, said the city must negotiate with labor unions for changes to the pension system to make it less of a burden on taxpayers.
Michael Rickey, a Merchant Marine from Clairemont, said he was frustrated that the courts overturned a 2012 city ballot measure that had ended pensions for most new city hires.
Paul Suppa, an attorney living in Point Loma, said the city needs to take drastic steps to solve the pension problem or risk bankruptcy.
Mandy Havlik, a neighborhood leader from Point Loma, said she is frustrated that the City Council approves each year the pension payment recommended by the city’s pension board.
On short-term vacation rentals, Suppa and Mitchell said they would support shifting to an outright ban. “You need simplicity of policy for enforcement,” Mitchell said.
Bailey said it’s almost certain the state Coastal Commission would nix an outright ban, so he suggested directing revenue from vacation rental licenses to the communities affected instead of the city’s general fund.
Coyne said the city must step up enforcement, including 24-hour response to complaints and cracking down on small things like trash — not just large parties.
Rickey and Havlik said they’d like to see the city revamp its vacation rental ordinance, particularly a cap on the number of properties. Havlik said a key target should be whole-home rentals.
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Crosby agreed that whole-home rentals are the most pressing issue, suggesting that city cuts to code compliance investigators will make enforcement worse instead of better in the future.
Another hot topic at the forum was traffic congestion at large festivals on the coast, especially music events in Mission Bay Park.
Havlik and Bailey said the key was better planning in advance, with Bailey suggesting the city deny permits if traffic management plans don’t preserve emergency vehicle access.
Crosby said more frequent bus service and possible shuttles could help ease traffic. Coyne said the city should consider other transit options, suggesting the city’s old streetcar network.
Suppa said shuttles make sense but stressed that city officials should give more advance notice of large events. Mitchell said buses need to become more appealing and shuttles more efficient for either to be a real solution. And Rickey said big changes aren’t needed, because people who live on the coast should expect crowds.
On homeless people living in RVs parked on city streets, Havlik and Crosby suggested extending the city’s dedicated secure parking lots to 24 hours instead of having them open only overnight.
A number of people who live in RVs have objected to the hours, saying said cost, disabilities and other hardships prevent them from coming and going daily.
Last week, a federal judge ruled that the city is justified in ticketing them anyway — but also that it’s violating a settlement in which it promised to improve another secure parking lot for homeless people.
Bailey and Rickey contend the solution is simply to enforce city rules on illegal parking. “The city isn’t supposed to be in the business of providing an RV storage lot,” Bailey said.
Coyne said city police should be given more money for enforcement. Suppa and Mitchell said switching enforcement from sworn officers to civilians could save the city money and allow a more aggressive approach.
The candidates are battling to replace termed-out Councilmember Jennifer Campbell in District 2, which includes Clairemont, Point Loma, Ocean Beach, Mission Beach and some nearby areas.
The top two vote-getters in the June 2 primary will move on to a November runoff even if the top finisher in June gets more than 50% of the vote.
The forum was held Thursday at the Paradise Point Resort and Spa in Mission Bay Park. It was co-sponsored by the Mission Beach Town Council, the Ocean Beach Community Foundation and the Pacific Beach Town Council.
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