San Marcos council passes controversial protest ordinance
1823
SAN MARCOS The San Marcos City Council met on Tuesday, May 11, and passed by a 4-1 vote a controversial ordinance that will limit picketing and protesting in front of private residences and create a 300-foot buffer zone.
According to the staff report, the ordinance allows individuals to still protest in general residential areas or neighborhoods but prohibits protesters from targeting a specific residential unit and coming within 300 feet of that unit.
Violations of the ordinance would be categorized as an infraction and would result in a fine.
“The City Council finds and determines that the preservation and protection of the right to privacy in a residential dwelling unit and the enjoyment of tranquility, well-being, and sense of security in a residential dwelling unit are in the public interest and are uniquely and critically important to the public health, safety, and welfare,” the staff report said
Print
San Diego County leaders Tuesday will again consider a countywide temporary rent cap and limits on evictions.
The ordinance, introduced by San Diego County Supervisor Nora Vargas, narrowly passed its first reading last month and must be approved Tuesday to take effect.
Its previous reading turned out to be contentious with roughly five hours of public comments from tenants’ rights groups and landlords. It is likely the same will occur Tuesday with several groups gearing up to call into the virtual meeting, including the Southern California Rental Housing Association, which is asking members to attend.
The biggest point of contention is a provision that limits landlords’ ability to evict tenants for lease violations and, in general, being a nuisance. It would go beyond statewide law crafted during the pandemic that says renters can be evicted for just cause, such as lease violations. San Diego County’s ordinance says eviction can only happen if renters are imminent
Print
Activists representing a diverse mix of causes marched Saturday afternoon in a May Day protest throughout downtown San Diego in one of many actions across the county.
May Day, celebrated on May 1, is typically a day of protest aimed at giving visibility to the exploitation of workers and is also known as International Workers’ Day. Large protests happened Saturday across the world, including in France where more than 100,000 people marched and fought with police, said Reuters.
Elsewhere in the county, The Gente Unida Coalition organized a car caravan from Balboa Park to the San Ysidro Port of Entry to protest immigration policies, and the San Diego Tenants Union staged a car caravan to protest property owners they characterized as slumlords. Other events included a caravan to the Otay Mesa Detention Center, to protest immigration detention, and a May Day caravan from Barrio Logan to Escondido advocating for the “health and dignity of all workers.”
Scraping together the money to pay these water bills often means sacrificing other necessities, such as food. Author: Richard Allyn (Reporter) Updated: 11:16 PM PST February 9, 2021
SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. A new report finds that nearly 70,000 San Diego families are behind on their water bills during the pandemic, with more than 11,000 owing over a thousand dollars.
That same study by the state s Water Resources Control Board finds that one in eight California households are behind on their water bills: a a tsunami of debt adding up to more than a billion dollars.
Among them is City Heights resident Shara Sin, who found herself slapped with a nearly $400 water bill in the middle of the pandemic, charged by her landlord with no notice.