Is that I don't know?

All right, good morning, everyone.

We're gonna get started.

I will now call the city council meeting of Tuesday, June 30th, 2026 to order.

Clerk, please call the roll.

Thank you, Council President, Councilmember Campbell.

Councilmember Campbell.

I do see you here.

Thank you.

Councilmember Whitburn?

Here.

Councilmember Foster.

Councilmember Von Wilper.

Council President Pro Tem Lee.

Councilmember Campillo.

Here.

Councilmember Moreno.

Councilmember Elo Rivera.

And Council President Lacava.

Present.

Also attending the meeting, our city attorney Heather Ferber, Independent Budget Analyst, Charles Monica, Council Affairs Advisor in the Mayor's Office, Coda Zeiser, myself, your city clerk, Deanna Fuentes.

Thank you, Council President.

Alright, thank you, City Clerk.

Quorum is now present.

We will begin this morning with the land acknowledgement and the pledge of allegiance led by Councilmember Campyu.

We respectfully acknowledge that the Kumiai Nation are the original inhabitants of the unceded land, now known as San Diego.

Despite enduring the horrors of genocide and colonization, the Kumeyai spirit remains unbroken.

We honor the resilience of their ancestors who fought to protect their culture and land.

And today they carry their legacy forward, ensuring that their traditions continue to thrive in gratitude and strength.

We stand with the Kumiai Nation, connected to our past and committed to a thriving future.

Please face the flag.

Hand over your heart.

Ready begin.

I pledge allegiance.

Of the United States of America.

And to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God.

Indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

With that, City Clerk, please go over how the public can offer their testimony.

Thank you.

I'd like to highlight the slide on the screen that reviews how the public can offer their public testimony during today's meeting.

Please note the time allocations for proclamations and consent items for meeting management purposes of one minute per item, three minutes max for three or more items.

The order can be found on the agenda summary, found online or at the table in the back of the room.

If you are in person, please complete a speaker sip located at the entrance of chambers and bring it to the front of the room in the clear box.

Council ambassadors are available near the entrance of chambers and can assist with questions and speaker slips.

No further in-person testimony will be taken once the council begins virtual testimony.

Thank you, Council President.

Alright, thank you for that, City Clerk.

With that, we will now dispense with the approval of the proclamation items.

Clerk, please proceed with public comment.

Thank you.

The public comment period for the proclamations item is now open.

Each speaker will have one minute per item per person.

If you would like to speak on three or more items, you'll have a maximum of three minutes.

Proclamation items being approved are items 30 through 32, S500, S501, and S504.

We did receive comments on item 30, one in favor, VR e-comment form, which have been distributed to the council.

We do have quite a number of speakers here for proclamations.

Um if we can start with Jacob Lewis Edwards, you're speaking on items 30 32 and S501.

If I can have the following individuals, please come up to the yellow reserve seats at the front of the room.

If you can please come forward, Ron Lewis, allegedly Audra, Kishaylin uh Elliott, and Claudia Huang.

If you can please all come forward to the yellow reserve seats, and please proceed.

Good morning, uh councilmen and women, everybody in chambers.

So I'm going over item 30, item 32, item S 501.

Item 30 is uh recognition, a month of recognition for San Diego LGBTQ Pride month.

That is great.

That's awesome.

Proclaiming June 7th to be S3 Coffee Bar 10th Anniversary Day.

That's also that's really good.

And asserted City Attorney Recognition Day.

Now we go over a lot of recognition days, and that is wonderful.

What's going on in our city, folks?

Is genocide.

This is well known.

If you look at a YouTube clip, I spoke right here at this microphone.

Jacob Edwards speaks.

Since that YouTube clip, where you'll see my speech, and I stood right here speaking to you all at City Council, um, which transpired was a deal by the Federal Reserve families to cut with the Chinese to wipe out their debts of trillions.

And it included a deal of genocide to occur to wipe out the best our country has, recruited from the Department of Homeland Securities database.

We've lost a lot of lives in this country.

Right here is the epicenter of it.

I'm in a hard time dealing with this, but I asked why aren't we confronting this?

Why isn't this discussed?

People are given jobs, assignments, people are given carrots, people are afraid.

I mentioned somebody about the genocide yesterday, and the guy started going into details of the operations.

I was thinking, my God, this is more well known than I thought.

Why is it this discussed, folks?

You are our elected officials.

You stand up for us as our elected officials for the people, by the people.

And that's what this country is about, folks.

Not genocide, not Chinese taking over our country for a debt.

The Federal Reserve families of them, per trouble we were going through in our country.

They were going to appear to swoop in as our saviors.

But cut a deal of genocide.

Folks, we need to start discussing this.

I say we need to start standing up for ourselves.

We need to start standing up for each other.

And start standing up for our country and the future of our country.

We'll start discussing this.

Your time has concluded.

And standing up for ourselves in our country.

That's a good example of actually not talking to the proclamation items, not agenda public comment.

That's the I the we can talk about anything within the city's purview.

Let's be respectful of every members of the public.

You don't have to be respectful to us.

Be respectful of those who come to the chambers this morning.

Thank you.

Mahala.

You're speaking on item 30.

You'll have one minute.

On behalf of the center, thank you, council members, for recognizing Pride Month.

This villa, this visibility is vital to confronting discrimination and ensuring everyone feels accepted to live authentically.

Despite the federal governments, despite the federalist government's ex attempts at taking away our progress, especially from our trans and non-binary community, it is beautiful to see my local government fight against those attempts.

Your leadership is deeply appreciated.

I look forward to seeing the city advance towards true equity for the LGBTQIA plus community.

Thank you.

Ron Lewis.

Thank you.

You'll have two minutes, please proceed.

Thank you, Council President Lacaba and Councilmember Campbell, for proclaiming June 2026 to be Alzheimer's and Brain Awareness Month in the City of San Diego.

As you heard, my name is Ron Lewis.

I currently serve as the board chair for the Alzheimer's Association of San Diego and Imperial County.

And on behalf of our chapter, we are very honored and grateful to accept this proclamation from the City of San Diego, recognizing this month June as the Alzheimer's and Brain Awareness Month.

This recognition is so impactful and important because of the nearly 7 million Americans age 65 and older who are living with Alzheimer's disease.

Data has shown also that more than 75,000 of those Americans and those living in San Diego serve as caregivers.

Alzheimer's of Brain Awareness Month was created to bring awareness to and honor those individuals as well as the many more millions of friends and family members who are caring for someone living with the disease.

The Alzheimer's Association leads the way to end Alzheimer's and all other forms of dementia by accelerating global research, driving risk reduction and early detection.

Here at home, we support our community by conducting educational programs for caregivers and people who recently received an Alzheimer's diagnosis.

Over the past 12 months, our chapter has been able to provide free resources and support through our educational programs and support groups to 65,000 six 6500 individuals in our local community.

We're proud of to offer these educational programs throughout San Diego in both English and in Spanish.

And we do host our annual walk to ends Alzheimer's.

And once again, we'd like to thank you so much, City of San Diego, for recognizing June as Alzheimer's and Brain Awareness Health Month, and we hope, hopefully and confident that through our efforts, one day we'll bring an end to Alzheimer's.

Thank you.

Allegedly, Audra.

You're speaking on items 30, S500, S501, and S504.

You'll have three minutes, please proceed.

You guys were all in this together, like hostages, right?

It's good.

Yes, and I know what I'm gonna say is going to be um twisted and um we gaslit for it, but that's okay because I come from a perspective where the truth matters and there's things that aren't addressed in these proclamations that should be like with Alzheimer's, my mother died of dementia or with dementia, and we don't really talk about the actual causes of these things and the detriment to heavy metals uh and things like fluoride um to in our brain and our ability to uh function when you know it's coming from the air, the water, the food, and injections.

Um, and so you know, you guys promote those types of things, and yet you say that you want to have awareness with that, so I think we should be aware that these things cause that.

And then anything to do with attorneys, it's like they have a global um uh allegiance through the British registry here.

So it's like I mean, obviously that is a problem, and we're paying a city attorney uh to be up here and protect the city while they go after the people, you know, like people who lost everything in a storm.

So, and then with this pride and the LGBTQ.

My problem is as a victim of a pedophile, this is honoring maps, which is minor attracted persons, and it is on the Pride Progress flag.

And as a victim, that's terrifying to me because um, you know, that's talking about the rape of children, and it's concerning that we are glorifying that as a sexual preference, and especially people who have children.

I don't understand the Russian roulette that's played with children, like people think that their child is untouchable, but this is why it continues because the man that was abusing me for nine years was a victim himself.

So he was a victim that became a predator because you don't, when you're 10 years old, sexually assault babies unless you learned that behavior because you were yourself a victim, and then you become the victimizer.

Because nobody wants to talk about this stuff, and that is what is so nefarious because you shouldn't make victims feel like they are unwanted by promoting somebody who has sex with them, which that's what they say, but it again is rape.

You can't have sex with the child.

We have Scott Weiner, who people support, and he's the one who puts in bills who say if you're 10 years apart that you can consent.

And that would mean that I could consent as a five-year-old for this man to groom me, and as I'm wearing a skirt, he's putting on a garter.

How special is that?

Kishelin Elliott.

You're speaking on item 30.

Please proceed.

Good morning, Council President, Council members, and members of the San Diego community.

My name is Keishlin Elliott, she her hers pronouns, and I'm the executive director for San Diego Pride.

On behalf of San Diego Pride, thank you so much for this proclamation, recognizing Pride Month and the resilience, contributions, and humanity of LGBTQIA plus people across our city.

In just two weeks, more than 250,000 people will gather for San Diego Pride's Parade and Festival to celebrate the beauty and diversity of our community.

I invite everyone that can hear my voice to come and shine on with us in Balbolo Park and in Hillcrest.

Together, we will honor those who came before us, celebrate who we are today, and inspire the future that we are building together.

The call to protect equality, defend human dignity, and ensure every LGBTQIA plus person can live openly and safely belongs to all of us every day of the year.

So thank you for standing with our community, and we look forward to celebrating the private view.

Claudia, Collie Kwang.

If I can have Claudia Quang come up to the microphone, then David Smith, please come up to the yellow reserve seats.

Claudia, you have people seating you time.

Chao Wei Huang, if you can please raise your hand.

And then Hector Galvez.

Thank you.

You'll have three minutes to talk on item 32.

Good morning, council members.

First of all, thank you so much for having us here.

My name is Claudia, and I'm here to represent my family and everybody from S3 Coffee Bar.

Um, we are so honored for this proclamation.

And 10 years ago, me and my sisters opened this coffee shop for my mom in Grantville, San Diego.

We were trying to create a welcome, seeming space for people to kind of just talk and hang out with uh our own neighbors because we didn't see that then um 10 years ago.

But flash forward now 10 years from now, we never imagined the incredible community that we have built in that area, and we are incredibly lucky to have such good neighbors, first responders, local school, local like organizations that have supported us throughout this whole entire time.

I don't think that was gonna be possible.

You know, and everybody that had walked in through the doors to support us.

We are incredibly lucky.

Thank you so much for this proclamation.

Thank you.

David Smith.

David Smith, you have Daniel Smith seating you time.

Please raise your hand, Daniel.

Please raise your hand.

You know, thank you.

Thank you.

And Danielle Smith, please raise your hand.

You'll have three minutes, please proceed.

Thank you.

Uh good morning, council members.

My name is David Smith.

I'm the CEO of El Dorado Properties in the Grantville community.

Um, on behalf of my family that are here this morning, I'd like to thank the council for the proclamation.

Celebrating today, June 30th, as El Dorado Properties Day in the city of San Diego as we celebrate our 40th year anniversary.

Um celebrating anniversaries are no short milestone, and we believe they're the 40th year of operations serving San Diego and the Mission Valley area, helping families find homes and businesses find places to uh to work and to thrive.

Um, it's been a great honor.

Uh, we would like to furthermore thank Councilor Campedo for his tireless work in the Grantville community and just the general uh betterment of District 7.

Um, he's a true champion of the city council, as many of you are for our great city.

So we thank you for the proclamation and look forward to many more years of our family's business to thrive and to go.

Thank you.

Thank you.

That does conclude public comment on proclamations here in Council Chambers.

I'm sorry, the five-minute timer going to those participating remotely, starting with Blair Beekman, if you can please unmute and let me know which item or items you wish to speak to.

All right, uh, Blair Beekman.

Happy uh, last day of the month uh to everyone.

Um I wanted to speak to the items.

Let me get my board here.

Item 30, item 32, and item s 504.

You'll have three minutes.

Please proceed.

Thank you.

Um, I guess to first speak to uh LGBTQ uh plus Pride Month.

Um, congratulations that it's here.

Um I've been living in Tijuana the past few years, and they have a great pride parade at the end of the uh June.

Uh they just had it this past Saturday.

There's easily over, you know, 1500 people uh in the in the parade in the March.

They go all around the downtown area and uh it's a big festival.

It's really nice here.

And so uh um I've been learning just that uh it's a good event, and I I've been enjoying it here, and uh so I just wanted to mention that uh good look and how we can think of uh our good value systems uh in in gay pride month.

Um I wanted to comment on also uh item s or item 32, the coffee bar.

Uh congratulations to the coffee bar.

I wanted to note that uh in uh I've been I've been living in Tijuana off and on for the past few years now.

I've been very much enjoying it.

The cafe is here and the coffee is mostly usually always organic coffee, usually from Chiapice area, and um a note to our American coffee and cafe bars that uh using organic coffee, it's a lot healthier, and it just makes your body feel much more comfortable and better.

Uh good luck in in uh American uh cafes using uh organic coffee more often.

And finally, um I'm sure S3 coffee does offer organic choices.

They sound like a good bar.

Uh, hope it can help.

Uh and with item S504 Alzheimer's Brain Awareness Month.

Um I wanted to comment on um uh I guess you know to say it, I grew up actually in my 20s.

I'm in my late 50s now.

In my 20s, I was labeled as schizophrenic, and I fought hard to get out of that label.

And um, to me, Alzheimer's is kind of the other end of the scale of that in some ways in some times.

There's a lot of chemical reactions that are happening in one's brain.

There is also just a mind frame in how we share our social space and communication together that tempts to promote such things uh as Alzheimer's and schizophrenia.

We have to be, I mean, that's why part of the reason I sit up here every week trying to speak so clearly on good communication.

If we have good clear communication with each other, that's what ends Alzheimer's.

That's what ends schizophrenia.

But we purposely put up walls, boundaries, and guardrails that we don't talk to ourselves more often.

Uh good luck how we just communicate better with each other.

It's really important.

And um, really sorry about the recent LGBTQ events that happened up at Hillcrest.

Uh surveillance videos caught the people who who are causing problems.

Uh, I want to talk at public comment time more about the subject.

Uh thank you.

Thank you.

Next is Jennifer Roytsen.

If you can please let me know which item or items you wish to speak to.

I can't unmute for you.

You will have to unmute.

There you go.

Hello.

Yes.

Hi, um, I'm on item, I believe it's 30, the LGBTQ.

Yes, he'll have one minute.

Please proceed.

Okay.

Um, I just think that um, of course, everyone is uh free to live their own way, but what I do not think is appropriate is how they parade themselves through the streets and um doing um just disgusting sexual things.

Like I can't say, oh well, you can't be this, but um I if I can get arrested for um doing improper sexual things out there, like pulling down my pants and going to the bathroom on the streets.

I don't believe that these people should be out there parading um these what they do.

They're the their sexual orientation and it's disgusting.

It's okay to be gay, but it's disgusting.

And um, I don't think that we should have a whole um month to to advertise that kind of garbage to our children.

I mean, you guys need to get your heads straight and realize you gay is gay, but not that kind of parading and disgusting it's throughout our streets.

That's on a step your time has concluded.

8700, if you can please unmute the five-minute timer has also concluded.

There are two speakers in the queue.

No additional speakers will be taken.

8700, please let me know which item or items you wish to speak to.

Uh yes, uh 30 S501 and S504, please.

You'll have two minutes please proceed oh I'm sorry did you say three please proceed I think you uh 30 uh San Diego LGBTQ plus Pride Month.

There's a rainbow right there in that acronym I just discovered that last night it always thrills me that when I look at the natural world I see an infinite abundant rainbow of variety everywhere.

Let's join together and celebrate the beautiful tapestry of San Diego woven into all of life love to all as 501 senior deputy city attorney John Taylor Dave I haven't met you uh senior deputy city attorney Taylor yet I am wowed by these numbers in litigation 85 point two million recovered help the city collect over 250 million dollars in TOT revenue for the people of San Diego I wish we could give you back a percentage of all that big thank you and also a big thank you to the work of the entire Office of the City Attorney.

You are always in the background or forefront supporting the rule of law which is the foundation of our democracy we appreciate and value all of you at the office of the city of attorney love to all thank you.

Now on S504 I I'm gonna tell you a story a beautiful story uh for many years 12 or more I had a massage client and she was well already into her uh 80s when I started with her and she developed Alzheimer's early on and so I I saw her every week practically and so I established quite a relationship with her and saw her process and toward the end she didn't know me anymore and um her daughter we talked about it her daughter said I want you to keep coming and she felt com her Mary felt comfortable with me coming and you know what I discovered there's a spirit in us that never ages it I discovered it in Mary she didn't know me but she knew life she did.

And I just wanted to share that with you that it's a difficult journey I know that for parents and children and everything but never give up on the spirit of life it's always there it's unchanging thank you so much I celebrate all the voices speaking today.

Let's stick together okay love to all your time has concluded you straying if you can please unmute after that our last speaker is Amanda.

Good morning city council I'd like to speak to item S504 uh I'm glad for this opportunity to have a month focused on Alzheimer's and brain awareness I sometimes feel that they should be very much separated because brains and Alzheimer's and other types of debilitating diseases that affect the brain and to a certain extent uh traumatic brain injury sort of seem like they have to have their own awareness and then those issues associated with the development of the brain and how important it is to be sensitive about this development of young people growing into a young adult and to do the best to protect their brain and I was reminded of the old adage, a mind is a terrible thing to waste.

This is very much a part of the 1970s and it's still in play now.

And I would remind us all that we know that at ages 12 to 25 is a specifically a risky time for young people to smoke, vape, or consume marijuana because the brain is developed.

Their time has concluded.

Amanda, if you can please unmute.

Please let me know which item or items you wish to speak to.

Yeah, hi.

Um, speaking to items 31 and 32.

Two minutes, please proceed.

Um, just wanted to say I love when we celebrate the heroes of our community, and we give voice to the underrepresented groups with these proclamations.

I love it.

And warms my heart, sense of community, love it, love it.

However, item 31 and 32.

We're celebrating a real estate agency and a coffee bar.

Um, I would just like to say that when I was a small business owner, I, like many other small businesses, paid thousands of dollars and invested many hours into marketing in the hope of getting just a few leads and drumming up just a bit of business.

I wish I would have known that all I had to do was cozy up to Raul Campillo so I could get citywide marketing on the taxpayer's dime.

Raul, I don't think this helps you beat the charges that you have allowed developers to ravage your district.

For instance, the two single the two single family lots next door to my stepdad that were replaced by a 26 unit development with no parking required.

As much as I support small businesses, and I think our city council should do the same.

I don't think this is an appropriate use of our tax dollars, and hope you guys can find a better way to support small business.

Thanks.

That does conclude public comment on the proclamation items.

All right, thank you, City Clerk.

And with that, we'll turn it over to council members for comments and entertain a motion.

And we'll start with Council Member Campio.

Thank you, Council President, and thank you to the members of the public for your participation today.

I'll move approval of the proclamations.

Uh, start briefly.

I'm absolutely thrilled to support the San Diego LGBTQ plus Pride Month proclamation.

Thank my colleagues for bringing that forward.

Cannot wait to join everyone on this diet at the annual Pride Parade in a couple weeks.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.

Pride in San Diego is so much more special since we have the entire summer to celebrate it, both in June and July, so that we can acknowledge the contributions of the LGBTQ plus community to San Diego, whether it was serving in the military, serving in government, in education, law enforcement, the arts, sciences and medicine, small and big business, hospitality and tourism, civil rights, and civic advocacy.

And while many in power may be trying to set the LGBTQ community back, nothing can hold us back in that pursuit for justice and equality.

So happy Pride San Diego, and I'm proud to support that.

Uh, I will also be speaking to uh two items that I'm bringing forward.

I'm honored to celebrate two amazing businesses that are reaching uh very nice milestones from the Grantville neighborhood, both of which were in chamber here today.

First, congratulations to El Dorado properties on celebrating their 40 years of serving San Diego since its founding four decades ago in June of 1986.

This family-owned business has built a legacy of integrity and professionalism and long-term investment in our neighborhoods, helping generations of families and putting down roots for businesses.

El Dorado Properties has been a cornerstone of the Navajo and Granville communities, not only through property management and real estate services, but helping shape the area in many years past.

Their leadership in the long-term Grantville rezoning effort and their commitment to thoughtful redevelopment have helped position these neighborhoods for continued growth and opportunity.

There are working class and low-income San Diegans who have a home they can afford in our city because the Smiths family saw a better future for Grantville years before people started talking about it.

So I want to thank them, Daniel, Danielle, and David, and the entire El Dorado properties team for your commitment to revitalizing our community.

Projects like the transformation of long vacant property on Fairmont Avenue into thriving homes and local small businesses, demonstrate that positive impact that community-minded leadership can serve.

So for those decades of service and investment and partnership, I thank them.

But I also want to point out this the Smith family has also put so much time and effort into representing the Navajo community as board members of the Navajo Planning Group and to the CPC as well.

There are a few families that have put so much time into volunteering and balancing the needs of diverse communities of businesses and residents like they have.

They truly know every road in the community, every sidewalk and park, every canyon, and the history that comes from that.

So I congratulate them on this historic milestone and wish them continued success.

And one day soon, we'll get the Alvarado Creek realignment done.

And next, I'm honored to celebrate S3 Coffee Bar on their 10th anniversary.

Claudio Guang could uh said it better than I ever could.

She and her family and the entire S3 Coffee Bar team are celebrating 10 years of exceptional service and one of District 7's most welcoming gathering places regularly packed with college students sitting next to seniors who are sitting next to families who are sitting next to folks who own their own home, sitting next to folks who live in permanent supportive housing.

They serve everyone who's their neighbor, no matter what.

So, what began as a neighborhood coffee shop in Grantville is now a true community institution.

You don't just grab a coffee there, you meet your neighbors, and friendships are formed there.

And it's one of my favorite places to hold a coffee with Campio Town Hall.

So they've helped redefine the character of Grantville by creating this warm and inviting space.

And I congratulate them on their 10th year in service.

And I know there's just many more decades to come.

That concludes my motion, Council President.

All right, thank you, sir.

So we have a motion by Council Member Campheel to move the proclamations.

We'll go next to Councilmember Kemball.

Thank you, Council President.

I would first like to congratulate everyone who's receiving a PROC, and every group receiving a PROC, and I would like to second the motion.

I would like to speak on item 30 and item S504.

And I want to thank Mayor Mayor Todd Gloria and all Council members Whitburn and Von Wilpert for joining me in bringing forward this proclamation for pride.

Declares July 2026 is San Diego LGBTQ, Pride Month in the city of San Diego.

And we will be celebrating all month.

This is truly there is nothing as wonderful as joy, and the joy of pride in San Diego is fabulous.

250,000 San Diegans, gay and straight, of all creeds, all colors, show up to enjoy the celebration of pride.

And this is celebrated because for so long, as Audra mentioned, things like this were not even mentioned.

And it's very important that we not have these kinds of things as secrets.

We need to know what really exists in the world, and that it's okay.

As a gay person, I can tell you how I struggled with this because I'm 81 years old.

So I can tell you that it took me a long time to accept myself, but I was born this way.

And Lady Gaga said it, and she was right.

We are being our authentic selves, and we want everyone to be their authentic self, no matter what kind of self they are.

We are accepting.

And this community, especially in San Diego, has provided safety, acceptance, and refuge for countless people seeking the freedom to live as their authentic selves.

The progress we celebrate today was fought for by generations of advocates and leaders who paved the way for us.

As we gather this year, we recognize that many of the rights and freedoms we fought for are now being challenged.

Yet our community continues to do what it has always done.

We will show up with resilience, courage, and joy, because even joy is an act of resistance.

We must never allow anyone to take away our ability to love, to be happy, or to be exactly who we are.

I also would like to speak on item S504, Alzheimer's and Brain Awareness Month.

It is so important to continue to acknowledge the suffering that Alzheimer's disease can cause, not only among our older population who suffer from it, but from the families and the caregivers who help those who have this terrible disease.

We praise the scientific medical research that can continue to find causes and treatment for this.

And as of 2025, there were 75,000 San Diegans, as Ron said, who are living with Alzheimer's disease.

Many family members of the people with Alzheimer's are so affected.

They often have to leave their jobs to give full-time unpaid care to the loved one with Alzheimer's.

By recognizing an Alzheimer's and Brain awareness Month, we're reaffirming San Diego's commitment to supporting people affected by Alzheimer's and other dementias, and the importance of continued research so that we can improve the means of diagnosis and hopefully find a cure.

Thank you, Council President.

All right, thank you.

So we have a motion by Councilmember Campillo and a second by Council Member Campbell.

We'll go next to our city attorney.

Thank you, Council President.

I'd like to speak on item S 501.

Today it is my honor to recognize the remarkable career and service of John Taylor.

For more than 19 years, John Taylor has served the City of San Diego as a deputy city attorney with great dedication.

John is retiring after more than 34 years in the legal profession, building a legacy defined by professionalism, diligence, and integrity.

He is a lifelong San Diegan.

He grew up in University City in La Jolla, attending Marie Curie Elementary, La Jolla Country Day, Muirlin's Junior High, and La Jolla High School.

Throughout his tenure with the city attorney's office, John represented the city with great skill and tenacity.

For the majority of the cases he handled, John represented the city as a plaintiff in contract disputes and complex construction litigation, frequently going up against well-funded companies and their big law attorneys.

Through negotiations and litigation with online travel companies and short-term rental platforms, John also helped the city collect millions in transient occupancy tax revenue.

But beyond the numbers, what stands out most is the way John showed up in the office and for his colleagues, who mention his mentorship, his collaborative spirit, and his commitment to public service.

His presence has helped shape a positive positive culture in the city attorney's office that will continue long after his retirement.

And of course, John has not walked this path alone.

He deeply appreciates the support of his colleagues and his family and friends.

Here with John are his wife Tammy and his parents.

John and Tammy's two children couldn't be here, but I know they're cheering him on in spirit.

Congratulations, John, and thank you for your service.

Now, John, I know you're kind of shy, and it's hard for you to take all this adulation, but give it us a couple of words.

Yeah, that thank you so much for the warm words, City Attorney Ferbert and Councilmember Von Wilbert for also sponsoring the proclamation.

First, I'd like to congratulate everyone else who got proclamations today.

That's a big deal.

Want to thank Tammy and my parents for being here because Tammy went on this journey with me.

We got married after my first year in law school, and she's been there for the whole ride throughout it.

And my book club guys, I am surprised that they are all here.

These are guys who I went to junior high and high school with, and so we're together and it's fun.

And lastly, I want to thank, you know, I couldn't have done all this without the team, and that team is the city attorney's office.

And so a special thanks to my current secretary Sue Benson, who's been with me for probably 10 or 11 years.

Danielle Fawcett, who's my paralegal.

She's been with me for about 15 years, and currently Eric and Grande.

Actually, Sean Brown is here, who was my investigator for 11 years.

He retired in 2019.

So this is a special day.

It is the coolest thing ever, and thank you so much.

All right, thank you for that.

And we'll go next to Councilmember Whitburn.

Thank you very much, Council President.

I want to thank our Council President and Councilmember Campbell for bringing forward the proclamation, recognizing Alzheimer's and Brain Awareness Month.

Alzheimer's disease affects thousands of San Diego families.

And I want to thank all the organizations like the Alzheimer's Association and others that support these families who are often caregiving for a loved one at home.

There has been a lot of impressive uh breakthroughs in treatment recently, but there is so much more to do in terms of research, and I appreciate everybody who is working so hard to support that.

Thank you to the mayor and my colleagues for bringing forward the proclamation.

Congratulating Council General Adi de Castro for his outstanding work as honorary counsel general of the Philippines.

Now, more than ever, diplomacy is necessary to not only establish strong bilateral relations, but also to understand and support the many nationalities that call our city home.

We're lucky to have a great example of this in Council General DeCastro.

I too appreciate the city attorney and council member von Wilpert for bringing forward the recognition for Deputy City Attorney John Taylor Day.

I would like to congratulate Mr.

Taylor on 19 years at the city.

Thank you for your service and enjoy your retirement.

Now let me thank everybody who is here for the proclamation recognizing San Diego LGBT Pride Month.

Over the years, the LGBTQ community has made great progress in our journey toward equality.

And that is especially true here in San Diego.

I am proud that we have a mayor and three council members who are members of the LGBTQ community.

In fact, the district that I represent has been represented by a member of the LGBTQ community since 1993.

Chris Kehoe was elected to represent this district 33 years ago, followed by Tony Atkins, Todd Gloria, and Chris Ward before me.

Just as importantly, I am proud that every single one of my colleagues on this council who do not have the good fortune of being members of the LGBTQ community are staunch allies of our community.

They are vocal supporters of the LGBTQ community.

They attend community events, and they are part of the reason why San Diego is one of the most LGBTQ friendly cities in the nation.

I am grateful to them.

I'm also grateful to all of you.

You are also a big part of the reason why this is such an LGBT friendly city.

Thank you to all of you who represent organizations that serve the LGBTQ community, the Center, San Diego Pride, the Imperial Court, all of our city employees who are members of the LGBTQ community, and so many more.

Nicole Murray Ramirez, who uh is one of our community's trailblazers is here.

Nicole was a co-founder of San Diego Pride more than a half century ago, I think 1974, if I'm not mistaken.

Uh he's here with this year's Pride title holders.

Uh we had a ceremony honoring them a short time ago.

And it's particularly important that all of you are so visible.

Uh, and I'm grateful that my colleagues are vocal during these times.

Uh I mentioned the progress the community has made, but we have a long way to go.

Uh, around the world, same-sex relationships remain illegal in more than 60 countries, and in nearly a dozen of them, being gay is punishable by death.

It's hard to wrap your head around that this day and age.

But in nearly a dozen countries, being gay is punishable by death.

And here at home, we continue to see efforts to dehumanize and discriminate against our transgender siblings.

Uh, we continue to see things like the eggs thrown at members of the LGBTQ community in Hillcrest a couple of weekends ago.

We had somebody a year or two ago come by and shoot pellet guns at people standing outside the bars there.

I'm just sick and tired of that, folks.

Um, these were teenagers a couple of weekends ago who should know better.

From what I know, they are generally bright kids who went to really good schools.

And here they are throwing eggs at members of the LGBTQ community.

I'm glad they were caught, and I hope that somebody talks some sense into them.

And of course, at the national level, the LGBTQ community is seeing its rights chipped away by this federal administration by the Supreme Court and a ruling that was announced today.

So as we celebrate San Diego Pride, we can be grateful at the progress that we have made and grateful that we live in such an LGBT-friendly city as San Diego, but also be motivated to fight for the rights of our community, the rights of our community, and every community.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you, Councilman Whitburn.

We'll go next to Councilmember Ilo Rivera.

All right, thank you, Council President.

Um, thank you to uh everyone who came out here who's being recognized and is supporting those who are being recognized this morning.

I'll start with item 30.

Uh, appreciate Councilmembers Campbell, Whitburn and Von Wilpert bringing forward uh the San Diego LGBTQ Pride Month proclamation in partnership with Mayor Gloria.

Um I appreciate your comments, uh Councilmore Whitburn.

I always appreciate the acknowledgement of allyship and and your recognition of it.

And I think I've been really proud to be part of a council where we've been united in demonstrating our support for the community.

And it it's striking to me that we say things like the advance of civil rights can't be taken for granted.

Uh, we talk about the the arc of history bending toward justice, but that not necessarily being linear.

And this definitely feels like one of those moments.

Um, and even the conversation this morning.

I think I I heard more rhetoric that was not just ignorant but um hateful uh toward the LGBT community than I've heard in previous years, and that um certainly is a is a warning signal of why it's so important for us to stand in solidarity in support of people being who they are.

Um, Councilman Campbell, thank you for sharing your your story.

Um, and I I couldn't uh be more proud to serve with you all.

Um, couldn't be more proud of the way that San Diego celebrates pride.

For anyone who's actually been out there, with the exception of those who are being hateful, it is one of the most family-friendly, celebratory, uh just positive events that I've ever been a part of anywhere.

It feels like love, and I think it's the exact sort of thing we should want more of uh in this city, not less of.

And so um I'm glad we're we're um we're doing what we're doing today, and we'll be doing what we'll be doing over the next month.

Um, and I'm not gonna apologize for that, and I don't think anyone should.

Um, uh last but not least, uh thank you um to uh Mr.

Taylor for your service to the city.

Um very much appreciate everything you've you've done for us.

Um I appreciate the uh the fan section you brought with you today, um, and the enthusiasm they've shown.

Um that was a lot of fun.

Uh thank you for everything you've done.

Oh, sorry, uh one one last thing.

I I do wanted to say thank you to Councilmember uh Council President Lakava and Councilmember Campbell for uh continue to recognize Alzheimer's and Brain Awareness Month.

I think this is something you've done for multiple years now, and the special calling out of the caregivers who are such an important part of that.

Um I've shared before I've I've watched um my mom take care of family uh who's who's been uh who's struggled with dementia and and Alzheimer's, and it is it is such an enormous task.

Um it requires incredible amount of care and love.

Um and anyone who's watched uh a loved one um battle these ailments knows um how hard that is for everyone who um for everyone who's around those people and um continuing to make efforts to prevent and and potentially cure uh those ailments is something that we should continuously strive for, and uh I appreciate you all continuing to bring awareness to it.

And with that, Council President that concludes my comments.

Thank you.

All right, thank you, Council Member Yula Rivera.

We'll go next to Council President Pro Tam Lee.

Thank you, Council President.

I'll speak to items 30, S500, and S501.

Uh on item 30, I want to thank Mayor Gloria, Councilmembers Campbell, Whitburn, and Von Wilbert for bringing forward this proclamation.

I'm honored to support San Diego's LGBTQ plus community and to celebrate their countless contributions to the vibrancy of our city, whether it's through historic advocacy, service to our greater community, and in fighting for representation at every level of government, as Councilmember Woodburn had shared.

While Pride Month is certainly a meaningful time for celebration, it also serves as a reminder that the fight for equality, dignity, and inclusion continues, and especially given the growing and brazen efforts of our federal administration to roll back protections and rights.

I think it's more important than ever that we stand with our LGBTQ plus neighbors in fighting against hatred and discrimination.

San Diego is proud to be a city that values inclusion and belonging, where every person should be able to live openly, safely, and as their true authentic self.

My team and I always look forward to participating in several San Diego Pride events each year, particularly light of the cathedral, the spirit of Stonewall Rally, and of course the Pride Parade.

So I want to thank all the advocates, uh community organizations, community leaders, and more who continue to make San Diego a welcoming place for all, and look forward to celebrating Pride with many of you in the month ahead.

Next, moving to item S 500, I'm honored to bring forward a proclamation and to be joined by several of my colleagues in recognizing Audi de Castro for his outstanding service and leadership as the honorary consul for the Philippines in San Diego since 2014.

And I would note that is a volunteer role that he's played for more than a decade, where Audi has strengthened the relationship between San Diego and the Philippines, fostering cultural understanding, economic partnerships, and meaningful connections between our communities.

He's been a dedicated advocate for the Filipino and Filipino American community of more than 200,000 residents throughout our region, where he provides support and resources to countless residents while also creating opportunities for civic engagement and community empowerment through initiatives such as the State of the Filipino community.

He's served in many volunteer roles throughout San Diego.

He's been the former president of the Asian Business Association, president of the Filipino American Lawyers of San Diego, former chair of the Filipino American Chamber of Commerce, and he served as a member of the Board of Governors on the San Diego Foundation.

And that's just to name a few.

But as part of, and in addition to running his own law firm, Adi also fought for justice, whether through voting rights or to ensure that those who are the most vulnerable are not forgotten.

He helped to found Pagasa Law Clinic, which provides free or low-cost legal services for members of the Filipino community, particularly immigrants and vulnerable populations facing immigration, housing, domestic violence, and other legal issues.

San Diego is certainly stronger because of his service, and the Filipino community is richer because of his volunteerism and his commitment.

And so as his distinguished tenure comes to a close, we thank Audi for his enduring legacy of diplomacy, advocacy, and public service, and congratulate him on the profound impact he has made on San Diego and the Filipino community.

And finally, on S501, I did want to take a quick minute just to acknowledge and thank John for his service to our community and to the city.

You have often come to these chambers and let us know that there's a subpoena coming for us to appear at a at a great event that your wife Tammy has helped to put on every single year.

And certainly we didn't need to send you a subpoena to get you to appear today, clearly.

But Tammy has helped to bring a group of second graders out every year, and John helps to organize with multiple offices.

And it is to me always a special opportunity each time to get young people who are here in council chambers who want to learn about how government works, whether it's the fact that we can and can't fix potholes, enough of them, ever streets ever, to how all the different branches, even our local level of government work.

So thank you, John, for your service to the city and to the greater community.

And uh we hope we'll still get to see Tammy.

And with that, that concludes my comments.

Thank you, Council President.

All right, thank you, Council President Pro Tam Lee.

Uh, all my colleagues have spoken, so I'll add a few comments to close it up.

Um, thank you to my colleagues for bringing these proclamations forward.

Uh, congratulations, everyone, uh, and everything is being recognized.

Uh, my colleagues were so eloquent as was the public.

I'll offer a few spot comments.

On item 30.

Um, I kind of it wasn't mentioned, so I thought it was worth mentioning.

My daughter is in Budapest right now, and I'm sure you're well aware that Budapest had the first pride parade in 16 years because of the change of the government administration.

Um, as Councilmember Ila Rivera said, the arc of quality can uh bend very slowly, but it can bend.

So never give up hope despite what we hear sometimes these days.

On item 31, um, I met Dan Smith some 10 years ago, and he had one simple request: just get that damn channel fixed.

Uh, here we are 10 years later, and it's still not fixed.

But I know Council Marco Campio is doing everything in his power to uh to get that done.

It is such a critical part of the redevelopment of Grantville.

Having grown up uh just up the hill in Alley Gardens.

I'm well aware of that challenge uh and as well as the roads that are necessary to really uh ensure that that Gradville really uh becomes everything that it can be in such an important part of our city, another important neighborhood.

Um, Adi DeCastro, item S500, thank you, Council President Protein Lee for bringing that.

Um you did such an eloquent job.

I'll just say thank you for bringing that forward and thank Adi for his service.

Uh and then S501, John Taylor.

Um, you know, when Joyce and Dana made that comment and got a little bit of laugh, you know, I think it's actually a moment of seriousness that we often forget about those who choose public service in the city attorney's office.

You know, I I don't know how calculations go, but if you were in private practice and you generated twenty, eighty-five million in settlement, what twenty-five, a third of that could go to attorney's fees.

Um, and yet you chose public service.

And so we're eternally grateful to you and everybody who serves in the office of the city attorney.

Uh, it is such an important function that we often take a little bit too lightly.

So, congratulations on your retirement.

Um, and then on item S five oh four, uh, in partnership with Councilmember Campbell, uh, proclaiming June 2026 to be Alzheimer's and Brain Awareness Month in the city of San Diego.

For a disease that touches so many lives, it's important to me that we highlight not only the challenge that Alzheimer's brings, but also the strength and resilience of the individual's friends and family, health care providers, and advocates who face those challenges every day.

In the state of California, there are 720,000 individuals currently living with Alzheimer's, and it's become the leading cause of death in adults older than 85 years old.

My father was 85 when he passed away 16 years ago from complications associated with Alzheimer's.

While researchers continue to make advances in the fight against Alzheimer's, there's still so much more work to be done.

Thank you to the medical professionals, researchers, health organizations, and family and friends who continue to provide support to those facing the challenges of Alzheimer's.

Your compassion, dedication, and unwavering commitment to caring for those you love make a profound difference in the lives of those affectives.

And as I said, every time we bring this proclamation to family and friends who have know an individual who's either at risk of Alzheimer's or having those early signs, you will never know what was that last conversation you have with them before they don't recognize you anymore.

So love them, hug them, appreciate them every day because that would be that one moment where they're suddenly not there and not recognize you.

So I think about that often uh with my father that I don't know what the last time I had a conversation where he actually recognized who I was or he recognized his wife or my sister uh going forward.

What a tragic, tragic disease.

I'm grateful for the organizations that continue to promote awareness uh and research.

So with that, uh we have a motion by Councilmember Campio and a second by Councilmember Campbell.

Clerk, please call the role.

I'm sorry, the voting system, please cast your vote.

That passes unanimously six to zero with Council Member Moreno, Councilmember Von Wilper, and Councilmember Foster absent.

Thank you, Council President.

All right, thank you.

With that, we will now pause for photos and we'll start with item thirty-one, El Dorado properties.

So if you come up to the pit.

How about they?

All right.

Let's uh get back to the business of the morning.

We will now proceed with the approval of the consent items.

Are there any requests to pull an item off consent?

Not seeing any requests by my colleagues.

Clerk, please proceed with public comment.

Please note each speaker will have one minute per item per person.

If you would like to speak on three or more items, you'll have a maximum of three minutes.

The consent agenda includes items 10, 50 through 54, 100 through 102, S502, and S503.

We did receive comments on items 50, three and three opposed, and item 102, one opposed VR e-comment form, which have been distributed to the council.

We do have speakers here in Council Chambers started with J starting with Jacob Lewis Edwards.

Speaking on items 52, S502, and S503, please come forward to the mic.

You'll have three minutes.

And then we have allegedly Audra with 102, 101, 5051, 52, 53, and 100.

Please proceed.

Again, good morning.

And I am going to stay on subject matter that.

So item 52, amendment to the salary of uh ordinance.

The 27th fiscal year.

Now amending the 27th physical uh budget is going to be very important.

It's going to be necessary.

Um also item S502, ordinance amending chapter two relating to postemployment health benefits for eligible employees.

Um then item five oh three, first amendment to the employment assistance program EAP.

Now, all of these items deal with folks' livelihoods, folks' livelihoods.

And that's a subject matter here, I consider.

So I'm going to talk about our livelihoods.

Our livelihoods are under attack.

Our country's under attack.

That if we don't stand up, we're in some trouble, folks.

But I spoke about earlier some very real stuff, and council president, it's we're gonna need to stand up against this stuff.

It was years ago.

I consider it now, not the mob's fault.

They were able to take the keys to our country.

Why wouldn't they?

I blame those in Washington, DC, but Chinese espionage was on the thing the entire time.

What it's led to is genocide.

Look up the YouTube clip.

Jacob Edwards speaks and it briefly explains what's going on.

Chinese espionage, they were like, look at this the entire time.

To take our country over.

Federal Reserve families who owe China a lot of money, cut a deal of disgust.

How dare they?

Yeah, you can take our country over per clearing that debt.

Trillions we owe you.

Most disturbing.

It's a deal of genocide that went along with it.

Recruited from the Department of Homeland Securities database for the best of the best of our country in competition.

The Chinese taking our country over.

Folk recruited in mass numbers to convention centers.

Right here in San Diego is the epicenter of it.

I don't know how many other cities are involved.

The genocides occurred for their best of the best.

We'll stand up for ourselves, folks.

I need to do some housekeeping really quick because Sean, you're twisting what I'm saying.

I'm not asking you to stand against the gay or trans community.

I'm asking why you're condoning pedophilia and the rape of children and why you don't stand against that.

And the fact that you say that you won't stand against that is very concerning because I guess as long as pedophiles are living their authentic life and their authentic self, you can be inclusive and equitable, all while admonishing and hating on victims for sharing assaults that are taking place.

So that's extremely um interesting.

Okay, so you know, with 50, I mean, anytime you guys are always updating and you know, changing your codes and stuff, and it's like a revolving door of changes.

I don't know how anybody can keep up with it.

With this pure water, um, you know, I'm wondering what kind of testing you guys have done when you are putting things like lye and chlorine and very toxic toxic chemicals into this water, as well as you know, there's sewage and different things that are still gonna be left over.

How do you know what the health effects are on the people?

Have you done testing um that would prove that it is absolutely pure water, that it's healthy, that there are no health effects, or is it something that's gonna come down the pike and we're gonna just revisit it when it comes, and then you'll have some kind of mitigating plan, um, probably some vaccine or something like that.

Um, and the salary ordinances, let's quit giving people raises until we can um really make sure we're providing stuff and we have the money to do it.

You guys keep coming to the people who don't have any money to give other people raises, it's ridiculous.

Um, and with these sole source contracts with Atom AI.

Um, you know, I just saw a Waymo driving around.

Uh, I think that we need to bring in an ordinance that bans Waymo's.

Is it you're saying they're not gonna come in here?

Are we banning them?

Is there something that you're gonna do to make sure they're not gonna be here, or is it just you're not gonna contract with them, but they'll be able to be in the city.

Um, and we need to be worrying about these data centers and AI, and that even goes into the power, um, the San Diego equity campus and um, you know, your clean energy fraud that uh, you know, you wanna sit here and act like this is um green energy when in fact it's totally toxic to the environment as well as human life.

I mean, like these Besses and different things that come in, and you know, the data centers taking up our fresh water.

Oh, well, we're given the pure water, right?

But we don't need to test that as long as the data centers get the fresh stuff.

I mean, who cares what people get?

Just the scraps, you know, eventually we're gonna be given soil and green.

That should be exciting.

I mean, we already are, I guess, in the water because there's babies and stuff that are you know, flush down the toilet and those.

Um, and then how can you be trusted with this disaster recovery infrastructure funding?

Um, why don't you just keep up with the infrastructure?

But wait, you guys need five billion dollars for it.

Dang it.

But at least you have this in case something happens, right?

Your time has concluded.

We're going to those participating remotely, starting the five-minute timer.

Starting with Blair Beekman, if you can please unmute.

Please let me know which item or items you wish to speak to.

Hi, uh Blair Beekman, again going first and not quite ready.

But um, I I am kind of ready here.

I wanted to speak to basically uh this day, all the consent items except, uh, let me see.

I I gotta get it here.

Uh except uh item 54.

Blair, you do need to be ready.

I'm very sorry about that.

I'm ready now.

Uh, all I want to speak to all items, not to 54.

Okay, please continue.

Sorry about that.

Thank you.

Okay, Blair Beekman.

Um, yeah.

Uh okay, so start with item 50, Coastal Commission modifications, land development code update.

Um, again, uh, one of my regular talking points these days, uh, it's important that we understand the concepts of sea level rise issue and how we talk about uh that with Midway Rising, because if we do, that makes it easier to talk about sea level rise issues for a number of issues in San Diego that I think we're having a bit of trouble with because of midway rising.

Um I know um Catherine Rhodes, she's described there can be ways to architect and build midway rising with uh sea level rise issues, but she also questions it, and I think we should be doing the same.

Um it should be an open process to consider.

Good luck in those efforts.

What we can be doing.

Uh, with pure water 51 on KPS P KPBS, they just reported that um uh Mexico, Tijuana is working on pure water issues.

They've had council persons visit Oceanside, uh, you know, and I just thought that was amazing.

So they're they're in interested in the future of pure water, quite possibly for the Tijuana River Valley.

If we think of pure water in those terms of how it can help our environment, how it can possibly help with AI issues, that's one thing.

Um we have to be very cautious how we talk about it is drinking water, though, I think.

And good luck we're learning to do that better.

Keep up those good efforts and continuing good communication with Tijuana.

I mean, it's just proving what good communication is about.

So good luck in that effort.

Sally ordinance salary ordinance issues.

I mentioned uh for the first time about a week ago.

I hope you can, if not this year, then next year.

Uh you can really be working on the concept that if our city workers take a $50 cut in pay each month, that's $600 a year.

Um that's a savings of over 200 or two almost two million dollars a year.

If we have like 3,000 plus staff workers, um, that's a lot in budget savings.

Really consider that.

Learn to take one for the team and that it's okay.

Uh, there can be times we can't do that.

We may be at a time we can next year may not, but let's hope we can.

Um to go on, uh, item 100 is uh uh well let me see, 101 is uh construction of B Street uh pedestrian corridor project.

Um this is an item that is dealing with um, you know, my usual uh issues of working on better tech accountability and how important that is.

And when you address better tech accountability, you're actually addressing our best practices and uh asking to end genocide basically, and that's why I do the work I do uh so we can end genocide more.

And um with the uh Valencia Park issues, I'll talk about later.

Thank you.

Next is Cynthia.

If I can have Gary, please come forward to the microphone.

He is our translator here, we'll be translating Cynthia from French to English.

Cynthia is speaking on item 50.

If you can please let her know that she'll have one minute for her comments and then one minute for your translation.

Thank you, Gary, for being here.

You're welcome.

Good morning, uh council woman.

Uh bonjour Cynthia.

Don't we have uniquement for votre comment here?

Don't I say that we have a defraise tree, deploy?

Okay, d'accord.

Bonjour, je m'appelle Cynthia Chonda.

She feed you group d'action étudiant pour les immigrants et refugies d'Afrique de West.

Montemagnage aujourd'hui complete Montaignage et non des immigrants et refuge originaire d'Afrique de West Vivant San Diego.

Nous exprimons notre opposition à la tick second de l'approbation de modification proposée.

Donc, d'appel environnemental demeure fixé at 2034.

So Montan A.

Put Plusieurs de notre communauté said some people represent plus d'un mois de loyer ou plusieurs semaines de salaire.

Le droit de contester indecision gouverne, ne devrait jamais de bonne capacité financière d'un individu.

Good morning.

My name is Santia, and I'm a represent uh the students from uh the refugees, right?

From the refugees in San Diego.

So I don't know so why um it is so difficult like uh for the council, like uh to understand uh how difficult uh it is of uh aiming grant uh so who comes here and uh the amount of data they require like uh to pay it's uh exorbitant, so it's uh really expensive and it's more like uh amount of rent, like a f also.

I don't know why uh Amy Grant I showed the it's uh the council like uh could reduce this fee so for fun for something more affordable for us, that will be that will be better, and we shouldn't have uh like a two um to be to be a buy.

Well, well not a buy, we shouldn't have like uh to um to fight like a for to to let uh our right on nose so in this uh situation.

So thank you.

Thank you.

Extra time was allowed for the translation.

Thank you so much, Gary, for coming down.

Thank you, Cynthia, for your comments.

8700, if you can please unmute and let me know which item or items you wish to speak to.

Uh thank you.

Uh only uh 51, please.

Please proceed.

Uh, yes to the Fifth Amendment for North City pure water facility and demonstration pure water facility with trussle technologies.

I celebrate this statement.

NCPWF will be the first full-scale facility in the world.

In the world using five advanced water treatment processes in sequence.

Isn't that an amazing statement to be first in the world with this amazing uh project of pure water?

So 20 years with Trussle.

That's five stars, Trussell.

Thank you so much for 20 years, and we appreciate you and just keep us going till we get to all the phases.

Thank you again.

The five-minute timer also concluded.

There were five speakers in the queue with uh Joy.

There are four speakers now.

No additional speakers will be taken.

Ernie Casco, please let us know which item or items you wish to speak to.

Yes, uh, items, all the items and retaliation for speaking on all the items, especially uh 30 30 is part of the proclamation, so you cannot speak to 30.

You can speak on the items within the proc within the com consent agenda.

Okay, Ernie Casco.

I uh in all the items trying to speak.

I've received experienced retaliation myself, serious injuries, assaults, poisoned with bi hazard.

Uh two more times by big father, poisoned into the health care system.

This is genocide in America.

Shamefully over the commercialization of a public park and land.

Torrey Pine's glider port.

I'm dying with stage four cancer now.

In concern of Tory Pine's glide report ongoing dispute.

The dear Ernie letter I received from the CPP is completely unacceptable.

It fails to accept to address serious allegations made to the city council, Joe Lacava, San Diego police department itself.

It completely ignores the victim and witnesses and the ongoing criminal activity and public safety concerns at Torrey Pine's glide report.

My first question is where are the police reports?

Residents should never be forced to sign an access pass and waiver under threat of violence.

I receive unanimous letter of support from La Jolla Town Council, La Hoya Shores Association, the University Community Planning Group to stop this crime.

Yet core issues remain ignored while problems continue.

You haven't killed my voice.

I'm asking three things from the city council to uh restore the park uh to the people and protect us from future abuse.

First thing where are the first uh where are the police reports for the victim and witnesses?

Let's see them.

Second, stop the illegal collection of public fundings into private accounts with a full city audit of Tory Pine Sliderport.

Third, restore lawful public access to ensure no one is forced into signing waivers.

It's time to enforce American law, not administrative law, and stand up for a constitutional recreational rights and freedoms and implement the San Diego recreational waiver that ends this dispute uh over our freedom at public parks.

Thank you, Ernie Casco.

Next is Hector.

If you can please unmute and let me know which item or items you wish to speak to.

I'd like to speak to 50, 51, and 52.

Thank you.

I'll have three minutes, please proceed.

So an item 50, the Coastal Commission.

The Coastal Commission has done us a lot of harm.

It takes a lot of time to get and to improve to approve things.

And they're just like out of the brought a lot of hurt in our city.

And build skyscrapers by the beach.

We should just ignore the Coastal Commission as much as we can.

Just tell them we're gonna do it.

We can do our own coastal uh decisions.

We love the coast, we love our coast, we know our coast.

We don't end them talking, it's just another bureaucracy with uh democratic scam going on in our city.

And then uh on the 51 on the pure water, I think it's good that Mexico's looking for pure water.

I say we just dam up the border crossing and let them deal with the sewage water.

It'll it'll put a fire under their ass.

They can smell some of that Mexican shit they're giving us.

The pure water, I think we should do audits every month and publish them at the city council because you know this is gonna be a huge overrun.

This is like we can't even handle parking at the zoo, let alone the billions of dollars it's gonna cost us.

We need to keep an eye on this, and the the lady that runs it, she's not tough enough.

She's she's like looking for her partners.

We know we need somebody who's just tough.

We ain't gonna buy no extras.

Take it, she could get tough.

Just think if she has a 15-year-old daughter, and the guy's looking for money, looking to take her out on a date, he's 28.

Italian guy with a heavy hairy chest and gold chains.

She'd be saying, hell no, you ain't taking her out.

That's what she's got to say with the cost overruns.

The contractors are gonna, she's an easy mark for the contractors.

It's not a it's not a committee saying no.

She needs to say no, and no more overruns.

They're they're gonna make up a lot of stuff.

And then the pay thing, 52 is the pay.

Hey, times are tough, man.

We're giving it 10% raise.

We need to weed up the employees.

Anybody that celebrated Charlie Kurt's death needs to leave.

We ain't gonna pay them nothing.

We never researched the employees that celebrated his death.

And we're taking uh, we'll have a bounty if you turn in one of your employees who celebrated this thing.

We'll give you a thousand dollars, and that person needs to go.

There's a bunch of them on the city payroll.

Those guys need to go.

Whatever color their hair is, but whatever their deal is, it's probably something to do with the alphabet crew celebrating the death of Charlie Kirk.

So the alphabet is the hopefully it's gonna heading downhill now.

Hopefully, they'll learn how to spell me.

Thank you.

If you raise your hand after the five-minute timer, you will not be taken, but you can definitely submit comments at cityclerk at Sandiego.gov.

Judy Strang, if you can please unmute and let me know which item or items you wish to speak to.

Yes, good morning.

I'd like to speak to S503 regarding the First Amendment to the employee assistance program here at the city that's being provided to us by Ever North Care Solutions.

I think it would have been extraordinarily useful to have a staff report on the city's EAP program.

This is a program provided to employees, generally speaking, in my experience with EAP programs, it's for behavioral health issues, and we are grateful that the city recognizes how important it is to their employees.

That was not the case 40 years ago.

So it's about time we have recognized over the last several decades how valuable it is to help our employees with their alcohol and drug problems.

Those problems affect the bottom line of the city.

They affect job performance and productivity, and nothing more so than impaired cognitive function because it creates bad dis decision making.

You miss deadlines, you have sloppy work and decreased efficiency.

Nothing so much as someone who's under the influence of marijuana.

So thank you to this group.

Thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Our next speaker is Jennifer Bennett.

Please begin.

Hi, um, I'm John Hogan here speaking from Jennifer Bennett, who um had the leave just now.

Um, quickly, on behalf of the community of Redwood Village and the Eastern Area Community Planning Group, we ask for the approval of funds for the Streamview Drive Green Infrastructure Improvements for the Health and Safety of our Communities.

Um, this is item 100.

Uh, we'd like to thank the council, uh, District 9, Rep, Sean, Ela Rivera, and all the city staff for their consideration and work on this project.

We appreciate it very much.

It's been many years that we've been advocating for this.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

That does conclude public comment on the consent agenda.

All right, thank you, City Clerk and Deputy Clerk for hoping up.

Uh, with that, we'll turn it over to the council members for any questions, comments, and entertain a motion.

We'll start with council member Ilo Rivera.

All right.

Uh thank you, Council President.

Um, I will move approval of the proclam of the consent agenda.

And just wanted to speak briefly to item 100, the uh authorize the stormwater department to accept inappropriate funding from the California Department of Housing and Community Development, 2024 disaster recovery infrastructure.

MIT RIPP fund.

So that very long unwieldy title is really um beneath that long unwieldy title is a project that's going to directly improve the quality of life for Redwood Village residents in my district uh and beyond.

Streamview Drive has been in the works for many years, and I want to thank the stormwater engineering capital project team for this.

I also want to thank some of our community leaders, Lynn, Bettina, and Jennifer, uh, for community organizing work on this and never allowing the city and my office uh to forget that this is important and needs to get done.

Uh Streamview Drive has been a long overdue project, just like this, one that combines blue-green infrastructure and supports our efforts to be climate resilient.

It's situated just upstream and in tributary to Choya's Creek, which is an urban waterway that was impacted during the severe rainstorms in 2024.

And this project will improve the capture and conveyance of urban runoff along Stream Streamview Drive and install new stormwater treatment systems within the uh 258-acre watershed.

There are some really uh great components of this, including an underground trash capture vault, underground stormwater detention vault, and multi-use treatment area vault.

Together, they're they will help reduce pollutant levels such as trash, sediment, zinc, and other contaminants entering Choyas Creek.

Additionally, the detention vault will help manage stormwater by reducing peak flows into the creek.

So these are smart investments, the type of things that the city should keep pursuing as we move forward.

I want to say thank you again to our community leaders for their advocacy on this and the city workers uh who helped uh make this happen.

Um, Council President, I assume you probably understood everything that I said better than I did.

Um, but that concludes my motion.

All right, yeah, I think you nailed it.

I think the community understands it and appreciates it.

So we have a motion by Council Member Elo Rivera.

Uh, and we'll go next to Council Member Woodburn.

Thank you, Council President.

I'm happy to second the motion to approve the consent agenda.

Uh just note how pleased I am with item 101, which is the agreement with Civic San Diego for construction of the B Street Pedestrian Corridor Project Dow Town.

This is a project that has been decades in the baking.

It's going to provide much needed pedestrian improvements.

It'll make it easier for people to access public transportation, it'll increase safety around the Santa Fe Depot for Downtown residents and visitors alike.

This action advances our goals of improving mobility, accessibility, and connectivity downtown.

And I want to thank city staff at Civic San Diego for all their work in moving this project towards construction.

Thank you, Council President.

Alright, thank you, sir.

So we have a motion by Councilmember Elo Rivera and a second by Councilmember Whitburn to move the consent items.

I don't see anybody else on the lights.

So clerk, Deputy Clerk, please call the roll.

I have set up the voting system.

Please cast your vote.

If you did.

There you go.

Thank you.

The consent agenda passes unanimously 6-0 with council districts four, five, seven, and eight absent.

All right.

Thank you.

So with that, um, oh, do we have any comments from the mayor's office, city council member, city attorney, independent independent budget analyst or city clerk.

Not seeing any requests.

We will now take up the non-agenda public comment.

Council members respect and appreciate the public.

Some put and are fully committed to protecting every participant's free speech rights at council and committee meetings.

Clerk, please proceed with public comment.

Pro Rule 2.7, non-agenda public comment is an opportunity for members of the public to comment on items that are not on the agenda but within the subject matter jurisdiction of the city council.

Each speaker will have two minutes.

Please note if there are eight or more speakers on a single topic, the maximum time for the topic will be 16 minutes.

If you are in chambers, please submit your speaker slip.

If you are joining us virtually, please raise your hand to speak by tapping the raise your hand icon, or if you are a call-in participant, star nine.

We will begin with in-person comment.

Jacob Lewis Edwards.

Again, good morning.

Councilman and women.

So it was years ago.

My family put uh the mafia on me to squash any trace of anything I was calling out in my family.

Had nothing to do with the mafia.

That was my family who did that to me.

Um, they hijacked my mom's younger brother's position in the Department of Homeland Security over our country's cyber security networks.

Over time, that enabled them, hijacking our federal government agencies.

I say now, not their fault.

Of course, they had taken the keys to our country if they were able to.

I'd blame those in Washington, D.C.

who allowed it.

I was terrorized all along the way.

My civil rights and liberties violated in the grossest ways you could imagine.

My human rights grossly violated with our government agencies used against us.

Chinese espionage on the thing the entire time.

Watch the clip.

Jacob Edwards speaks on YouTube where I spoke right here at this microphone.

It has led to genocide.

Federal Reserve families cutting a deal to wipe out the debt of trillions with the Chinese.

How dare they hand our country over?

But the deal of genocide to wipe out the best of the best of our country so that the best of their best can come in.

They're recruiting them from the Department of Homeland Security's database of the best this country has and slaughtering them in mass numbers.

So the best of the Chinese can come in.

How dare they?

Now, country, our country, our local leaders, our community, needs to stand up that this is our country.

This is our livelihoods, our country's future is at stake.

Our lives are at stake.

That I urge you, every one of you, and folk in the community, that it's time to quit going along with this, acting like it's not going on, running from it for everybody to fight together.

Stand up for our country, for the people, by the people.

Thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Our next speaker is allegedly Audra.

It's interesting, people get offended when I talk about pedophiles.

Makes me wonder if you guys are pedophiles, because like to be offended to talk, it should be that you're offended that that happens, that you shouldn't want children to be raped or sexually assaulted, not promoting it and glorifying it as a sexual preference, and that as long as a pedophile is living its authentic life and being their authentic selves, then those children don't matter, all while we say you care about all people.

I would think it suffice to say that you don't care about victims, that you perpetuate creating them, and you consider me talking about pedophiles hate speech or anti-Semitic or homophobic, or you know, I'm a bigot or racist, whatever.

You know what I mean?

All the gaslighting names.

So you're willing to gaslight me for talking about it and hating it, being a victim of it, and then it's like you want to twist what I'm saying, while right there, right in front of us, minor attracted persons are being honored and glorified, while I'm being gaslit, as if I'm asking you to not accept a certain community.

But I guess why are we accepting pedophilia as okay when you do have children?

That that is a question I do have.

I don't that doesn't make sense to me.

And I would say that competency is in question when you can have children and promote that your child could potentially be abused.

That doesn't make that.

I think that does conclude your time.

Our next speaker is Liam Medier.

Please come forward.

Good morning, City Council.

Um, I hope I can have your attention for at least the next minute.

Uh my name is Liam Medvegev.

I'm a 14-year-old from District 7.

This council, I believe, should terminate its contract with flock safety because it has been proven time and time again in San Diego and across the country that we cannot govern it effectively.

Consider this.

Within the first three weeks of operation, we had 12,914 unauthorized searches.

In 2024 alone, STPD transferred data to federal agencies 62 times in apparent violation of California state law.

When this city's own privacy advisory board recommended shutting this program down, this council overrode that five to three.

Moreover, SCPD's data owns show shows that a hundred of the 140 aggregated database searches run in 2024, only 0.2% actually assisted investigations.

So this is a fatal uh reflection of the fatal shortcomings within Flock Technology.

El Cajon is being sued by the attorney general for sharing data illegally.

Ventura County logged over 364,000 illegal data searches.

One misconfigured camera in Mountain View exposed it to over 250 agencies.

And in San Francisco, not so far from us, it has been searched 1.6 million times by people without the legal authority to do so.

And so when we have the same failure repeating across multiple jurisdictions, we have to ask, is it a failure of implementation?

And I'd say no, it's a failure of the architecture.

If we look at Flock, it's built to make sharing very easy and accountability very difficult.

And I personally believe that no policy this council passes can possibly change what the system is built to do.

And so this is why reform is not the answer.

Because we cannot regulate our regulate our way around system or structural flaw.

And so that's the only response that is proportional to this many that has failed many times in many places to end it.

San Diego does not have to choose between public safety and governance because we're government that sacrifices one to protect the other actually protects neither.

Thank you for listening.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Anthony Ralph.

Whereas Waldo Von Wilbert, one more time, she's not here.

And it gets really frustrating to know that we're paying council members that aren't present when we're wishing to address them.

I don't know if she's on official business.

It hasn't been spoken, if she is, and again, it is really frustrating to see empty seats when they're getting paid very well to not be listening to us.

I brought these three flowers.

I want to give them to the three members of City Council that voted for Flock.

I know that I'm obviously against Flock, but the reason why I got you these flowers is because six months ago, seven months ago when you initially voted for Flock.

If you hadn't done that, I wouldn't have started paying attention.

Seven months ago, I didn't know a single one of your names.

I didn't know a single one of your positions on a plethora of issues.

In that time, I've gotten to know not only the issues, I've gotten to know where you stand on many of these issues, and I've gotten to learn a ton in that process.

So it inadvertently woke a sleeping giant in me, and it inadvertently woke a sleeping giant in this city.

And our civic participation is now at full throttle, or at least mine is.

And I'm one of the privileged few who can come here on a regular basis, who can afford to park, who can afford to take time off work.

Not everyone can do that.

And that's why I'm here routinely to represent this position.

And even though I fundamentally disagree with y'all, I still got love for y'all.

I agree with what Joyce and Yadis said when she says love to all.

And um, so again, even though I disagree, I actually came yesterday with the intention of issuing Revolution Bio an apology.

Because seven months ago, when I called you out for not being present, I didn't know that you were on paternity leave.

Like if I I wish that Martin Yvonne Wilbert had some kind of an excuse or at least would give us a reason as to why she's not here right now, so that we could at least know why she isn't present in helping us make the decisions that we need.

I also wanted to mention the Supreme Court's decision yesterday.

I wanted to read this to you.

I read it to those that were present, but they ruled yesterday that law enforcement officials used a geofence warrant.

Um, that does conclude your time.

Basically, they ruled that uh that does conclude your time.

Thank you.

I'll explain it tomorrow.

I have started the five-minute timer in Council Chambers, and we'll now turn to virtual comment.

We'll begin with Blair Beekman.

Blair, please begin.

Hi, uh, Blair Beekman.

Thanks for the meeting today.

Thanks a lot for the words of Tony.

Um, in the past year, our councilpersons have really learned the art form of ducking out of meetings.

And especially with council person Bom Wilpert in a campaign.

Uh, all respect for her campaign that I hope she can win.

Um, I think she would be better served by staying at council meetings instead of always leaving now.

And her committee meetings.

I think she would have a better campaign if she was at her regular meetings.

We would have respect her a lot more.

I'm starting to disrespect what she's doing.

It's becoming aggravating.

This was an important day.

She was supposed to be here.

Um, so I'm upset.

She's got to start returning to meetings more regularly, and same with our other councilpersons.

Um, I also, and thanks as always for the words of Anthony, by the way.

Uh, I wanted to comment um the comment the ideas of you know, stormwater issues.

We had our worries um, you know, the past few years.

Um, so we couldn't talk as more openly and clearly as we could have.

It's been a few years now.

Can we please stop using the euphemism sports utility lighting to talk about the depth of what our uh surveillance technology in our parks and rec centers that's actually doing?

Can we be more specific in that?

Instead of it's a euphemism you guys are using.

Let's really move past the euphemism, please.

Um, it's it's safe.

Please trust it, don't be fearful.

Um, clear conversation is good.

There's also concepts uh, uh, you know, the city of Oakland has a love life philosophy that I hope we can uh help that they don't want to do harm in their decision making.

I think it can help a lot.

And to comment uh on ALPR uh uh use in real time.

Um police are confused.

They don't quite know the rules of the road and when they can and can't talk about their data tech.

Uh and we have to learn to have that open conversation so we can.

Um, that's what I keep trying to say at this time.

We have to have an open conversation, not a closed conversation.

Thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Our next speaker is Becky Rapp.

Please begin.

Good morning.

My name is Becky Rapp, and I'm here today to ask for greater transparency and accountability in San Diego's marijuana permitting program.

Seven years ago, Rancho Bernardo residents spent a significant amount of time participating in the public process before our neighborhood pot shop was approved.

We attended hearings, submitted comments, and carefully evaluated the applicant.

But today, if you visit the city's website, the public permit still identifies as the original permit holder, not the business that is now actually holding the permit.

We stumble stumbled across industry publications that reported that the cake house has acquired 12 existing pot shop permits in San Diego, yet they are not updated on the city's website.

That raises a simple question.

Why is it easier to learn who controls a city-issued marijuana permit from an industry publication than from the city's own website?

If ownership's ownership changes, if a permit is transferred, or if a new company takes control of a pot shop, the public shouldn't have to search through corporate records, state databases or trade publications to find that information.

The community's interest doesn't end when the permit is approved.

In many ways, that's when transparency becomes even more important.

So I urge the city to maintain an up-to-date publicly accessible database that identifies current permit holders and current operators.

Ownership changes and permit transfers for every pot shop in the region.

Residents deserve to know who is operating these businesses throughout the life of a permit, not just on the day it was approved.

Public participation should be matched by public transparency.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is a caller with the last four digits 7-34.

Please begin.

Good afternoon, San Diego City Council.

My name is Terry Ann Skelly.

I'm a parent and public health educator, and I am a planning group member as well.

When reviewing air quality in the city of San Diego and the role of tobacco-related disease and death, it is very important to address disparities.

The overall conclusion that tobacco takes a higher toll on less advantaged people is not new, but needs to be carefully regarded when policies regarding smoking and vaping are considered.

Here in California, Stan Glance, faculty member at the University of California's San Francisco, US UCSF, their School of Medicine in the Division of Cardiology stated, and I quote, it's important to recognize the growing role of cannabis in undermining tobacco control and contributing to health disparities, especially given the prevalence of tobacco and cannabis co-use in youth and young adults, and the social economic and health disparities associated with chronic or daily use of marijuana or tobacco.

Tobacco use, which is of grave concern for public health educators who work on behalf of 18 to 30 year olds and those of us who are a parent group of that specific age group.

Protecting all city residents from exposure to secondhand tobacco and cannabis smoke in all indoor and outdoor settings should be a priority.

Reducing the availability and advertising related to tobacco and marijuana should be a priority of our county.

Thank you for hearing my concerns this afternoon.

Thank you.

Please note the five-minute timer did go off.

We have seven speakers remaining in the queue.

No further speakers will be taken.

Kathleen Libitt, please begin your comments.

Thank you for letting me speak.

I'd like to address the housing issue.

The need for affordable housing is great, but housing quickly becomes unaffordable when a city continues to add fee after fee and focuses only on one side of the tenant landlord equation.

Protections solely focused on tenants, miss the expense that landlords are uh expenses that are created for landlords.

The city's failure to analyze both benefits and risks has led to higher cost of housing and a failure to protect those who deserve protection.

Landlords' cost for maintenance, upkeep, habitability standards, inflation can lead to landlords failing to properly maintain their property.

And the cost of remediating units where smoking or vaping has taken place adds an additional layer of costs as well as the health impacts that are caused by that.

Anti-eviction rules do not allow for landlords to evict problematic nuisance tenants.

The eviction process is lengthy and costly, and rent caps do not allow landlords to adjust rents in response to market changes.

Screening restrictions that do not allow proper vetting of potential tenants can lead to tenants with a history of failing to pay their rent or previously damaged uh property, and tenants who will may exploit friendly tenant regulations.

The cost of forcing landlords to accept tenants who cannot afford the rent or forcing landlords to accept government housing vouchers can lead to costs that are passed on to other tenants.

A healthy rental market recognizes there are two entities involved in the rental market, renters and landlords.

Thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Our next speaker is Madison.

Please begin.

Hi, thank you, City Council members.

As a mother of three children, I often think about how much care goes into protecting a baby before that child is even born.

Pregnant women are told to watch what they eat, what medications they take, and what substances they avoid because those early months matter so much for a child's development.

That's why I think it's important to pay attention to what the medical community is saying about cannabis use during pregnancy.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recently updated its clinical guidance and stated that cannabis use during pregnancy has been associated with serious risks, including spontaneous preterm birth, low birth weight, and developmental delay.

As marijuana becomes more socially accepted and easier to access, many women may assume it is harmless because it is often described as natural or even promoted as a way to help with stress or nausea.

But doctors are very clear that there are no medical indications for cannabis use during pregnancy or during the postpartum period, or in fact at all.

THC crosses the placenta, meaning a developing baby is exposed during critical stages of growth when the brain and body are especially vulnerable.

Mothers deserve honest information to make these decisions for their baby that's growing inside them.

And if we are serious about protecting maternal and child health, then public policy should reflect the medical evidence showing prenatal cannabis use is dangerous and not go along with the marketing narrative that says it's not.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Hector.

Please begin.

Alright, the immigration front has stepped forward.

The Supreme Court just ruled temporary legal status has been revoked for a million people.

So anybody that works for the city who has temporary legal status, you just got fired.

Your history, you don't want the city aiding and abetting them with paydays.

So talk to the city attorney.

That's aiding and abetting the guys with temporary legal service as status has been revoked.

You're here a thousand dollar a day fine to be here illegally.

So if you have any money in the bank, you might want to take it out before Trump just brings on ice with the big teeth, and they ain't gonna play that game no more.

Even though Somali guys have temporary legal status, their history, man.

Get back on the boat.

Head on home, man, for you suffer too much.

Save your suffering for Somalia and the homelands of like Haiti and all these other great countries.

Please go back to your great country because uh the Iceman coming.

We gotta change the song, the theme song in San Diego to Ice Ice Baby.

And I love those cameras.

They just put a bunch more down by Fashion Valley, the brand new ones.

They installed about 20 of them.

So, if you're in Fashion Valley, you might want to go somewhere else, but there's a lot of cameras, brand new ones on the polls.

They look state of the art, so I don't know who's watching those cameras, but you'll be in watch, uh just the way it is.

The mass rapid deportation is gonna get better.

There's other things that's gonna happen.

Trump's gonna get the all the computerized programs, and it's gonna be pretty easy to do.

That does conclude your time.

Our next speaker is a caller with the last four digits 870.

Please begin.

Joy Sanyaka, our city needs a new vision that fosters all components of our budget.

Dear public, all of you, each of you are at the very top of the city's organization chart.

There has been a lot of passionate fighting in the chambers lately.

Fight for a budget, fight for a trash fee, fight for a parking fee, fight against hate crimes, and lots lots more.

Yet, in my opinion, something is missing.

We need a new vision for the city of San Diego, a noble vision for the great city we want to become.

This would be the kickstart we need for the boldness we need to unravel and solve what is not working at our city's structural core.

Dear public, all of you are at the very top of our city's organization chart.

Let's work together as one to create a new mo noble, excuse me.

Let's work together as one to create a new noble vision for our beautiful city now.

Love to all, and I want to finish with wishing all of you a really wonderful 4th of July legislative recess.

See you when you get back.

Thank you.

And I will speak this afternoon.

Love to all.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Ernie Casco.

Please begin.

Ernie Casco, once again, what is the main issue at Torrey Pine's glider port?

We the people are being forced to buy insurance, not required by law, and an access pass waiver to use a public park.

This is insurance fraud and misappropriation of public funding going into private accounts, a racketeering operation which demands full transparency, city audit that would end the corruption within Tory Pine's glide port management.

City Council has a proven solution.

The San Diego Recreational Waiver Secure City liabilities isolate safety concerns and stops the illegal collection of public funding into private accounts by separating the business from normal free public access by allowing the business to stay and pay their own bills, operating like every other business in public parks and lands.

There are laws to protect us.

Who is liable?

The city council is responsible to provide police reports that normally provide justice for the victim and witnesses who have been damaged by your leaseholder.

There are common business laws to protect the public on how businesses should be run in public parks and lands.

You need to apply those rules to your leaseholder.

The San Diego recreational waiver is a win for city council liabilities using common contract laws that legally restores our recreational rights and freedoms for years to come.

Thank you, Ernie Casco.

It's time for you, Joe La Caba, to stop the crime in your own office or step out of office representing San Diego La Jolla residents.

Our next speaker is John Stump.

Please begin.

I want to request that the council redocket ordinance zero two six one one nine on the fees to register an appeal.

Um made a determination that work was based not on reasonable or rational base costs.

The city appeal costs are now ipsy dixit.

And the staff report that the fees were based on contained obvious mathematical errors.

Uh because it now excludes the common man.

I can't believe that Democrats would set fees so high to exclude the participation of the common working man, fees are now so high that it's the same as rent.

Additionally, I've asked Ms.

Fuentes to contact me concerning the appeal notice that is being sent out for appeals before the city council for quasi-judicial hearings.

There's one set for the seventh, and the way it's set up is the defendant, the executive branch, gets notice and participation while the appellant gets no recognition.

That whole notice has to be resent out or revised or something.

It's seriously flawed and doesn't meet legal standards.

So I ask uh city clerk Fuentes to call me.

Thank you, John.

That's conclude your time.

Thank you.

Our next and last speaker is Judy Strang.

Please begin.

Excuse me.

Good afternoon, City Council.

Thank you for the all the behind the scenes operations that allow those of us who are on the work site today to call in and share some thoughts and observations because of the experiences that we have that are applicable, we think to the decisions you are making.

I wanted to continue my thoughts when I spoke to S 504 regarding Alzheimer's and Brain Awareness Month.

And I mentioned I think that there's two sort of issues going on.

One, two both of which I'm familiar with, a family member who has a traumatic brain injury, a choice he didn't make, and it's been horrific for him and caregivers.

And then on the other hand, another family member who's unfortunately wasted his beautiful brain because he began his marijuana use at 17.

And we all know, I think it's been pretty clear from the research that adolescent brains continue to be formed up until they're 25.

That's partially why marijuana addiction is considered a pediatric onset disease, and so preventing young people from initiating marijuana and other drug use is really their best chance for fulfilling their potential.

A research that I think we may have mentioned before, but I think comes as no new news to you all that what children and young adults see in their city affects how they feel about choices they make.

Particular this research suggests that the commercial marijuana enterprises that are in their community, in their neighborhoods, mutes their perception of risk and increases the use of the substances, and it's important for us to look arounded here in the city of San Diego because we have billboards.

I mean, you.

Thank you.

That does conclude an agenda public moment.

All right, thank you, Deputy Clerk.

We will now adjourn for the noon recess and reconvene open session at two PM or shortly thereafter.

Um then we remove the No, no, no.

All right, thank you for your patience.

Good afternoon.

I will now reconvene the city council meeting of Tuesday, June thirtieth, twenty twenty six.

Clerk, please call the roll.

Thank you, Council President.

Councilmember Campbell?

Councilmember Whitburn.

Council Member Foster.

Councilmember Von Wilbert.

Council President Pro Tem Lee.

Councilmember Campillo.

Councilmember Moreno.

Council Member Eloh Rivera.

And Council President Lacava.

Also attending the meeting are Assistant City Attorney Michelle Garland, independent budget analyst, Charles Monica, Council of Affairs Advisor in the Mayor's Office, Coda Zeizer, and myself, your Deputy City Clerk, Kevin Smith.

All right, thank you, Deputy Clerk.

And with that, Council Member Foster, can you read your statement?

Yes, thank you.

Uh Council President.

I'm notifying the City Council and the public that I am attending the meeting today remotely due to just cause related to travel while on official business.

I will update this disclosure if it changes during the course of the meeting.

All right, thank you, sir.

A quorum is now present.

For our first order of business this afternoon, we have a request from staff to return item three three one.

Would you like to make a statement, Michael?

There you go.

Okay.

Thank you, Council President.

Michael Prince, Assistant Deputy Director in the Development Services Department.

Staff is requesting that the item be returned to staff to allow further review of the appellant's letter received on Thursday, June 25th, and then to bring that back at a later date.

Alright, thank you, sir.

I take notice uh public hearings pretty seriously.

Um, and so in addition to the staff's request, I also asked them to give us evidence that the appellate, in fact, is comfortable with this being delayed to take into consideration the additional information.

So, without objection to my colleagues, uh, we'll return this item to staff and look forward to being docted probably after the summer recess.

Thank you, sir.

With that, clerk or deputy clerk, please introduce item 330.

Item 330 is residential rental price gouging fee exploitation and cost transparency ordinance.

Councilmember Yelover, do you want to make some opening comments before turning it over to your team?

Thank you, Council President.

All right.

Um last year uh the council had a select committee to address the cost of living, and a lot of good work happened there, including the residential tenant utility ordinance.

And when that item came to council, there was a message we heard from many renters across San Diego that while that ordinance would be helpful, there were still there was still a sea of fees that they were drowning in and having a real impact on their ability to afford to live in San Diego.

So today you will have an opportunity to discuss and workshop a draft ordinance meant to protect renters throughout San Diego.

During public comment, we will hear stories from San Diegans that have experienced and continue to face junk fees every day.

We will also hear opposition to the ordinance, as we do every time we uh take take steps to protect renters in this city.

We will hear that it will be impossible to be a landlord, but there are examples throughout the country of similar ordinances that provide the same protections that are being presented here today.

What I think we need to make clear is who the city is actually working for.

And it should be everyday San Diegans that make up the heart of our city, not corporate interest.

And with that, I'll hand it over to Jeffrey to begin the presentation.

Thank you.

Hello, Council President La Cava and members of the city council.

My name is Jeffrey Noen.

I'm presenting on behalf of Council Member Ilo Rivera.

I'm presenting item 330, residential rental price scouging, fee exploitation, and cost transparency ordinance.

I'll need about 10 minutes.

Item 330 is an informational item.

I will be going over the draft ordinance and we are seeking input from the public and council members.

First, I will provide background and additional context on why we are bringing forward this proposed ordinance.

The purpose of this ordinance is to make housing more affordable, respond to concerns and requests we have heard from San Diegans, and to promote fairness, equity, and transparency regarding how landlords charge fees to residential tenants and applicants.

This item was originally brought forward at the select committee on addressing cost of living on October 30th, 2025.

The item in committee presented proposed aspects to be drafted into the draft ordinance.

As part of the action, Council District 4 and 9 were directed to work with the city attorney's office to draft an ordinance to be later presented for discussion, which we are doing here today.

At the same time this item was heard at committee, the count the county was simultaneously working on a similar ordinance.

Our offices partnered with the offices of Supervisor Montgomery Staff and Supervisor Geary to develop similar ordinances for the city and the county.

Since last year, we have worked together to draft our ordinances, and they mirror each other as much as possible.

This is a brief overview of the rental market.

Per Redfin in quarter three of 2024 in the San Diego metro area, 48% of San Diegans were renters.

And as of May 2026, the average rent in San Diego is approximately approximately $3,027.

Of the renters in San Diego, about $110,000 are cost burdens or pay more than 30% of their income to rent.

This chart shows the proportion of recent renters by the number of applications they submitted.

A 2024 report by the White House Council of Economic Advisors reports the burden of application fees totaled $176 million each year.

A 2025 Zillow Consumer Housing Trends Report noted fees may not apply equally throughout the rental market.

Recent renters of color reported paying higher total amounts in application fees.

They are also more likely to report paying at least one recurring fee.

And renters between the ages of 18 and 29 are most likely to pay at least one recurring fee.

San Diegoans are cost burdened.

Cost of living expenses are going up, but working families' incomes are not keeping pace.

Junk fees are a growing problem burdening San Diegans.

On the following slides are real examples shared to our office of fees tenants have been charged renting in San Diego.

This slide shows an additional fee to tenants for choosing a month-to-month lease option.

This is a quote from a San Diegan whose landlord removed their garage from their rental agreement unless they paid an additional $600 fee per month.

The next two slides are from another San Diegan who struggled to find a new home on short notice.

Their landlord gave them 60-day notice to move out.

With a household of eight, three adults, and five children, they had to pay application and screening fees for three adults for every unit they applied to.

They spent over $400 to apply, not to get housing, just to apply.

They shared with our office that every denied application was met with the same response, that someone else is chosen or they had too many applications.

In all these instances, the landlord kept that money.

Rental fees are any payment or charge imposed by a landlord to a tenant.

A rental fee does not include rent, late fees, security deposits, and utility charges.

Here are some examples of rental fees that tenants may need to pay to find a home or to continue living in their home.

Other jurisdictions have begun taking actions against unnecessary or excessive fee practices.

Bellingham, Washington capped late fees to 2% of outstanding monthly rent past due, capped security deposits, and prohibited a fee for the use of in-unit appliances, access to common areas, and more.

In Colorado in response to the bill.

The blue vertical line shows the implementation date, and the graph shows the proportion of rentals that were pet friendly.

As you can see, the proportion of pet friendly units did not decrease.

There are a number of state laws that regulate and provide certain protections on rental fees.

Our proposal builds on current state law to provide additional needed protections.

With this background, this leads into our policy proposal.

Since May 19th, when the item was originally scheduled to be heard, there has been one addition to the draft that I would like to note.

Under exemptions, we have added the exemption of affordable housing excluding section eight.

The proposed ordinance is divided into two main portions: charges to applicants and charges to tenants.

Under charges to applicants, a landlord shall accept an applicant screening report and not charge the applicant for the landlord to separately obtain any information including included in the applicant's screening report.

And landlord may charge an applicant a holding deposit in an amount not to exceed 5% of monthly rent for the residential rental property being held.

If the landlord and applicant fail at uh finalize the lease, the landlord shall refund the holding deposit to the applicant or apply the holding deposit to rent or the security deposit.

If they fail to finalize a lease at no fault of the applicant, the landlord shall refund the holding deposit within five business days from the date the hold on the property expires.

Under charges to tenants.

If a fee is recurring at intervals other than monthly, the landlord shall prorate the fee to a monthly rate for the purposes of this section.

A landlord shall not charge a tenant a late fee in an amount greater than two percent of monthly rent.

A landlord shall not charge a tenant a late fee unless rent is overdue by seven days or greater.

A landlord shall apply any payments by or on behalf of the tenant, first to rent due and then to any unpaid late fees.

A landlord shall not charge a tenant an amount greater than the processing fee imposed on the landlord.

A landlord shall not charge a tenant a fee for services solicited by a landlord to maintain the residential rental property in a habitable condition.

For example, pest control.

A landlord shall not charge a tenant a fee for a tenant to own or maintain a common household pet at their residential rental property.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the ASPCA, provided our office data and insight into pet fees in San Diego.

Pet related charges are shown here.

They are broken down by pet fees, pet deposits, and pet rent.

Many of these fees were charged per pet.

Finally, a landlord shall not charge a tenant a fee that is not specified in the lease.

A tenant may agree in writing to a proposed fee not specified in the lease after the landlord provides a written notice to the tenant not less than 30 days before the fee is intended to go into effect.

The written notice shall include the following purpose for the fee, total amount of the fee, and the amount of each charge of the fee if charged in intervals, the duration the fee will be charged if charged in intervals, the commencement date the fee will be charged, and itemized billing for the fee.

In other words, a tenant can reject a proposed new fee that a landlord is trying to impose that has not already been specified in the lease.

A landlord shall disclose in a clear conspicuous manner the following information on any website or advertisement that lists an available rental.

The total amount of charges for submission and consideration of an application to lease a residential rental property and itemize as to each charge, the total monthly rent, the total amount of fees, whether the fees are optional or required, the nature and purpose of the fees, and the timing and frequency the fees will be charged.

A landlord shall itemize all fees distinct from rent in the lease and on any bill or invoice to the tenant.

Each fee must be intelligible and distinct from other fees.

On this slide is a current example pulled from various Zillow listings of fee transparency and fee disclosure in an online advertisement.

This concludes the presentation.

For the sake of time, I provided a high-level overview of the ordinance, and I'm happy to go over any portion in detail.

Thank you.

Thank you, Jeffrey.

Council President, I'll just conclude by saying, again, this is a conversation that started last year.

I want to thank Councilmember Foster for his partnership since committee and the work of his office, in addition to the partnership of uh our colleagues of the county, Supervisor Montgomery Step and Supervisor Aguirre, they've all been very helpful in getting us to this point.

Thank you, Council President.

Alright, thank Councilmember Ila Rivera and your officers's work and to Jeremy and Maya for the presentation.

With that, deputy clerk, please proceed with public comment.

Thank you, Council President.

This item received five comments in favor and 27 comments in opposition via our e-comment form, which has been distributed to the council.

Each speaker will have one minute.

We will begin with in-person comment.

DeAndra Cron.

Please come.

Please come forward.

And after DeAndre, we will have William Snell, Stephanie Benvenuto, and Susan Onelus.

Please come sit in the front row and be ready to speak.

Please begin.

Good afternoon, Council members.

My name is DeAndrea Cron.

I'm a vice president and assistant general counsel for Valet Living for Compliance and Environmental Health.

I'm also a local California resident.

I'm here today regarding the proposed fee restrictions on housing providers specifically as they relate to Valley Trash.

Valley Living has set the standard for amenity multifamily waste manager management for over 30 years.

We service more than two million apartment homes every night across the United States.

And in San Diego County alone, we employ 128 W 2 associates with an annual payroll of 1.6 million.

Many of those part-time workers local to the city who rely on that income to support their families.

I want to be direct.

Valley Trash is not a baseline habitability service.

It's an operational add on amenity designed to enhance and optimize waste management, improving resident satisfaction, waste aversion, and safety.

Thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is William Snell.

William, you have uh Amanda McDonald seating you time, Amanda.

Can you raise your hand?

Thank you.

And you also have a presentation, which our staff will.

Oh, quick share.

Okay.

First of all, good afternoon to everyone.

Next slide, please.

Circa 1980.

My parents built a small apartment building within a moderate walking distance from where we are now located.

We currently have tenants that have been there 12 years, 18 years, some have stayed over 20 years.

We try to provide a quality environment at a very reasonable price.

Next slide, please.

I have never charged for screening fee.

I've never charged anyone at any time for a screening fee, period.

Next slide, please.

I do not use holding deposits.

I believe a handshake between honorable individuals should be entirely adequate.

Next slide, please.

I do not charge for water, pest control, or trash.

I can remember a time when the city of San Diego picked up the trash for free.

Next slide, please.

I have not charged a late fee in over a decade, and that individual had more problems than just a late fee.

Next slide, please.

I do not charge for parking.

Neighbors have come to my property, and by the way, I do not claim ownership.

I'm only a steward of the small family business.

Neighbors have come to my property and requested to rent parking spaces.

Next slide, please.

I've always turned them down because I believe the parking spaces should be deemed to the residents who have first priority.

But the neighborhood does desperately need more parking.

Next slide, please.

There's a widespread discussion of disclosure of all manner of fees, timing, purpose.

That does conclude your time.

Thank you.

Can you fast forward to the last slide?

I'm sorry, sir.

That does conclude your time.

We will have to move on.

I don't want to go after that.

Our next speaker is Stephanie Benvenuto.

Stephanie, you have uh four people seating you time.

Uh when I call your name, please raise your hand.

Matt Aubrey.

Didn't make it in time.

Okay.

James Lawson.

Ilia Ramirez.

No.

And Crystal Valentine.

Crystal.

Okay, you will have uh two minutes.

Okay, cool.

Thank you.

My name's Stephanie Benvenuto.

I'm here on behalf of the San Diego Building Industry Association, and I want to respectfully oppose this proposal.

I'll start by recommitting to the goal that we share with you all, which is adding more homes to our stock, thereby lowering the costs.

We have significant concerns with this policy.

One, because we believe it will be difficult to enact, but secondarily, because we think it jeopardizes investment that is necessary to build homes.

We are very interested in the transparency item.

We do believe that that is a component that we can support, and that is best practice.

Many of our members already do that.

Fundamentally, the problem with the capital investment is that these homes don't get built by one wealthy individual.

We have to go to a market.

That market sets a rate of return.

That rate of return is only met when people can recoup their costs of housing.

This policy jeopardizes that with a more blanket approach.

We think that there is far more room to continue working with the author's office to identify something that's more functional that avoids unintended consequences, and that creates enough supply so that people have the options of where they live, thereby limiting predatory behavior like what we're seeing and hearing so much of today.

So again, we ask for additional time to work with the author.

We hope that our considerations around unintended consequences are heard.

We did submit a letter to you all highlighting some of those, and we will be available for further discussion with you in your offices.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Susan O'Neillus.

You'll have one minute, please begin.

Hi, good afternoon, Council members.

My name is Susan Ornellis, and I am a junior studying political science at San Diego State University.

Um I grew up in an apartment with my siblings where my mom, who was a single parent and the head of our household, worked hard to keep a roof over our head.

As a child, I remember the worry on my mom's face every time our rent increased.

So whether it was $50 or $100, and at the time I didn't understand the numbers, I just knew our whole family carried that stress.

Families deserve stability, not uncertainty, requiring transparency and protecting renters from unnecessary charges help families plan, budget, and stay housed.

Please support this ordinance and help make renting more fair and transparent.

Thank you so much for your time.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Sheila Barefoot and uh followed by Michelle Finlan, Joni Halpern, Caitlin McQuaid, and Annette Cabanus.

Please come forward to the front row to be ready to speak.

Sheila.

Yeah, she's coming up.

I kind of forgot there's a lot of people probably mentioned our in chambers for the very first time, so we have a certain decorum rather than doing clapping, whether you agree or disagree.

Thumbs up if you agree with the speaker, you want to indicate that to the council, thumbs down if you disagree, and that allows us to keep the uh the meeting going.

So thank you very much for the courtesy.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Sheila Barefoot.

I'm a San Diego resident, a renter, and a member of Heel and Run.

I'm here today asking you to support the junk fee ordinance.

As someone who experienced homelessness myself, I can attest to the difficulties of finding shelter.

Not only is it the relentless rising cost of rent, but the unpredictability factor of junk fees that makes it a burden on San Diego renters like myself.

It was a hard climb back to being housed, and the pressure of junk fees makes it unpredictable, as I do have trash and sewer fees added to my rent.

Many in our community who are seeking housing after homelessness not only find affordability a blockade, but additional junk fees make it even more burdensome.

Those who live on fixed or strict budgets need predictability.

This ordinance will stop fee exploitation and bring transparency.

Again, I urge you to support the junk fee ordinance.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Michelle Finlan.

Michelle, you have uh time seated to you by Julieta.

Julieta, could you raise?

Okay, great.

You'll have two minutes.

Please begin.

Good afternoon, Council members.

My name is Michelle Finlan, and I'm an advocate with the Heel Network.

I'm here to urge your full and urgent support of the junk fee ordinance.

I became homeless in 2022 after fleeing a domestic violence situation, and I remained that way for three years.

I went from owning a thriving business and living in a beautiful apartment to working multiple service industry jobs while living out of my car.

When you're homeless, you're exhausted.

You're absolutely hungry and you're depressed and you're saving every last penny just to be able to rebuild your stability.

Saving for a deposit became one of my last worries.

When I finally started applying for apartments, I hit a brick wall of predatory and hidden fees.

I was really devastated to find out exactly how misleading advertisements were.

Landlords are tacking on additional application fees, there's hidden administrative charges, and every single time I thought I was going to get housed, the rug would get pulled out from underneath me.

When you are homeless or just cash poor in general, which a lot of us are now, $50 to $100 in unexpected fees is not an inconvenience.

It's a barrier to safety.

This ordinance directly solves the exact barriers that I was facing when trying to find housing.

This allows transparency in advertisements and allows for applicants to reuse their screening processes so that they don't have to keep paying.

I never overcame these hurdles.

I just found ways around them.

I lived off grid in a tiny home, and now I'm renting from a religious cult.

So not ideal.

This ordinance provides predictability that people need to survive.

I really hope that you take this into consideration and I really hope that you push this forward to help protect thousands of San Diegans, either help find housing or keep a place to call home.

Thank you so much.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Joni Halpern.

Joni, you have time seated to you by the following people.

If you could raise your hand when I call your name.

Layla, thank you.

Hinda Tahiro.

Okay.

And Patrice.

Okay.

Great.

Thank you.

Go ahead, you will have four minutes.

Good afternoon.

My name is Joni Halper, and I work as a lawyer at the Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans.

We serve immigrants who are some of the hardest working people earning at the bottom of the wage scale.

And their work is very important.

They're the ones who care for the sick, the elderly, the kids, the clean hotels and hospitals, office buildings, houses.

They take every job that requires strong hands and strong back, and they don't complain.

They're all struggling to keep a roof over their heads, but it's not just the high rents that are making it impossible.

All over this city.

There are investors, small and large, who capture properties, jack up rents, and institute institute fees for everything from failure to clean a garbage can to fines for children playing in common areas of a complex.

Some of these fees are in the lease, buried in legal ease in 30 pages in the back parts of the lease.

And they're imposed.

The problem is they're imposed without merit, and tenants can't fight back because they fear retaliation.

There are fees for trash can breakage or replacements, smoke alarm tampering, rekeying, lock replacement, repairs, vacancy recovery, lease buyout, dishonored payments, late rent, using a common area, parking on the premises, storage, and more.

If someone pays their rent on time, but it's processed beyond the due date, the tenant is charged a late fee.

If a lock, sink, toilet, appliance that never worked right finally breaks, the tenant is charged.

And there are administrative fees that keep going up for ratio utility billing.

When people move out or are evicted because they can't afford the rent and the fees, many property owners charge tenants for repairs and replacement costs so extensive they amount to nearly a renovation of the entire unit.

An example is a family that came to me with a debt collection letter for charges imposed by the property owner after they moved.

They moved into the unit with sluggish sink drains, a stove fan, an oven that didn't work, cabinet doors falling off, moldy bathroom floors, and vertical blinds that you couldn't open because the panels fell out.

But when they moved out, they were charged for replacement of all flooring, countertops, appliances, paint, window coverings, totaling more than $20,000.

This allowed the landlords to keep the security deposit and then bill the tenant for extra repairs and replacement costs.

And when the tenant couldn't pay, the landlord sold the debt to the collection agency, and this was reported on his credit.

Something has to be done to stop these practices.

My clients can't easily find another place to live.

They end up subletting with whole families crammed into one room, renting porches and sheds.

They sleep in cars and some sleep on the floors of neighbors and friends, and they have to move every two weeks.

Try being old or sick or disabled and living like that, or dragging your kids through this.

The annual homeless street count does not even begin to show the scope of people who have no adequate housing due to fees that have shifted to the tenants.

The investors' risk of loss and the burden of ensuring their profit.

This ordinance is a good start at reigning in these fees.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Caitlin McQuaid.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Caitlin McQuaid.

I'm a lifelong San Diegan.

I'm a renter, and I'm a single mother.

I know how quickly housing can become unstable.

I've experienced homelessness, and today the only reason my family is housed is because a relative rents us a home for an incredibly reduced rent.

Even with that support, we are still one unexpected expense away from losing everything.

That's why junk fees matter when families are already choosing between groceries, child care, and keeping the lights on.

A surprising house fee can be the expense that pushes them over the edge.

Renters deserve to know the true cost of housing before they sign a lease, not after.

Price transparency and limits on unnecessary fees will help families budget stay housed and to avoid homelessness.

I urge you to support this ordinance.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Annette Cabinas.

Well, Annette approaches the microphone.

Could Al Del Mastro, Hamira, Yusafi, Lucky Aiden, and Salio Rusman, please come forward to the front row.

And that you'll have one minute.

Please begin.

Good afternoon, Council members.

My name is Annette Cabanas, and I'm here today with the Heel Network in support of the junk fee ordinance.

Junk ordinance fee.

And excuse me.

San Diego is the most expensive city in the country.

For many renters, one expected bill can mean the difference between staying housed and facing homelessness homelessness.

I do do know this because I have been chronically homeless in San Diego for some time.

Recently, my son just rented an apartment and he had to pay out about a hundred and sixty dollars just in screening fees, and he just applied to one place before he had found something, but that's a hundred and sixty dollars.

That makes a lot of difference in someone who's on a restricted budget.

Not only are we seeing the fees higher, I'm sorry.

Um, we are also oops.

Thank you.

That does conclude your time, thank you.

Our next speaker is Al Del Mastro.

And Al, you have time cedar to you by Owen Drew Weneki.

Can you raise your hand?

Okay.

Uh please begin.

You'll have two minutes.

Hi, my name's El Del Mastro.

I'm a senior.

I'm an ex-blue collar worker.

I'm a disabled veteran.

And yes, I'm a small mom and pop landlord.

Um, this is another biased law that's put in front of us as small mom and pop landlords.

I mean, you can hear how our policies are, how personal we are with our tenants.

But um, but um this biased opinion is uh when it you're driving it to be more and more like uh corporate landlords.

These actions drive corporate landlords so that we can't do this.

Uh right now, me and my wife are victim to uh um to one of the professional tenants because we took an application that we believe to be true.

So right now we are we have to turn this property over to a property manager who has attorneys that are doing this that are trying to help us salvage what we have.

Me and my wife, we decided to buy a property uh 20 years ago and never buy a home.

We bought a five plex that we live in in Claremont.

And the deal is is that I do most of the work as a blue-collar worker, I'd work weekends, holidays, all that to have a retirement of some kind.

And for you guys to take that away from me.

If I'd have known that when I did this, we'd have just put the money in the stock market.

Somebody, other you guys have rental properties too.

We're the land, the mom and pops are not the bad ones in this.

I don't want to charge the tenants water fees.

I don't want to charge them pet fees.

You just take it away from me.

You say, hey, you know, you know what units that we have, because we pay a rental fee.

Then you just say that apartment there doesn't pay trash fees, and we won't charge the tenants.

You take responsibility for these decisions.

Same thing with the water.

We don't need to charge the tenant water.

Make the city pay for their water.

I don't have any problem with that.

I'm sure no mom and pop has any problem with that either.

The thing is is that my insurance has been canceled four times in the last five years.

Thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Put a head in there, and he bites somebody.

I get named in the lawsuit.

Our next speaker is Homera Youssefi.

You'll have one minute.

Good afternoon.

My name is Hamira Yusuf with PANA.

Um, we all know local low-income families are struggling with rent here in San Diego.

They're stretching their pockets to afford the basic necessity of shelter.

Community members come to PANA seeking assistance when you know they thought they were paying one thing for rent, and all of a sudden there's all of these in uh fees that they weren't aware of, and now they can't afford to rent uh to they can't afford rent and are facing um being evicted from their homes.

My colleague Joni Halpern talked about many of these cases.

She's inundated with these types of cases that come to us every single day, and the city must do more to protect tenants.

This ordinance is necessary to protect low-income workers and families.

Housing should be clear, fair, predictable, not filled with hidden costs and fine print.

The proposed ordinance would cap extra rental fees at no more than five percent of monthly rent.

This is needed so that San Diegans can have more transparency.

Thank you.

Lucky Aiden.

Um, good afternoon.

My name is Lucky with PANA.

I'm here in support of this ordinance because everyone deserves to know the true cost of housing before making one of the biggest financial decisions of their lives.

San Diego's already really expensive, and for many renters, a challenge isn't just the monthly rent, it's the unexpected fees that appear through the application process, or even after when they're signing the lease.

These added costs make it harder for individuals and families to budget plan and secure um stable housing.

This ordinance is about fairness and transparency.

It creates clear expectations so that renters can make informed decisions and help ensure that advertised costs of housing reflects what people are actually paying.

A more transparent rental market benefits not only the renters but also those that uh responsible landlords who are already operating fairly.

Everyone deserves access to housing without worrying about hidden costs or unexpected financial burdens.

So I respectfully ask you to support this ordinance.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Uh Salio Usman, while Celio comes to the microphone.

Could I please have no name is Sally Osman?

Uh what I can strike.

I'm here today in support of this ordinance because every Sunday San Diego.

Sorry, sir.

Uh, you do have time ceded to you by another individual, and I need to confirm they are here.

Um, Abdul.

Uh Jibbar Caseon.

Could you please raise your hand?

Okay, great.

You'll have two minutes.

Please begin.

Perfect.

Hey, my name is Sally Osman.

I'm here.

Uh I work on strict tonight.

Uh, I live in San Diego's last 18 years, day and night.

Yeah, every year those cost of living plus inflation, the life is horrible.

So I'm here today in support of this ordinance because every San Diego deserve access to house that is fair, transparent, affordable.

Families should not have to worry about the surprise charge, hidden fees, or unclean rental costs when they are simply trying to find a stable place to live.

San Diego must take a clear stand for renters by making sure housing costs are honest, predictable, and they're not inflated by unfair junk fees.

San Diego is already one of the most expensive place to rent in this country.

Many renters have been charged extra junk fees on top of high rent.

These fees can include processing fees, convenience fees, late fees, duplicate application fees, and surprise charges after a lease is signed.

Some renters' listing listing do not clearly show the full cost of housing upfront.

Hidden fees can add hundreds of dollars each month for working families.

Renters deserve to know the true cost of a home before apply or sign a lease.

Housing should be clear, fair, and predictable, not filling with hidden costs and fine prints.

The proposed ordinance would cap extra rent fee at no more than 5% monthly rent.

I agree support this ordinance.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Ramu Abdi.

Well, Ramal walks to the microphone.

Could I also ask Angel Pippins Lopez, Victoria Labruzzo, Maria Cortez, Gilberto Vera, and Brianna Young to please come forward to the front row.

Um you have uh one person seeding you time, Arya Patel.

Could you please raise your hand?

Okay, great, you'll have two minutes.

Thank you.

Uh good afternoon.

Good afternoon, uh, council members.

My name is Rahmo Abdi.

I'm the director of organizing and campaign with PANA, and also a resident of District 9, and I'm here to support this ordinance.

I want to speak from my own experience.

When I was looking for a place to rent, I paid hundreds of dollars in application fee.

I applied to many apartments but did not get approved.

I lost all that money.

It was very hard for me because I was only trying to get to find a safe place for my family.

I also work with immigrant and refugee communities.

I see how hard it is for them.

They came here hoping for a better life, but they face high rent and many fees that just to apply.

For many families, this is too much.

Home should not be this hard to get it.

It should bring safety and hopes for them.

Please make this uh renting more fair and perfect families from these unsafe fees.

Thank you for your time and support this ordinance.

Thank you.

Next speaker is Angel Pippins Lopez.

Hi everyone, my name is Angel Pippins Lopez, and I'm the transportation and planning program manager with City Height CDC.

I'm also a renter and a longtime resident of the city of San Diego.

And in the process of securing my lease, I paid over $500 in screening fees that I did not get back, as many of the people here have experienced.

At the same time, I've received monthly bills for ranging between 50 and 250 dollars for various junk fees that I rarely see the benefit of.

It is very serious when San Diegans come to you and say this is a real problem that renters are facing.

Every day, displacement becomes a more serious issue for the city of San Diego, and it's essential that we do what we can to avoid displacement and educate renters on how they can ensure that they are being protected.

Often the most disadvantaged and disinvested communities are the ones who receive the least information about how these programs are supposed to be enforced, and I ask that you not only approve this ordinance but also educate the community.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Victoria Labruzzo.

Victoria, you have time ceded to you by Nicholas Labruzo.

Could you raise your hand?

Thank you, Nicholas.

And Angelo Mallaroy.

Angela?

Okay, there she is.

Go ahead.

You'll have three minutes.

Okay, thank you.

Good afternoon, President Lacava and Council members.

Today I'm coming to you as an ordinary citizen of San Diego, and an everyday citizen.

My name's Victoria Labruzo.

For nearly 30 years, I've been a housing provider off and on here in San Diego.

My husband served in the military.

And every time his orders took us away, we rented out our family home so that one day we could return to the city we love.

One thing that stood out to me when I read through the staff report.

In one of the nation's largest military communities, there is no discussion of the military families who temporarily rent out their homes while serving elsewhere.

One statement by this in the staff report particularly concerned me.

It says landlord fees, quote, should not be another avenue for landlords to extract excessive profits from renters.

I believe that's a short-sighted characterization.

For my family, this wasn't an investment property.

This was our home.

The rent barely covered our mortgage, property taxes, insurance, repairs, and others' expenses.

We weren't extracting profits.

We were trying to break even while preserving our home that we hope to return to.

Over the years, we had multiple tenants.

Some were wonderful.

Others caused significant financial losses that came right out of our pocket.

I ask you to consider the cumulative impacts of the policies like this.

I understand the desire to help renters.

In fact, my 22-year-old son is here with me, and he's looking in the market right now as we speak.

He wants to build his f future in San Diego, and he'll soon be looking for the housing himself.

I want affordable housing and protection for him just as much as you do.

But I don't believe this ordinance is representative of the people it regulates.

It assumes one type of housing provider.

When San Diego is home to military families, retirees, families renting out a single home, and many others whose experiences are very different.

Before adopting another regulation that affects every housing provider in this city, I ask that you first ensure that you consider all of them.

For those reasons, I respectfully ask you to oppose this item.

Thank you very much for your time.

Thank you.

Next speaker is Maria Cortez.

Hello, my name is Maria Cortez.

I'm a resident of City Heights for 50 um 54 years.

I'm also with the City Heights CDC with transportation and planning.

I am here in support of this ordinance because I have I'm out there in the community.

I see what's going on in the community.

My community, we have so many people that are having problems with the hidden fees.

They are, as we say, they are living, we're living with them 10 to maybe 15 people in one apartment in just one unit.

And to see the kids go through the things that they have to go through, I understand what some of the um the tenants, the um owners here are saying, I understand that.

But for the other ones, this is something else.

I also have a friend right now who is going through a situation where um hidden fees were um were proposed to her, and I am trying to help her, but she has to be out of the house by tomorrow.

So I want to say thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Gilberto Vera.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Gil Vera.

I'm the director of the Housing Justice Collaborative at Legal Aid Society San Diego.

A legal aid, our mission is to prevent homelessness with holistic wraparound services and enforcing laws to protect our most vulnerable from exploitation.

We are seeing landlords charge fees to cover things landlords are legally responsible for, such as monthly pest control fees, fees to stay month to month, maintenance fees, and demanding that their tenants pay for monthly insurance premium that protects the landlord's property and limit their own liability.

This is exploitation.

We see firsthand how hidden fees push families to the brink and are designed to leech off tenants.

The rent ledgers we see today have more than five monthly charges a month that result in long complex ledgers that confuse tenants.

You shouldn't need an MBA or accountant degree to decipher your own ledger.

By closing loopholes and demanding transparencies, we're helping to build a more fair and stable housing market for everyone in San Diego.

Something that I would think ethical housing providers would be supportive of.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you.

Next speaker is Brianna Young.

Well, Brianna comes to the microphone.

Oh.

Brianna, please begin.

You'll have one minute.

Good afternoon, members of the council.

My name is Brianna Young, and while I'm currently an intern at the San Diego and Imperial County Labor Council, I am here today representing myself.

I doubt you need to hear more about the affordability issues here in San Diego, but that is one of the reasons you sit here on this council.

I'm a recent graduate from UC San Diego, and I learned the lay of the land in La Jolla.

So it didn't take me long to realize I was out of my tax bracket.

My roommates and I, who are all full working students, full-time working students, have been looking to relocate.

No fancy coastal places, just somewhere simple to start our lives and careers and finish our degrees.

But it hasn't been that simple.

Even finding a home in our price range, we're still hit with these junk fees that are on the agenda today.

In the month of June alone, we spent roughly 250 on application fees and screenings, background screenings.

We were still rejected from every place.

This isn't getting into the fact that we're struggling to find a place that's livable, safe, and accessible.

There are already hidden fees everywhere.

They're hidden in our grocery stores, going to the gas pump, getting insured, and now just trying to find a place to live.

I can't afford it, we can't afford it.

So I support this ordinance, and I hope you will too.

Thank you.

Alex Vasquez.

Hi all, my name is Alex Vasquez.

I'm an organizer with Partnership for a Better San Diego, the affiliate organization of San Diego and Imperial County Labor Council that represents over a hundred unions and more than 200,000 workers.

I am here to support the junk fee ordinance that was proposed by Councilmember Shawnee La Rivera because looking for housing should come with transparency.

I have personally struggled to find housing in San Diego.

As someone who has been through that with roommates, meaning several incomes, it was still expensive and ridiculous to be paying $30 to $60 per application.

What is worse is that it wasn't even guaranteed to get housing, and it was the competition is insane.

You go to an open house and you feel like a sardine because there are so many other people who are looking for and paid an application fee just to see this apartment or house.

Too many San Diego residents are paying unexpected fees and other costs that are already expensive housing.

It makes it even harder.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Melanie Woods.

Melanie, you have uh several people seating your time, so um if you could just raise your hand when I read your name, verify you're here.

Uh, New Monsey.

Denise Dennis, Lenisha Hamilton, okay.

Adrienne Medina.

Okay.

Angela May.

Heather King.

Stephanie Grimm.

Sean Ford, I think.

Thank you.

Jose Flores.

Matthew Gonzalez.

Heather Shepard.

Tracy Brunetti.

Kayla Castañeda.

Kelly McCrunoff.

Okay, great.

Melanie, you'll have 15 minutes, please begin.

Excellent.

Sorry, I wasn't planning a filibester.

All right.

Good afternoon, Chair, members of the council.

I'm Melanie Buds, and I serve as the vice president for local public affairs for the California Apartment Association.

I'm also a D5 president.

CAA is the largest statewide trade association representing owners, operators, and managers of multifamily housing.

Our membership ranges from large multifamily operators to small mom and pop housing providers who own one or two rental properties.

Education and compliance are at the heart of our mission at CAA.

I'm here representing ethical housing providers, many of whom you see behind me, but many, many more who couldn't be here today.

We're strongly opposed to the ordinance before you today.

It regulates legitimate revenue streams that are fundamental to the economics of rental housing, and in so doing so, risks undermining the city's own housing production goals.

Further, there's no evidence that the proposed policy solutions will achieve any specific goals or solve any identified or quantified problems.

One of our biggest concerns on this proposal is the cap on fees.

These aren't hidden fees.

They're a commonly used revenue stream baked into the financing and revenue assumptions of housing projects.

These fees are driven by the cost of labor, insurance, maintenance contracts, utilities, and vendor expenses.

The 5% cap is arbitrary and it's too low to account for the market rate of providing these amenities and too low for housing providers to cover their own costs.

Capping the amount that may be charged for these services will either require housing providers to shift those costs into base rent or reduce the availability of optional services altogether.

As currently drafted, this ordinance also includes operational services, optional services under the 5% cap.

Think reserved parking, storage units, technology packages, and pet amenities.

These are all optional expenses that residents voluntarily choose based on their own needs.

But these services have real operating costs.

Pet friendly housing has to provide pet relief areas, trash baggies, and pay staff to clean up when less diligent pet owners do not.

If these costs cannot be recuperated through a pet fee, housing providers may choose to stop allowing pets altogether.

Or if they still allow pets, these costs will be wrapped into base rents and shouldered by tenants regardless of whether they own a pet.

Additionally, this arbitrary cap has no relationship to actual costs.

Picture a scenario, one person paying $3,000 in rent and another paying 2,500.

They are each paying a capped 5% in fees.

Should the resident paying $2,500 pay less in those fees despite receiving the same services.

Ironically, this creates a situation where allowable fee increases increase as rent increase, even though the cost of providing these services remains the same.

None of those outcomes improve affordability.

We're also deeply concerned about the reusable screening report requirement.

Reducing application costs is a worthwhile goal, but we have to balance affordability with accuracy and risk.

Housing providers rely on trusted third-party screening systems that integrate directly into their leasing platforms and apply consistent screening standards to every applicant.

This proposal requires housing providers accept reusable screening reports, creating uncertainty about how those reports will be verified and how they will be fit into existing leasing systems.

These concerns aren't theoretical.

A recent Wall Street Journal investigation documented a dramatic increase in rental application fraud, including falsifying pay stubs, fake employment records, manipulated credit profiles, and AI-generated financial documents being sold online.

The ordinance allows housing providers to obtain new reports at their own expense.

But this language creates uncertainty regarding what constitutes an acceptable report, what verification obligations does the landlord assume, and how landlords should reconcile the applicant provided report with their own screening standards.

These inconsistencies between the tenant provided report and the third party report could result in more applications actually being rejected.

Let's say for a second, maybe you truly believe that housing providers should shoulder that screening cost.

The reality is that those costs don't go away.

They get redistributed.

Housing providers shouldering that burden are more likely to adopt higher screening criteria, close listings quickly, and close opportunities for tenants wanting to be rescreened.

These outcomes do not increase housing opportunity and affordability.

In fact, they may harm it.

Moving on to late rent.

The ordinance also fundamentally changes how late payments are handled.

A mandatory seven day grace period doesn't simply delay a late fee.

It effectively changes the practical due date of rent for every residential lease in the city of San Diego.

Yet we've seen no evidence demonstrating that a mandatory seven-day grace period reduces evictions or improves housing stability.

If the city's goal is to help households experiencing genuine hardship, then targeted assistance and early intervention are more effective than rewriting the payment expectations for every lease.

Similarly, California law already regulates late fees.

These must represent a reasonable estimate of actual damages.

Replacing that long established legal standard with an arbitrary 2% cap ignores the real administrative costs and cash flow disruptions associated with delinquent payments.

Finally, transparency.

We fundamentally agree with the idea of transparency.

Tenants should know and understand the full cost of their housing before signing a lease.

Tenants being in homes that they can afford benefits both the tenant and the housing provider.

Our issue is with the restrictive advertising requirements.

These requirements could extend to internet listing services, social media posts, printed advertisements, broker materials, and third-party marketing platforms that often lack the technical capacity to display the required information.

For an admittedly extreme example, does a garbage disposal replacement fee need to be outlined in your social media post about your home for rent?

I'd like to encourage the council to think about the cumulative impact of these policies.

No single regulation creates a housing crisis, but every new mandate, every new disclosure requirement, and every new compliance obligation adds friction to an already heavily regulated market.

Viewed collectively, they significantly increase regulatory complexity, compliance costs, and operational uncertainty.

Those burdens fall especially hard on small housing providers who don't have the in-house attorney or compliance departments.

Many simply decide that continuing to provide rental housing is no longer worth the growing legal and financial risk.

And this conversation comes at a particularly important moment.

Economic data already shows a significant slowdown in multifamily housing production beginning around 2028.

And as it ends as today's development pipeline is completed, and fewer financially viable projects move forward.

This should concern everyone who believes we need more housing.

Housing projects aren't financed on base rent alone, they're financed based on expected operating income.

And those rev all those revenue sources are included in the financial models that lenders and investors use to determine whether today's projects qualify for financing.

Against that backdrop, reducing revenue certainty while increasing regulatory complexity sends the wrong signal at exactly the wrong time.

If we want more housing in 2030, we have to care about project feasibility in 2026.

A project that can't be financed is no different than a project that's never been approved.

Both result in fewer homes.

So I ask you to think about does this ordinance actually achieve the affordability that we are all working toward?

And I'll close with this.

I know everyone here shares the same goal.

We want more housing, greater affordability, and more opportunity for San Diegans.

Housing providers are not obstacles to solving San Diego's housing crisis.

We are indispensable partners in the building, preserving, and operating of the homes that our communities rely on every day.

The California Apartment Association respectfully urges you to reject this ordinance and instead pursue policies that increase transparency without reducing housing opportunity.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is David Baker.

Hello, council.

My name is David Baker.

I work with an organization that helps young people exit homelessness and secure stable housing.

I'm here to support the ordinance, not only for the transparency that it encourages, but also we have a very valuable tool that we use when helping people secure housing, and these are vouchers.

When we go to make a deal, a young person can do everything correct.

They can pass the application, they can have their deposit ready, all the things.

However, if the rent is even one dollar over what we anticipate, the entire deal is off the table.

And so often we see that young people are almost across the finish line, ready to sign the lease, and then we see one extra dollar that takes us back to instability and experience and homelessness.

So I'm here to ask for your support, and I think this ordinance is certainly worth more conversation.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Claire Snyder.

Good afternoon.

My name is Claire Snyder, and I'm a renter in District 3.

Hidden rental fees make housing more expensive and less predictable for renters like myself.

I recently moved eight days ago because I had an ongoing mice infestation that my previous landlord refused to do anything about, honestly.

Um, and during my search for housing, um, I encountered application fees, screening fees, and more.

I applied for multiple different apartments, which required me to pay over $300 in application fees.

And also in my search, I encountered pet screening fees, which was an additional pet fee I had to pay to screen my dog.

Um, and many of these property owners or managers wouldn't tell me what the restrictions were, what they were looking for with this pet screening fee.

Um, and so I just didn't apply to them because why would I pay an additional $30 to have my dog?

Which is going to be really scary until a lot of these housing providers in here, a 40-pound pit bull, was gonna be rejected anyways.

So, rent is expensive enough.

I urge you to vote yes in this ordinance.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Carmen Penazola Valdez.

Uh, while she comes to the microphone.

Could I also call up Tristan Beery, Liliana Soriano, Aaron Hara Harn, Lupe Rojas, and Nicole Lilly?

Please come sit in the front row.

Please begin.

Hi, my name is Carmen.

I'm a D9 resident, and I'm here with Youth Will to urge you to support this item.

Through much of our work as a youth serving organization, a consistent area of concern for our communities is housing.

And a big issue are these fees.

There are fees everywhere, and the rent that we are originally getting hooked on with or that is advertised to us is never actually, the real rent that we have to pay.

Hidden fees make living in San Diego even less possible.

And my personal experience, I'm already having to struggle with many issues that myself and other youth are experiencing.

Like food is incredibly expensive, gas and transportation, schooling is expensive.

Trying to find stable working opportunities with good pay to actually sustain ourselves with a roof over our head is nearly impossible.

So, yeah, too many times have myself and my siblings who often live together have to choose between basic needs and random fees that we get notified about.

But we deal with it.

We deal with broken scenes and bad bathroom conditions because we don't want to get feed because then we'll end up homeless.

So yeah.

Maybe that does conclude your time.

Tristan Beary.

Hello, council.

My name is Tristan Beerie, and I am with Youth Will and the San Diego Youth Homelessness Consortium where I work with you throughout our city.

As someone who was homeless six times before he was 18, I'm here to strongly urge you to vote yes on item 330.

Henry fees make housing more expensive and less predictable for renters.

As someone who gets the opportunity to talk with youth on a nearly daily basis, I'm hearing constantly about their struggles with cost of living and particularly housing costs.

We need to do everything we can to ensure that these youth know exactly what they're getting into and what they're going to be paying when they get start renting a new apartment so there aren't any surprises.

In addition to supporting the ordinance being reviewed today, I also want to uplift our time to act's recommendation that the city council should explore the addition of language that would prohibit landlords from charging a higher rent for additional tenants living in the same unit.

As I mentioned, many of our youth are navigating unpredictable job markets and the rising cost of living as a result of struggling through these, they are finding themselves unhoused and relying on others like friends and family more than ever.

I was one of those kids that had to rely on the kindness of others to keep a roof over my head, so I can't imagine a situation where we can justify charging more for helping your time.

Thank you.

Liliana Sariano.

Hello, Council members.

My name is Liliana.

I'm the director of policy at Youth Will.

We are youth serving advocacy organization.

And amongst young people we have surveyed since 2020 to now, housing has always been a concern.

From cost to stories of what it's like to not have a shelter, our recent young people highlight why how why housing is an issue in the region.

Housing is not a commodity, it's a human right.

With that, I support this ordinance before you because housing should come with transparency.

That is the bare minimum we can do.

Not hidden fees, like unexpected application fees, and as if charging for rent in San Diego isn't enough.

Today's ordinance is also a step towards equity and transparency for people to know what the real cost of their housing will be before signing a contract.

Lastly, we urge you to add additional language to prohibit landlords from charging higher rent for additional tenants living in the same unit because why would you charge for more when you're already getting enough?

It's a very expensive city to live in.

Support today's ordinance, the rest of you council members that didn't author this.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Arohan Harry Haran.

Good afternoon, council.

My name is Aruhon Harry Haran.

Uh I'm a recent graduate of UC San Diego and a housing justice director at our time to act.

Two years ago, when I first started looking for apartments, moving off campus from UC San Diego.

I spent over $600 before I ever even paid my first rent amount.

It was spent on application fees and non-refundable holding deposits.

This is not just my experience, but the experience of a lot of my friends and former classmates.

So I would like to support this ordinance in addition to my strong support for the ordinance.

I would also like to urge the city council to explore additional language, additional language that would prohibit landlords from charging a higher rent for additional tenants living in the same unit.

I see this a lot with uh students, especially because they want to stay close to their universities, so they all huddle up in a small apartment and then end up paying extra for it.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Lupe Rojas.

Lupe, do you have a presentation?

Yes, it is a joint presentation with Nicole Louie.

We've both got seated time to us.

Alright, great.

Let me um let me just verify all the time seaters, okay?

Mohammed uh Mohamel.

Yes, okay, thank you.

Tawa Batch Abbott 2.

Okay.

Jesse Schmidt.

Okay.

Nicole Lilly.

Alex Castillo.

Okay.

Patricia Mondragon.

Okay.

Sparky Mitra.

Rose Dang.

Okay.

Mary Cruz Mendiola.

Okay.

Ashley Mendiola.

Okay.

Great.

You will have 11 minutes total.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Hello, council members.

My name is Guadalupe Rojas.

I'm a policy advocate with Mid-City Community Advocacy Network, and I am speaking for the Coalition for Equitable Development, which is comprised of 20 organizations across the region.

Hello, my name is Nicole Lilly.

I'm a 23-year-old renter in District 3 and the executive director of Our Time to Act.

I'm also a member of the Coalition for Equitable Development.

And is that the first slide?

Okay.

Yes.

So as we heard, um, housing in San Diego is already expensive, and then once you have all of these hidden fees, it becomes even more unaffordable for a lot of the population that we have out here, especially younger folks who are still making a living and uh finding stability in their lives.

Unfortunately, more than half of the housing cost burden San Diego and spend more than 30% of their income on housing.

Next slide, please.

Um as you already learn, um, junk fees are any additional fees that are not reflected on the lease that on the sorry on the price that is being advertised.

Here you see it being advertised at $2,200, and everything else listed is considered a junk fee for not being um disclosed on the lease that is signed by the tenant.

Next slide, please.

Thank you.

So we see this as something that is unfair and necessary.

The practices are so predatory that they'd be laughable elsewhere.

It would be like having to pay some kind of bag handling fee at the airport or um paying for like car maintenance when you do groceries, and obviously that's something that should already be covered by the businesses because their um job is to provide good uh customer service.

And um these are all fees that obviously should be paid by them.

Um a lot of the print a lot of the renters are being asked to pay for them.

Um, next slide.

Here we have some stories that we've heard from our community members, and these do not pertain to any district.

They're just stories that have been gathered all across the region.

Okay, next slide.

Unfortunately, some landlords ignore the basic facts by arguing that there's no clear data-driven justification for this ordinance yet.

More than 25% of residents spend half of their income on housing.

Even and we know that even the smallest fee adds on to that burden and obviously leads to a lot of financial instability.

Next slide, please.

Here you can see the power and balance.

On one side, we have the landlords who set lease uh who are setting the leases, control fees, and who have gaining power, and on the other side we have the renters who need housing, have limited alternatives, and do not hold they hold very little bargaining power.

And some myths versus reality, before I pass it on to my colleague.

There's a misconception that this ordinance hurts landlords and that it may impact future development, but in reality, responsible landlords, budget, disclose, plan, and price honestly.

And mandatory transparency and fairness does not magically reduce the need and the demand for housing in San Diego.

Thank you, Lupe.

I want to begin my pre my part of the presentation by debunking the myth of the cost burden landlord.

Next slide, please.

This assertion, again, is out of touch with reality.

It is not the job of city council or renters to subsidize landlords who don't effectively budget for rising costs or seek to eke out every last penny from a public already drowning in cost of living.

Landlords should know the business they're in well enough to anticipate, account for, and disclose the regular costs in application, lease agreement, and monthly statements.

As business owners, landlords can and should set aside reserves to cover unanticipated costs that arise between signing and renewing leases.

If landlords can't maintain business, they have the option to sell to generate income.

Renters often have nowhere else to go and constantly rising prices outside of housing to contend with.

I want to reiterate the comments of my colleague.

Mandating basic transparency and fairness does not magically reduce the need and demand of housing in San Diego.

In reality, implementing protections in this ordin that this ordinance has the potential to take significant cost burden and pressure off of San Diego renters and increase their purchasing power and in fact increase demand for housing.

Next slide, please.

So let's talk about what this ordinance does.

The residential rental price gouging fee exploitation and cost transparency ordinance will require rental advertisements clearly disclose all costs and fees.

This includes transparency around the purpose, frequency, and requirements surrounding these costs.

It allows valid screening reports from consumer agencies to be used for up to 30 days.

And this element is vital, as you've heard today, as no one should have to pay hundreds of dollars just to apply for housing.

This ordinance also caps holding deposits at 5% of monthly rent and prevents predatory behavior by requiring that deposits be returned, whether as a refund or applying it to subsequent rent and/or security deposits.

It caps all recurring fees at 5% of monthly rent.

It accounts for non-monthly recurring fees through prorated rates, and this closes loopholes left by state laws, which, as one community member shared with me, allowed their landlord to increase their parking fee from $30 a month to $300 to get around the 10% annual rental increase cap.

It caps late fees at 2% of monthly rent and mandates that this change can't come unless rent is seven or more days delayed, preventing, as our partners at PANAShared from residents being charged for an on-time payment that the bank takes longer to process.

It also prioritizes that payments go towards rent before fees, and this I want to emphasize nearly every young person's lease I've reviewed mandates 6%, 10%, or higher late fees, and includes predatory language demanding payments apply first to fees, pushing tenants further behind on rent as they try to catch up.

This ordinance prohibits fees for ownership and maintenance of common household pets or charges for basic habitability because, as you may have seen in the stories shared earlier this presentation, people already living paycheck to paycheck should not have to worry about if they're able to keep their pet or pay out of pocket for pest control.

These postcards will be shared with you in the weeks to come, and there's even more to come.

These are filled with stories of renters and residents all over San Diego who are struggling with rental junk fees and hidden fees and a lack of transparency from landlords.

This ordinance mandates as its name states transparency.

It prohibits upcharging for processing fees and requires proper 30-day notice and written agreement from tenants for fees not previously agreed upon in the lease.

That is basic contractual, contractual respect.

Next slide, please.

I want to emphasize as a young renter, as an organizer who works with San Diegans experiencing the brunt of our housing crisis every day.

Housing is not a luxury.

It is a basic necessity.

Housing has been time and time again proven to be the foundation for our health, education, employment, financial stability, and access to resources and opportunity.

It determines our life outcomes.

Unpredictable housing costs and hidden junk fees are not simply inconvenient, they cause untold harm to San Diego families and communities.

Next slide, please.

And real protection requires accountability.

This ordinance provides that accountability.

It provides that accountability through enforcement, where it does allow claims to be proven in court, where a tenant or applicant claiming a violation may file an action against a landlord in court, and remedies where a tenant or applicant may seek injunctive relief, equitable relief, and money damages, including punitive damages in a civil action against a landlord or for a violation.

And as another community member shared, everyone deserves the right to a roof over their head.

This ordinance would make the process of applying to housing more equitable.

Next slide, please.

Next, renters are simply asking for fairness and transparency to be a two-way street.

City officials have a long history of propping up homeowner and landlord investments and treating renters as second-class citizens.

I have heard dehumanizing language about renters from this dais as well as previous dioceses.

I'm sorry, um, one hundred and twenty-seven investor owned rental homes in San Diego also clarify that this is a loop lucrative business.

And landlords want fairness and transparency from their tenants, but renters deserve that same courtesy from their landlords.

And I want to also say that any ethical, truly ethical landlord would not be worried about any of the provisions in this ordinance.

And if you have to call yourself an ethical landlord rather than actually have your tenants up here speaking on your behalf, then I don't think you are one.

Next slide, please.

San Diegans, this benefits all of us, not just renters.

I strongly urge your support as this item moves forward.

Thank you so much for your time.

Thank you.

Kimberly Miller.

Do you please come forward while Kimberly comes forward?

Could Mark Schmidt, Juliana Tetlow, Andrew Malik, and Paul Krueger?

Please come to the front row.

Kimberly, you have um two people seating you time.

Amber Ernest and is Amber here.

Amber Ernest.

I think she may have left.

She left, okay.

Uh Ann Carlson.

Okay, I see Anne, so you'll have two minutes.

Great.

Thank you.

Uh, good afternoon, Councilmember Kimberly Miller on behalf of the Southern California Rental Housing Association.

SCRHA has been engaged in working groups on this topic since last October and is committed to collaboration.

However, as I stand here before you today, we have critical questions that remain unanswered throughout their engagement.

On screening, fraud is a growing crisis.

Application fraud jumped 40% last year nationally.

How will this ordinance protect providers when regulated third-party screening already exists for exactly that purpose?

On the 5% holding deposit cap, 5% does not cover two days of lost rent.

Will this requirement discourage a practice that helps prospective renters reserve a unit as they apply for the property?

On the 5% fee cap, what analysis establish the percentage of 5%?

Does the CAP consider different property types and locations throughout the city?

Will the city look to help providers if the CAP forces them to deny a service a tenant wants?

On late fees, SCRHA believes that state laws should just simply be the standard here.

More importantly, requiring a week or more of no payment of rent before late fees can be imposed may disproportionately impact small to midside property owners on pet fees with security depart deposits capped at one month's rent.

Pet they pet fees offset real damage costs.

What recourse will rental providers have for pet damage to communal areas?

On advertising, does this apply to yard signs and pre ads?

Will renter providers be liable for third party listing sites they do not control?

This impacts uh impacts largely seniors and mom and pop owners that that uh don't use websites on transparency.

SCRHA supports transparency for all, and they believe that data could help inform and provide much needed insight into this discussion since similar bills at the state SB 681 and AB 1248 failed at the state.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Mark Schmidt.

Hi, thank you.

City Council, they're appreciated.

So I honestly believe there should be transparency for all, both both sides, both ways.

As far as the there'll be tremendous fraud, I believe in these credit checks if you don't allow the landlord to do credit checks.

Um, we um but I want to get to the big point of things.

Developers are not coming to San Diego to build housing.

There's there's too much cost here, there's too much bureaucracy in the politics of it.

They're going to other states, and it's gonna get worse and worse and worse.

When I was a kid, you could work a couple years and buy a house.

These days it's impossible.

I feel sorry for the immigrants, the low the blue collar workers, and so on.

You need more housing.

The more regulation you put there, it stifles housing.

I believe in fairness to all, and there's always gonna be a few bad apples, you're gonna get this he said, she said, and that's what the small claim score is.

But please, I love San Diego, I grew up here.

I've been building here, we've stopped building.

Thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Juliana Tetlow.

Good afternoon, council members.

Juliana Tetlow here on behalf of San Diego Humane Society.

Um, at its core, this ordinance is aimed at transparency, and it's fair and it's balanced.

There's a lot of misinformation about what this does as it relates particularly to pets, so I want to highlight actually what it doesn't do.

It does not prohibit pet deposits, it does not mandate that landlords accept pets in their property.

It does not prohibit size restrictions, although maybe that's something we can work on.

Um, and it does not prohibit a landlord or owner from protecting their asset.

Animal services is expensive and it costs every taxpayer.

We must continue to work on removing barriers to keep people with their pets, which is what pet rent is.

On behalf of San Diego Humane Society, we urge every council member to support this ordinance.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Uh Andrew Malik.

Good afternoon, honorable council members.

My name is Andrew Malik.

I represent the Council of Infill Builders.

Um, while others have spoken to the operational frictions of this policy, we urge you to look at the macroeconomic reality.

Economics is a science, and price controls are historically a failed experiment.

The Federal Reserve Bank of St.

Louis published an extensive report warning that artificial price controls distort market signals, stifle supply, and create massive unintended consequences.

Specifically, they note that when governments impose a price cap on a service, providers are faced with uh forced to alter or eliminate those options entirely.

For infill and transit oriented projects, flexibility is everything.

To make housing a performance work, developers must be able to unbundle costs, allowing tenants to opt in and pay for parking, pets, storage, or other premium amenities.

Umes at an arbitrary 5% strips away the flexibility making.

Thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Next up, Paul Kruger, while Paul comes to the microphone.

Could Manny Rodriguez, Jess Stengel, Alev the Juli Audra, Wee Tron, Nicole Leigh, and Susan Riggs, please come to the front row.

Thank you, Council.

Um, my first concern is the title of the proposed ordinance.

Price gouging fee exploitation is a very divisive and polarizing title.

Please just stick with the words cost transparency.

You have two groups here, the apartment owners association and the BIA that have expressed their willingness to work with you.

Why would you alienate them with the use of such polarizing language?

Number two, trash, water, late fees, pet fees are not junk fees.

Number three, the um time and energy put into this ordinance would be much better spent on educating those who are looking to rent on the legalities of contracts and funding legal aid groups that can challenge these illegal contracts, um, that the courts can handle.

It's simply a better use of your time.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Manny Rodriguez.

Good afternoon, Council members.

I'm here on behalf of the YMB Democrats of San Diego County.

Last week we had a hearing with our members in which we had both sides present their arguments.

Then we had a debate, and after all that, our members voted three to one to endorse this policies.

The caps on fees and transparency on rental prices was really important to our members.

The most favorite part that our members liked about this proposal after talking to them was being able to reuse the same application screening fee.

We've had members who have paid hundreds of dollars just to find a place to live, just to apply to for places to live.

So with all that being said, on behalf of our members, uh please support this policy, and thank you, Councilmember Ioretta, for being a legislator.

Thank you all very much.

Thank you, Jess Stingle.

Good afternoon, everyone.

My name is Jess Stengel.

Over the last 50 years, I have been a renter, owner, and landlord in the city of San Diego.

In 2019, I rented a house in the city, had a detached garage for my laundry appliances, parking, which is tough to get in that neighborhood.

This was all under one rental agreement, even though the garage was separate.

An adjoining garage to me was rat-infested, non-code compliant plumbing and electrical, and it was being used illegally as a dwelling.

I reported this to the city, and my landlord retaliated against me.

She hired a legal firm who sent me a demand letter with a 30-day notice to vacate the garage only, stating that the garage was no longer part of the rental agreement because according to the law, it was quote, detached.

I lost that place.

The letter from the attorney also stated that my rent, then 65% of my fixed income would remain the same amount, and I would be happy to pay six hundred dollars more per month.

The city should be aware of this.

That is the garage.

That does conclude your time.

Allegedly Audra.

Thank you so much for honoring victims and removing the predatory flag.

Uh Brown Act violation, you can't remove that last item without hearing public comment.

Anywho, you guys are conflating the uh, you know, corporate landlords and small family-owned businesses and junk fees and getting full cost recovery for the things that you guys implement, like the trash fees that you put on somebody's property tax.

That's not a junk fee that comes in.

That's something that you guys implemented that then goes down to the landlord that they have to put on to the tenant.

And so it's like there's a lot of confusion going on here, and you guys love to pit people against each other when you're engaged in the things that are costing people more money to just live, and then you're you're making the landlords the enemy.

Well, you need to make sure that you are uh separating the two.

We don't have BlackRock and Vanguard in here talking about not wanting this, but you have family-owned businesses where they're like, we need to make sure that we can get full cost recovery.

You guys want it, you should be equitable, and this isn't.

Thank you.

We tron.

Hello, my name is Wee.

For now, he's his executive director, executive director before the lifetime.

I used to be a property manager for CDI's CD Heist, and I can tell it uses that.

Every single rent or application come in.

We have a choice whether or not we want to run credit credit report, knowing that it can oppose, impose quite a number of fee on people struggling trying to buy housing.

I often advocate with my boss to not run, like charging people fees like that because at the end of the day, even if we rejected the application, the money are coming out of people's pockets.

I also advocate what you guys do for black home experiences, and knowing that this town is extremely difficult to find housing, and people are barely making a living.

We cannot add in one fees on like this.

If you want to keep people housed, just how do you want to do it past it ordinance?

Thank you.

Thank you, Nicole.

Hello, my name is Nicole.

I'm um resident of Malhof community in District 9.

Um, I'm a renter.

I have two roommates.

I have also have two part-time jobs.

Half of my income goes to my rent.

And I know that I'm not alone in this boat.

Most renters I know or talk to have at least half or more than half of their paycheck go to their rent.

A lot of people are living pay to check to paycheck.

On top of rent, which is already a lot, there are fees.

Pet fees, application fees, convenient fees, it adds up, it adds up.

On Zillow, the last time I checked, the application fee was $35.

Whenever I pay my rent on a website, I get charged convenient fees.

It adds up.

The reality is that most people are closer to homelessness than they are to people like Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and Jeff Bezos.

If you're already not homeless, I urge you to pass this ordinance to protect a huge part of your constituents.

The renters, the working people and families.

Thank you.

That concludes your time.

Susan Riggs.

Good afternoon.

I'm Susan Riggs, Senior Housing Director for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and a renter in D3.

I'm here to speak to the importance of raining and rental fees overall, but more specifically those related to the keeping of pets.

Housing instability is among the top causes of pet surrender, especially among lower income households and communities of color.

Well, I'm here to advocate for solutions to reverse this trend.

I'm also here to speak to the importance of the human animal bond.

People are making unimaginable uh decisions in order to avoid giving up their family of choice.

We ask you to permanently act on the junk fees ordinance so that fewer renters are forced to choose between a roof over their head and keeping their family pet.

Thank you.

Thank you, Anthony Ralph.

Good afternoon, City Council.

I strongly support this ordinance because at a time when 60% of Americans are one paycheck away from homelessness, when a quarter of San Diegans are already currently in debt to the greedy energy monopoly SDGE, when the cost of living in San Diego is already the highest in the nation, when private equity predators are buying entire blocks and amassing communities of empty homes.

We're prey to sky high rents, air pollution levels causing one death per day, CPP that can't hold police accountable, SDG in ease, billions in profit, greedy landlords, flock, and now junk fees.

Please support this ordinance.

And I didn't forget about you, Lakava.

There's a rose for you as well.

Thank you.

That does conclude in-person public comment.

I've started the five-minute timer in Council Chambers.

We will now turn to the virtual queue, in which there are 12 participants requesting to speak.

We'll begin with Evan Strawn.

Please begin.

Good afternoon, Council President Lakava and Council members.

My name is Evan Strong.

I'm speaking on behalf of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce.

There's some aspects of this ordinance that we could support, including increased transparency for renters and reasonable policies on things like processing fees.

Unfortunately, though, we are opposed to the ordinance because many of the remaining items will lead to less investment in needed housing and do not allow rental operators to recoup reasonable costs for operations and maintenance.

Rental housing operators incur costs for things like pest control, pet damage, and late and unpaid rent.

These are not just items they can write off for free.

They're businesses.

We must recover costs just like any other business, or even like governmental organizations like the city have to do.

Most parts of this ordinance, as it's currently written, punish these businesses for trying to recoup these costs.

For these reasons, we must continue to oppose the ordinance as it is currently crafted.

Thank you.

Thank you.

JCO.

Please begin.

Yes, can you hear me?

Yes.

Please begin.

Thank you.

So my wife and I are mom and pop landlords.

And I wanted to speak in opposition to this bill on two specific items.

And there's this has been misstated here a full few times tonight.

State law was changed a couple years ago by Assembly Bill 12.

It is now illegal in the state of California to charge a separate pet security deposit.

That is the law of the land.

The only way for a landlord to cover their uh damages for pets is for a pet fee.

If you get rid of pet fees in the city of San Diego, my wife and I will sell all five of our rental units, and it'll be very difficult for anybody to find a place to rent to them.

On the portability of screening, I have personally encountered people falsifying uh screening paperwork.

And if you again, if you ban me from getting my own, uh we will get out of the landlord business as will many other landlords.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Amelia Romero.

Please begin.

Good afternoon, Council members.

My name is Amalia Romero.

I work at Legal Aid Society of San Diego and I support this ordinance.

For years recently, in our work helping the most vulnerable renters in the city, we've seen the increase and widespread practice of landlords charging extra fees beyond the base rent.

And we see firsthand how these hidden fees can push ordinary families into housing instability and how they're too often seemingly designed not just to recover operational expenses but to unfairly profit off of tenants.

This ordinance will not prevent landlords from recovering legitimate costs.

They can absolutely still recover those costs by including them in the base rent, as was previously a very common practice.

This ordinance is not something revolutionary or that risks destabilizing the housing market in the city.

It will promote transparency, close loopholes, and limit exploitation.

So I urge you to move it forward.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Arya Grossman.

Please begin.

Good afternoon, Council.

My name is Arya.

I'm the policy manager at Circulate Planning and Policy.

Under current law, in certain places across the city, parking has to be charged as a fee separate from rent.

This is an equity measure to ensure that those who do not use a vehicle, either by choice or by necessity, aren't charged for it.

In addition to being an equity consideration, this policy also helps make progress towards our climate and mobility goals, as it helps ensure that people consider alternate forms of transportation rather than just defaulting to driving a vehicle.

For this policy to be effective, the cost of parking has to reflect demand, which cannot, which it cannot be if it's capped under this ordinance.

There is, of course, also the concern that landlords might raise rents on everyone to capture the differential between the cap and then the current market prices that they're charging for parking.

So I urge you to address this issue by exempting parking costs that are already required to be unbundled from rent and the final ordinance.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Justine Murray.

Please begin.

Good afternoon, Council President Lancava and Council members.

My name is Justine Murray.

I'm the Vice President of Government Affairs for the Downtown San Diego Partnership.

For more than 30 years, the partnership has represented downtown San Diego's businesses, property owners, employers, residents, and community stakeholders.

We respectfully urge you to vote no on this ordinance as currently proposed.

While we do support greater transparency for renters, this ordinance goes well beyond that goal.

It creates additional regulations that increase uncertainty for housing providers, make projects more difficult to finance, and discourage the private investment needed to build, operate, and maintain housing for San Diegans.

At a time when our city faces a severe housing shortage, we should be advancing policies that encourage housing production, not adding new barriers that could further constrain housing supply and investment.

We encourage the city to continue working with stakeholders on balanced solutions that improve transparency while also preserving a predictable regulatory environment that supports housing production affordability.

Thank you so much for your time.

Thank you.

Please note that the five-minute timer has concluded with nine speakers left in the queue.

No other speakers will be taken for public comment.

Our next speaker is CJ Mendoza.

Please begin.

Good afternoon.

I'm CJ.

I'm with Heathwell, and I urge you to vote yes on this ordinance.

Hidden mental fees makes housing more expensive and unpredictable.

Cost transparency benefits both rents and responsible landlords.

In addition to the strong support of the ordinance being reviewed today, I urge the city council to explore the addition of language that would prohibit landlords from charging a higher rent for additional tenants living in the same unit.

Law language directly naming the cost of additional tenants, many of the leases that were reviewed included language similarly, limiting the tendency of the unit to only those signed to the lease agreement.

We understand that additional tenants may trigger higher utility consumption and may result in higher utility bills for that unit, but the base monthly rent should not be allowed to change.

Many San Diegans, especially youth, are vulnerable to unpredictable employment status and rising cost of living.

Unfortunately, um thank you, and please vote yes.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Natalie Raske.

Please begin.

Natalie Rashke.

Hi, can you hear me?

Yes, please begin.

Hi, uh, Natalie Rashty District 7.

I've been uh transparent most of these meetings about what I go through as a tenant in some of these uh large apartment complexes, such as Monte Vista.

If we're being currently, you know, having to move, and I have a child that's 18.

So when you're married, you have to fill out an application for yourself for your husband, and now I have an 18-year-old child.

That adds up.

We have subwater charges, submeter water charges, submeter sewer charges, along on top of the water and sewer charge, which they charge us uh um on the size of our apartment square foot.

So I could be conserving water, but that doesn't mean the other my neighbor is, and I'm still being charged per my square foot.

My garbage fee is 103 dollars a month.

It's starting to really become overwhelming that families are having to put themselves in situations where they feel like.

Thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Our next speaker is a caller with the last four digits 870.

Please begin.

Uh sorry about that.

Uh deputy city clerk.

Uh, Joy Sanyata.

Yeah, uh I'm going to I I'm coming, excuse me.

I was a strong yes.

And then I listened and I listened carefully to all these speakers.

And wow, that was a lot of information, and a lot of it seemed real on both sides.

So uh Councilmember Elohavir, I'm gonna be a yes with an amendment.

And the amendment is that we get a little more clarity uh on three things uh stakeholders, uh more outreach to stakeholders and get more clarity on their losses and and how fair that would be.

And then uh polarizing language, I agree with Paul Kruger, and then for some reason I don't feel comfortable with the word junk.

It could be a personal bias in some way, but is that being used in a professional legal way?

Thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Thank you.

Kevin, hang on a second.

That's why I'm hanging on.

Yeah, but should I turn it on?

No, we don't.

We're gonna take a brief recess until we reestablish quorum.

Just need one of them.

Okay, and we're back.

Kevin, continue on.

Okay, our next speaker is Hector.

Please begin.

All right, thanks for taking my call.

Okay, you guys should have these meetings at night when more guys can afford to come there and pass out free trolley day passes for the participants that actually come there.

That'd be great because these guys are street level men.

Regulate the billionaire companies, they're trying to the ones charging all these fees and any fee they can think of.

And you guys are charging fees also, man.

You just hire 18 more uh parking meter guys and give out tickets left and right.

Plus, you guys are the ultimate bait and switchers.

These guys, the big guys are baiting and switching on these things.

The rent's three grand, but it really turns out to be 36 grand.

Kind of like what you guys did on the traffic.

You guys are the ultimate bait and switchers, and I don't know if you guys even have these meetings, man, with a straight face, but regulate the big guys.

They're scamming and they don't care.

The little guys are cool.

Thank you.

Melissa Peterman, please begin.

Hi, my name's Melissa Peterman, and I'm with Townspeople and Affordable Housing Nonprofit, and we're in support of the ordinance.

Um we always look at how we charge people, and although not unusual to charge a late fee, we decided not to, by and large, our tenants pay their rent, and when they don't, it's because something bad happened, which tells us that if our tenants have the money, they pay, and if they don't, charging them extra doesn't help them come up with it.

It just punishes them for having a rough month, which doesn't feel right to us.

As others have said, it's not that landlords should never charge fees.

The costs of housing are real.

Uh we're an affordable housing nonprofit, uh, not flush with cash, and we operate without them.

If a fee's needed, put it in the listing, put it in the lease, let people make an informed decision before they sign anything.

Finding a home in our community is a lot, and the last thing someone needs is to finally land somewhere, do the math, get excited, move in, and find out that number was never real.

The ordinance says be up front, and we're up to it.

Thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Our next speaker is Kim Arnold.

Please, Kim Arnold, please begin.

Kim Arnold.

Yes, hi, can you hear me?

Yes, we can hear you.

Thank you.

I represent a small family owned management company.

First off, as a rental housing provider, we absolutely agree with price transparency, and we've already rolled it out across the board for all of our rental properties.

Housing providers should be up front with the total costs and fees for the rentals that they offer.

But some fees are necessary as long as they are disclosed.

Were you aware that dog pet stations cost anywhere from four to six hundred dollars each and need to be replaced every couple of years due to corrosion?

Pet waste bags are not free, but more importantly, fraud is a real issue in our industry.

With AI and websites out there that sell fake screening documents, housing providers need to be able to pull their own screening reports from trusted providers to cut out fraudulent applications.

Let's work together for common sense changes to this ordinance that can work for all parties.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Blair Beekman.

Please begin.

All right, thank you.

Uh Blair Beekman.

The beginning of the presentation reads make housing more affordable for San Diegans, and third is promote fairness, equity, and transparency regarding how landlords change fees.

That order should be reversed, I think.

That's a starting point.

I think this is an item that uh speaks to um our um our best selves and that tenants' rights should be uh an issue that we are all working towards and and and how we build our future, and that it shouldn't be like feared.

Uh we can work together towards those goals.

So um, you know, the fees issues for landlords.

Can't they um can't we work out something with the city that they you can make create some sort of funding pattern so they can uh dip into for operational costs and work out a system like that for a really great measure, this sounds like um how can how can operational costs be supported by the city for landlords and for landlords who don't want to use that system, they can offer uh you can offer a good legislative pattern so they have to return features.

Thank you.

That does conclude your time.

Next speaker is a caller with the last four digits two five three eight, please begin.

Caller with the last four digits two five three eight.

Please begin.

I cannot unmute for you.

Hello, my name is Selma Navarro.

I am a researcher and policy advocate with the Center on Policy Initiative.

Sorry about the ground.

Um, again, should not have to struggle to submit housing applications as looking for housing.

Shouldn't it close the financial burden on renters?

We should be able to budget for our moving expenses without having to worry about unexpected fees holding us back financially.

That's why I'm here in support of the proposed ordinance to address financial exploitations and the need for cost transparency, something that no ethical landlord should oppose.

I also ask that the ordinance includes necessary protections to ensure that landlords do not pass the cost of basic fees to people's cost of rent.

What is being asked is a bare minimum.

Landlords should not be able to squeeze more money out of working families.

With the rising cost of living in San Diego, City Council need to take action to prevent added economic hardship.

Moving this forward is a necessary step.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Our next speaker is Thelma Navarro.

Please begin.

Okay, looks like we lost Thelma.

That does conclude virtual comment.

Uh we do we also have received uh speaker slips that would like to register a position but not speak.

Um we did receive one slip to speak in favor by AJ Estrada.

And the following individuals submitted slips in opposition.

Jasmine Hale, Doug Dunbar, Wendy Montgomery, Desiree Shaker, Annabelle Clotier, Chanel Sotello, Bertha Alicia Pichardo, Alicia Mendez, Doris Sayad, Grant Beckwith, Rodrigo, Greto de Faria.

And that does conclude public comment for item 330.

All right.

Thank you, Deputy Clerk, as I like to do on these big meetings.

Let's give a big round of applause to our deputy clerk and the entire city clerk staff for keeping us organized and on point.

You guys always do a great work uh despite how many people show up to speak.

This is an information item, so no motions required, and we'll turn it over to council member for questions and comments, and I'm gonna start with the two council members that are bringing this item forward, and we'll start with you, Councilmember Ilo Rivera.

All right, thank you, Council President.

Uh thank you again to Jeffrey and Maya, to Hilda with the city attorney's office, and all of the uh community folks who we worked with over the last several months, in addition to uh councilmember Foster's office, and our colleagues at the Board of Supervisors to get to where we are today.

Um as I mentioned before, this conversation started last year at the committee to address the cost of living, and what we kept hearing from community members about the way that ways that hidden fees and junk fees were impacting their ability to see a future in this city.

At the end of the day, that is what we are we are fighting for is to make San Diego a place where everyone sees a real future for themselves, where young people who are in college or just graduated can see themselves continuing to live here, where young families actually feel like they have a chance to make it, and where seniors don't feel like they're consistently on the cusp of being priced out, and all of that is becoming uh more and more challenging for everyday people these days.

In addition to that, housing is a human right, and and so with all of that in mind, uh, we think that uh reigning in these excessive fees, uh, these deceptive and and sometimes completely hidden fees is essential for making San Diego a more affordable place for everyday people.

We I want to also acknowledge um a couple things here.

One is is the the renters who spoke up, that did take a lot of courage because it is not as if retaliation is a theoretical issue, it's a real issue.

We heard from multiple people today about the ways that they've been retaliated against for simply asking what the law already requires, and um while there while there are remedies to that, it often comes at considerable cost, and a real decision as to whether or not the willingness to speak your mind is worth all the discomfort that comes with having a landlord that's trying to push you out of your home.

I want to acknowledge the good landlords who were here.

Uh, the gentleman who spoke at the beginning of this conversation, who seems like the most upright and honest uh business person that we could ask for, if that is what every renter in San Diego is experiencing, we wouldn't be having this conversation right now.

Unfortunately, that is not the way every landlord is treating their tenants.

It was said today that everyone has the same goal, and I actually think that in this case that's actually not true.

There are corporate landlords and others whose goal is to make as much money as they possibly can off every person in their homes, no matter what what impact that has on those people.

And then there's the rest of us who are just trying to get by and want to see their neighbors survive and thrive, and that's who we're going, who we're trying to fight for here.

On the issue of fairness and transparency, I appreciate that there was multiple landlords who said they agree with with that, and I think most are doing their best to be transparent.

But here's the thing the honesty of an honest landlord doesn't erase or protect renters from the harm caused by dishonest and greedy landlords.

And if a fee can be disclosed to banks or in financial models or loan agreements, there is no reason why it cannot be disclosed to renters.

So when we say that fees are not secret because they're baked into the financial models, no, they're not secret from the banks and the lenders and the people who are profiting off the system but they are to the people who are scratching and clawing and fighting with other renters over the limited housing stock that we have and just because something is baked in does not mean it's not harmful.

In fact it can be very harmful a 2021 needs assessment by serving seniors found that financial distress is a driver for an older adults into homelessness in an environment where 33% of the unsheltered population are individuals that are 55 and up we can see why transparency is so vital for people who are living on fixed incomes so um with all of all of this in mind the the the hope today is um that after you know I've made my comments and you've seen the presentation and councilmember foster here's yours we can get feedback council president from the council um from our colleagues so that when we bring a draft ordinance uh when we bring an ordinance forward in the fall um it's one that everyone has had a chance to see to weigh in on and we can get to the work of um making San Diego a place um where renters have the rights that they should have the transparency that any consumer should have and they will actually believe that they can continue to live in the city that they love thank you council president all right thank you council member Ilo Rivera and now we'll go to council member foster uh yes thank you um council president and um thank you council member Ilo Rivera um to you and your team also just want to um say a quick thank you to our county partners um we've had a lot of conversations um to get us to this point um to where there was something um to present and I just want to be clear that um this was intentional to have as an informational item um because it was to introduce um the item and to make sure that we were able to receive um feedback um to look at all sides of this um when this was presented at the um originally um discussed at committee um i too um have concerns um a lot of times you hear um in district four um one thing that really does um strike me um is the type of product that we tend to get um presented as we are talking about um housing um and so um i wanted to make sure that i was at the table and um able to um work through um not only the the um public's concern whether you're the landlord or the um tenant um but i just think this is a conversation that we we need to have and that we must have um also i do want to say and and um one thing that i do find very troubling um is that for quite some time the city of san diego has been spending about a hundred million dollars on an annual basis in regards to our homelessness um efforts and to this day with that type of expenditure we are continuing to see more families more individuals entering homelessness than staying housed and that's concerning and as we talk about cost of living, I think we can all agree that cost of living.

When you ask a family, when you ask a typical resident, cost of living is a major, major concern.

And so these are conversations that are difficult conversations.

These are conversations that I feel are important conversations and conversations we must have um and I have lived in district four for a majority of my life.

And there were just recently some new units that were brought online that were right that are right around the corner from my house.

And these are brand new units.

And they are two and three bedroom units, but they are going for about $3,600 a month.

And part of the fees that are included are pet fees, trash pickup fees, parking fees, storage fees, that are saying that you know rent can go as high as $3,900 a month.

And so I understand and and I can tell everyone that I've built units, and I understand there is a cost to um design construct to design and construct the units, and I also understand that there's a cost in managing the properties.

And so I think there needs to be there does need to be some additional conversation.

Also, I did make a commitment that my door that I will go out and as we are here for this informational item.

Um, but I will be meeting with uh stakeholders, I will be meeting with folks that are renters, and I will be meeting with industry, because this is something that I think is a conversation that needs to take place, and I would like to think that as we look at the city of San Diego as a whole, that we can all come to the table and do what's right.

Um, and so um I say all that to say that I do appreciate um all of the work that has gone into this um to date, and I continue to look forward to uh the discussion as we move forward.

Uh very interested to to hear from my colleagues as um I would like to hear um their um positions and um as you know with the Brown Act this does allow us to to have that type of conversation.

So I'm eager to to hear um my colleagues' comments, um, and I'm also eager to continue to roll our sleeves up and to bring a product that I hope um gets us to where we need to be so that um as we talk about housing as we talk about housing being a fundamental um right, which is a belief that I do share in, um, because I truly do feel every family, every person, every young person should have a place that they call home that is safe, that is well maintained, um, and um and um based on um certain um calls that I receive on a regular basis, there is a lot of work to do, and um one thing that does make this a very difficult and challenging conversation, um, and I think some of the public um commenters touched upon this quite frequently are the various um complexities and and and uh different um types of of units that we have in place because we have everyone um at different um economic levels.

Um some folks um like certain amenities and some don't um you know, so um I think all of that needs to be uh further looked at and discussed, and I look forward to to uh the the um conversations to come as we prepare to move this forward um in the fall.

Um, so with that, Council President, I'll that will conclude my comments, and again, thank you for everyone that came out and thank you to my colleagues.

Um thank you.

All right, thank you, Councilmember Foster.

We'll go next to Councilmember Campbell.

Thank you so much, Council President, and uh thank you uh to uh council member Foster for your comments as well as Councilmember Elo Rivera.

It's been really revealing uh to hear all the horrible things that so many people have been through, and so many people have had advantage taken of them.

I'm so sorry to hear about that.

I really I really think that we need to look at this sometimes from high up and realize that there are two big things uh causing what's going on here.

First of all, there's not enough supply for the demand of rental housing, so that that's the number one problem.

We need more supply so that we could meet the demand.

Number two, there's a problem because the state legislature, our favorite friend, put in a 10% cap on rent raises just a couple of years back.

And the reason they did this was it was going to be 5% allowed per year for rent raise, and then the other the other limit up to 10% had to do with the inflation rate.

So for last year, I believe the amount the state would have allowed would have been something like 8.3% of a raise in rent, and you know that can be a pretty high raise in rent for a lot of people, so that's that's tough in and of itself.

However, costs have gone up so dramatically that these uh uh these landlords may have put in fees as a way to get around having to take a loss because they needed, they thought they needed, some of them may just be greed, that they thought they needed more than the cap of 8.3% in order to not take a loss on the amount of rent they received.

So they're in business, they can't take a loss or they'll go out of business.

So I it's a really it's a double-edged sword.

They've got two things against them supply and demand.

Demand is high, supply is low, so they can kind of wiggle their way around since more people want to rent from them that have spaces to rent.

And number two, the state has imposed a limit on them that does not necessarily re uh represent a free market type of uh situation for business people.

So it's a really it's it's a tough situation looking at it from the side of each party involved, the landlord and the renter.

It's tough.

I'm particularly concerned that more regulations, as some have said today, will continue to disproportionately affect small mom and pop housing providers.

They are still the vast majority of those in San Diego who provide rental units, and these suggested requirements will put an undue burden on their small businesses.

I doubt that these rules would hurt corporate landlords who've been trying to increase their share of our market here in San Diego.

Corporate landlords have employees and bandwidth and they can meet requirements like this, but small landlords cannot and may be forced out of business, as many have left this business with the previous regulations that were put into effect to help protect renters from evictions, and that's a shame because people do need to be prevented from unnecessary evictions.

But the best way to ensure that people have and remain in housing is to build more of it.

We need more housing, we need increasing supply so that renters can have an ample choice of where they should live and can choose among these.

I used to be a landlord, I just had one condo that I rented out, and this was 15 years ago.

So it wasn't that long.

No, it was more like 10 years ago, but it wasn't that long ago.

But it was long enough ago that these new fees are different than what we had back 10 years.

I would never think of charging an application fee.

The fact that I would have to do a background check on who wanted to rent, that was my problem.

That was something I paid for as the landlord as part of my business cost.

That was included in the rent.

That's how business is done.

You put the cost of the product into what you charge the consumer and you try to make ends meet.

Well, unfortunately, with the lack of supply and with the 10% limit put on by the state, or 8.3% last year, you run into problems because this is just not working.

What would really solve it?

We really need to get busy and build more housing.

That's for sure.

And the other thing is, some people may have to go somewhere else.

My own grandson had to, he went around the country, worked from home, so he and his wife went around the country looking at different cities to see where they could afford to buy a house.

And they ended up in Richmond, Virginia, far away from grandma, which I didn't like.

But they could afford a house there that for $600,000, that here would have been 1.6 million dollars.

And so I understood completely their desire to do that.

So it's tough.

It's tough.

It's a bad situation.

I can see all sides of it.

And I just feel terrible about people who don't understand when they move in that they're going to have these fees applied to them.

And I don't think that's fair either.

There should be total transparency.

And the people who are renting out units should be able to charge what it takes for them to make ends meet.

And so we've got this conundrum going on, and it's difficult.

It's difficult to solve.

But I think solving it by putting on heavy restrictions and regulations makes it harder for the smaller landlords to be able to provide housing.

I do see some good things in this that I would approve of, and I see some others that I wouldn't.

But I want to take that offline.

I'd be happy to meet with my colleagues who are in favor of this to discuss the details of which ones I would favor and which ones I don't think will work out right.

But I just feel really bad that this has become such a problem.

It's not fair to the renter, and it's not fair to the landlord.

So thank you very much.

Thank you, Council President.

All right, thank you, Council Member Campbell.

We'll go next to the council member Campio.

Thank you, Council President, and thank you to the members of the public for their input today and the District 9 staff for their work on this.

And appreciate the opportunity to provide this feedback at this early period and consider how the ordinance works in practice.

The policy proposal here has two different segments, and I'll address them separately.

There's the cost transparency concepts and the price regulation aspects.

And so starting first with the cost transparency, the idea that everyone should know what their housing will cost all in is indisputable and every line item as well.

That's common sense.

That information is critical to families in the city who are already stretching every dollar they have.

They're calculating the cost of groceries and gas and child care and insurance and utilities and healthcare down to the penny at this point and unexpected fees can absolutely destabilize a household budget.

We've heard from people talk about that destabilization, and I appreciate the intent of trying to address that problem and solving that problem.

Housing should be affordable, and no one should have to choose between those fundamentals in order to simply exist in San Diego and the transparency aspects protect that.

The affordability concept, of course, is fundamentally a question of the cost of something and the ability for a person to obtain it, which brings me to the second component, which is the pricing regulations.

The costs can be absorbed by a business or the financing used to obtain the property or some other component involved in a transaction.

And the government can incentivize the private sector to absorb that cost by making something that we have on our end less expensive, or we can subsidize it by providing funding for it.

But when we ban collection of a particular cost, that cost does not simply go away.

It moves, it shifts, it still exists.

And in order to support a policy that's intended to create affordability, I would like to know exactly where that cost moves and how it impacts San Diegans, including those who currently are covering the costs that talked about the burden they are facing paying for those today, but also those who are covering different costs within the ecosystem.

Yes, in a perfect world, housing providers would simply absorb every new cost that's imposing on them, but that's not how the market functions, that's not how the homes are financed, and we have to acknowledge when proposing policies intending to support renters that that's not how it works.

And as much as this aims to target and prohibit unfair business practices, I have questions about the affordable uh issues related to affordable housing and homes that are naturally affordable too.

And so I'm just gonna jump into some questions at this point for staff on issues of addressing affordability.

The staff report mentions that this is modeled off a few other jurisdictions.

It was pointed out in the presentation as well.

Uh I'm curious to know the impacts and what we've seen in other jurisdictions, other cities, specifically when it comes to prohibiting specific fees.

What have we seen when it's when other cities are getting rid of fees?

If they've gotten rid of pet fees, pet rent, um, and how that impacted base rents as a result.

Thank you for the question.

Uh Councilmember Campio.

Um, in my research, uh, one of the more prominent examples of the prohibition of pet fees is in Colorado.