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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

San Diego City Council Meeting Recap: October 13, 2026

City Council — Tuesday, October 13, 2026

BodySan Diego, California

SessionCity Council

DateTuesday, October 13, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 4:13:24

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Unassigned speaker

0:38

Yes.

Speaker 1

4:01

Good morning.

Unassigned speaker

4:02

I

Speaker 1

4:03

will now call the City Council meeting of Tuesday, October thirteenth, twenty twenty-six to order.

4:08

Clerk, please call the role.

Speaker 2

4:12

Here.

4:12

Councilmember Whitburn.

4:14

Councilmember Foster.

4:16

Councilmember Von Wilper.

4:18

Present.

4:19

Council President Protam Lee.

Speaker 3

4:20

Here.

Speaker 2

4:21

Councilmember Campillo.

Speaker 3

4:22

Here.

Speaker 2

4:23

Councilmember Moreno.

4:24

Councilmember Ela Rivera.

4:27

And Council President Lacava.

4:29

Present.

4:29

Also attending the meeting, our Chief Deputy City Attorney Kathy Steinman, independent budget analyst Charles Monica, and myself, your city clerk, Deanna Fuentes.

4:37

Thank you, Council President.

Speaker 1

4:38

All right, thank you, City Clerk.

4:40

A quorum is now present.

4:43

We will begin this morning with a land acknowledgement and the Pledge of Allegiance led by Council Member Elohera.

Speaker 4

5:01

Despite enduring the horrors of genocide and colonization,

Unassigned speaker

5:04

the

Speaker 4

5:04

Kumia spirit remains unbroken.

5:07

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

5:11

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

5:17

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

Unassigned speaker

5:22

Now

Speaker 4

5:23

if anyone everyone who's able to please face the flag and begin the pledge.

Speaker 1

5:45

All right.

5:46

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

Unassigned speaker

5:53

Thank

Speaker 2

5:53

you, Council President.

5:56

The testimony can be, if you can please direct your attention to the screen.

6:00

Testimony can be taken today by pressing the raise your hand icon or star nine if you are participating virtually and if you are here in council chambers.

6:07

There are council ambassadors near the front of chambers or near the entrance of chambers that can assist you with speaker slips.

6:14

Please be sure to bring those forward to the clear box where the arrow indicates at the front of the room.

6:19

Place them there and staff will get that.

6:21

If you are participating virtually, you must raise your hand within five minutes of virtual in-person public commenting concluding.

6:29

If you are here in person, please know that there will be no in-person testimony taken once virtual participation begins.

6:36

Thank you, Council President.

Speaker 1

6:38

All right, thank you, City Clerk.

6:40

Uh, as a friendly reminder, non-agenda public comment is the opportunity to speak on items within the purview of the city of San Diego.

6:47

But when we talk about docuted items, we're going to ask you to speak on the document item.

6:52

Uh and uh we'll be monitoring that.

6:56

As uh for those of you that watched yesterday afternoon's um uh uh city council meeting, uh we were on the verge of losing quorum, and so we were only able to take non-agenda public comment for those participating in person.

7:12

Uh, and we informed that those uh that wanted to speak virtually would be taken at the beginning of this morning session.

7:20

Uh the city clerk uh took a note of all those people that had raised their hand for virtual non-agenda public comment.

7:27

Uh, and I believe there's about seven of them one, two, three, four, five, six, seven,

Speaker 5

7:32

nine

Speaker 1

7:32

of them.

7:33

So if those folks are online, we will take their virtual non-agenda public comment.

7:40

For those that might be thinking about this, we will also take in-person and virtual non-agenda public comment at the end of this morning's session, as noted on the regular Tuesday agenda.

7:53

So hopefully you can distinguish between the two.

7:55

So let's pick up the individuals that were participating, uh, wanted to participate virtually yesterday afternoon, clerk.

8:03

And thank you for the extra work to document that.

Speaker 2

8:05

Of course.

8:06

Thank you, Council President.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Public Comment███████████████████████████████████35%

Procedural███████████11%

Wage Theft█████████9%

Reproductive Health██████6%

SeaWorld Master Plan██████6%

Homelessness███3%

Public Health███3%

Cannabis Regulation███3%

Sea Level Rise███3%

Summary of Proceedings

San Diego City Council Meeting Recap: October 13, 2026

The San Diego City Council met on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, in a session that ran from the morning into the afternoon. The council unanimously approved a series of proclamations adopting the consent agenda, passed amendments to the Earned Sick Leave and Minimum Wage Ordinance to strengthen local wage theft enforcement, and approved the long-awaited update to the SeaWorld Master Plan with a formal commitment to transition from fireworks to drone displays. Public testimony covered topics including redevelopment at Midway, sea-level rise adaptation, homelessness policy, and drug regulation.

Proclamations

Item 30 (Employee Appreciation Month): Recognized over 13,000 city employees. Councilmembers highlighted specific departments and individuals.
Item 31 (E.G. Maxilum Day): Honored the football coach and community mentor from Allied Gardens for his service to youth sports.
Item S500 (Breast Cancer Awareness Month): Councilmember Marnie Von Wilpert shared her personal Stage 2 breast cancer diagnosis and successful treatment this summer, strongly urging preventative screenings.
Item S501 (Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day): Councilmember Sean Ila Rivera shared a personal story of loss. The proclamation notes that approximately 1 in 4 known pregnancies end in miscarriage.
Item S503 (William Bagayan Madamba Day): Recognized the 100th birthday of the WWII guerrilla fighter and retired U.S. Navy Chief Petty Officer.

Consent Calendar

Item 10: Approval of Council Minutes.
Item 50: Authorization of a contract with Bootworld Inc. for safety footwear for city personnel, increasing the not-to-exceed amount to $7 million.
Item S504: Setting a public hearing for November 17, 2026 at 2 PM regarding the creation of an underground utility district in Claremont.
Item S505: Amending the Municipal Code to consolidate the Department of Cultural Affairs into the Economic Development Department.

Discussion Items

Item S502: Strengthening Wage Theft Enforcement: Councilmembers Von Wilpert and Ila Rivera introduced amendments to the city's minimum wage and sick leave ordinance to expressly authorize the city to bring civil action to recover unpaid wages on behalf of workers and to clarify overtime pay recovery. Staff noted that in FY2025 the U.S. Department of Labor recovered over $259 million in back wages nationwide. Supporters (San Diego Building and Construction Trades Council, Center on Policy Initiatives) stated that 87% of surveyed local workers report experiencing wage theft. Opponents argued the city should resolve its own internal labor disputes and city employee overtime abuse before expanding enforcement authority.
Item 330: SeaWorld 2020 Master Plan Update: The council approved the park's first master plan update in over two decades, shifting its framework from specific project designations to criteria for five planning areas. The key amendment, introduced by Council President Lacava and accepted by the motion maker, formalizes the transition away from fireworks. Under the amendment, once the California Coastal Commission permits drone shows, SeaWorld can conduct a maximum of 30 fireworks displays per year. SeaWorld President Tyler Carter stated the park is a tenant in good standing and highlighted that the park rescued over 500 animals in 2025.

Key Outcomes

All votes were 8-0 (Councilmember Moreno absent).
Item S502: Adopted. The city gains explicit authority to pursue civil wage recovery actions on behalf of employees.
Item 330: Approved with amendment. Fireworks capped at 30 annually upon Coastal Commission approval of alternative nighttime entertainment (drones).
Next Meeting: The council adjourned to Monday, October 19, 2026, at 10 AM.

Public Comments & Testimony (Non-Agenda and General)

Midway Rising: Catherine Rhodes strongly opposed the Midway Rising project, calling affordable housing funding a "$1.6 billion gifting of taxpayer funds." Lori Saldania urged integration of sea-level rise adaptation into the development plan, citing flooding and traffic hazards.
Homelessness: Amy Wiedenhoff and Audra described severe conditions at the Dreams for Change tent city, alleging contract violations and inhumane conditions. John LEA advocated for qualitative data collection from homeless individuals to improve the response system.
Drug Policy: Becky Rapp and Barbara Gordon urged the council to address Kratom and marijuana use, citing reports that 91% of youth arrestees reported marijuana use and 48% of adults surveyed by SANDAG reporting driving after use.
City Governance: Francine Maxwell criticized council engagement and the brevity of public comment periods. Crypto Bradley criticized city management of leases, alleging millions in lost revenue.
SeaWorld/Mission Bay: Speakers were divided, with many supporting the fireworks transition to protect wildlife and reduce noise. The San Diego Bird Alliance requested fireworks end immediately to protect nesting birds like elegant terns.

Meeting Transcript

Yes. Good morning. I will now call the City Council meeting of Tuesday, October thirteenth, twenty twenty-six to order. Clerk, please call the role. Here. Councilmember Whitburn. Councilmember Foster. Councilmember Von Wilper. Present. Council President Protam Lee. Here. Councilmember Campillo. Here. Councilmember Moreno. Councilmember Ela Rivera. And Council President Lacava. Present. Also attending the meeting, our Chief Deputy City Attorney Kathy Steinman, independent budget analyst Charles Monica, and myself, your city clerk, Deanna Fuentes. Thank you, Council President. All right, thank you, City Clerk. A quorum is now present. We will begin this morning with a land acknowledgement and the Pledge of Allegiance led by Council Member Elohera. Despite enduring the horrors of genocide and colonization, the Kumia spirit remains unbroken. We honor the resilience of their ancestors who fought to protect their culture and land. Today, they carry their legacy forward, ensuring that their traditions continue to thrive in gratitude and strength. We stand with the Kumai Nation connected to our past and committed to a thriving future. Now if anyone everyone who's able to please face the flag and begin the pledge. All right. With that, Clerk, please go over how the public can offer their testimony. Thank you, Council President. The testimony can be, if you can please direct your attention to the screen. Testimony can be taken today by pressing the raise your hand icon or star nine if you are participating virtually and if you are here in council chambers. There are council ambassadors near the front of chambers or near the entrance of chambers that can assist you with speaker slips. Please be sure to bring those forward to the clear box where the arrow indicates at the front of the room. Place them there and staff will get that. If you are participating virtually, you must raise your hand within five minutes of virtual in-person public commenting concluding. If you are here in person, please know that there will be no in-person testimony taken once virtual participation begins. Thank you, Council President. All right, thank you, City Clerk. Uh, as a friendly reminder, non-agenda public comment is the opportunity to speak on items within the purview of the city of San Diego. But when we talk about docuted items, we're going to ask you to speak on the document item. Uh and uh we'll be monitoring that. As uh for those of you that watched yesterday afternoon's um uh uh city council meeting, uh we were on the verge of losing quorum, and so we were only able to take non-agenda public comment for those participating in person. Uh, and we informed that those uh that wanted to speak virtually would be taken at the beginning of this morning session. Uh the city clerk uh took a note of all those people that had raised their hand for virtual non-agenda public comment.

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