City of San Diego Environment Committee Meeting - October 26, 2022
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City of San Diego Environment Committee Meeting - October 26, 2022
This meeting of the Environment Committee, chaired by Councilmember Joel Ocava (District 1), included approval of minutes, non-agenda public comment, two consent agenda items, a discussion item on a Clean SD services contract with Urban Corps, and an informational update on the utilities undergrounding program. Committee members present were Vice Chair Von Wilpert and Committee Member Campillo; Committee Member Campbell was absent. The meeting was conducted via hybrid format due to the state of emergency.
Consent Calendar
- Item 1: Fourth amendment to agreement for purchase and sale of biogas and Fifth amendment to site lease with Watonga RNG 1 LLC – approved 3-0.
- Item 2: Sole source contract award to ADS Corp for wastewater flow monitoring equipment, software, and services – approved 3-0.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Non-Agenda Public Comment: Multiple speakers addressed various topics. Lori Saldania expressed concern about the lack of inclement shelter for unsheltered people during changing weather, urging the committee to consider climate change impacts on the homeless. Catherine Rhodes criticized the Midway Rising development for not incorporating underground parking on a salt marsh, arguing it missed an opportunity to address liquefiable soils. Barbara Gordon and Judy Strange advocated for a ban on smoking in multi-unit housing to protect residents from secondhand smoke. Becky Rapp thanked Councilmember Von Wilpert for supporting a tobacco flavor ban and urged consideration of a ban on flavored marijuana products. Nathan Brenner, Robin Davidoff, and Carol Archbald (via slides) discussed the sea lion rookery management plan, urging the city to implement engineering solutions (railings, webcams), empower rangers with enforcement, and keep the area closed until a proper plan is approved, citing a November 1 deadline for a management plan required by the California Coastal Commission. Peggy Walker highlighted rising disposable e-cigarette use among teens despite flavor bans and called for broader public smoking bans. Levi Giafaglioni (Lived Experience Advisors) recommended using electric all-terrain litter vacuums during encampment cleanups to avoid traumatizing unsheltered individuals.
- Item 3 (Clean SD Services): Several speakers opposed the contract with Urban Corps. Lori Saldania argued that the $22 million over five years should be spent on housing, storage, and safe camping instead of sweeps that disperse homeless individuals and make them lose contact with caseworkers. Catherine Rhodes echoed that the sweeps waste new donated property and create more trash, advocating for compassionate cleanups with advance notice. Emily Olanov called the sweeps harassment and urged spending on root causes like housing and public restrooms. John Brady (Lived Experience Advisors) claimed the city does not respect the Isaiah settlement by failing to sort and store personal possessions properly, and asked for a full tally of abatement costs.
- Item 4 (Undergrounding Program): Lori Saldania noted that San Diego pays the highest utility rates in the country and questioned the lack of diversity in SDG&E's workforce, asking for a report on equitable contracting. Catherine Rhodes pointed out that non-San Diego subconsultants get high-paying union jobs, creating greenhouse gas emissions from long commutes, and urged the city to require local hiring. Sonia Robinson (Protect Our Communities Foundation) requested that SDG&E accelerate undergrounding to make up for paused miles in 2021-2022, and called for accountability in project timelines and mandatory diversity requirements.
Discussion Items
- Item 3: Approval of Agreement for Clean SD Services with Urban Corps of San Diego County, Inc. – Renee Robertson (Director of Environmental Services) and Ken Prue presented the proposed five-year, not-to-exceed $22,078,000 contract for citywide waste removal, including illegal dumping and encampment abatement. Urban Corps employs young adults (ages 18-26) and provides job training. The contract envisions six teams working under ESD supervision. Councilmember Von Wilpert asked about compliance with the Isaiah settlement regarding property storage and notice. Robertson explained that code compliance officers impound valuables, IDs, and irreplaceable items, and the city stores them for retrieval. She also noted that outreach workers are deployed ahead of abatements. Councilmember Campillo asked about targeting blocks for cleanups, and Robertson stated that work is driven by Get It Done requests (over 1,200 per week). The contract also covers illegal dumping, not just homelessness. The committee voted 3-0 to approve the staff recommendation.
- Item 4: Status Update on Utilities Undergrounding Program – City staff (Chelsea Clacius, Jim Dabong) and SDG&E representatives (Bernadette Buckowitz, Erica Schimmel Giles, Kevin O'Byrne) presented an informational update. The city has an undergrounding program since 1970, funded by Rule 20A and a surcharge, with a master plan of 1,200 miles. A new MOU with SDG&E was adopted in April 2022, and work paused during negotiations. The surcharge fund grew to $222 million. SDG&E plans to restart 11 projects in FY23 and complete 5 legacy projects by March 2023. The program faces cost increases of ~14% per year vs. 4.5% revenue growth. The new MOU requires prioritization of historically underserved communities and high fire risk areas. Rule 20A funding is at risk due to CPUC rulemaking, potentially losing $19 million per year. SDG&E also highlighted the Pipeline 1600 natural gas replacement project, with five of six segments completed in San Diego, removing 1949-era pipeline. Committee members discussed allocation timelines, self-funding options, coordination with other infrastructure, and the need for clear public communication. The item was informational only; no vote was taken.
Key Outcomes
- Approval of Minutes: The minutes of September 15, 2022, were approved 3-0.
- Consent Agenda: Both items (biogas agreement and wastewater monitoring equipment) were approved 3-0.
- Item 3 (Clean SD Services): The agreement with Urban Corps was approved 3-0, authorizing the contract and CEQA exemptions.
- Item 4 (Undergrounding Update): The committee received the update; no action taken. Staff will return in spring 2023 with more details on prioritization and cost projections.
- Next Meeting: The next Environment Committee meeting is scheduled for Thursday, October 27, 2022, at 6 p.m. (time may change).
Meeting Transcript
Good afternoon and welcome to the October 13th, 2022 meeting of the City of San Diego Environment Committee. I'm Joel Ocava, Councilmember for District 1 and Chair of the Committee. Until further notice, committee meetings will be conducted pursuant to the provisions of California Government Code Section 54953e, added by Assembly Bill 361, which allows the city to use teleconferencing and to provide the public an opportunity to address the city council via call-in option or an internet-based service option during a proclaimed state of emergency. While the public is allowed to attend the meetings in person, we encourage you to maintain six feet of social distance as well as follow California math guidelines where maths are strongly recommended. In addition to being able to attend in person, this meeting is being televised and live streamed on the city's website, and the committee liaison will continue to make arrangements for the public to comment using the Zoom webinar platform. Additionally, members of the public who wish to provide testimony via call-in or internet based service option must enter the virtual speaking queue within five minutes after the conclusion of in-person public testimony or before the virtual speaking queue is exhausted, whichever occurs first. This will allow for better meeting management between the two platforms and ensure the committee is able to manage and conduct city business. We appreciate the public's cooperation. I will now call the environment committee meeting of October 13th, 2022 to order and now call the roll. Vice Chair Von Wilpert. Present. And then Committee Member Campillo. And I am here as well. All members are present with uh committee member Campbell absent. Also participating in the meeting are Jordan Moore, Office of the Independent Budget Analyst, Deputy City Attorney Nicole Dino, Randy Wilde, Senior Policy Advisor in the Office of Mayor Tagloria, and Committee Consultant Brian Elliott. Brian will now go over instructions for participating in the meeting. Brian. Oh, there we are. Good afternoon. If you are in person, please complete a speaker slip located at the entrance of chambers and place it in the box indicated at the speaker selector and at the front of the room. Please do so in a timely manner to ensure proper meeting management. Members of the public can join the webinar by computer, tablet, or smartphone by accessing the link on which the which is listed online in the preamble language of the agenda on the city's webpage. The link to join the committee meeting webinar by computer, tablet, or smartphone is listed on the agenda. To join the Zoom webinar by telephone, please dial 1669-2545252. When prompted, input webinar ID 161-532-0355 pound. This information is also available on the agenda and will appear on the screen during the public comment period for each agenda item. Members of the public who wish to provide testimony via a call-in or an internet-based service option must enter the virtual speaking queue within five minutes after the conclusion of in-person public testimony or before the virtual speaking queue is exhausted, whichever occurs first. Please note that if you're watching via City TV, Channel 24 or online, there may be a delay. Please participate via the audio on your phone and mute your TV or computer when it is your turn to speak. When I introduce the item you would like to comment on, please raise your hand by either tapping the raise your hand button on your computer, tablet, or smartphone, or by pressing star 9 on your phone. You'll be taken in the order which your hand in which you raise your hand. You may only speak once on a particular item. If you are in person, please come up to the reserve seats at the front of the room when your name is called and be prepared to come up to the electorn in the order called. If you have joined by webinar, join the webinar by computer, tablet, or smartphone, you will receive a pop-up notice to select to unmute your device. If you have called into the meeting by cell phone or landline, press star six on your phone to unmute yourself. We will review these instructions briefly when the public comment period on an item is open. Please wait until the item you wish to speak to has been called before raising your hand to speak. If you raise your hand during a non-comment period, your hand will be lowered. When you are announced as the next speaker, please unmute yourself and offer your comments. Also, please mute the volume on your TV or computer before you begin to speak. Chair Lakava. Thank you. Uh quorum is now present. We will now dispense with the approval of the committee actions of September 15th, 2022. Brian, do we have any public comment on this item? We have no in-person comment. And again, please raise your hand if you wish to speak and are in the virtual queue. Chair, I'm not seeing any participants raise their hand, and so we do not have any public comments on the minutes. Okay, we'll close public testimony on this item. And I'll turn it over to the committee members for most.
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