EAST COUNTY ROUNDUP: LOCAL AND STATEWIDE NEWS

August 4, 2023  (San Diego) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego's inland regions, published in other media.  This week's round-up stories include:

LOCAL

• Heavy rainfall makes for high fire risk. But San Diego lagging on removing brush  (KPBS)
• Protesters rally against controversial Senate Bill 10 (CBS 8)
• San Diego Planning Commission votes against Senate Bill 10, major single-family home zone change (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Are these San Diego malls the future of housing? (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• SANDAG's CEO Hasan Ikhrata to resign in December  (10 News)
• 4 Common Assumptions About Homelessness and What the Data Says About Them (Voice of San Diego)
• After six-month delay, jailed La Mesa man gets surgery to remove tumor from his lung (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Trump needed $225 million. A little-known [San Diego] bank came to the rescue.   (Washington Post)

STATE

• Tensions flare as California GOP gives Trump a boost by overhauling state primary rules (Los Angeles Times)
• California Gov. Gavin Newsom offers to help negotiate Hollywood strike (ABC News)
• Musicians deal with stingy streamers and AI threats, too. So why aren’t they on strike? (Los Angeles Times)
• California Democrats ramp up pressure on Hollywood studios over actors’ strike (Los Angeles Times)
• How California is fighting meth with gift cards (Cal Matters)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

LOCAL

Heavy rainfall makes for high fire risk. But San Diego lagging on removing brush  (KPBS)

Climate change, drought conditions and brush buildup from record rainfall makes the city more prone to fires, potentially jeopardizing the safety of people, wildlife and property.

Protesters rally against controversial Senate Bill 10 (CBS 8)

More than 150 people were protesting San Diego’s high-density housing initiatives; particularly the city’s consideration of Senate Bill 10.  The bill was already passed by the state Senate last year. If passed by the city, San Diego would be one of the first cities in the state to implement it.  "San Diego is the only city foolish enough to opt into it. We believe it's unconstitutional and it would totally ruin our city," said Bonnie Kutch, founder of San Diegans for Responsible Growth. 

San Diego Planning Commission votes against Senate Bill 10, major single-family home zone change (San Diego Union-Tribune)

San Diego’s Planning Commission unanimously voted against a key part of Mayor Todd Gloria’s housing plan Thursday that would have eliminated single-family zoning in much of the city.  The commission voted to recommend the city’s sweeping Housing Action Package 2.0, but stripped it of its biggest element: Senate Bill 10, which will no longer go before City Council for a vote.  The optional statewide law, a lightning rod in the plan, would have allowed a single-family home to be torn down and replaced with a new structure of up to three stories with up to 10 units in much of the city.

Are these San Diego malls the future of housing? (San Diego Union-Tribune)

In San Diego and around the country, housing is being added to retail malls — or replacing them all together.

SANDAG's CEO Hasan Ikhrata to resign in December  (10 News)

The San Diego Association of Governments Chief Executive Officer Hasan Ikhrata announced his resignation Friday.

4 Common Assumptions About Homelessness and What the Data Says About Them (Voice of San Diego)

The debate about homelessness in San Diego, and its causes and solutions, is dominated by a familiar cast of assumptions and theories. But new research, as well as several existing data sources, provide basic truths the region must grapple with to alleviate the crisis. The data show that among four of the most prominent assumptions about homelessness, some are plain wrong and others are only half-true.

After six-month delay, jailed La Mesa man gets surgery to remove tumor from his lung (San Diego Union-Tribune)

A La Mesa man who was sent to San Diego County jail weeks before he was scheduled to have a cancerous tumor removed from his lung underwent a successful surgery this week — days after his case was profiled in The San Diego Union-Tribune…San Diego attorney Paul Neuharth, who has represented Hightower since earlier this year, filed a motion Tuesday in San Diego Superior Court requesting a court order forcing the Sheriff’s Department to have the procedure performed.

Trump needed $225 million. A little-known [San Diego] bank came to the rescue.   (Washington Post)

Gregory Garrabrants, a GOP donor and CEO of online Axos Bank, approved the loans after the former president’s main lender had cut ties.

STATE

Tensions flare as California GOP gives Trump a boost by overhauling state primary rules (Los Angeles Times)

In a move backed by former President Trump’s campaign, the California Republican Party on Saturday changed its rules for allocating delegates in the state’s presidential primary — a shake-up that could discourage other GOP candidates from campaigning here and make the state less competitive ... a Republican presidential candidate who receives more than 50% of the vote in the March 5 primary will win all 169 delegates from California, which has more than any state in the nation. If no one reaches this benchmark, delegates will be awarded proportionally based on the statewide vote.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom offers to help negotiate Hollywood strike (ABC News)

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has contacted all sides of the strikes that have hobbled Hollywood, his office said Wednesday, offering to help broker a deal to restart an industry that is crucial to keeping the state's economy humming amid signs of weakness.

Musicians deal with stingy streamers and AI threats, too. So why aren’t they on strike? (Los Angeles Times)

For popular musicians and songwriters, there’s no equivalent to SAG-AFTRA and the WGA. During this summer of labor unrest, some are trying to change that.

California Democrats ramp up pressure on Hollywood studios over actors’ strike (Los Angeles Times)

 Democratic members of California’s congressional delegation, increasingly concerned about the ongoing strikes in Hollywood, are warning studios that they are watching.

How California is fighting meth with gift cards (Cal Matters)

Among the most difficult addictions to witness at San Francisco general hospital’s drug clinic is methamphetamine, which leaves users tearing at their skin and unable to eat, sleep or sign up for help. The worst part: The clinic workers largely are powerless because unlike with opioid addiction, for which doctors prescribe medications such as methadone, there is no medicine for stimulant use disorder…Faced with that immense suffering, California will try a new approach to stimulant addiction: Paying people with gift cards to reward them for staying sober.