A five-point plan to improve public safety and cleanliness in downtown San Diego was proposed Monday by a group of residents and business owners.
Mayor Todd Gloria endorsed the tough-on-crime plan during a morning rally.
"The success of downtown is imperative not only for the people who live, work and visit here every day, but for the continued progress and success of our entire city," Gloria said. "From investing in our police department to backing new common-sense laws, I've made public safety our city's top priority."
The plan consists of five major tenets, with various strategies under each. They are:
- Improving Health and Safety Downtown, which includes completely banning homeless encampments and tents downtown, looking into no loitering laws and increasing a police presence in the neighborhood;
- Rapid Response on Crime, Drugs & Psychiatric Distress, which includes addressing "frequent flyers," or the people who use 911 services the most, funding for the San Diego Police Department's Fentanyl Task Force, expanding the county's Psychiatric Emergency Response Team to have a dedicated unit downtown and providing post-jail support;
- New Solutions for the Behavioral Health Crisis, which includes funding and expanding California's CARE Court program and using conservatorship laws to bring into government welfare those with mental health disorder and/or severe substance use disorder;
- Backing and Enacting New California Laws, including stronger sentences for drug and theft crimes, harsher punishments for "smash-and-grab" crimes and cleaning up state-owned land; and
- Enhancing Quality Of Life, which includes cracking down on trash violations, funding street lighting and park improvements and cleaning sidewalks.
"We believe that the public resources, attention and investments made in downtown should reflect the importance that this community plays citywide and throughout our entire region," said Betsy Brennan, president and CEO of the Downtown San Diego Partnership. "Immediate action on this plan is absolutely essential to make sure downtown remains the thriving, welcoming community that our city expects and deserves."
The plan, which further criminalizes homelessness and might run into problems with civil rights and legal organizations, does not have a concrete plan for how to fund the dramatic changes it intends.
In the group's five-page document detailing the plan, the only mention of funding is the Transient Occupancy Tax the downtown core funded to the tune of $1.7 million in 2023. Granted, the document acknowledges Monday's proposal is only the first step, with more stakeholder input needed before such a plan could become reality.
Larry Turner, Gloria's opponent in the upcoming November mayoral election, said the plan was a cynical, last-minute ploy to address years-long problems in the city.
"This plan is nothing more than a rehash of previous proposals that have failed to make a real impact on our community's safety and cleanliness," he said. "It appears designed to distract from the ongoing issues that have plagued downtown under Mayor Gloria's watch.
"With increasing reports of crime and a lack of visible progress in addressing homelessness and public safety, it's clear that this plan is a political maneuver rather than a genuine commitment to our city's well-being."
Also present at the rally Monday morning were City Councilman Stephen Whitburn, SDPD Central Division Captain Ryan Hallahan, and Jeffery Lamont Brown and Jenny Chen, co-owners of IZOLA bakery in East Village.
