Election update, surprise turnaround has Measure B narrowly leading

S1: The surprising comeback of Measure B.

S2: We trusted the voters. And the voters , I think , made a very , very good decision that's going to benefit all San Diego.

S1: I'm Maureen CAVANAUGH. This is KPBS midday edition. Efforts needed within law enforcement to stop the harassment of female officers.

S3: There has to be a consequence to stop people from doing this. There's nothing deterring them from doing this behavior.

S1: And things to do around San Diego. On our weekend preview. That's ahead on Midday Edition. The latest election results include a turnaround for Measure B , the proposal to charge single family homeowners in San Diego. A fee for trash pickup is narrowly in the lead after trailing for most of the vote count. If it ultimately passes , city leaders will be able to start the process of figuring out how much to charge for garbage pickup. Meanwhile , Measure C , which would raise the 30 foot building height limit in the Midway district , has also achieved a narrow victory. Supporters say it's a step forward in making sports arena redevelopment plans possible. And joining me is San Diego City Council president Shawn Ella Rivera. And welcome to the program. Welcome back.

S2: Thank you for having me back.

S1: Now Measure B is ahead by only about 3000 votes. There are about 15,000 votes outstanding , I believe.

S2: We know that a portion of that is in the city. The trend over the last few updates has been really , really positive. And it would things would have to take a really unexpected turn for us not to end up succeeding.

S1: There are a lot of warnings about putting a new fee on the ballot right now with inflation so high.

S2: I think that's an important thing to keep in mind. No one's getting charged anything tomorrow or on January 1st of 2023. What we did is unlock the city from a box that we didn't put in over a hundred years ago. And I think voters saw that. They saw the language. This is going to allow us to recover cost. We communicated that that would require multiple steps , community engagement , but would ultimately result in enhanced services and the free delivery of bins. We trusted the voters. And the voters , I think , made a very , very good decision that's going to benefit all San Diegans.

S1: If it ultimately passes , what's the next step for Measure B , then it's not a fee. Now how does it become one ? Yeah.

S2: So the next step council partnered with on this and was just such a great partner in this effort. We've been very clear. The next step is about engaging the community and finding out what the community wants and needs with respect to trash trash recycling organics collection services. Do we want to go to weekly recycling pickup ? Do we want bulky item pickup on a quarterly basis ? We need to hear that. And we haven't really been able to have that conversation as a city because we've been restricted from recovering any cost. We had to do the bare minimum and nothing more. So now we have that engagement process after that is complete. Then we'll move into what is referred to as a cost of service study. And this is a strictly regulated state required process. It will determine exactly how much it would cost to provide the services that are would be offered. And then the city cannot charge a dollar more than that. And then after that's done , the council would still have to vote on any fee. So we're a long ways out from any fee , but we really done is unlock the cities , create the city by way of the residents creative ability to figure out what sort of services we want , how we can be more sustainable , more fair and more responsible. As a city.

S1: Councilman , Eli Rivera. Does a narrow victory for Measure B raise a red flag for city leaders ? Should there be concerns that any trash fee for single family homes might encounter a lot of resistance ? Sure.

S2: You know , I think that we knew that ahead of time and again , there's no fee that's imminent. But I think that we all are. I've heard from my colleagues and I know I'll speak for myself extremely cognizant of rising cost of living here in San Diego. We would not want to do anything to overly burden people. Part of what would what would come during this community engagement process and running parallel to the cost of service study would be ensuring that we have programs in place that would not overly burden folks who are on fixed incomes like seniors or other people who might be negatively impacted by a fee. So we're going to proceed responsibly and cautiously. But again , what we were what we were doing by not reforming the people's ordinance before was avoiding this giant problem that was staring the city right in the face. We all knew what it was and we're not turning away from it anymore. And now we can have a real adult conversation as a city about how we move forward.

S1: Just a couple of quick questions about Measure C striking down the 30 foot height limit in the Midway district. That's one. But that , too , by a thin margin , much thinner than when it was on the ballot last time.

S2: You know what ? I want to give credit to Councilmember Kate for leading the charge in 2020 and then again in 2022 , I think. His leadership on this was really important. I was very enthusiastically in support of this effort because it's going to create more housing. And I believe that voters approve this because they understand that we need more housing and they want more housing built. The difference in margin , I don't think , is a change in sentiment. We need to recognize that different elections have different electorates , and typically an off year or midterm election like this year was a tends to have a more conservative electorate that is less inclined to approve changes such as the increase in time limits than we would see in a presidential year. So one takeaway would be that there's a significant drop in support. I don't think that that's true. I think that it was just a different pool of voters who weighed in on this in comparison to 2020. So we had a slightly different result. Thankfully , there was a positive result and a result that we need to produce the housing that we give here in San Diego.

S1: There are still legal challenges to removing the height limit.

S2: And without getting into the specifics. Look , I will say this. Any any delay in raising that height limit is a delay in building housing and a delay in making housing more affordable in San Diego. So , by all means , we need to do things in a legally correct way. But what I think every San Diego should be wary of is attempts to use the court system as a way to preventing change that we have to make. If this is going to be a livable city , I don't want to be a place where you have to be a high income person just to live in the city of San Diego , where we have to move folks in to do the service work that we want , and then they can go back to wherever they they can afford to live at night. That's not who we want to be as San Diego. And lifting the high limit is literally a way to make this a more affordable city to live in. So we need to do it.

S1: I've been speaking with San Diego City Council President Shawn Aiello Rivera. Thank you so much for joining us.

S2: Thank you very.

S1: It's been five years since the MeToo movement , but many female police officers still experience sexism on the job. KPBS investigative reporter Claire TRAGESER looks at what departments are doing to fix this.

S4: For some women working under San Diego Sheriff Sergeant Kitamura Ishii , a day at the office meant sexist , condescending and disparaging comments. An internal affairs report found that when female deputies called Meir Shiji to ask for help , he'd hang up on them when they asked for additional job training. He mocked them , ignored them , or told them to quit. mARASHI resigned in lieu of being fired , but he kept his $6,000 monthly pension. His attorney didn't respond to requests for comment. As this case shows , even in 2022 , police departments can still be toxic places , especially for women. Ellen Cushman is a psychologist who treats police officers. She says police departments need women in their ranks.

S1: They make really , really , really good officers. Some of the sharpest , smartest , most dedicated and competent people I know in law enforcement are female.

S4: Cushman says female officers can find themselves caught in a Catch 22. Sexism keeps them out of leadership roles , so the sexism often continues.

S1: You have the right women that have been promoted. They will keep their eye out for when.

S3: These things.

S1: Happen , and they will mentor the younger or the newer women on the job.

S4: So what can be done ? Cushman says if departments are serious , they adopt strict policies and enforce them.

S1: People in charge at the level of management can show decent behavior as opposed to being part of the problem , which sometimes. Happens.

S4: Happens. No one from the sheriff's department would do an interview for this story , but a spokesperson sent a statement saying the department has strict policies and all employees are required to attend sexual harassment training , but the trainings fall far short , says Debbie Meyer. She's a former detective suing the sheriff's department for sexual harassment she experienced on the job.

S3: There are cartoon trainings on a computer , so maybe humanizing the experience and really listening to what happened needs to happen. Even in our detective trainings , you can read the manuals , you can read the materials. But the most memorable training for me was when they brought the rape victims in and they spoke to us and told us what worked.

S2: If an officer is kind of shut down and not really caring , not really tuned in , finding it difficult to relate to his fellow brothers and sisters that they serve with.

S4: Dan Willis is a retired captain from Miller Mesa Police Department. He says departments need strict policies , but that's also not enough. They also need empathy and understanding about how the stress and trauma of the job can impact their officers behavior. If you don't have that , then.

S2: You're going to be much more likely to just do things , you know , without thinking. Think of the consequences of not taking another person's feelings.

S4: Steve Meyer says systemic reforms are needed that go beyond an individual department. Her harasser did leave the force , but he still gets a pension of almost $6,000 a month.

S3: There has to be a consequence to stop people from doing this. There's nothing deterring them from doing this behavior. So I think that's a huge thing is that there needs to be big consequences.

S4: She wants a new state law that would stop that from happening. Claire TRAGESER , KPBS News.

S1: This is KPBS midday edition. I'm whirring. CAVANAUGH In our weekend preview. We have art that explores street markets , contemporary dance , bilingual theater and more. Joining us with all the details is KPBS arts producer Julia Dixon. EVANS And welcome , Julia.

S3: Hi , Maureen. Thanks for having me on.

S1: So a new exhibit opens at the Institute of Contemporary Arts North Campus , featuring the work of Cognate Collective. What can you tell us ? Yeah.

S3: So the exhibition is called ten Keithley Portraits of the Market as Portal , and it's part of this ongoing body of work from Cognate collective. It's about the commerce have objects. They're really interested in street markets across the border and also the way that the objects sold there kind of go back and forth across the border and the life of those objects. And the Aztec word is the origin of tongues or open air markets in Mexico. The word is also linked to the Pleiades constellation. So this exhibition , they're kind of weaving together this idea of commerce and the cosmos. Cognate Collective is a long running collaboration between artists Mercedes and Aimee Sanchez. Ortega And they were winners of the 2022 San Diego Art Prize. This exhibition will be on view through the end of January , but they're having a reception and an artist talk this Saturday from 530 to 9. It's at the ACA north in Encinitas. So that's their former Lux Art Institute space.

S1: Local contemporary dance company Litvack Dance holds their fall performances this weekend with choreographers from Israel and some closer to home. Tell us about this production and some of these dances.

S3: Yeah , there are five pieces by five different choreographers , and they're all rooted in these ideas of home and origin. One of them is the Israel based choreographer. Ronan is Aki , and they're premiering a new work called Each Grain of Rice. It draws on how everybody has their own story. Isa Hourani is a local choreographer , has a piece called All I Left You , and it's about her and his Middle Eastern and Mexican roots and then the rituals and practices in Middle Eastern culture and social practices and also religious practices. There's also Rebecca margolis by it , which is the Hebrew word for home. And this one weaves Yiddish folk dance with contemporary movement. And finally , let VACS founder Sadie Weinberg has her own piece of choreography. We found Home , and that was also staged at Lip Back's debut in 2018. The performances are four and seven on Saturday evening and two and five on Sunday. This is at the San Diego Academy in Encinitas , and that 5 p.m. Sunday performance is actually a mask required show.

S1: In the theater. Broken Arts has the U.S. premiere production of the bilingual play MIA.

S3: Their mission is to bring collaborative works from diverse voices for all ages to the stage. And Mia is a really good example of that. It's about an eight year old girl called Mia who decides to leave home in the face of trauma and domestic violence. It's a really small cast , and one of the characters is is actually a kind of stuffed animal toy. Her old friend come to life and this is such a delicate topic. And Amira , until Eva's original script has really been celebrated for how it addresses domestic violence for youth and family audiences without watering things down. It's been translated into English. This was part of the Lark Play Development Center there by National Translation Residency. Carmen Rivera was the translator , and some of the showtimes are in Spanish and others are in English. Tonight at seven starts with Spanish and then the production runs just through Sunday.

S1: And you also have a recommendation for an Iranian folk music performance. Yeah.

S3: Yeah. So this is at UC San Diego and it's two of the most notable performers of traditional Persian and Iranian folk music on traditional instruments. They're calling this performance a journey through folk and traditional music of Iran. It's Persian wind instrument performer Kasra Soltani. This the we're listening to you right now is Soltani on a piece called Beheshti Arden. And also performing is percussionist Mohammad Gaby Helm , who will play the town back and forth. And Gary Helm has even collaborated with Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble in the past. And both he and Sultani have played together since their youth. The shows at UC San Diego's Conrad Prebys Music Center in the experimental theater , and it's free for UCSC students and faculty and staff for $25 for the general public. And the music center is actually really close to the Blue Line Trolley Stop or the Gilman parking structure. It's kind of in the middle , and this parking structure has a space station. So going to things like this on the UCSC campus is easier than it used to be.

S1: And finally tonight , the San Diego Symphony is appearing with Rafael Parra at the California Center for the Arts , Escondido.

S3: And they'll also play lists. Mesmerizing Piano concerto number two , that is with soloist Marc Andre Hamlin on piano. And they'll also perform one of my favorites hits Magnus , Tristan and Isolde , which is slow and it's moody , and it has this really long , drawn out , sweeping buildup that takes up basically the entire piece. And I love that.

S1: The symphony performs at 730 tonight at the California Center for the Arts , Escondido. You can find details on these and more arts events and sign up for Julia's weekly arts newsletter at KPBS dot org Slash Arts. I've been speaking with KPBS arts producer and editor Julia Dixon Evans. Julia , thank you.

S3: Thank you , Maureen. And have a good weekend.