San Diego County’s Census Data

Good Morning, I’m Annica Colbert….it’s Friday August 13th >>>> San Diego’s Census Data More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines…. ###### As coronavirus infections increase in San Diego, so are hospitalizations. A month ago there were about 100 coronavirus hospitalizations county-wide, it’s now topping out at more than 500. Andrea Muir is a registered nurse and the union rep at Sharp memorial Hospital. she’s asking for the public’s help to reduce the burden on the hospital system-- make sure that we have sufficient staff to take care of people that need us and the way to do that is doing your part and if all you can for this pandemic is making sure you’re distancing and masking and getting vaccinated then that’s what you need to do. (:15) ….. Meanwhile, San Diego County is opening four new covid-19 testing sites. One of them opened ON Thursday at the north county lifeline in Vista. Sites at the lemon grove senior center and northgate market are also open. A fourth site will open on Sunday at the border view YMCA . ######## The City of Coronado’s public pool reopened on thursday, after having to close a couple of weeks ago because of a shortage of chlorine. Coronado’s director of recreation and golf services, Roger Miller, says they were able to get enough chlorine by combining suppliers. He says things are good for now, but there’s no promises that the pool will stay open. “You just never know. Things have been changing day to day and of course there’s always been supply chain issues and that’s been part of the problem with the suppliers as well. There’s been a fire at one of their plants back in the summertime and so we’ll just play it day by day at this point.” Other California counties are enforcing mask mandates, but San Diego is holding off because of the county’s high vaccination rates. ######### From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now. Stay with me for more of the local news you need. After months of delay, the US Census finally released the first batch of 2020 demographic data. States and cities will use these numbers to draw new congressional district boundaries. The numbers also determine the allocation of hundreds of billions of dollars of federal aid to communities across the country. KPBS Race and Equity reporter Cristina Kim has more on what the data shows for San Diego. In San Diego County, the white population is shrinking, but it still makes up the largest racial and ethnic group. Latinos are the second largest group. That’s according to new demographic data from the US Census. But the state and the country are becoming increasingly diverse. California is the second most diverse state behind Hawaii. Across the country, the white population is shrinking. And the multircial population has almost quadrupled since the last census in 2010. But tracking these types of demographic changes is difficult because race and ethnicity were counted differently in 2020. Nicolas Jones is the Director of Race and Ethnic Research for the US Census. He says it’s not an apples to apples comparison. L3: Nicolar Jones, US Census Bureau “ It is important to note that these comparisons between the 2020 census and 2010 census race data should be made with caution taking into account the improvements we have made to the hispanic and race questions, data processing and the way we code what people tell us.” Researchers and community members also worry about the accuracy of the data. Nancy Maldonado is the President and CEO of the Chicano Federation located in Barrio Logan. She says Latinos could be undercounted. L3: Nancy Maldonado, Chicano Federation - San Diego One of the questions that we got a lot when we were doing outreach is why do I have to check the white box? And in that definitely threw people off. And I think some of the early results that we've seen come back from the census revealed that a lot of people actually didn't answer that question. Census officials have said the data is accurate. The numbers will now be used by states, counties and cities to draw new district boundaries for future elections.… But the California Citizens Redistricting Commission still isn’t able to start drawing new maps quite yet. So says Encinitas resident Patricia Sinay, one of the commissioners. L3: Patrica Sinay, California Citizens Redistricting Commission SOURCE PATRICIA- We're waiting for the statewide database to kind of prepare the current data that we receive today. And that's the data that will be used not only by the state redistricting efforts, but by local and county redistricting efforts. Sinay expects the Commission to start drafting maps by October in preparation for California’s 2022 election. In the meantime, they’re holding public meetings to hear community voices, not just look at numbers. Cristina Kim. KPBS News. And that was KPBS Race and Equity reporter Cristina Kim. The California Citizen Redistricting Commission is hosting a community meeting for San Diego and Imperial County today (Friday) at 3pm. To participate, visit www - dot - WE - Draw- The-Lines-CA Dot O-R-G. ########## A Chula Vista business owner says his parklet, or outdoor dining area, was unfairly targeted for removal… while his neighbors kept theirs. KPBS Reporter Melissa Mae has more. Third Avenue Village in Chula Vista is lined with businesses… including the Chula Vista Brewery. While others have parklets with additional outside seating, Chula Vista Brewery does not. Owner Timothy Parker took it down earlier this week, under orders from the city. Now he’s pursuing a claim against the city… saying he was treated unfairly. Timothy Parker // Chula Vista Brewery Owner “I just really want to ask the city to be fair and treat every business equally and give us all a fighting chance to survive. Parker had previously purchased a permit back in August 2020. The claim states, “The City has unlawfully demanded the business to remove its outdoor curbside and sidewalk sitting areas that were in place for approximately one year.” Attorney Cliff Dover filed the claim on Parker’s behalf. Cliff Dover // San Diego Attorney “There are other businesses up and down Third Avenue that were told that their outdoor seating arrangements were grandfathered in.” Cliff Dover // San Diego Attorney “However, the Chula Vista Brewery was not afforded that same accommodation and we just want to know why.” Just down the block from Chula Vista Brewery, Thr3e Punk Ales has a parklet of its own. Kevin Lewis is a co-owner and the head brewer. Kevin Lewis // Thr3e Punk Ales Brewing Company Owner “We’re good friends with Tim and all of them. We always help them out where we can. It’s an unfortunate situation.” Dover says Chula Vista Mayor Mary Salas and the city attorney have agreed to meet with Parker in the next couple of days. He hopes that a resolution can be reached and Chula Vista Brewery can put its parklet back up. Melissa Mae KPBS News. ########## Cathedral Catholic High School was set to reopen for in person learning this past monday, but covid-19 cases among staff had them postpone their reopening. KPBS reporter Alexndra Rangel has more. “No-one has become symptomatic yet and we just don't want to start off school on the wrong foot.” Out of what they call an abundance of caution Cathedral Catholic’s first day of class has been delayed for one week. A notice was sent to parents Wednesday stating that “due to a covid-19 related situation that has affected multiple stakeholders on campus, we have no choice other than to delay the start of school.” Kevin Eckery, the spokesperson for the Diocese of San Diego, confirmed to KPBS that a staff member had tested positive following a staff orientation. That person r has no symptoms, but they had contact with several others. On the advice of the county health department, the school determined 10 additional staff needed to isolate. Kevin C. Eckery, Diocese of San Diego “In the course of isolating people there simply wasn’t enough of the right staff to open school on time.” Eckery says their new start date is, Monday august 23-rd. However, in-person orientation for new students will go on as planned this coming Tuesday. Eckery says he has full confidence that the school year will be a successful one. He tells us that last year they had fewer than 200 positive cases out of 15-thousand students attending Catholic schools in the diocese. Kevin C. Eckery, Diocese of San Diego “But only four people managed to catch covid at school. So all the work we were doing with social distancing and mask in school really paid off.” About 20 schools under the diocese are scheduled to start school Monday. Eckery says covid measures will remain at the forefront. He also tells us they are following the state’s new vaccine policy and encouraging all staff to get vaccinated. Kevin C. Eckery, Diocese of San Diego “I can't think of a more christian or catholic thing to do but to keep the needs of friends of family and vulnerable strangers in mind.” Alexandra Rangel, kpbs news. And that reporting from KPBS Alexandra Rangel. ########## San Diego County voters will soon be receiving mail ballots for the September 14 recall election. They’ll be voting on whether to boot Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom from office. KPBS metro reporter Andrew Bowen explains how the vote will work and what's at stake for the Golden State. AB: Simply put, recall elections in California are weird, unlike any other regular election. Voters will have two questions on their ballots. The first is a yes or no: Should Gov. Newsom be kicked out of office? The second question is who should replace him IF a majority supports the recall. So let's say a majority votes "no" on the recall, meaning they want Newsom to stay. Then the second question doesn't matter. But if a majority votes "yes" on the recall, then whoever gets the most votes in the second question becomes governor. So there is a scenario where Newsom could get 5 million votes to stay governor, but 5 million and 1 voters want him out. Newsom leaves office, and the candidate with the most votes takes over. Even if that person got fewer votes than Newsom. Like I said… recalls are weird. SD: One of the most important things going into the recall is it's off cycle, and when it's off cycle, meaning non-presidential, there's going to be low voter turnout. AB: Sonja Diaz is the founding director of the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Initiative. She says the weirdness of the recall election will likely discourage less frequent voters from casting ballots. SD: The recall election is not just off cycle, it’s on a Thursday. And there's going to be widespread vote-by-mail apparatus. Now that may be normal for some who have been voting in California for years and years. But as it relates to our youthful, diverse voters, that's new and novel. And there's going to need to be a concerted effort to educate voters about how to vote, how to participate, how to make sense of this ballot. AB: Polls have consistently shown more California voters oppose the recall than support it. But among voters who are likely to cast ballots, the split is almost even. That's because of the enthusiasm gap. Diaz says Republicans are thrilled about the chance to take control of the country's most populous state, and a Democratic stronghold. SD: And so ultimately that can be really exciting for that segment of voters, but that is not the universe of California voters. And so what's really important to understand here is turnout. Turnout is going to dictate the outcome of September 14th. AB: Another strange thing about this election is how the candidates are campaigning. There are 46 of them, plus Newsom. The governor has avoided direct engagement with the leading replacement candidates, all of whom are Republicans. And UCSD political science professor Thad Kousser says those Republican candidates aren't bothering to appeal to the political center, like they would in a general election. TK: All of the Republican candidates correctly diagnosed that this is a race they can win with 20% of the vote. ... You just have to stand out among Republicans. And the way to do that is by continuing to embrace Donald Trump, which they all have, by attacking things such as critical race theory and all these sort of new culture war bogeyman. AB: If the recall is successful and a Republican takes over the governorship … the big question is what impact that would have on the state. Democrats will still hold a veto-proof majority in the legislature. And that Republican governor would face a tough re-election campaign just one year later. Kousser calls this scenario a one-year political earthquake. TK: It will be a proof of concept that Republicans can win, and that Donald Trump messaging and rallying the base can win in the bluest of blue states. AB: Also, the governor does have immense control over public health policies — things like vaccine and mask mandates, which the leading Republican candidates oppose. Newsom and his allies have raised more than twice as much as all of his opponents combined, according to the LA Times. But to save his political career, he'll have to translate that money into Democratic enthusiasm. Andrew Bowen, KPBS news. And that was KPBS metro reporter Andrew Bowen. ########## Coming up....Skateboarding debuted as an Olympic sport this year. The event included many skateboarders who live in or are from San Diego. But how has it grown from the beginning of skateboarding in the 70s until now? “Skateboarding is a global phenomenon, and to me, that's what the Olympics did, it really put skateboarding on a global stage.” More on that next, just after the break. Olympic “park skateboarding” debuted this year, and the event featured many current or former San Diegans….Gold medalist 18 year old Keegan Palmer represented Australia, but he’s a San Diego native....as is bronze medalist Cory Juneau. Frank Nasworthy is an Inventor and entrepreneur and one of skateboarding’s first innovators. He spoke to Midday Edition Host Maureen Cavanaugh. Here’s that interview. Time 8:00 And that was Frank Nasworthy, inventor and entrepreneur, speaking with KPBS MIdday Edition Maureen Cavanaugh. That’s it for the podcast today. Tomorrow we’ll have a special bonus episode of the podcast featuring KPBS’ Summer Music series. In the meantime, Be sure to catch KPBS Midday Edition At Noon on KPBS radio, or check out the Midday podcast. You can also watch KPBS Evening Edition at 5 O’clock on KPBS Television, and as always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. I’m Annica Colbert. Thanks for listening and have a great day.