Addressing the cross-border sewage problem

Good Morning, I’m Debbie Cruz….it’s Friday, July 19th.

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Why a local congressman is hopeful about the cross-border sewage problem. More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines….

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County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Nora Vargas has been named chair of the National Association of Counties,' Immigration Reform Task Force.

The task force is made up of local government officials, policy experts, and community leaders.

The group works on developing immigration reform strategies.

It focuses on providing pathways to citizenship, protecting the rights of asylum-seekers, enhancing border security and fostering economic opportunities for immigrants.

Vargas said she plans to lead efforts to create policies that prioritize fairness, compassion and the well-being of immigrants and their families.

She also said she aims to emphasize the importance of collaboration between federal, state and local governments.

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There will soon be more trolley service available for East County residents.

The M-T-S Board of Directors yesterday (Thursday) approved plans for the Copper Line.

The line will replace the existing Green and Orange Line trolley service north of the El Cajon Transit Center.

It will serve four stations starting with the El Cajon Transit Center and ending with the Santee Trolley Station, and will run every 15 minutes, every day for most of the day.

The El Cajon Transit Center will become the new station of the Orange and

Green lines.

Service on the Copper Line is expected to begin as early as this fall.

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There’s a lot in store for this weekend’s weather.

Starting this morning (Friday), there’s a Heat Advisory in effect in the inland and mountain areas, where temps are expected to be in the low 100s.

That advisory will be in effect until nine P-M Sunday.

In the desert areas, there’s an Excessive Heat Warning in effect from 11 this morning (Friday), until Sunday night.

There temperatures could reach up to 118 degrees.

By the coast, temps will be more comfortable today and through the weekend, in the mid to high 70s.

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From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now. Stay with me for more of the local news you need.

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San Diego congressman Juan Vargas says he’s feeling hopeful about the cross-border sewage problem.

Reporter Katie Anastas says some South Bay beaches have been closed for more than 950 days.

The smell of sewage fills the air at the South Bay International Water Treatment Plant just north of the US-Mexico border. Repairs and expansion efforts are underway to double its capacity. Congressman Juan Vargas says that’s not enough to manage sewage pollution from Tijuana. VARGAS You can’t make it big enough. You can’t handle a river. The expansion is expected to cost $610 million. The federal government has allocated about half that, and other funding is still pending. Mexico has its own treatment plant about six miles south of the border. Mechanical issues have left much of the water flowing toward that plant untreated before it goes into the ocean. Repair work is underway. VARGAS It’s absolutely essential that they finish that project. Absolutely essential. They say they’re going to finish it by late September. He says Mexico’s President-Elect Claudia Sheinbaum assured U.S. leaders she’ll continue to address the problem. VARGAS I finally feel good about it. I do. It’s the first time I’ve been able to say that in probably 20 years. The EPA said in 2022 the repaired treatment plants would help reduce untreated wastewater flowing into the Pacific Ocean by 80%. Katie Anastas, KPBS News.

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After numerous delays and repairs, the amphibious assault ship U-S-S Boxer has resumed its deployment.

Military reporter Andrew Dyer has more.

The boxer was seen this week fueling up in san diego bay with a complement of marine aircraft on its flight deck. it left san diego tuesday.in a statement the navy confirmed the ship has resumed its indo-pacific deployment with the 15th marine expeditionary unit. the ship first left on deployment in april only to return 10 days later for repairs on its rudder. early this month it left to test drive those repairs. the navy says those tests were successful. the ship is expected to join other elements of the 15th meu on the san diego-based uss harpers ferry and uss somerset. the harpers ferry has been deployed since april. the somerset left san diego in january. due to an extended retrofit and maintenance delays, this is the first deployment for the boxer since 2019. andrew dyer, kpbs news.

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Palomar Health Medical Group says it has restored some of its systems following a cybersecurity breach more than two months ago.

North County reporter Alexander Nguyen says it was too little, too late for one former patient.

“We're having computer problems. You need to redo this form manually.” That's what Kenneth Rhodes was told when he went to see his new primary care doctor on May 6th …  the day after a cyber attack knocked down Palomar Health Medical Group’s computers. Rhodes … a veteran … moved back to San Diego and Medicare assigned him to P-H-M-G. “But the real problem came in with trying to get the referral to a neurologist and a cardiologist. About 2 weeks after my appointment. I called and their phone system was very difficult to figure out how to get through to the right person and so I left a general. I think it was just in a general mailbox, left a voicemail message. and it was probably a week or so after that that I got a call call from them. and it was a little bit concerning because it was like, Hey, we don't know when you came in, or who you saw, or what you need. ” On Thursday … Palomar announced it restored its medical record, phone and online patient portal systems … some systems however are not back to full functionality. For Rhodes … it was too late. He’s already transferred to another medical group. AN/KPBS.

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The nonprofit Serving Seniors launched a meal service at a southeast San Diego senior center yesterday (Thursday), to help prevent loneliness.

But reporter Katie Hyson found the community is way ahead of them.

There have been almost six thousand studies on the benefits of communal meal programs for seniors. To back what humans have always known. It’s good to break bread together. Not just because free meals help seniors on fixed incomes. But because they can get lonely. When I arrived at the Bay Terraces Senior Center it. was. bumpin’. Almost 100 seniors packed it wall to wall. Party time . . . 10:00 is a party time here. Socializing. Socializing, yes. Sol Christian and her friends crowd a table outside. This is a place to meet friends, and this is a place if you want to find, uh . . . laughs. . . you know, your very, very . . . Boyfriend! I don't want to say that! City resources expanded what Bay Terrace seniors were already doing for themselves. They’ve been potlucking and line dancing at this park for decades. When the center opened in 2021, their numbers grew. To more than double the building’s capacity. Christian just started coming last January. They became all my friends already. Yeah, I can tell. Yeah. I want to start coming! Katie Hyson, KPBS News.

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Tomorrow (Saturday), the San Diego Pride Parade marks its 50th anniversary.

It’s one of the largest and oldest Pride celebrations in the U-S.

San Diego is also home to one of the oldest gay bars in the country… and it turns 100 this year.

Reporter John Carroll takes us to The Hole.

It’s almost time for the big celebration to begin.  The Pride Parade and Festival is emblematic of the progress made by San Diego’s LGBTQ community.  But as flags are waved… as the good times roll, it’s worth remembering that an important part of local LGBTQ history isn’t found in Hillcrest… It’s a few miles away… in Point Loma - across the street from what is now Liberty Station.  It’s a below ground bar… originally called the 19th Hole, a tip of the hat to the golf course across the street, which has also been here for a very long time.“1924 is as far back as we could find any records of its existence.” That’s Karen Sherman.  She’s owned the place since 2000, but she took over running it in 2015. Karen Sherman The Hole Owner “It was started by some Navy wives who were avid golfers and just wanted a place of their own to hang out…  But they didn’t legitimately have it until 1933 when it was the end of prohibition, so it was a bit of a speakeasy during that period of time.” Sherman says it was the “19th Hole” until a big storm in 1951 blew down the sign… and sometime after that, it began to be known simply as The Hole.“I’m very proud of it.  I’m proud of its heritage.” Crosby Roper is the general manager here.  He’s also Karen Sherman’s son. Crosby Roper The Hole General Manager “Family and business is always a little bit rough, but we both love each other and despite everything, we always have each other’s back.” And mother and son share a mission when it comes to The Hole… a common purpose.“This bar is such a part of the community and it’s so important to the community and so to me that’s what its attraction was.” “Seeing the community come together, seeing people that may not have a lot in common find common ground and be able to reach each other on a human level.” Long before the internet… gay bars were the primary places, safe places where the LGBTQ community came together. “That was kind of where what we know today as a gay community kind of evolved.” Art Smith is a historian of sorts… he founded and runs the “Gay Barchives”... an online compendium of gay bars past and present.  He says The Hole is like a lot of gay bars across the country that were established near military installations… you may know, that  Liberty Station used to be the Naval Training Center… and of course the Marine Corps Recruit Depot is still around… just down the street. Art Smith Gay Barchives Founder “These people for the first time were displaced from their families.  You know, if you think about our history as a country for decades and centuries even, people stayed close to home…  But when the war came along and all these people were drawn out, when they came back, they found themselves in a new environment and got to explore a new aspect of themselves.  So I guess we can kind of give the war some credit for the evolution of the gay community.” Smith says The Hole is at least the 3rd oldest gay bar in the country.  He says it very well may be the oldest.  The problem, he says, is.. it’s hard to pin down dates of when gay bars actually opened. “So we have to rely on documents like police raids, exposes in the media, a variety of different things - military notices because the military was infamous for banning people from going to bars that they suspected were inappropriate places for military, which usually meant they were gay or lesbian.” One thing Smith says is certain… The Hole is the oldest gay bar that’s always operated in the same place. Back at the bar… and its impressive history aside, there are the day to day challenges and annoyances of doing business here… one of them popped up while we were interviewing Roper. “I apologize for the plane noise… the Point Loma pause as we all call it…” Like many homes and businesses in the Point Loma area, The Hole sits right under San Diego International’s takeoff flight path.  But what you might think is a negative, Karen Sherman says - is actually a positive. “The airplanes in some ways have saved us from noise complaints because everyone around here, every residential unit around here and commercial unit around here took advantage of the FAA’s noise mitigation measures… the quieter homes program.” We shot this story on a Thursday… early in the evening, the rugby and softball team the bar sponsors were here… The Armada is the rugby team… turns out they sing as well… But as the sun set, things picked up… there was karaoke… Chris Woodward has hosted it here for 9 years. “It’s just a really caring and open environment where people can come and feel safe and have a good time.” From pre-prohibition to the supposedly dry years of prohibition, to World War II, right through the rest of the 20th century and a quarter of the way through the 21st… San Diego’s oldest gay bar survives, as not only a repository of local LGBTQ history… but also a place to feel safe, to be in community… and to have a good time.  JC, KPBS News.

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That’s it for the podcast today. This podcast is produced by Emilyn Mohebbi and edited by Brooke Ruth. We’d also like to thank editor Joe Guerin, producers Brenden Tuccinardi [Tu-CHIN-ar-DEE] and Lara McCaffrey, and reporters Andrew Bowen and John Carroll for helping the podcast team over the last couple of weeks. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. Join us again on Monday to start the new week with the day’s top stories. I’m Debbie Cruz. Thanks for listening and have a great weekend.