Regulating San Diego short term rentals
Good Morning, I’m Annica Colbert….it’s Tuesday October 12th
Licenses and fees for San Diego’s short term rentals.
More on that next, but first... let’s do the headlines….
Two people are confirmed dead after Monday's plane crash in Santee. It was a small plane, able to carry up to six people. Justin Matsushina is the deputy fire chief for the city of santee.
We don't know about the number that was on the plane. That's really the biggest question mark that hopefully we'll be able to answer for you soon. but as far as the plane occupants and the extent of the crash damage, it was non-survivable.”
We do know one victim was on the ground. UPS says one of its drivers was killed when the plane crashed into a residential area near santana high school.
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The San Diego port commission is set to vote today on the Maritime Clean Air Strategy, which calls for shifting away from using diesel-powered vehicles in the area. The port hopes to electrify its vehicle fleet before state mandates require it. The Environmental Health Coalition’s Danny Serrano says the goal is good, but he wants to see more specifics. The port approved the draft plan in July.
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The San Diego housing commission says it’s finished it’s pilot construction program of five so-called “granny flats”, also called “Accessory Dwelling units.” A report is out on lessons learned in the construction, with the aim of helping San Diego homeowners who are considering building units on their own lots. With the rising cost of housing far outpacing average incomes in San Diego, it is hoped that these ADUs could ease the housing shortage.
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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.
San Diego is one step closer to regulating short-term home rentals popularized by sites like AirBnb. Here’s KPBS metro reporter Andrew Bowen with more.
AB: Soon, owners of vacation rentals will need to get licenses and pay a fee. Licenses for renting out an entire home for 20 days or more a year will cost $1,000. But the biggest barrier to getting a license may not be the cost. There will also be a cap on the number of licenses available. City staffers are still crafting a lottery system to distribute licenses. Councilmember Raul Campillo says the lottery has to prioritize responsible hosts.
RAUL CAMPILLO
SAN DIEGO CITY COUNCILMEMBER
RC: There's a whole lot of people depending on this system rolling out with credibility, applicability and accountability for good hosts, good guests and more.
AB: There will be no cap on short-term rentals where the host lives onsite, or those rented out fewer than 20 days a year. The council approved regulations for short-term home rentals in February after years of stalemate on the issue. Andrew Bowen, KPBS news.
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The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance marked Indigenous Peoples’ Day on Monday by celebrating the Kumeyaay people who were the first stewards of San Diego. KPBS’ Alexandra Rangel has this report.
Ulysses Belardez opened up the Indigenous Peoples’ Celebration at the San Diego Safari Park with a Blessing Ceremony.
Ulysses Belardez, San Pasqual Band
“We’re asking for new things to fall upon us, so when the sun is rising we’re asking for those good things to come over us.”
Belardez is a kumeyaay from the San Pasqual Indian Reservation.
The San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians and members of the Kumeyaay Nation were invited to attend Monday’s celebration.
Belardez says the day is all about remembering the lessons learned from their elders and keeping traditions alive.
Ulysses Belardez, San Pasqual Band
“This day is very important because it remembers a part of the past of who we are and the people who were once here to realize and the communities to realize that we are still here.”
Lisa Peterson, Safari Park Executive Director
“To be able to celebrate the san pasqual band and the Kumeyaay people it just makes so much sense to bring it together so we’re all protecting the things we love in San Diego County.”
Lisa Peterson, executive director at Safari Park, says the Kumeyaay are essential to the park’s conservation efforts.
Lisa Peterson, Safari Park Executive Director
“As stewards of the land they know this land better than any.”
Johnny Bear Contreras, a tribal citizen of the San Pasqual Band, says it’s a special feeling to be recognized by Safari Park in the san pasqual valley, a land that the kumeyaay is so deeply connected to.
Johnny Bear Contreras, San Pasqual Band
“I think many of the tribal members that will be here today, tribal citizens are going to feel that same connective ness.
Alexandra Rangel, KPBS News.
And that reporting from KPBS’ Alexandra Rangel.
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The threat of environmental harm from last week’s oil spill is fading in San Diego and Orange counties. But California's top law enforcement official says the investigations will continue. KPBS environment reporter Erik Anderson has the latest.
Wind and waves are keeping oil that leaked from the undersea pipeline from moving south to San Diego County. Coast Guard officials say between 25-thousand and 130-thousand gallons of oil escaped from a ruptured pipeline just over a week ago. California Attorney General Rob Bonta is committed to finding out what happened to cause the spill.
“We are investigating. We are determining whether civil enforcement is justified or appropriate. Or whether criminal enforcement is justified and supported by the facts.”
A fly over of the coastal waters did not reveal any visible oil today. Bonta and U-S Senator Alec Padilla surveyed the shore from Long Beach to northern San Diego County.
Erik Anderson KPBS News
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The California highway patrol says they’re getting two-million dollars to target dangerous driving behaviors. Cap radio's steve milne reports.
The CHP says -- since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic -- it's noticed a big jump in unsafe driving behaviors.
Officer Eulogia Ceja:
"Between April 1st of 2020 and September 30th of this year, we've issued over 44,500 citations for drivers that were traveling in excess of 100 miles per hour. That's what we're trying to avoid because out of those we had a lot of crashes that unfortunately have resulted in fatalities."
California reported more than 36-hundred traffic deaths in 2020, up 5-percent from the previous year.
The two-million dollars comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The money will pay for enhanced speed enforcement operations on state highways.
The CHP says it will also work with local law enforcement agencies to set up task forces that will work to prevent street racing and sideshow activities.
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Coming up....it's been almost two years, but the rock n roll marathon is back.
“I can't imagine waking up the morning of October and realizing that I did not show the line on the previous day.”
More on that next, just after the break.
The Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series started here in San Diego and has since spread across the country and even internationally. It had been an annual tradition since 1998...until the COVID pandemic came. KPBS reporter Claire Trageser says now the race is back.
So 98, I ran my first marathon and I ran rather poorly and that led to me doing a second rock and roll marathon.
Bill Aaron, with his long Forest Gump beard and Rock n Roll running jacket,
Photos from folder
looks exactly like what you’d expect of a legacy runner--meaning he’s never missed a single race.
And then I kind of decided that I was sort of enmeshed in it and I did three. And then I did four and then for five they gave us a really sweet patch for being a legacy runner. And one thing led to another.
More photos
And then he kept racing for 23 years.
But then COVID came, and the event that’s normally held every June was canceled.
On the one hand, my body felt enriched by the fact that I wasn't banging out the obnoxious Saturday runs. But on the other hand, it felt a little weird because I wasn't engaged, like I normally would be.
The June 2021 race also didn’t happen--it was postponed to this October 24.
And when runners line up in Balboa Park, Aaron will be there. Even though he’s not used to running a fall marathon.
I can't imagine not being there in October, irrespective of how I think the marathon for me personally is going to go. I can't imagine waking up the morning of October and realizing that I did not show the line on the previous day.
The runners come in this way off of Ash.
Meryl Leventon is the race director. She’s preparing for an unusual race--after almost two years of uncertainty.
Meryl Leventon
Rock ‘n’ Roll Race Director
“It feels kind of surreal to actually be talking about it right now because we didn't know when we were going to be racing.”
There are still COVID precautions to take...no shuttle buses and runners will be much more spread out at the start.
She expects 20,000 people this year, which includes people who were signed up in 2020 and deferred, and also new people who picked up running when gyms were closed.
I'm excited to welcome all these new runners that have picked up this hobby during the pandemic. I would say the overall level of excitement is higher than usual.
Wendy O'dwyer
San Diego Runner
Making up for lost time.
Wendy photos from folder
Wendy O’dwyer has already run a few races this summer. She normally runs several each year, and says during COVID, she felt the loss of the starting line.
I wasn't motivated to run. And then when for some reason, then they closed off Balboa park for runners and walkers, which I thought was kind of weird, but because I couldn't run through the park.
Now she’s eager for the race, which has lots of entertaining sights of San Diego along the way, from Balboa Park to Drag Queen cheerleaders in Hillcrest to the military mile in North Park.
As for Aaron, the legacy runner, he’s determined to toe the line, even if he feels a little nervous about being in a big crowd.
I tell my athletes not to get those kinds of things stuck in their head because it has a tendency to overwhelm all the psychological adaptations that take place when you're training for a race like this.
He says he’ll likely wear a mask at the starting line
and then take it off as the crowd thins and runners spread out along the course.
Claire Trageser, KPBS News
That’s it for the podcast today. 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.
