San Diego County plans to consolidate migrant drop offs

Good Morning, I’m Debbie Cruz….it’s Monday, October 16th.

>>>>

The county is planning to consolidate migrant drop offs. More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines….

######

After nearly seven months of negotiating, Kaiser Permanente and its health workers have agreed on a tentative contract deal.

It includes a 21-percent raise over four years, more investment in professional development, and a 25 dollar an hour minimum wage that will be phased in over the next three years.

S-E-I-U U-H-W president Dave Regan calls it a landmark deal.

“Initial reports are that it’s being received positively and the bargaining team of almost 300 rank and file health care workers from around the country was unanimous in recommending the tentative agreement to members and we’ll begin ratifying next week.”

Kaiser officials say it’s not their intention for this agreement to impact rates for patients.

########

Coronado has unveiled a new housing plan meant to get the city into compliance with state law.

Two years ago, Coronado adopted a housing plan that zoned for only a third of the homes that the state determined were necessary to meet the city's housing needs.

State officials rejected that plan and threatened to sue the city if it didn't identify enough sites for affordable housing.

The new plan makes use of 10 sites to zone for the required amount of new housing.

The Coronado City Council will vote on the updated housing plan tomorrow.

########

M-T-S launched its first electric bus rapid route.

It’s a step towards getting to net zero emissions in the region..

Rapid 2-2-7 will operate in Otay Mesa, Nestor and Imperial Beach.

It offers limited stops, shorter travel times and more frequent service. It will also connect cross-border travelers from Baja California to various parts of San Diego through the Blue Line.

Rapid 2-2-7 will be free to ride through October 31st.

#########

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

##########

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors last week voted to allocate 3-million-dollars to organizations helping process migrants being dropped off by U-S customs and border protection officers.

But organizations are stretched thin waiting for details.

North County reporter Tania Thorne says the county has a new plan in the works to consolidate migrant drop offs.

From 7am to 7pm, seven days a week. That is the rough schedule many volunteers and non profit organizations in north County have been working to keep up with the migrants being dropped off by CBP. Max Disposti says the NORTH COUNTY LGBTQ RESOURCE CENTER he heads… and Interfaith Community Services have been leading the operations. With no end to the drop offs in site, Disposti says financial support will help but won't solve the problem. the 3 million dollars are not going to resolve everything because it's really a little drop in the bucket. The cost of these operations from our volunteers and resources are really really high The County did not say when or how the funds will be distributed but did say the goal is to have some sort of consolidation of where migrants are dropped off. TT KPBS News. 

##########

Several San Diegans are appealing to the U-N tomorrow, about excessive use of force by U-S police against Americans of color.

Reporter Katie Hyson has more.

Ted Womack was 16, walking home, when an officer followed him without cause, he says. I was like, ‘It looks like you're following me home. I don't want to be followed home.’ And he arrested me and put me in the back of a car and said I'm impeding an investigation . . . It was the first of at least a hundred unprovoked interactions with the police, he says. Black Americans are arrested and killed by police at much higher rates than white Americans, but rarely find justice in U.S. systems. So Womack is taking it international. With the nonprofit Alliance San Diego, he is asking the UN to consider excessive police use of force as a human rights violation. I'm a little bit nervous, just a little bit. A part of me kind of feels like I'm still this, like, one small person going to speak to a giant. He hopes their stories will open people’s eyes. But he also wants something concrete – for the U.S. to change its use of force standard from reasonable to the international standard of necessary and proportionate. Any law enforcement officer can, under their discretion, say, well . . . I feel like it was reasonable to choke this guy for 20 minutes because to me, he was not following my instructions, and then the person dies. The U.N. Human Rights Committee will weigh their testimony before issuing their own report. Katie Hyson, KPBS News.

##########

September was among the warmest ever in the U-S, but the weather was pretty moderate in Southern California.

Environment reporter Erik Anderson has details.

Most of the country baked in record heat in September, making the month the seventh warmest in the last 129 years.  It was also the third driest September ever recorded in the lower 48 states. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Rocky Bilotta forecasts warmer than usual conditions through the winter. Rocky Bilotta, NOAA “With the combination of multiple months of being above normal temperatures.  Mixed in as we’re sort of starting to push into this El Niño season.  We’re starting to see a lot of continuous states and locations, geographies of the United States kind of maintain this record warmth that were seeing.” Southern California bucked the national trend last month, recording average or below average temperatures. Erik Anderson KPBS News.

##########

San Diego Unified is now accepting priority applications from families who want their children to attend campuses other than their neighborhood school.

Education reporter M.G. Perez says the choice is yours.

The priority window of opportunity is open through November 15th…as San Diego Unified accepts applications for choice schools anywhere in the district. Almost 10-thousand applications come in every fall …from families who want to find the right fit for their child to succeed. You have an 80-percent chance of being accepted at one of your top three choices…according to Marceline Marques … the district’s operations support officer in charge of the  process. “if you have a little budding scientist or a junior Picasso that will help guide you to what school you apply for… in an area that they’re really interested in.” Transportation to a choice school is only guaranteed for students with special needs who have that requirement. go to SAN DIEGO UNIFIED-dot-ORG and click on the school choice banner to find out more. MGP KPBS News.

##########

Coming up....  A pedestrian bridge that links two San Diego neighborhoods is about more than just getting from one place to another. Find out what makes Vermont Street bridge special, plus more, just after the break.

##########

It’s a history a lot of Americans aren’t aware of.

But now, there’s a place right here in San Diego where all of us can learn about the contributions of black Americans to aviation.

Reporter John Carroll says it’s found at the San Diego Air and Space Museum.

The museum’s world war ii exhibit is now bigger… more complete. next to a p-52 mustang, the plane used by the famed tuskegee airmen, there is a large new picture board… featuring some of the leading black american aviators and astronauts… and there’s a new animatronic recreation of brigadier general benjamin o. davis, jr.  he was the first black general in the air force… and the first commander of the tuskegee airmen. museum president and ceo jim kidrick says the newly augmented exhibit is meant to deepen the understanding of the contributions of black aviators. “you’ve got to tell the story. you’ve gotta help connect the dots of history and then help also vision the future.” the animatronic recreation of general davis holds forth on his history in the air force, along with the many obstacles faced, and overcome by black american aviators over the years.  jc, kpbs news.

##########

Reporter John Carroll also has a story about San Diego's Vermont Street bridge.

It allows people to cross back and forth between two San Diego neighborhoods.

But, he found that it’s about much more than just getting from here to there.

Like so many streets in san diego county, vermont street is divided by a canyon… and over it… the vermont street bridge… linking the neighborhoods of hillcrest and university heights.  but this bridge is about much more than concrete and steel.  as you walk across it, you are surrounded by art. i am an artist and an educator.” lynn susholtz is also a creator.  she was part of a trio of artists who 30-years ago brought an idea to life… an idea that was novel for san diego back in the early 90’s… public art.  we met her at the bridge. lynn susholtz/vermont st. bridge artist co-creator “the art is a series of stainless steel and colored acrylic panels, as well as decorative work on the concrete - sandblasted text and designs, decorations, shapes and symbols.” a description worthy of webster’s dictionary.  but you have to walk this bridge to have that description come to life - to experience the idea at the heart of the art.“the ideas, the metaphors of bridging and walking and it was sort of a way to look at our sense of time and space and our environment.” many of the panels feature quotes - some whimsical like one from kate sessions… “i am thankful that i wear sensible shoes and can walk with comfort all day long.”  sessions is joined by two other locals with featured quotes…. dr. seuss and famed architect irving gill whose quote is anything but whimsical… “what idle or significant sentence will we write with brick and stone, wood, steel and concrete upon the sensitive page of the earth?” other panels feature symbols…  susholtz tells me about one that has symbols of the state of california, and one that shows mexico and california together. “this is a connection and a change in history here where we were, we were mexico right here where we’re standing and many folks don’t know that.” so there is the art on both sides of you.  there is also art found under foot.  swirling shapes etched into the concrete. “i wanted this to kind of be a reflection of maybe a zen garden or a garden that you might see behind a craftsman home.” a nod to the many craftsman homes found in university heights.  bordering the shapes are words… more precisely, definitions of one word. “there are at least seven that we used on the bridge, different definitions of ‘bridge’ - everything from a card game to the wooden piece in the middle of a wooden, stringed instrument.” apart from the artists, there was another driving force behind this piece of public art.  her name is gail goldman. “i then came to san diego to be the founding director of the city of san diego’s public art program.” that was more than 30-years ago.  her first project was the vermont st. bridge.  at first, it was just going to be a bridge… concrete and steel, no art.  but goldman had other ideas. gail goldman public art consultant how do you create a place where people want to be?  and art is a way to do that, to give it some meaning and to make it a destination //cut to  11:11:17// as opposed to just having a tunnel of anxiety, how do i get from this end to that end.  so now people can meander, just like the pattern in the hardscape.” nearly 30-years after the bridge was finished, lynn susholtz says the idea behind it remains the same. “so, an opportunity to really consider where you are and take a moment in an amazing environment, 200 feet above a canyon in san diego, next to a freeway, you know, take a moment and see where you are.” and when where you are is the vermont street bridge, you know you’re at a place that’s about so much more than just a way to get from here to there.  jc, kpbs news.

##########

That’s it for the podcast today. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. I’m Debbie Cruz. Thanks for listening and have a great Monday.