A new story of mine at the North County Times gives the deets: Metropolitan Water District, Southern California’s biggest water wholesaler has accumulated more than $600 million in unfunded liability for retirees since 1999. The analysis comes from a new report issued Tuesday by a local taxpayers’ group, San Diego Taxpayers Educational Foundation. Customers of Metropolitan, or taxpayers, will ultimately …
LA Times Covers For Calif’s High-Speed Train Debacle
On Oct. 29, the Los Angeles Times published its version of what’s wrong with plans for a high-speed rail system from Northern to Southern California. Was the story about rising cost estimates and unrealistically high ridership estimates? Of course it wasn’t! This is the Los Angeles Times, which is not devoted to facts, but rather its higher goal of indoctrinating …
Hedgecock out at KOGO, in at KFMB, replacing Roberts?
This from Jimmy Valentine, radio host Roger Hedgecock’s former producer, with permission to post in full on Rostra… HEDGECOCK OUT AT KOGO? (rumor has it) It appears that Roger Hedgecock’s run at KOGO is over. Info we get is that Hedgecock’s ad endorsement clients have been notified that he will depart KOGO in January (unless taken off the air sooner?) …
Nathan Fletcher Endorses Candidates for San Diego City Council
Nathan Fletcher today issued the following statement announcing that he has endorsed three candidates for San Diego City Council: “I am proud to endorse Ray Ellis, Mark Kersey, and Scott Sherman. Each of these candidates brings experience, a commitment for change, and an ability to work together to move San Diego forward. When I am mayor, I will look forward …
Remembering Patti Krebs … Councilman Ed Struiksma and David Lewis lead Tributes to a beloved San Diego figure
Rostra readers are invited to add their favorite Patti Krebs memories in the Comments section… SD City Councilman Ed Struiksma (1981-89, Dist. 5) and Business leader David Lewis paint a portrait of the woman respected and loved by so many. Councilman & interim Mayor Ed Struiksma: “I was shocked to hear the devastating news of Patti’s death. Before my election to office Patti …
Dumanis Opposes City Property Tax Hike to Bail Out San Diego Unified
SAN DIEGO – District Attorney and San Diego mayoral candidate Bonnie Dumanis today issued the following statement opposing any city property tax increase to bail out the financially troubled San Diego Unified School District. “The financial situation at San Diego Unified has reached a crisis stage, and San Diego taxpayers should not be asked to bail out the district with …
Risky Sports
A credible shark sighting was reported today in Leucadia, a community of the City of Encinitas. The weather has been great and the water has been mostly glassy, making the beach a wonderful place to play. But be careful out there, and (hopefully) this was not just a Halloween spoof! Here’s the incident report I received: To Council and Administrations, Today at 14:58 hours, a surfer …
Esther Sanchez’ Council Aide Fired in Oceanside? Organized Occupy Event on Friday
After organizing last Friday’s Occupy Oceanside event, rumors are running rampant this morning that Kyle Krahel-Frolander has been fired by Deputy Mayor Esther Sanchez. Neither Krahel-Frolander nor Sanchez could be reached for comment as of this posting, although multiple sources have confirmed the information. It is unknown if Krahel-Frolander’s recent activities with Occupy Oceanside are connected with the rumored dismissal, …
SJ Mercury News: Cal cities take pension reform to the ballot
San Diego Councilman Carl DeMaio, a mayoral candidate who is making that city’s initiative his campaign centerpiece, has crafted one of the most aggressive plans in the state. His initiative not only would transition new hires to defined contribution, or 401(k), plans, but also “picks the lock” of existing pensions by increasing the amount city employees must contribute to their own plans and freezing the salaries used to calculate their pension benefits for five years, possibly longer.
“You see it happening up and down California,” DeMaio said. “The reality has sunk in that government, lifelong guaranteed pensions are not sustainable.”
Weekend Thoughts?
UT columnist Tom Blair notes the other day that former state GOP chairman Ron Nehring is consulting the Bonnie Dumanis for Mayor campaign… http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/oct/26/tom-blair-some-people-are-just-born-salesmen/ Reader thoughts? Post a comment below. Also, take part in the Rostra Facebook survey… Which GOP candidate loses the most from the Log Cabin Club endorsement of Nathan Fletcher for Mayor? http://www.facebook.com/sdrostra
Occupy Oceanside . . . Filling In The Ellipsis
The “Occupy” movement came to Oceanside yesterday. And as with all the “Occupy” movements, the question is, what’s their purpose? A brief preview story in the San Diego Union-Tribune provided this tantalizingly elided quote from an Occupy Oceanside press release: “The big banks, multinational corporations and unscrupulous billionaires … have far more influence on the democratic process than ever intended …
While others Cut their Hours, GOP’s Ernie Dronenburg calmly restores them — His Offices are open to the Public till 5:00 pm again
SD County court offices now close at 3:30 pm … Library, fire station and recreation center hours are cut back, but somehow San Diego County Assessor/Recorder/Clerk Ernie Dronenburg still bucks the trend. First, Ernie reopened the Kearny Mesa and Chula Vista offices closed to the public under an appointed Democrat predecessor toppled in last year’s election. Now Ernie has expanded public hours too, keeping doors open until …
Log Cabin Club Endorses Nathan Fletcher for Mayor
From the Log Cabin Republicans: We know many will be puzzled by the Log Cabin Republicans’ endorsement of Nathan Fletcher. With two LGBT candidates in the race it does seem a bit puzzling at first glance. However, we are a Republican organization first and an LGBT organization second. When it came time to endorse we asked ourselves, “Who is best-positioned …
CA Supreme Court Strikes Down Redistricting Challenges
The following press release was issued today from the California Citizens Redistricting Commission addressing two lawsuits filed in opposition to the new State redistricting maps for State Senate and for Federal Congressional districts. The Commission asked the court for the dismissal as they claimed the lawsuits did not clearly prove that any wrongdoing by the commission had been proved. Now …
“Let’s Build the Navy Headquarters”
As Major Coastal Commission Vote Looms, DeMaio Issues a Call-to-Action to Urge Support for Stalled Navy-Broadway Project Calling it the “single most important military project proposed in San Diego in decades,” Councilmember Carl DeMaio today called on the California Coastal Commission to drop its efforts to block construction of the much-anticipated new Navy Headquarters in San Diego. “The importance of …
San Diego Rostra and Gayle Falkenthal collect 4 Awards at Last Night’s annual “San Diego Press Club” dinner
The prestigious San Diego Press Club held its annual awards dinner last night in Mission Valley, and for a 2nd straight year, San Diego Rostra and Gayle Falkenthal received multiple honors. Gayle took home a 1st Place for Daily Newspapers & Websites, Headline Writing, and SD Rostra a 2nd Place for Website News and Opinion. (The 1st-place site discusses Real Estate, so …
SD POA: Criticism from taxpayer advocacy groups over AB 2510 unjustified
Following the organization’s endorsement of mayoral candidate Nathan Fletcher last week, San Diego Police Officers Association President Brian Marvel noted to us via Twitter that recent analyses of AB 2510 by columnist Steve Greenhut and radio host Chris Reed, some repeated on Rostra, were inaccurate, stating the references as “a perfect example on the right of trickle down laziness.” He …
DeMaio teams up with Virtual Carl
San Diego Mayoral candidate Carl DeMaio now has a virtual version of himself. Virtual Carl is in a virtual office taking your questions. They’re actually his questions. In other words, if you don’t ask a question from a pre-set list Virtual Carl stands there and stares at you. I asked Virtual Carl who came up with this idea? No response. …
MTS to Consider a “Large” Police Force this Thursday
The Metropolitan Transit System board of directors this Thursday will consider putting in place a police force. State law allows transit agencies to employ police officers, meaning in addition to security personnel (the latter of which MTS clearly has in place). These officers must have the same training as sworn cops with any police department. Item 31 on this week’s …
San Diego’s Mayor Race Relationship Status: It’s Complicated
Originally posted on the Flash Report. The 2012 San Diego mayor’s race began like other love affairs – lots of hope and promise for the future. Then, the sparkle and shine of courtship faded quickly into the same old dull routine. No more flowers. No more moonlight and love songs. Seems I’m not the only one who noticed our romance …
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