vosdpodcastnetwork201707

The first episode of Culturecast, our new podcast that for its first season examines the tensions created by gentrification and the artistic renaissance in Barrio Logan, ended on a cliffhanger. This week, we pick up where we left off and dig into the...

The first episode of Culturecast, our new podcast that for its first season examines the tensions created by gentrification and the artistic renaissance in Barrio Logan, ended on a cliffhanger. This week, we pick up where we left off and dig into the challenges local developer Greg Strangman faced after rehabbing a few buildings in Barrio Logan. Strangman’s firm spruced up two apartment buildings and a few commercial units on Logan Avenue, a street that’s become the center of the artistic renaissance happening in the historically under-served, Latino neighborhood. Soon after the projects were finished, the grumblings from the community began. Strangman opened the project with a bang in January by inviting two local arts nonprofits to take over the residential buildings for a night with a huge exhibition featuring almost two dozen San Diego artists. CityBeat arts reporter Seth Combs slammed the “Parallel” show. There were fliers and posters advertising the building’s available units hanging throughout the event, and Combs said that made the whole thing feel like a sham. “‘Parallel’ wasn’t an art event,” Combs wrote. “It was a carefully staged marketing party that happened to include some art.” Combs said the project itself was a bellwether of the onslaught of gentrification in Barrio Logan. I sat down with Combs and Strangman to talk about the neighborhood’s transformation and whether there’s a right way to redevelop a neighborhood like Barrio Logan. Strangman defended his event, talked about his passion for art and culture and said he moved his company’s office to Barrio Logan because he genuinely digs the vibe there. “After sourcing out North Park, South Park, Little Italy, Mission Hills, we kind of settled on Barrio Logan [and decided it] was going to be an ideal home for us because of some of the cultural history and the richness of the people that are here,” he said. Also on the podcast, a real estate agent who grew up in Barrio Logan offers his take on gentrification, and a business owner who rents one of Strangman’s commercial spaces and has been in business for 16 years talks about the good and bad effects of the change he’s seeing. Strangman also directly addresses criticisms of an art installation – an old scoreboard alongside a controversial quote – that’s on the outside of one of his buildings, and details why he thinks the neighborhood is safe from big, bad development, at least for now. “I think it’s going to grow really organically,” he said. “I really do. I just don’t see anything coming in here and tearing this place apart – I just don’t see it,” he said. “I could be wrong. … But who knows, maybe a Chargers stadium will come in and change the whole dialogue.”

This week we explore races full of lawyers: the race for city attorney and two San Diego Superior Court judge races. The first race is full of intrigue, campaign ads, sniping among candidates and has a lot of people’s attention. Sara Libby and I talk with Andy Keatts, who has been covering the race. Recently, he's explored the client lists of Robert Hickey and Rafael Castellanos and looked at how frequent city foe Cory Briggs’ endorsement is affecting Gil Cabrera’s campaign. The judges’ races, though – you’d be hard pressed to find much out about either of them. Forty-three of the San Diego Superior Court’s 128 sitting judges are up for election this year. Only two are actually in races, though: The rest are running unopposed, so will be elected automatically. We talk with Johanna Schiavoni, a local appellate lawyer who worked on judicial endorsements when she was head of the Lawyers Club of San Diego. She tells us how judges races work and how voters can get more information on these important but unheralded contests. Crazy Ballot Initiatives This ballot measure is actually on the ballot in June, so it may not be that crazy: Proposition 50, which would prevent state legislators from receiving pay while they are suspended. In 2014, three state senators were suspended for various and separate allegations of wrongdoing, but each kept getting their Senate salary. That seemed sorta odd, so this proposition aims to change things. Sen. Joel Anderson of San Diego is a major opponent of the ballot initiative, though. Rather than strengthening ethics in Sacramento, Anderson argues the constitutional amendment here would weaken it: “Prop. 50 is designed to make you feel like the Sacramento political class actually wants to take a tough position to root out corruption. What they are really doing is hiding from you the fact that they would not make the tough decision to expel a convicted felon—their buddy,” he writes in the official state voter guide. The Legislature already has the power to expel lawmakers. An expelled lawmaker’s seat becomes empty, so someone else takes their place. Because of this, Anderson argues, relying on suspensions rather than expulsion is the wrong path, because a suspended lawmaker is allowed to keep occupying the office while the lawmaker’s district does not have an active representative. Favorite Things My favorite thing is the language political journalists use when they are out and about in rural America. Usually, these are folksy-sounding words and phrases that real people don’t really use – towns and people are “hardscrabble” and when people eat they are said have “tucked into hearty meals,” whatever that means. Sara Libby’s favorite thing is the Twitter account @PhotosOfTV, which archives the most interesting chyrons (those bits of text at the bottom of the screen). Lately, PhotosOfTV has noticed a man whose title is simply “Tired of Birds”; a segment on the “Cankle Criss” striking America and a Northern Virginia woman who is apparently a “’Notable Tree’ Owner.’”

Both Ray Ellis and Barbara Bry took different routes to the same place: They both oppose public money for a new stadium to host the city’s restless professional football team. Ellis and Bry are in a brutal contest in San Diego’s District 1 City Council race. Ellis and his allies say Bry’s support of the so-called Citizens’ Plan leaves her open to criticism that she supports a tax hike and a plan that helps clear the way for a downtown stadium. Bry called Ellis a liar. This week on the podcast, we lay it out. Neither one of them has the upper hand in the race to prove who is more committed to not subsidizing the stadium. Also, this seems to be a bad sign for public support for the Chargers plan. I also interviewed Malin Burnham, the civic leader and philanthropist who, at 88 (!), has written a book — a memoir of sorts. We talk about leadership. Burnham has also given up on his long fight to move the San Diego International Airport. He does have a new idea, though, he’ll lay out to anyone who’s interested: Develop a new international airport that is complementary to what we already have. Where would that be? Why, Camp Pendleton. Check out his reasoning.

Businessman Peter Farrell says a lot of interesting things: Of course carbon is a greenhouse gas but we’re not emitting enough of it to change the climate. The climate is just changing but not that much. If sea levels are rising, maybe insurance companies should stop providing policies to people in Miami Beach. Australia, he says, does health care better than the disaster that is this country’s Affordable Care Act. And maybe wealthy people like him should not collect Social Security. Farrell is a colorful, smart and very conservative scientist and businessman, and he sat down with me for an interview that sometimes seemed more like an argument that I enjoyed. Farrell founded the San Diego-based company ResMed, which manufactures the apparatuses that have helped millions with sleep disorders and sleep apnea. He told me why he’s so passionate about free trade and why he preferred to make his product in Singapore rather than in this country. And he also explained how hard it was to turn ResMed over to his son, who is the current CEO. You’ll also want to hear what happened when he confronted Mayor Kevin Faulconer about his Climate Action Plan. Faulconer listened politely but Farrell says Faulconer’s wife agreed with him that the mayor’s plan to cut carbon emissions was a futile effort. “There’s no impact at all of CO2 on the climate, end of story,” Farrell recounts Faulconer’s wife, Katherine, as telling her husband. I asked the mayor’s office if they wanted to challenge Farrell’s memory of the exchange and did not get a response. Farrell is one of San Diego’s globetrotting business leaders — the kind of tycoon whose views on politics, climate change and “political correctness” can influence presidential candidates. You might find his statements offensive or inspiring but here they are for you to consider.

Matt Strabone often starts his day with some version of this tweet: The local attorney joins this week’s podcast to explain why he’s so adamant about the need for strong regulations when it comes to campaign financing. “Spending money is conduct, it’s not speech,” he said. “I think most people, maybe even the staunchest libertarians to some extent, would agree that disclosing campaign contributions is good for our democracy.” Lewis and Keatts also have an update on the magical-sounding money robot that U-T owner Tribune Publishing recently announced. The company has been touting a new digital strategy that will turn content into cash, and Poynter has the details. Also on the podcast, Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s recent short-lived presidential prediction, why the candidates for city attorney LOL’d when they saw Keatts pull up to a recent debate and why at least one guy doesn’t want you to call the Chargers’ convadium a convention center expansion. Hero of the Week The city of San Diego, Westfield and Civic San Diego get the honor for finally (four years late) finishing up the new Horton Plaza Park. The historic fountain looks especially nice and it’s all better late than never, especially when it comes to public space. Goat of the Week Mayor Kevin Faulconer had a link to his re-election Facebook page from the city’s website. You can’t do that. That’s a goat move. Subscribe to the VOSD Podcast on iTunes or get the RSS feed here. Stream it here.

Damian checked a little box when he registered his son Ethan for kindergarten. It indicated that the family predominantly spoke Spanish at home. At the time, Damian had no idea his son would be classified as an English-learner, and that the...

There's a lot to unpack when it comes to politicalactioncommittees, or PACs. Joe Yerardi, a reporter at inewsource, joins San DiegoDecidesthis week for a quick PAC history lesson, including arundownof the Citizens United Supreme Court ruling andothercases that have upended the world of campaign finance inthelast few years. He also reviews the basics when it comesto"dark money" and other termsswirling around themysterious world of campaignfinance. "This stuff is a little hard to wrap your head around,"Yerardisaid. "But really it's extremely important to how this cityandthis country is governed." Hosts Sara Libby and Ry Rivard go from learning about PACstotalking to someone who runs one. Aimee Faucett, COO of theSanDiego Regional Chamber of Commerce, joins the show to discussthePACs she heads. The Chamber used to keep politics at arm'slengthbut has significantly ramped up its involvement in localraces.Faucett said the Chamber's goal when it comes togettinginvolved in politics and elections is to give the localbusinesscommunity a say in how the region is being run. "In San Diego, we're tying to be the mostbusiness-friendlyregion in California and with that we need tostart helping andsupporting campaigns by getting businesscandidates elected so thatwe have a voice," she said. Faucett also talks about the candidates and issues backed bythechamber, including plans for a convadium, theinfrastructuremeasure called Rebuild San Diego and minimumwage. Also on this podcast, Libby and Rivard discuss the City Council District 1 candidates andtheirbootstraps, Bruce Lightner's weird website problems and more.Crazy Ballot Initiatives There are a few wild ballot proposals that involvecampaignfinance. One would amend the state Constitutionto impose a 1,000 percent sales tax on allpoliticaladvertising in California. All media spending by allpoliticalparties, PACs or candidates would be subject to the tax,and themoney would go to public education. Anotherproposedmeasure is the brainchild of a local businessman. It's beendubbedthe "NASCAR measure'' and would require lawmakers towearthe names of their top 10 donors on their person – as in,theywould have to wear pins or stickerswithdonors' names. The mock-ups of what that would looklikeare hilarious.Favorite Things • Sara Libby's favorite thing this weekisa profile of author Angela Flournoy atBuzzFeed.Flournoy's book, "The Turner House," is Libby'sfavorite newbook. • Ry Rivard's favorite thing is TheAxe Files, a podcast by David Axelrod,President Obama'sformer campaign architect.

Folks from all walks of political life have aligned against a potential November ballot measure that would hike the sales tax by half a cent to pay for freeway expansions, transportation projects and more. The San Diego Association of Governments, the regional planning group made up of representatives from 18 cities and the county government, decided Friday to ask voters to approve the half-cent sales increase. If passed, it would raise about $18 million for a cornucopia of transportation and land needs. There are a lot of people who don’t like SANDAG’s plan, so hosts Scott Lewis and Andrew Keatts talked to three of them. Kristin Gaspar, the mayor of Encinitas and a candidate for the District 3 county supervisor seat, said she’s opposed to the measure, in part, because of the way SANDAG is couching it as a slick sales pitch to cities and voters. “SANDAG has basically taken all of the buzz words that poll high with voters and they’ve shoved them into this draft ballot statement,” she said. Nicole Capretz, executive director of environmental advocacy group Climate Action Campaign, called it a “regressive sales tax to fund a transportation future that unfortunately is mostly focused on freeway and highway expansion.” And Brian Brady, director of Stop Taxing Us, said any attempt at new taxation should be opposed, this one in particular because of how much money SANDAG wants to put in its coffers. Also on the podcast, Lewis and Keatts talk about USA Today owner Gannett’s offer to buy Tribune Publishing, the owner of the San Diego Union-Tribune and the Los Angeles Times. They brought on one of the foremost analysts of the newspaper industry, columnist Ken Doctor, to help them parse through the news and understand the recent uptick in newspaper consolidation. Hero of the Week Shades Oceanfront Bistro has been a mainstay in Ocean Beach for 13 years. The owner recently announced that the restaurant would be closing this fall. Goat of the Week The city of San Diego has a 30 percent vacancy rate based on budget and staffing in its 911 dispatch service. The staff shortage likely played a part in the long 911 wait times experienced by the parents of a newborn baby fatally injured by their family dog. Subscribe to the VOSD Podcast on iTunes or get the RSS feed here. Stream it here.

The move from play-based preschools to increasingly

rigorous kindergarten classrooms is rough, for both kids and

parents.

A Good Schools for All listener, Sally Cox, called in to share

her story about a particularly jarring transition from...