Friday morning while on my daily TikTok scroll I came across a woman’s video.
“I just got punched in the face by a homeless man. Knocked to the floor,” she says while holding an ice pack wrapped in paper towels to her cheek.
The video is only a few seconds long. She doesn’t offer up any more information about the incident in the video though her caption mentions it happened in Little Italy.
I scrolled to the next video.
“The safest biggest city in America? You’re living in it,” says Fatima Maciel, a community representative with Mayor Todd Gloria’s office. She goes on to explain that San Diego has the lowest per capita homicide rate among major cities in the nation.
It was weird to watch these videos play back-to-back. But it reminded me of something the mayor said at Politifest.
“The numbers are good, but I do hear from folks that they don’t always feel safe,” he said. “I personally think that has a lot to do with disorder in the public spaces, generally around homelessness and et cetera.”
He went on to propose some solutions for improving public safety and address the city’s police officer shortage. Bella Ross wrote about some of his ideas here.
The woman’s video has more than 95,000 likes and thousands of comments. Most of the comments are about how Democrats and Gov. Gavin Newsom are responsible for the state’s homeless crisis. Other comments are about how it’s not a surprise this happened in San Diego. One person says this happened to their friend in downtown.
Another wrote that they left San Diego because things have gotten out of control. “I don’t recognize my city anymore,” the user wrote.
What do you think? Do you feel safe in our city? If not, what would help? Send me a note at andrea.sanchez@voiceofsandiego.org.
Tax Talk
We’ve been talking a lot about taxes this week. The ones we pay. And the ones that elected officials are considering putting on the 2026 ballot.
Here’s what you need to know to start your week.
First up, property taxes! After the Union-Tribune reported that thousands of San Diegans were shocked to find a new charge on their property tax bills this month, we decided to break down all the charges on the latest episode of the podcast.
Listen to the episode here. You might learn something new or have something to talk about at your next party.
Next: San Diego City Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera is proposing a tax on vacation rentals and second homes. Our editor Scott Lewis explained who supports it and who is going to put up a fight as the proposal moves through City Hall. Read more here. (Pro tip: We also talked about this on the podcast.)
Finally! Our Lisa Halverstadt reported that Democrats on the county Board of Supervisors are considering a tax. They are using county resources and closed meetings to determine if voters would back a ballot measure in 2026. Read more here.
More Chisme to Start Your Week
One thing to watch: The San Diego City Council is going to meet on Tuesday about increasing water rates. Our MacKenzie Elmer will be watching.
As we reported, Chula Vista police officers are using AI to write police reports. Now, Sacramento reporter Nadia Lathan writes that some lawmakers are trying to regulate how police use AI. Here’s what she learned.
The city of San Diego is having bad luck with the courts. First an appeals court threw out a voter-approved measure that lifted the height limit in the Midway neighborhood. And then a judge tentatively ruled that a lawsuit the city filed should be thrown out. Read more here.