Hours after hundreds of people protested against Immigration and Customs Enforcement outside San Diego\u2019s federal courthouse on Thursday, Jan. 15, Mayor Todd Gloria delivered his 2026 State of the City address. In his speech, Gloria briefly commented on immigration enforcement and covered issues such as housing, homelessness, and infrastructure across the city.<\/p>\n
Gloria said that the city of San Diego is \u201cmoving with intention\u201d and \u201cbuilding with purpose.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Protestors gathered outside of City Hall during the mayor\u2019s address, holding signs criticizing ICE\u2019s presence in the city and advocating for a \u201cFree Palestine.\u201d At least five individuals interrupted the mayor\u2019s address and were escorted out of the meeting room by police officers.<\/p>\n
During his approximately 30-minute speech, Gloria criticized the current ICE operations encouraged by the Trump administration for two minutes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough its ICE operations, the Trump administration is [waging] a campaign of fear that is terrorizing communities in this country,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd I know that you can see it, in the families that have been torn apart, in the neighborhoods thrown into chaos, in innocent bystanders put at risk, and local police officers forced into volatile situations that they did not ask for and didn\u2019t create.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gloria acknowledged federal immigration raids in South Park and the recent fatal shooting of Renee Good in Minnesota, saying, \u201cA life that was lost because of the callous and reckless actions of a federal agent, which outraged all of us.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Gloria referenced his July 23 executive order<\/a> that restricts the San Diego Police Department from cooperating with federal ICE operations in accordance with existing California law.<\/p>\n \u201cSDPD is here to protect and serve our communities \u2014 all of our communities, including our immigrant communities,\u201d Gloria said.<\/p>\n Gloria also addressed San Diego\u2019s $318 million structural budget deficit, which he said accumulated over decades of underfunding and undermining the city services people rely on.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cA great city cannot be a place just for the very wealthy who can afford to live here, while the rest of us get priced out,\u201d Gloria said. \u201cA great city is one where anyone who works hard and plays by the rules can afford to live here.\u201d<\/p>\n Gloria said that housing is a key point of his agenda and a basic responsibility of the city. He spoke about increasing housing permits to nearly 10,000 units, citing a UC Berkeley study<\/a> that found San Diego to be a leading city in housing policy reform.<\/p>\n In 2025, according to preliminary data<\/a> collected by the city of San Diego, the city permitted the construction of roughly 7,500 homes and helped fund 2,676 new affordable homes. Gloria aims to transform underused public property into housing, especially the redevelopment of the Sports Arena\u2019s 48-acre site into over 42,000 affordable homes.\u00a0<\/p>\n Gloria did not mention the legal blockade<\/a> this project is facing, following two consecutive failed appeals to the appellate court in October 2025 and the California Supreme Court in December. Both courts held the area\u2019s 30-foot height limit on buildings, refusing to exempt this project, finding that \u201cthe city did not adequately assess in its environmental review how taller buildings could affect air flow, construction noise and Peregrine falcons\u2019 ability to nest, among other issues.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n In a joint statement earlier this month, Gloria and City Attorney Heather Ferbert responded to the December ruling. \u201cThis procedural decision does not change our commitment or our momentum to redevelop the Sports Arena site,\u201d the statement read. \u201cThe City is actively pursuing options that will provide a clear and durable path forward for this transformational project.\u201d<\/p>\n Gloria then turned to homelessness, discussing the Regional Task Force on Homelessness<\/a> report that found an approximate 14% reduction in unsheltered homelessness in the city of San Diego in 2025. According to the report, the city connected more than 1,350 people with housing last year and housed \u201cnearly 7000 people over the 5 years\u201d of Gloria\u2019s administration.<\/p>\n He also reported that the city cleared 208 tons of trash and connected 95 people living on state property to shelters or services, as per the city and state Sen. Catherine Blakespear\u2019s agreement with the California Department of Transportation\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Gloria pointed to the Trump administration\u2019s \u201cillegal and reckless\u201d changes to the Department of Housing and Urban Development\u2019s funding for reasons why people are pushed out of shelters and onto the streets. He also criticized California\u2019s budget instability for cutting state funding toward housing assistance and homeless prevention programs.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen a person is suffering in the open, unhoused, untreated, in crisis, it affects not only their life, but it shapes whether people feel safe in our city,\u201d Gloria said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Under Gloria\u2019s stated agenda to promote safety, he reported that the city of San Diego\u2019s overall crime rates decreased by 6%, murder by 22%, sexual assault by 7%, and vehicle thefts by 22%.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cA key part of upholding public safety means restoring dignity in communities that have endured harm for far too long,\u201d Gloria said.\u00a0<\/p>\n In relation to safety, Gloria highlighted that San Diego resurfaced or repaired 468 miles of roads and filled more than 44,000 potholes this past year. This upcoming year, his administration is on track to repair over 370 additional miles of road and 2,000 street lights.\u00a0<\/p>\n