Remember four years ago when the San Diego Unified School District asked taxpayers to pony up $3.2 billion in bond financing for urgently needed repairs to city schools?<\/p>\n
And four years before that, when the district asked for\u2026 the same thing?<\/p>\n
Well, we\u2019re back again \u2014 and not much has changed.<\/p>\n
As our Jakob McWhinney reports, San Diego Unified\u2019s latest $3.5 billion bond proposal slated to appear on the November ballot includes many of the same old projects \u2014 including the exact same photos of decrepit facilities used for earlier bonds.<\/p>\n
Why the broken record routine?<\/p>\n
As McWhinney writes, \u201cIf the bond pitch ain\u2019t broke, don\u2019t fix it. Ironic, no?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Also in McWhinney\u2019s Learning Curve newsletter: A priceless (or is it $500,000?) moment of robotic brown nosing.<\/p>\n
Read The Learning Curve here.<\/a><\/p>\n Chula Vista PD Killed the Vibe<\/p>\n As you may have seen, the vibe in Chula Vista has been incredible after all of Mexico\u2019s wins in the World Cup. People hit the streets to dance, cut up and have a good time.\u00a0<\/p>\n On Sunday, Mexico lost to England \u2014 down with the crown! \u2014 but, even after the loss, the vibes appeared just as high.<\/p>\n People spilled onto Third Avenue, where a general sense of celebration seemed to prevail.\u00a0<\/p>\n Cops told the crowd to disperse. When people didn\u2019t leave, officers began to fire pepper-spray projectiles.\u00a0You can see video from ABC 10 here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Cops, however, say the scene wasn\u2019t all peace and love. They say some in the crowd threw bottles, set off fireworks and blocked police cars. They also say a police car was damaged by the crowd. A picture shared with ABC 10 shows a small dent.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cGod forbid some Mexicans try to catch a vibe,\u201d wrote Chula Vistan Nicko Savala on Instagram<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n CV Explores Hotel Tax Increase<\/p>\n The city of Chula Vista is eyeing hotel guests as a new source of revenue.<\/p>\n The city recently hired a polling firm to test support for a possible November ballot measure that would raise the city\u2019s hotel tax rate to among the highest in San Diego County.<\/p>\n City Councilmember Jose Preciado, who spearheaded the proposed tax increase, said he hopes the new revenue will pay for additional police officers and a new visitors bureau to market the city as a tourism destination.<\/p>\n But wait: The City Council hasn\u2019t even discussed the plan, much less decided to put it on the ballot. Yet, already there\u2019s a deep-pocketed opponent.<\/p>\n A major labor union that\u2019s sponsoring a separate ballot measure in Chula Vista came out in opposition Wednesday \u2013 in part fearing that asking voters to weigh in on two complex government-related ballot measures could cause them to reject both.<\/p>\n \u201cNow is not a time for tax increases,\u201d the union\u2019s leader said.<\/p>\n Read the full story here.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n Meet the Beat Tonight<\/p>\n Today\u2019s the day to meet the journalist behind Voice\u2019s much-loved North County Report: Tigist Layne!<\/p>\n Join us for a discussion about Layne\u2019s latest investigations and bring your questions for an open audience Q&A, moderated by Managing Editor Andrea Sanchez-Villafa\u00f1a\u00a0<\/p>\n Join us today, July 9, from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at La Colonia Community Center in Solana Beach. This event is free and open to the public.\u00a0<\/p>\n RSVP here<\/a>.<\/p>\n In Other News\u00a0<\/p>\n The San Diego City Council on Tuesday voted unanimously to spend nearly $400,000 to buy a robotic police vehicle<\/a> that police officials said they will use to de-escalate dangerous situations, rescue people trapped in buildings and safely approach active shooters. (Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n In other robot news: Waymo, the driverless taxi company, plans to begin testing driverless taxis<\/a> on San Diego city streets later this month. The company already has been testing driverless taxis with a driver supervising behind the wheel. (KPBS)<\/p>\n Residents of southeastern San Diego on Tuesday lost a bid<\/a> to block plans for 123 houses in the Emerald Hill area. The City Council rejected an appeal from community members to stop the housing development on land residents called a community oasis. (KPBS)<\/p>\n The National City Council recently approved a series of projects<\/a> intended to beautify and improve safety on city streets. Projects include mini traffic circles, bicycle lanes, sewer improvements and a pedestrian rail crossing. (inewsource)<\/p>\n Despite a difficult budget year, the city of San Diego spent nearly $30,000 to send an emergency response helicopter<\/a> to Newport Beach in Orange County to assist in a search for the missing son of a retired Fire-Rescue Department leader. The missing son was later found \u201cchilling at his apartment.\u201d (Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n It looks like a horror movie. It\u2019s actually folk art. Welcome to Dead Dolly Lane<\/a>, a long and winding private driveway in Alpine lined with\u2026well, you just have to see the photos for yourself. (Times of San Diego)<\/p>\n The Morning Report was written by Jim Hinch and Will Huntsberry. It was edited by Will Huntsberry.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tRelated Posts\n<\/p>\n \t