People's vote to fill empty council seats

From the Inbox:

Carlsbad residents submitted a petition for an election instead of the Carlsbad council deciding on someone to replace one of the councilmembers.

Encinitas can do the same thing for any replacement on the Encinitas council.

Here is the Carlsbad agenda on the petition.

Click on agenda on the upper left to get the full agenda.

https://carlsbadca.swagit.com/play/11082019-614

Teachers' union sues to keep schools closed

Encinitas Advocate:

The San Dieguito Union High School District has been sued by its teachers’ union in an effort to block the district’s plans to reopen next month while cases of COVID-19 continue to escalate across the county.

In the court petition filed Friday, Dec. 18, the union says the district’s plan violates state rules because the state forbids schools from reopening if they did not reopen before the county fell into the most restrictive preventive stage, dubbed the purple tier. San Diego County has been in the purple tier since Nov. 10.

Possible murder near Moonlight Beach

Encinitas Advocate:

Sheriff’s homicide investigators were called to the scene of a suspicious death Monday night, Dec. 21, on a street near beachfront homes in Encinitas, a lieutenant said.

Just after 10:30 p.m., two people found an injured person “face down and covered in blood” near Neptune Avenue and Sylvia Street, San Diego sheriff’s Lt. William Amavisca said.

Deputies responded and were investigating the “suspicious incident,” according to Amavisca, who said the sheriff’s homicide unit was called to the scene around 11:45 p.m.

Another injury at Blakespear's bike obstacles

 Facebook:

I just found out that on Dec 10th one of the guys in my riding group went down hard riding north just before Chesterfield. Among other injuries he was knocked unconscious but remembers hitting a wheel stop after being pressured by a car merging into the right lane. This is the second guy in my group to have a crash in that area where cars have that short window to get into right turn lane. ... [I will check and see how he feels about sharing his name]. I think he broke his pelvis and possibly shoulder.

Ghetto bird circling Oggi's homeless encampment

Police helicopter right now saying something about a 20-year-old white male adult dark sweatshirt and blue jeans, missing person at risk, if you have information call 9-1-1. 

California population growth stops

LA Times:

California’s population is now growing at its slowest rate in more than a century.

The California Department of Finance, which monitors the state’s population data, found that from July 1, 2019 to July 1, 2020, California saw a net gain of only 21,200 new residents — a 0.05% growth rate not seen since 1900. As of July, the state’s population was 39.78 million.

Over that period, Los Angeles County reported a net loss of 40,036 people, more than any other county in the state.

“This is a real sea change in California, which used to be this state of pretty robust population growth,” said Hans Johnson, a demographer at the Public Policy Institute of California. “It hasn’t been for some time now. But it’s now gotten to the point where the state is essentially not growing population-wise at all.”

The data underscore concerns that the COVID-19 pandemic is fueling greater migration out of California, both from people priced out of coastal areas and those who suddenly had the ability to work remotely.

The “California exodus” storyline was bolstered in recent weeks when two tech titans, Elon Musk and Larry Ellison, announced they were moving to Texas and Hawaii, respectively.

But for the average person, California’s high housing costs pose the greatest challenge, particularly when combined with staggering job losses tied to the pandemic.

The state has been seeing slowing growth for several years, driven by a factors that include lower birth rates and people moving away for economic and political reasons.

Unless there's a Covid-19 baby boom, we'd expect that 0.05% growth rate through July to go negative for the rest of this year and next. The exodus seems to be accelerating.

No doubt SANDAG is still wildly overestimating population growth as an excuse to force more high-density development.

12/16/20 City Council meeting open thread

Please use the comments to record your observations.

And from the Inbox:

On the city consent calendar for CC meeting Dec. 16, 2020 - increases in city staff salaries and 2 new additional city manager related positions. Apparently, the city manager, Pamela Antil, has found that her job is too difficult with only one assistant city manager, Mark Delin. She now wants another new assistant city manager position established to help her. She also wants a reclassification to city deputy manager position approved. How much will this cost the taxpayers? Top tier base salary for Pamela is $250,000, new assistant city manager top tier base salary is $207,172, and reclassified position to city deputy manager position is $199,799. Add approximately 25% of the total for benefits gives a total of $821,465 for 3 city managers. Mark Delin's current salary/benefits (calsalaries) is listed as $241,751. More than a million dollars for 4 city managers if these changes are approved. What happened to one (1) city manager and perhaps one (1) assistant manager (Mark Delin). The current Human Resources manager is also getting a promotion to Director (with salary increase?). Don't expect potholes to be fixed when taxpayers foot the salaries of 4 city managers.

Leucadia turning European

 From the Inbox:

Marco is the legal advisor to this horror. Jackel donated $9,500 to Marco's PAC to keep Blakespear, Kranz, Hinze in office. A less compatible look with Leucadia would be impossible to imagine. It's part of the Housing Element Update forced on us by the council so there is no opposing it.

And incredibly, developer Larry Jackel said the design was based on a European village. He also made individual donations to the incumbents' campaigns in addition to the biggie to pal Marco. 

Marea Village presentation

Teachers’ union loses control of high school board

 North Coast Current:

A new day is dawning for the San Dieguito Union High School District.

After nearly half a century of combined years of service, longtime SDUHSD trustees Joyce Dalessandro and Beth Hergesheimer retired, making room for fresh faces on the school board.

The two staunch supporters of the district’s teachers union chose not to seek re-election this year and threw their support behind two union-endorsed candidates, only one of whom won.

SDG&E cuts power to parts of Olivenhain

 Outage map.