Reports of detainees in federal building basement allegedly exceeding building’s capacity
Good Morning, I’m Lawrence K. Jackson…it’s TUESDAY, OCTOBER 21ST>>>> CONCERN ABOUT IMMIGRANT DETAINEES BEING HELD AT THE FEDERAL COURTHOUSE DOWNTOWN IS SPREADING… More on that next. But first... the headlines…
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A STATE APPEALS COURT SAYS THE CITY OF SAN DIEGO DID NOT PROVIDE AN ADEQUATE ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW BEFORE ASKING VOTERS TO LIFT A 30-FOOT HEIGHT LIMIT ON DEVELOPMENT IN THE MIDWAY DISTRICT
A CALIFORNIA FOURTH DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL HAS NOW OVERTUNED A LOWER COURT RULING. THE DECISION COMPLICATES THE LONG-PLANNED MIDWAY RISING DEVELOPMENT
BACK IN 20-22, THE SAN DIEGO SUPERIOR COURT DEEMED IT LEGAL TO LIFT THE 30-FOOT COASTAL ZONE HEIGHT LIMIT IN THE MIDWAY DISTRICT
THE HIGHER COURT DID NOT AGREE, RULING LAST WEEK IN FAVOR OF A GROUP CALLED ‘SAVE OUR ACCESS’
THE GROUP IS KNOWN FOR FIGHTING AGAINST DEVELOPMENT IN COASTAL AREAS.
THE COURT SAYS THE CITY VIOLATED CALIFORNIA’S ‘ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT’ WHICH REQUIRES ADEQUATELY INFORMING THE PUBLIC ABOUT ANY ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF REMOVING THE HEIGHT LIMIT
A LOT OF THIS DEALS WITH THE IMPACT ON THE MASSIVE MIDWAY RISING PROJECT AND WHETHER THAT WILL BE SLOWED OR SHUT DOWN
SAN DIEGO MAYOR TODD GLORIA ISSUED A STATEMENT MONDAY EXPRESSING HIS DISAGREEMENT WITH THE DECISION AND PROMISING TO APPEAL TO THE CALIFORNIA SUPREME COURT.
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ROUGHLY 30 THOUSAND KAISER EMPLOYEES RETURNED TO WORK YESTERDAY ENDING A FIVE-DAY STRIKE THAT IMPACTED SAN DIEGO MEDICAL FACILITIES
BOTH SIDES ARE MUTUALLY AGREEING TO RESUME NEGOTIATIONS
KAISER ALSO SAYS ITS FACILITIES WILL CONTINUE WITH NORMAL OPERATING HOURS
TALKS ARE SCHEDULED TO BEGIN AGAIN ON OCTOBER 28TH AND 29TH, CENTERING AROUND INCREASED WAGES AND STAFFING
THE STRIKE SAW A WALKOUT OF REGISTERED NURSES, MIDWIVES, NURSE PRACTITIONERS AND OTHER SPECIALTY HEALTH WORKERS
UNION OFFICIALS SAY THE STRIKE SENT A POWERFUL MESSAGE, KAISER SAYS QUOTE “WE RECOGNIZE OUR EMPLOYEES HARD WORK AND HAVE OFFERED A STRONG CONTRACT PROPOSAL”
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ORGANIZERS SAY OVER 80 THOUSAND PEOPLE TOOK TO THE STREETS OF SAN DIEGO THIS PAST WEEKEND FOR THE ‘NO KINGS 2.0’ RALLY AND MARCH
DEMONSTRATIONS APPEARED PEACEFUL AND FAMILY-FRIENDLY OVERALL WITH POLICE REPORTING 0 ARRESTS
WATERFRONT PARK DOWNTOWN SAW THE HIGHEST CONCENTRATION OF NUMBERS WITH A CROWD ROUGHLY 50 THOUSAND STRONG …
CARLSBAD SAW STRONG TURN OUT ALSO WITH A CROWD OF AT LEAST 10 THOUSAND ATTENDEES, ACCORDING TO ORGANIZERS
DEMONSTRATORS ACROSS THE COUNTY ALSO MARCHED THROUGH, S-D-S-U, LA JOLLA, CARMEL VALLEY AND OTHER AREAS
From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now.Stay with me for more of the local news you need.
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SAN DIEGO AREA CONGRESSMEN JUAN VARGAS AND SCOTT PETERS STAGED A PRESS CONFERENCE MONDAY IN FRONT OF THE DOWNTOWN FEDERAL COURTHOUSE …
REPORTER JACOB AERS SAYS THEY ARE BRINGING ATTENTION TO HOW FEDERAL AUTHORITIES ARE DETAINING IMMIGRANTS.
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ICEFED 1 (1:01)
The two Democrats say they’ve heard reports that the number of people being held by ICE in the basement of the federal building … could exceed the building’s capacity.
Both Vargas and Peters entered the federal building, but Vargas says they were denied access to the basement facility.
“We’ve had a reports to our office that a number of people have been detained and held in the basement of the building far beyond any of of the standards that are humane and legally necessary.”
KPBS reached out to ICE for confirmation on whether detainees are held in the federal building’s basement … and if so, for how long? A spokesperson did not immediately respond to our request.
Vargas says agents there told them they needed more notice … even though his office notified ICE nearly 48 hours in advance of their visit.
Regardless, as members of Congress, Vargas and Peters say they’re allowed to make unannounced visits to conduct oversight. Jacob Aere, KPBS News.
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MEANWHILE – THE SAN DIEGO CITY COUNCIL IS MOVING TO RESTRICT ICE ACCESS TO CITY FACILITIES.
METRO REPORTER ANDREW BOWEN SAYS THEY'RE CALLING IT THE DUE PROCESS AND SAFETY ORDINANCE.
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DUEPROCESS 1 (ab) 0:45 soq
AB: Supporters of the ordinance say local action is necessary amid the growing aggression of federal law enforcement, especially ICE. The ordinance would require federal agents to present a warrant to enter non-public city facilities. That could include private meeting rooms or buildings that can be leased by community groups. Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera acknowledged the city's authority is limited.
SER: The thing that this does more than anything is give each of us as individuals firmer ground to assert our constitutional rights. If those rights are not respected in court, we're in a very very bad place. But we want to give people the strongest ground possible to protect their rights.
AB: The ordinance can't take effect until the city meets and confers with employee unions. It's unclear how long that process will take. Andrew Bowen, KPBS news.
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SEVEN IN 10 AMERICANS BELIEVE THE ECONOMY IS HEADED IN THE WRONG DIRECTION.
IN THE SECOND PART OF AMITA SHARMA’S INTERVIEW WITH LOCAL ECONOMIST DANIEL ENEMARK THE TWO, DISCUSS THE REGIONAL JOB MARKET, POSITIVE STEPS LOCAL GOVERNMENT IS TAKING IN FIXING THE HOUSING CRISIS AND MORE… HERE’S THAT CONVERSATION.
ENEMARK PT 2 (as) TRT 4:55 LIVE TAG
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Speaker 1
How much of what we're experiencing right now is due to the natural ups and downs of any economy? And how much of this is self-inflicted?
Speaker 2
Well, we know we had a really dynamite job market before COVID, and then we had the sharpest and highest increase in unemployment in history. And then we went back to a really strong employment environment. But we went back down to a very low number, and we've been going up since. That's probably a business cycle thing. It certainly predates Trump's policies, which many economists might say are a self-inflicted wound in terms of tariffs, in terms of the amount of deficit spending that we're anticipating taking on with the one big, beautiful bill. But the decline in the labor market predates that. So if you, I would say most economists might say this is a natural business cycle thing. If you're more conservative, maybe you say, Bidenomics has ruined the country. Assigning cause and effect is really difficult.
Speaker 1
What needs to happen to turn this around?
Speaker 2
In the US overall, we need stability. When the economic environment is unstable, people decrease their spending, people and businesses. So you see employers are not hiring. You see families are not buying cars or houses or whatever because they don't know what to expect in the future. And it's dangerous to invest in the present if you don't know what the future holds. So we need stability. For example, if you want to implement tariffs, at the very least, implement them all at once and irreversibly say, We're going to do this and we're going to stick to it for the long term. If you implement tariffs that are designed to bring in manufacturing, factories are built over the scale of five years. So who's going to come in and build a factory here if they don't rely on the fact that these policies are going to be stable over the next five years, let alone over the next five days? So the number one thing we need is stability. Another thing that we need is to stop harassing workers at their workplace, particularly immigrants who are subject to raids at workplaces. This isn't just about low-skilled immigrants or low-wage immigrants here in San Diego.
Speaker 2
In the first month after the immigration rates started in California, we saw a decrease in people showing up to work because they were afraid that they would be deported. That's a tremendously negative impact on our economy. Then Finally, here in San Diego, we need to invest in housing. We can't have a functioning economy if only the ultra-rich can afford to live in San Diego. We need to have places for professionals We need to have places for service workers to live, and that means more housing.
Speaker 1
Do you see any indications that any of what you've outlined should happen is going to happen? I say that I just interviewed some San Diegans who are so affected by what's happening politically and economically that they are delaying having kids, buying a home, retirement, big purchases. What does this say to you?
Speaker 2
I think that locally, there are a lot of really encouraging efforts underway to address some of our biggest challenges. I know that local officials across the municipalities and at the county are working really hard to catalyze the housing construction that we need in the region. Folks of the county are thinking very carefully about how do we spend our rainy day fund and how do we address the drop off in federal services that's likely under the one big, beautiful bill. I'm really encouraged by the local efforts, and I am discouraged at what is coming out of the federal government. Shutting down the federal government is not helpful.
Speaker 1
Daniel, thank you so much for speaking with me today. Thanks for having me.
TAG: THAT WAS ECONOMIST DANIEL ENEMARK SPEAKING WITH KPBS'S AMITA SHARMA.
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VOICES OF OUR CITY IS A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION THAT SUPPORTS PEOPLE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS THROUGH MUSIC.
ARTS REPORTER AUDY MCAFEE TAKES US TO THE HOME OF THE CHOIR AT SAINT PAUL’S EPISCOPAL CATHEDRAL.
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VOOCCHOIR 1A 1:16 SOQ
Steph Johnson is the CEO and co-founder of Voices of our City. The organization is both a choir and a community space where people without stable housing can receive support.
Johnson started the choir in 2016 after learning about a similar program in the midwest.
“Voices Over City is really like my life's work. It's kind of like the intersection of all things that matter to me. Music, people, you know, and just letting people know that they're not alone, you know. I think that's like one of the greatest messages in the world.”
Thousands of people experience homelessness in San Diego and across California, a large percentage are seniors. Voices of Our City recognizes the need for both resources and community for this vulnerable population.
Dr. Patricia Williams, known to friends as Dr. P, joined the choir after hearing about it from other unhoused people. She says being a part of the group has been life-changing.
“Voices has really brought joy. I now sing more than I've ever sang in my life. I was in many choirs as far as church and Just being a part of a community that can help others just makes the difference and makes you smile because you can help others through being with voices,help someone else off the street now.”
Audy McAfee, KPBS News.
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That’s it for the podcast today. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. I’m Lawrence K. Jackson. Thanks for listening and have a great day.