When multigenerational living is cultural

Good Morning, I’m Debbie Cruz….it’s Wednesday, May 24th. >>>>There’s many reasons why there’s many multigenerational households in San Diego. In some cultures in the region, it’s the norm.

More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines…

Tonight (Wednesday) at 6 P-M, San Diego County is hosting a virtual workshop to get feedback from residents on its updated Climate Action Plan.

The goal of the climate plan is to reduce or mitigate greenhouse gas emissions to zero or below.

The plan is expected to be completed by 20-24. Previously, some climate activists have been disappointed with the slow moving process.

Register for the virtual meeting at the county’s website.

If you did business with the city of San Diego recently, you could be owed money.

There is more than EIGHT HUNDRED THOUSAND dollars in unclaimed money that the city says needs to be returned to individuals or businesses.

The unclaimed monies are due to refunds or vendor payments. City officials say they regularly send checks based on the addresses on file. But, those sometimes are returned to the city as undeliverable mail.

The last day to submit a claim is Monday, June NINETEENTH.

Summer is around the corner, and for some that means hopping in the pool to cool off.

To keep families safe, the San Diego County Fire Protection District is giving out more than FOUR HUNDRED pool alarms.

The alarms go off if a child or pet accidentally falls into a pool.

You can apply for a free pool alarm on the county’s website at San Diego County DOT gov.

From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now.Stay with me for more of the local news you need.

Federal agents say San Diego is the epicenter of the nation’s fentanyl crisis. Yesterday (Tuesday) they announced results from a major operation to try to control it.

KPBS reporter Kitty Alvarado has details.

On Tuesday leaders announced the results of a crackdown called Operation Blue Lotus: In just 58 days, law enforcement seized 4721 pounds of fentanyl across the Southern and Central districts of California and more than 1700 pounds of precursors US attorney Randy Grossman also said 200 people were arrested. locally they ramped up enforcement along the border and ports of entry… San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan says her office is prosecuting 24 Blue Lotus cases … it becomes very personal, when 814 San Diegans were lost to fentanyl in one year. The operation is part of a federal multi-pronged strategy to fight fentanyl deaths. Kitty Alvarado KPBS News

With repairs to a sinkhole on Lake Drive in Encinitas almost completed … The city has decided it will close a temporary access road.

North County reporter Alexander Nguyen explains why.

Repairs are almost completed on the sinkhole on Lake Drive. The sinkhole opened in mid-January but got bigger after a string of winter storms in March. That forced the city to close off Lake Drive … cutting access to homes south of the street. Tony Kranz is the Mayor of Encinitas. “When the sinkhole developed to the point where the Lake Drive was no longer passable for the folks that lived on the south side of the sinkhole, we opened up a street between Wales Drive and Crest Drive in order for people to get into and out of their homes.” While that solved one problem … it created another. Crest Drive is a narrow street without sidewalks and wasn’t meant to handle the increased traffic. Repairs are set to be completed by mid-June. The city has decided to close the road link but it will install a gate to allow for emergency access. AN/KPBS

San Diego is one of the top cities in the country for multigenerational households. And each home of three generations or more is different.

For the new KPBS series “Under the Same Roof,” reporter Gustavo Solis spoke with one family whose grandmother moved in so they could take better care of her.

Whenever you have three generations living together under one roof, conflicts are unavoidable - especially with the little things. Like who gets to pick what the family watches on TV. Do you take the remote away from your grandma? Yea she does. No I don’t, I ask. Alicia is a 10-year-old who lives with her two parents and her 88-year-old grandmother in National City. Grandma Ludivina Vega moved in with the family last year. She valued her independence, but health issues prevented her from living on her own. “Sure, it’s much better being with a family I lived in an apartment for a long time by myself. They went to see me but it’s not the same thing.” Alicia’s mom and dad both have full time jobs. And they are also taking care of Abuela, which is what they call the grandmother. Liliana Vega says becoming a caretaker feels like a full-time job. Especially when you have to navigate San Diego County’s complex healthcare system. “You just don’t know who to ask and then some people give you some information, but they don’t give you all of the information. Isn’t there something where you can just go to like – you have elderly parents go to this, if they are on social security of whatever. It can’t be this hard. After multiple phone calls to the county, she was able to get a home health aid to visit four hours a week. Now she helps  friends who have also had to become caretakers. And offers this piece of advice. “It’s going to change your life, it’s going affect your relationship with your husband or your partner whoever they may be and not necessarily negatively, but there has to be a lot of patience and it’s going to be hard.” The average cost of assisted living in San Diego County is more than $5,000 a month. That’s according to a study by Genworth Cost of Care. Liliana’s husband, Ricardo Islas says putting Abuela in a home was never an option - even if they could afford it. He remembers growing up with his grandma in the house. And says taking care of elders is a big part of Mexican culture. “I think it’s just the way we grew up. Whether it would be my parents or her mom. When it came time to take care of a family member I think we were all just raised to not put somebody in a home to just take care of them as long as you can.” Even though she doesn’t always get to choose what to watch on TV, Ludivina Vega says living with her family has been a blessing. “It’s fun, it feels good in your heart to be close to your relatives.” In the following weeks in this series, we’ll bring you stories highlighting the experiences of other multigenerational households. Gustavo Solis, KPBS News

Coming up.... We hear from the Wave FC president about their sophomore season and the battle for gender equity in sports. We’ll have that and more, just after the break.

THE SAN DIEGO UNIFIED I-HIGH VIRTUAL ACADEMY WILL END NEXT MONTH FOR A FEW HUNDRED STUDENTS.

KPBS EDUCATION REPORTER M.G. PEREZ TELLS US WHO WILL BE IMPACTED.

At the height of the COVID pandemic …there were about 12-hundred students in San Diego Unified learning online with specific curriculum from the i-High Academy. When the school year ends in June, so will the virtual academy for just over 3-hundred middle and high school students. The board of trustees is negotiating options for the next school year ..that include passing the teaching responsibilities to neighborhood schools…that would then offer independent study programs and hybrid online learning. Trustee Sharon Whitehurst-Payne explains it this way. “if you’re a student at Morse HS and you need to take some time off virtually..we need to have a way so that student is still a part of Morse high school…and can get some support ” i-High Academy will continue for about 2-hundred-and-45 elementary school students who remain for virtual learning in the next school year. MGP KPBS News########## NO MUSIC BREAK

And now some in-person learning news … There was a celebration at Morse High School yesterday (Tuesday) to mark the “topping out” of its new performing arts center.

The final steel beam was put into place for what will be the 61-year-old school’s first indoor professional performance facility.

“We haven’t had a great facility to even have performances. So, for years students have been performing in the cafeteria auditorium…the lighting isn’t the best…the staging isn’t the best…so this is going to really highlight the great talent we have of our kids.”

That was Morse High School principal Cynthia Larkin.

When the building opens in 20-24, it will have a state-of-the-art stage, L-E-D lighting, an orchestra pit and more. It will also house student services.

Voter-approved bond money is paying for the new two-story facility … which will replace outdated portable buildings.

The San Diego Wave FC defeated the Houston Dash 3 to nothing on Saturday. That puts the Wave in 3rd place in the National Women's Soccer league standings.The team returns to Snapdragon Stadium on Friday in the hopes it can move closer to the top of the league. Midday Edition host Jade Hindmon spoke with Wave FC president Jill Ellis on how the team is doing in its sophomore season.

That was Wave FC president Jill Ellis speaking with Midday Edition host Jade Hindmon.

That’s it for the podcast today. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. Tomorrow … Why May 25th is more important to Star Wars fans than the fun pun, May the FOURTH — May the FOURTH be with you, that is. I’m Debbie Cruz. Thanks for listening and have a great day.