What’s next for trash measure

Good Morning, I’m Debbie Cruz….it’s Tuesday, December 13th.

What you can expect next from Measure B. More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines….

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The Supreme Court yesterday refused a request from tobacco companies to stop California from enforcing a ban on flavored tobacco products.

The ban was approved by two-thirds of voters in last month’s election.

It was first passed by the state legislature two years ago but never took effect after tobacco companies gathered enough signatures to put it on the ballot.

California will be the second state in the U-S to enforce a ban prohibiting the sale of all flavored tobacco products.

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The county is giving more than five-million-dollars to four cities to expand capacity at homeless shelters.

The grants were awarded to Escondido, Carlsbad, Chula Vista and San Diego.

This is the second round of funding the county gave out. In September, 4-point-3 million was awarded to Vista, Oceanside and San Diego.

Each city will use the funding to upgrade or build new shelters.

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If you’re in the market for a new home, the new year may be the time to start looking.

A new Redfin report says West Coast and metro markets that experienced the biggest gains during the pandemic will slow the most next year.

The report looked at data from February through November in markets that showed a decline in prices and the number of homes for sale.

San Diego County was number nine on the list of markets expected to cool the most.

As of October, home prices in the county have dropped for five months in a row.

That’s according to reporting from The San Diego Union Tribune.

The Redfin report says nationwide prices should fall about 3-percent by the end of next year.

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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 Diegans voted yes on Measure B last month to allow the city to charge for trash collection that many have been enjoying for free.

But it’ll be a while until they see any bills.

inewsource reporter Crystal Niebla shares what San Diegans should expect next.

Before San Diego can enact a fee, the city must determine what it actually costs to collect trash, which could take a couple of years, if not more. In the meantime, Council member Joe LaCava, who co-sponsored Measure B, said he wants input from San Diegans. “We want to make sure that it really is a very authentic process, not a checkbox as we often hear people complain about, and do as much outreach as we can.” City officials expect to launch a community outreach campaign for San Diego trash collection services early next year. For KPBS, I’m inewsource reporter Crystal Niebla.

inewsource is an independently funded, nonprofit partner of KPBS.

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The city of San Diego swore in its 74th City Council yesterday.

KPBS reporter Jacob Aere has the story.

San Diego’s newest city council member was sworn in by the first non-white ever elected to the council… 95-year-old Tom Hom, who was elected in 1963 and later went on to the state Assembly. Kent Lee will represent Council District 6 and says he feels grateful and humbled by the new role. “Many people have talked about this district being an Asian empowerment district because it's 41 percent asian and Pacific Islander. And that's certainly not lost on me as well – I understand that is a significant component of what this district has represented and I look forward to making sure that we carry those voices forward within the city. But really at the end of the day making sure that we serve all of our residents within the city of san diego and the district.” While the city council is non-partisan, for the first time in city history the council members are all Democrats…. And they voted unanimously to re-elect District 9 councilman Sean Elo-Rivera as council president. JA KPBS News.

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Coming up.... A new report breaks down the improvements needed at Balboa Park. We’ll have that story and more, next, just after the break.

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An early winter storm brought some needed rain … and it brought snow to our local mountains.

KPBS reporter Alexander Nguyen spoke to families who were enjoying the first snow of the season at Mount Laguna.

 “Snowboarding right here … laugh” Monday’s storm means no work for Richie Bugarine … because he works in construction. He, his wife and their friends came to Mount Laguna on Monday for the first snow of the season. “Today was super awesome … when we were driving, there was snow falling so it was a cool experience.” Out on Mount Laguna…  families were enjoying the snow … sledding … building a snowman … and having snowball fights. But if you want to play in the snow … you’d better do it soon. Meteorologists don’t expect it to stay on the ground past Wednesday. AN/KPBS

No more snow or rain is expected for the rest of the work week, but today and tomorrow it will still be cold before it warms up a bit on Thursday.

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For more than 150 years Balboa Park has been one of the city of San Diego’s landmark attractions - bringing in over 4-million visitors annually.

A new report by the Burnham Center for Community Advancement identifies some of the major issues currently facing the iconic park space, and lays out a path for improvements in the years to come.

Tad Parzen is the C-E-O of the Burnham Center - a local think tank.

He spoke with KPBS Midday Edition Host Jade Hindmon.

What is your vision for Balboa Park - and how far is that from where it currently stands today? This report outlines hundreds of millions of dollars worth of repairs, renovations and general improvements. Can you start by telling us what some of the major items are? The issue of who is actually in charge of Balboa Park isn’t as clear as one might think. Why is that? How do you think we will overcome those hurdles?

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Children in Liberia are set to have a merrier Christmas this year, thanks to the generosity of a woman from Del Mar.

KPBS reporter, Claire Strong, has the story.

“Last year was the first time these kids had gotten anything for Christmas in their whole life” Lisa St John’s a real-life Santa Claus. She’s determined to make Christmas happen for around 2 hundred Liberian school children, by raising 4 thousand dollars to buy presents for them. “There are hundreds of kids at this boarding school. And when I say boarding school, it’s not what we have here. It’s bare bones and the education is not great, but it’s an education”. Lisa was inspired to help kids in Liberia after fostering an 8-year-old boy with a facial tumor. She now runs a non-profit to help provide him and other poor children with schooling, food and clothes. And if you’d like to help, head to the Liberian Perseverance Foundation’s Facebook and Instagram pages. Claire Strong, 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 Debbie Cruz. Thanks for listening and have a great day.