More than 100 San Diegans signed up for public comment during the city council's discussion on the budget ahead of its vote to finalize city funding decisions next week.
Concerns about equity took center stage Friday, as community members expressed concerns about cuts to climate and cannabis equity funds, the San Diego Housing Commission, the Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs and more.
“You have to be out there to understand the programs that are needed in our communities, the programs that are going to work for our communities,” said Melissa Hernandez, a community advocate.
Mayor Todd Gloria pushed back against allegation of inequity in his budget when NBC 7 asked him about the criticism earlier this week.
Get top local stories in San Diego delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC San Diego's News Headlines newsletter.
"I think there are perhaps two to three programs with equity in their titles that have been — the funds have been swept in order to make sure that we don't make reductions in public safety, road repair and homelessness,” Gloria said.
Gloria said his budget proposes unprecedented investment in equitable infrastructure.
“A lot of the projects that are going to be funded in that highest-ever investment will go into communities that have long been underserved and overlooked by city hall,” Gloria said. “I understand the simplicity of pointing to one or two budget cuts and suggesting that this budget does not try and address structural racism and the long-term historic disinvestment in neighborhoods across the city, but that would be inaccurate.”
Local
Two of the other hot topics — during both the public testimony and the council's discussion — were homelessness and funding for flood victim support.
One relatively small investment (about $1 million in a $5.6 billion budget) that advocates, supported by the council president, said could make a big difference: youth drop-in centers, which are places for young people to hang out and seek resources, especially in underserved communities. Mike Whyte wondered aloud what his life would have looked like if he had similar opportunities as a young person.
"It could have changed the whole trajectory of my life," Whyte said. "You never know. I've never played any organized sports like football to wear and put on a helmet and shoulder pads, basketball with the shot clock because there was none in my community. My community was underfunded when my mother was a kid, and now it's still underfunded. My children and grandchildren — I mean, something has to change.”
