Supervisors forum gets heated
Lawson-Remer, Faulconer grill each other as the race for the Board of Supervisors D3 seat has become a battle and will determine control of the board
CARLSBAD — Tension was high, and emotions ran hot as San Diego County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer and former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer took center stage at Monday night’s District 3 forum in their race for the county Board of Supervisors.
The forum saw Lawson-Remer and Faulconer take aim at their opponents’ respective records, or lack thereof, in front of nearly 200 people at the Carlsbad Windmill. Coast News reporter Claire Strong also had to jump in several times and warn the audience for filming, holding back Lawson-Remer and the audience (on both sides) for interruptions.
Regardless, the D3 race is the featured race for this cycle as the power of balance is on the line. Lawson-Remer, a Democrat, and Faulconer, a Republican, showed stark contrasts to their platforms and visions for the county, especially on homelessness, housing and attendance.
(Here’s the link to the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce’s YouTube page. The video will be online today. The video will also be posted by the Encinitas and Solana Beach chambers.)
Currently, the Democrats control the board with three seats (Lawson-Remer, Nora Vargas and Monica Montgomery-Steppe), while the Republicans have two (Jim Desmond and Joel Anderson). Vargas, the chair of the board, and Anderson are both up for re-election and are heavy favorites to win.
Lawson-Remer said her vision for the future of the county includes clean air, water and streets and stressed the importance of her work on addressing the Tijuana sewage crisis. She said her work helped secure $400 million from state and federal sources.
“My vision is for a region with clean air, water and streets,” Lawson-Remer said. “I’ve passed (legislation) addressing gun violence, safe storage, school safety and we’re also making a dent in the housing crisis.”
Faulconer, who served as mayor from 2014-20, said his vision is of a county working for everyone and noted he was responsible for some of those sewage funds as he worked across the aisle to lobby state and federal officials to solve the ongoing problem. He slammed the board for instituting a vehicle miles traveled initiative as part of its vision several years ago in response to climate change and a lack of public transit in the unincorporated county. He said it created a de facto housing moratorium during a housing crisis. Faulconer said it’s impractical to jam all new housing west of Interstate 5.
The board reversed course on the VMT rule earlier this year as the new guideline allow up to 7,693 homes to be built without traffic studies, according to reports.
Lawson-Remer touted her efforts in leading the county to build 10,000 affordable housing units on six sites by 2030, while Faulconer said the county issued permits for just 57 units last year. She said the county has been proactive in addressing the housing crisis and working toward lowering the costs of new homes.
“There’s been no leadership for the last four years,” Faulconer added. “It’s a disaster on the streets and homelessness has increased (double digits) … and is skyrocketing. The county isn’t leading.
Lawson-Remer said she brought forward a resolution for the county to address corporate landlords such as Blackstone, which bought 66 apartment complexes with nearly 6,000 units. She said the company then “jacked up” rents by 38% forcing residents to find new housing as it became too expensive.
Lawson-Remer also spoke about how the county passed a resolution to support Attorney General Rob Bonta’s lawsuit against oil companies for misleading the public on the dangers of fossil fuels. The state is suing BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil, Shell and the American Petroleum Institute.
Faulconer also repeatedly hammered Lawson-Remer on her attendance record for committee, subcommittee and the San Diego Association of Governments saying she’s missed 74% of her committee and subcommittee meetings. However, Lawson-Remer cut off Faulconer and called him a liar before being asked to let him finish. She fired back saying Faulconer missed 84% of his meetings on the San Diego Association of Governments as mayor. KPBS reported in 2016 Faulconer attended seven or 43 meetings in his first two years.
Later, Lawson-Remer said she has a 95% attendance record at supervisor’s meetings. Faulconer, along with others, have ripped Lawson-Remer’s attendance including at SANDAG, the San Diego County Water Authority and as the vice chair of the Regional Task Force on Homelessness.
However, the two repeatedly returned to homelessness. Lawson-Remer said failures of the previous board before she was elected in 2020 did nothing to alleviate the problem. She said during her tenure the county has gone from 0 shelter beds to 1,000 and said under Faulconer’s tenure as mayor, homelessness grew.
She also cited the Ash Street scandal several times, saying its cost taxpayers in the city of San Diego hundreds of millions of dollars thanks to a “handshake” deal between Faulconer and developers. The building was riddled with asbestos, and the city did not conduct any inspection rendering it useless and the city is now trying to sell it.
Faulconer said the inaction from the board also cost the county $10 million in state funding after the county didn’t come up with a plan fast enough. The plan included 70 tiny homes in Lemon Grove.
Other questions, issues
The candidates also discussed noise and expansion of the McClellan-Palomar Airport in Carlsbad, the failed road user charge proposal by SANDAG, minimum wage, realignment of the railroad tracks, tourism and gun violence and Proposition 36.
Both said residents near the airport deserve the ability to have a respectful neighbor, although Lawson-Remer said she wants a strict operational time of 7 a.m.-9 p.m. She also said she doesn’t want to see the airport expand to the size of John Wayne Airport in Orange County and would not sign off on any new contracts for the Carlsbad airport.
Faulconer said the airport is a regional asset supporting major businesses and the regional economy. He said it’s imperative to work with neighbors and other stakeholders so any plan can for work for everyone.
Both candidates were asked if they supported the controversial road user charge, which has been removed from the SANDAG regional transportation plan. The fee would have charge motorists for each mile they drove.
Lawson-Remer said she was not in support and voted against the charge as more people adopt electric vehicles, although Faulconer said she initially did vote for the charge as the county’s representative on the SANDAG Board of Directors. He said she voted against the charge after public outcry.
The SANDAG board majority supported the RUC until December 2021 when they approved the plan but passed a separate item to remove the charge. It took until summer 2023 for the charge to be removed after growing criticism from the public.
On the heels of the state approving a $20 per hour minimum wage for fast food workers, both candidates said they don’t see the county moving on any such minimum wage issue. Faulconer said he will support chambers of commerce’s to lobby against any more burdensome regulations on businesses, while Lawson-Remer said it cities may address a minimum wage as she supports local control.
Both said it’s critical to realign the railroad tracks as Lawson-Remer said it was important to ensure access to the most open space with realignment. She said of the three current options, one will not work for the city of Del Mar and Solana Beach, but the realignment must be done quickly to meet climate goals.
Both agreed tourism is a critical industry and needs support as Lawson-Remer said clear beaches and streets are key to attracting tourists, while Faulconer said the money from tourists is a significant funding mechanism for the cities and county and support for the industry is critical to avoid tax increases.
As for gun violence and Prop. 36, Faulconer noted Lawson-Remer said she doesn’t support the measure, which would overturn Prop. 47 and give law enforcement and district attorney’s more tools to prosecute theft, drug and other crimes. He said communities must be safe or they crumble and said Prop. 36 has widespread bipartisan support throughout the state.
Lawson-Remer said Faulconer was spreading misinformation, and she has worked to increase mental health access through CARE Court and beds. She said she also put forward a resolution against ghost guns and an ordinance requiring safe firearm storage in the unincorporated county.
Note: The forum was hosted by the Carlsbad, Encinitas and Solana Beach chamber’s of commerce.
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