And
the first
All right.
Good morning.
I will now call the city
council meeting Monday, MAY
18th, 2026 to order Deputy
Clerk Please call the roll
Council member Campbell Council
Member Whitburn Council Member
Foster Council Member Von
Wilbur Council PRESIDENT Pro
Tem Lee Council Member Campo
Council Member Moreno Council
Member Eli Rivera and Council
PRESIDENT LaCava present also
attending the meeting are
Senior Deputy City Attorney
David Carlin, Independent
budget analyst Charles Mollica,
Council Affairs Advisor in
the Mayor's office, Code
advisor and myself your City
Clerk, Deputy City Clerk Kevin
Smith All right.
Thank you sir.
A quorum is now present.
We will begin this morning with
an invocation by Deputy Clerk
Smith followed with the land
acknowledgment and the Pledge
of Allegiance led by Council
member Kemp.
You grant those who hold
the office who hold office in
the city the spirit of wisdom,
charity and justice that
steadfast purpose they MAY
faithfully serve in their
offices to promote
the well-being of all people.
We respectfully acknowledge
that the culmination are
the original inhabitants of
the Unceded land now known as
San Diego.
Despite entering the horrors of
genocide and colonization,
the community spirit remains
unbroken.
We honor the resilience of
their ancestors who fought to
protect their culture and land.
Today they carry their legacy
forward ensuring that their
traditions continue to thrive
in gratitude and strength.
We stand with the culmination
connected to our past and
committed to a thriving future.
Please face the flag.
>> Deputy Clerk Please go over
how the public can offer their
testimony.
I will now highlight the slide
on the screen The reviews how
the public can offer their
public testimony during
the today's meeting.
If you are in person please
complete a speaker slip located
at the entrance of chambers and
bring it to the front of
the room.
No further in-person testimony
will be taken once the council
begins virtual testimony for
better meeting management
purposes Each speaker will have
one minute per item per person
with a maximum of three
minutes.
If you are speaking to three or
more items.
>> All right.
Thank you for that.
With that please please read
the call the session items into
the record.
>> Conference with Legal
counsel existing Litigation
pursuant to California
Government Code 54956.9 d1c us
one The Sustainability
Institute at all versus Donald
j.
Trump at all cost to Magdalena
Garcia versus City of San Diego
See us three Maria del Rosario
years Munoz versus City of San
Diego.
Conference with Labor
Negotiators Pursuant to
Government Code Section 54957.6
See us for City Designated
Management Team representatives
Conference with Legal Counsel
Existing litigation pursuant to
California Government Code
Section 5495 6.91 See as five
very all read versus City of
San Diego csx Arthur Scott
versus City of San Diego and
Arthur Scott versus City of San
Diego pd and Scott Wall.
>> All right.
And with that deputy clerk
please proceed with public
comment.
>> We will begin with in-person
comments.
We do have two speakers.
Tim Douglass, please come
forward.
You have requested to speak on
c.
S four and you have time ceded
to you by Andres Alva Cardenas
Good.
Thank you.
Please begin your comment.
Council Douglas PRESIDENT
Basketball 127 I want to remind
this Council that the workers
we represent are the employees
who keep the city running every
single day.
We maintain the streets, parks,
facilities, public services
that San Diego depend on.
We show up early, stay late and
continue serving this community
through every challenge because
we care deeply about this city.
That's why I think this is a
pretty simple idea.
We're not asking for anything
special.
We're asking for the respect of
being treated like the other
employees of the city.
Our members deserve fairness,
dignity and the same
consideration that others
receive when workers decide
that their lives to the public
service they should not have to
fight just to be recognized or
equality Number one we request
reopen language to ensure our
members receive their
recommended equity adjustments
to receive much earned special
assignments and voluntary
certification pays in the later
years of this multi-year mou
contract Number two however, we
do not agree to reopening
language continuing upon
the attempt to repeal
the refuge collection fees.
We're adamant about both of
these request.
Supporting city workers is not
just about contracts it's about
valuing the people behind
the work.
It's about recognizing
the strong city depends on
stability, respect workforce
that can afford to stay here,
raise families here and
continue to serve the community
with pride.
This morning I'm asking you to
stand with your workers,
support fairness, ensure that
this Council values employees
who make their city function
every day.
Thank you folks.
Thank you for those comments.
I've started the five minute
timer in council chambers.
We will now turn to the virtual
queue in which there are
currently five participants
requesting to speak.
>> Katherine Rose Please
proceed.
>> This is.
Hi, this is Katherine Rhodes.
What I wanted to say is you
know, I don't think you can
afford to give people raises
right now if this is what
you're going to be doing here.
And you know what I think you
should do for the unions So
it's your meeting with them.
It's ask them if they want to
get rid of all that those 300
nonunion middle managers and
get them back into the union
fold by firing all of them
Because when you when you
created all these middle
managers that you did on
consent throughout these 13
years, you started doing this
through city charter section
117 817 that allows you to give
people raises when you have and
it all started with these new
300 people when you have
the 2013, when you have
the five year pensionable pay
freeze that was going to end
the pension crisis by 2018 and
it would all have been paid
down.
Now we have 3 to $4 billion in
pension debt And so I don't
think it's fair to the union
members that people get paid
more than they do for doing
the same exact job and they
should just all be hired and
fired back by the union hired
back by the unions.
Thank you.
Thank you for those comments.
Our next speaker Speaker is
the original.
Please proceed and state which
concession item or items you
wish to speak to.
Give me three minutes because
I'm going to cover as many as i
can.
Okay.
Please proceed.
Okay.
It's interesting with this
first one that you guys are
engaging in litigation against
Donald Trump, you know, because
of funding that has been cut or
blocked due to you guys being
like a sanctuary city.
I mean the choices that you
made along the years to aid and
abet illegal aliens and give
money that you shouldn't be to
these people you're reaping
what you have sown.
So it's like and unfortunately
other people are reaping what
you have sown and so it just
shows that you're negligent in
the way that you're doing stuff
and now you're trying to make
him a scapegoat of the reasons
why the city isn't getting
stuff.
It's like sure, you know I'm
not, you know, condoning
everything that that man is
doing but you guys have led to
this type of things happening
And so it's just you know, you
continue down the path.
It's like you guys sitting
there and you know, continuing
business when you don't have a
quorum right Blatantly like in
your face type of stuff And
then later you kind of course
correct because I don't know
maybe it was on the news and
like you guys don't like that
kind of you know, attention
because you always like it to
be spun in your way But you
know, you guys just can't be
trusted to be making decisions
when you do things that
literally impede people's
ability to thrive And you're
we're constantly in litigation
for sidewalks that you know,
cause people to trip and fall
And it's like, you know and
the sidewalks continue to look
like.
So it's like I mean at what
point are you going to
actually, you know, try and
make those better so that we
don't have to continue to be in
litigation like this.
But you know, it's all a racket
anyway with the labor
negotiations.
It's interesting because you
know, people used to you know,
get a raise off of the merit
like off of their work and how
they did it as an individual
And now it's like you guys want
to like group everything
together all the time and act
like you know, you can just do
it in a lump sum type of a
thing.
But I mean you know that in
itself is negligent because it
should be based off of how
the person is performing
individually not as a group
because even as a group it's
like the city of San Diego
looks like.
So I mean you could spend you
know, you might as well just
throw the million dollars in
the streets and let the people
take it you know, spend more
wisely than that.
And then even just with
the utilities and the charges
and you guys violating
Proposition 218, you continue
to do that And it's just
ridiculous that we have to even
pay more money because you
can't do your job right.
If you guys did your job right,
we wouldn't constantly be in
litigation.
But I mean how cool is it to
like be protected like that to
do really nefarious things and
then just be like it's cool
because we're just gonna use
the people's money to cover our
and like pay it off so we can
just keep doing it over and
over while they think we're
bettering their lives.
>> Thank you for your comments.
That does conclude your time.
Our next speaker is Hector.
Please begin your comments and
state which close session item
items you wish to speak to.
I'd like to speak to the Trump
thing this Hector Trump thing
and number four and the other
one that oddly I was talking
about anyway with the Trump
with the Trump lawsuit,
the Trump proclamation thanking
him for deporting 17,000 people
in 14 months when he took
office in San Diego County that
really got the crime rate going
down and thank him again when
he deports another 100,000
illegal aliens in our county.
And if you want to sue him,
that's just going to he walks
that man he's been sued by 100
times That's is more you're
going to call attention to him
that he's going to come down
and send the other guys in here
to audit the NGOs that are
ripping us off That wheels of
change places 350 bucks a night
for one homeless guy That's a
total rip.
But anyway, I give you guys a
pay raise we got to lay off
instead of 400 guys, we got to
lay off 2000 guys.
Times are tough, man.
And they only lay off guys that
make over 1000 100,000 a year
and let the other guys But you
can't give up pay raises I
guess you're gonna But where's
the money going to And then
the pension system is killing
us.
It's not going to get any
better in a year ten years.
The pension system as it sits
now is just an anchor on
the whole city for decades and
it's not going away.
That's the main problem.
Get rid of the drop program.
Get rid of any kind of guys,
Push down the retirement age to
6065 only get retirement age
early for firemen and the cops
The rest the guys got to wait
till the 65 man Otherwise we're
already the money flying out
the door about millions guys
are getting million dollar
paychecks when they retire.
That's the drop program that
does not help us the way
the cities now look at
the services now it's not
helping Have all these
employees they're not really
went up the whole city like
it's role And with all these
employees cut 2000 guys just
start cutting them down and
then give the money to the poor
kids And south of Highway eight
opened up all the libraries,
all the rec centers that north
of eight suffer for 3 or 4
years.
They can handle it and just get
everything Those guys just
shower and wash stuff and build
a new sewer plant in Mexico.
That's what we really need.
Call it whatever it just all
money to the new sewer plant in
Tijuana and clean it all up
once and for all.
Okay.
Thanks a lot.
Thank you.
Please note that the five
minute timer has concluded with
three speakers left in
the queue.
Caller With the last four
digits 8700 please begin and
state which close session item
or items you wish to speak to.
Thank you Deputy City Clerk.
I was speaking to one, two,
three and four please.
>> Please proceed You three
minutes.
Thank you, Joy.
First of all, I want to thank
the gentleman that spoke in
the chambers first this
morning.
I want to tell him that I heard
you and I respect you.
And then also Katherine Rhodes.
I want to thank you for her
opinion very, very much.
Okay.
This is my opinion.
So I'm for us won the challenge
challenging the orders,
blocking grant funding which
seems to be already getting
teeth Which reversal is
possible?
Multiple federal courts have
continued to block this freeze
of grant money.
Most are temporary.
A lot of blessings on this a
very, very important case of
combine 52 and three which are
both trip and falls.
And I'll say this this is
interesting I just learned this
It's legal duty.
Duty of care is
the foundational legal
obligation to the city.
Does it cause harm to bear?
Excuse me.
I'm going to read that again.
Duty of care is
the foundational legal
obligation to the city doesn't
cause harm to others in various
ways.
A question for you In how many
ways In how many other ways is
the city of San Diego falling
short?
No pun intended Here on it's
legal obligations to care.
Duty of care.
Thank you for that.
I really enjoyed studying that
on 64 which is the labor
negotiation review the city's
position on Meet and Confer
negotiated no issues for me in
this budget deficit time.
I would appreciate actually
knowing the city's position on
where the employee's pay and
benefits will impact priorities
the deepest especially since
deficits could get deeper and
last longer.
So I really enjoy those two
speakers in the chamber this
morning because I think they
were in my opinion sort of
giving us two different sort of
perspectives and they're both
on the table.
They're both in
the conversation and we've got
to work together.
The art of Negotiation.
You're very good at that
especially on the legal and
they're trained in that So I'm
with you.
I support you.
Have a beautiful day and go to
all.
Thank you.
Blair Beakman.
Please state which concession
items items you wish to speak
to.
Hi.
Morning.
I'd like to speak to items one,
four, five and six.
Please proceed.
Thank you.
We're happy me everyone to
speak to see this one.
If it is an item of sanctuary
city issues in San Diego versus
a sustainability institute
versus Donald j.
>> Trump, good luck in
the argument that the ideas of
sanctuary cities is if we
practice basically our decent
selves or decent beliefs and
that people should be treated
as equals that can be just as
effective if not a more
effective way than constantly
offering punitive concepts of
society.
And I think we worked out
something pretty kind of
interesting.
There can definitely be an
argument about the balance of
that but I think Sanctuary City
is a very decent way to think
and work and good luck in your
continued efforts that I think
we can have a strong case for
providing for management issues
.
>> Man Boy I've been wanting to
say this a long time For as
much as I deeply respect
Councilperson over various
ideas and opinions and that our
city government workers really
needed pay raises a few years
ago.
If city government workers city
council and the mayor really
seriously looked at themselves
and offered to take some sort
of pay cut no matter how small
at this time I think it would
just be an incredible boost to
our community and we have an
incredible respect for you.
You would be geared towards a
thinking of how to be working
towards how to manage budget.
You'd better ipo and we'd be
working with a sense of trust
and good efforts all around
that If you guys are willing to
actually take a pay cut
together and really consider
that please at this time.
>> That's it.
Be an awesome way to help build
community.
I feel and trust and like to
consider that notion instead of
continuously asking for
increases however small by
the way with 65 that's an old
item that for me I wish I had a
better legal understanding and
better legal advice that people
have money and then people
don't have money and that we
all have to be paying the same
amount of bills is a decent
noble gesture.
But people also paying what
they can afford should also be
considered just invaluable and
meaningful in that effort.
And to conclude all of
the Scott Wall issues dealing
with now we're dealing with our
speak pd in a really sad way
right now we're dealing with
the concepts of retaliation a
lot and I hope along with
the mayor's office and
the community we are dealing
with how to better consider
retaliation.
Think of Andrea.
I mean it's grown to way out of
proportion.
We got to work on something
together.
Thank you.
Our final speaker is Luis
Rodolico Please state which
closed session item or items
you wish to speak to Item 250
We are on the closed session
agenda which includes c.
S 116 as the as the reasons for
c.
>> s five and ca6 oh this is a
public trust issue as well.
Okay.
You MAY need to speak to non
agenda public comment or item
250 in the afternoon.
Okay.
All right thank you.
That does conclude public
comment.
>> All right.
Thank you for that.
We will now recess in
the closed session and
reconvene council today at 2
P.M. Or shortly thereafter
and
good afternoon in the afternoon
and the evening sessions of
the MAY 18th, 2026 San Diego
City Council meeting are
adjourned due to unforeseen
circumstances.
Hearing of the items will be
rescheduled to a future date.
We are now adjourned to
the next regularly scheduled
council meeting on Tuesday May