City faulted for inaction on pensions, ties to developers

San Diego’s elected leaders need to seek overdue statewide pension reform legislation for all future employees to save taxpayers’ dollars. Extravagant pensions are a cause of the city’s budget problems, forcing us to pay for parking in Balboa Park, Mission Beach and other places. Reducing pension costs can free up money to prevent driving over tire-damaging potholes.

But San Diego favors developers over taxpayers, evident when an appellate court ruled the city failed to adequately analyze environmental impacts when removing the 30-foot coastal height limit which benefited the Midway Rising project.

In Sacramento, developers get superficial “bonus” building laws that grossly violate our coastal height limits, with a 23-story project proposed on a two-lane street in Pacific Beach. If that disaster is approved, city officials are severely harming communities. Developers take control by funneling their money into legislators’ pockets to get the bill or project they want; follow the money.

— Ted Hilton, Pacific Beach