Efforts to make Otay Mesa’s Brown Field an economic catalyst took a step forward recently when San Diego approved plans for three dozen new hangars, two hotels and 1.5 million square feet of retail and industrial buildings. The project will boost the cross-border economy, said Councilman David Alvarez of Logan Heights, whose district includes the city’s border communities.
Read MoreThe San Diego City Council’s Infrastructure Committee voted Wednesday to move forward with budget adjustments that would fund renovations to the city-leased 101 Ash Street office building, which has been the subject of delays and tens of millions of dollars in projected cost overruns. The committee vote was 3-1, with Councilman David Alvarez casting the dissenting vote. “We were told we were getting something that we did not get or come close to getting. Now I’m supposed to trust we’re supposed to get this other thing for this cost, and I have a hard time actually believing that,” he said.
Read MoreThe San Diego City Council will seek an explanation from law enforcement officials on why thousands of dollars from public funds were invested into the protection of the construction zone of the border wall prototypes. “They took resources that could have been used in our communities,” the councilman Alvarez criticized. “Obviously we have to be careful, but I think it was done in a very exaggerated way,” he added.
Read MoreConstruction began in San Diego Tuesday on prototypes for a new border wall between the United States and Mexico. "The border wall is a stupid idea," Councilman David Alvarez said. "The border can become efficient and safe with investments in infrastructure and technology instead of wasting billions of taxpayer dollars for a wall, which will accomplish nothing."
Read MoreThe San Diego City Council approved a resolution on Tuesday opposing President Trump’s enhanced border wall and seeking disclosure of all companies involved in financing or construction of the proposed project. Councilman David Alvarez said it was sad that the council and the country even need to have a conversation about such a “stupid” idea, but he agreed it was important for San Diego to take a stand and lobby against the wall.
Read MoreThe City Council Monday rejected a plan to conduct a special election for this fall that potentially would have included Mayor Kevin Faulconer's plan to expand the San Diego Convention Center. "This isn't ready to come forward, it just really isn't," Councilman David Alvarez said about the convention center proposal. "Shovels can't be ready, and cranes can't be ready, because the land doesn't belong to the city."
Read MoreLess than seven months after San Diegans overwhelmingly decided to hold elections when the most people could participate, Mayor Kevin Faulconer is pushing the City Council to schedule a special off-year election for two ballot initiatives.
Read MoreCouncilmember David Alvarez of San Diego was the most prominent elected official to express early support for the accusers. Kasparian was once a strong political ally of Councilmember Alvarez, having endorsed Alvarez and spending millions to support his campaign for Mayor in 2013. However, their relationship began to deteriorate in 2016 as Alvarez says he began to experience the same type of bullying behavior and intimidation tactics that former employees of Kasparian have reported.
Read MoreWhile Trump and other GOP presidential candidates push for a giant wall between the United States and Mexico, San Diego is literally building a bridge. In San Diego, Alvarez said, Republicans have changed. Although he is frequently critical of Sanders’s mayoral tenure and unsuccessfully ran against Faulconer for mayor, Alvarez agrees with their stances on the border. “We have a common goal,” he said.
Read MoreEven as the San Diego City Council authorized on Tuesday a controversial $2.1 million environmental impact report on a proposed $1.1 billion plus Mission Valley stadium, there were further signs that even the city’s political leaders are resigned to the Chargers relocating to Carson. Councilmember David Alvarez, citing the business acumen of NFL owners, said “business people do not make rushed decisions. Clearly here we don’t have a full plan.
Read MoreThe community of San Ysidro is celebrating –albeit with some reservations—the announcement of the securing of the final funding needed to complete a sidewalk that would connect San Ysidro with its high school. “A sidewalk in this location is vital to the students that use this route to go to and from school,” Alvarez said. “The community has been advocating for the construction of this sidewalk for far too long. For the entire time I have been in office, this has been and continues to be one of my top priorities.”
Read MorePedestrians who cross the border into and out of San Ysidro will have a new alternative in a couple of years. The San Ysidro PedWest is scheduled to be completed in the spring of 2016. “We all agree we have an inefficient border,” said San Diego Councilmember David Alvarez, who represents San Ysidro. “We all hope to have a more efficient border.”
Read MoreOnce again, Councilman David Alvarez has negotiated a compromise on a contentious land use decision in his district. The City Council on Tuesday approved a new community plan for Otay Mesa. Alvarez orchestrated a last-minute change to address the biggest outstanding dispute over the plan.
Read MoreOtay Mesa wants to be a big part of the solution to San Diego’s housing crisis. Its new community plan – which is up for a City Council vote Tuesday – aims to make the area a manufacturing jobs center, and to provide thousands of new homes to help meet the city’s shortage. “This plan creates a middle-class job center for the region, and from my standpoint and a general plan standpoint, that’s the priority of the plan,” said Councilman David Alvarez, who represents the area.
Read MoreAfter six hours of impassioned public comment, the San Diego City Council approved the controversial Plaza de Panama project for Balboa Park Monday. Councilman David Alvarez said he too supported it, but encouraged the plaza's committee to reexamine projections of revenue the parking garage will bring in.
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