SAN DIEGO (January 14, 2015) – San Diego City Councilmembers Todd Gloria and David Alvarez expressed concern with the lack of solutions offered by Mayor Kevin L. Faulconer’s in tonight’s State of the City address.

“San Diegans needed to hear tonight that the city is going to stop hemorrhaging police officers to other jurisdictions. We needed to hear how we would do more than merely chip away at our growing infrastructure problem, and we needed to hear that he was going to help more San Diegans make ends meet. We heard none of that. We can do better.

“On the same day of these State of the City promises, the Independent Budget Analyst releases a report stating that the City will be $96.4 million behind the amount the Mayor has proposed for infrastructure expenditures.  This should be a wake-up call for all San Diegans.  City streets won’t get fixed and fire stations, parks and libraries will be further delayed without a more significant commitment from this administration.”

“Since the Mayor is not offering solutions, we will work together on several measures to address the real challenges facing the city, including stabilizing the San Diego Police Department and allow officers to again focus on community policing; encouraging small business growth through appropriate city investment; and ensuring the city is supporting the education of local youth with appropriate programming and services.

“The city needs to serve all San Diegans, and so far, Mayor Faulconer’s slogan of One San Diego is only benefiting one San Diegan: himself. Tonight, we heard the Mayor say the city is on the right track. The 172,000 San Diegans who didn’t get a minimum wage increase on January 1 probably don’t agree. The City Council supported a reasonable and much-needed increase to San Diego’s minimum wage, and Mayor Faulconer stood in the way and refused to collaborate or offer a proposal he could support. San Diego must dare to be great; we cannot settle for an agenda of ‘no.’

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