Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer represents San Diego County’s Third Supervisorial District, spanning the region’s coastline from Carlsbad to Coronado. District 3 encompasses five incorporated cities and nearly a dozen distinct neighborhoods within the City of San Diego including University City.
Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer, July 2022: If you told me three years ago I would spend weeks on end isolated at home, gas would cost $6 a gallon, I’d be watching a war in Europe, and reproductive freedom would be illegal or close to it in a majority of the nation, I wouldn’t have believed you.
But the reality is that our world has changed — and this change is being thrust upon us from all directions. With the right planning and investments we can weather that change — and create a stronger, more resilient San Diego County.
This was my goal when I voted last month to approve the County of San Diego’s new $7.35 billion dollar budget. It’s a resiliency budget — an investment plan to make sure that San Diego is ready not only to respond to the change we’re experiencing but to enact the change we need.
It furthers the work we’ve done, and continue to do, to make County government more equitable, sustainable, responsive, and representative of our communities.
As we feel the heat from rising temperatures, this budget invests $100 million to fight climate change, expand County parks and community gardens, acquire land for the preservation of natural habitats, plant trees, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and set up “cool zones” around our region for you to enjoy air conditioning for free.
As we grow more concerned about sewage in our oceans, this budget invests $40 million in improving our stormwater infrastructure to keep pollution from our cities from flowing onto our beaches.
As we see people struggling on the street, perhaps talking to themselves, this budget pays for new Mobile Crisis Response Teams staffed with trained psychiatric clinicians to respond quickly — allowing our sheriffs and police officers to focus on fighting crime.
As we are squeezed by inflation and need a little extra help to make ends meet, this budget will fund new resources to help residents access food and healthcare through programs like
CalFresh and Medi-Cal.As we witness wildfires more frequently threaten our homes, this budget bolsters our firefighting fleet with a new dual-engine helicopter with the ability to fly at night and carry more water and emergency responders. But we’re not waiting for danger to arrive at our doorsteps — we’re also investing $2 million to reduce the risk of wildfire through vegetation management, improved evacuation routes, and fire breaks.
And as we venture out more to reconnect with our neighbors, you can experience the millions of dollars in grant funding set aside in this budget to support vital community organizations. For example, last year my office championed $5,000 for the Friends of Rose Canyon to restore native plants; $6,500 to support the University City Community Association; $10,000 to support local music programs through Villa Musica, and $14,000 to support the University City Foundation for Public Schools including the Taste of Triangle and Oktoberfest events.
If you know an organization that is doing important work that should receive funding, please have them reach out to me at terra.lawson-remer@sdcounty.ca.gov.
We are a resilient region — and this budget reflects that spirit. We can’t always control what comes our way. But we will continue to work hard locally to be prepared for winds of change, no matter where they come from, so we can chart a better future for us all.
For more information, visit the website of Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer at https://www.supervisorterralawsonremer.com/content/d3/us/en/home.html
