Politifest, an annual event hosted by Voice of San Diego, was held at University of San Diego on September 28, allowing the public a closer look into local government and public organizations.
Oftentimes individuals feel like they have no power in what the government does. This often stems from a lack of understanding about the way the government operates and how small scale changes can lead to big results. The people at Voice of San Diego know this and aim to help alleviate this issue by producing Politifest annually. Each panel offers important information and perspectives that makes this event crucial to the public’s involvement in local government.
Opportunities offered to the over 1,000 attendees included submitting debate questions, speaking with officials personally, and talking directly to leaders of community organizations. This year Politifest focused on one question, “Can our government — state, local and federal — meet the moment?”
Outside Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice sat many stands for the event sponsors and other public organizations. The event sponsors included organizations like KPBS, AARP, Planned Parenthood, University of San Diego, Municipal Employee Association and more.
Inside sat meeting halls that held council debates, keynote addresses, panel discussion, interviews and other helpful talks. A powerful topic discussed at Politifest was the controversial Prop 33.
Prop 33 would repeal the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act of 1995 which limits individual cities’ power to implement rent control measures. Rent control doesn’t apply to units built after 1995 and therefore incentivizes new developments.
Supporters argue that rent control is consumer friendly and would make renting more affordable. Dissenters claim this would stifle new developments and reverse pre existing efforts about the issue. Each solution to the issue of inflation being proposed is not perfect and comes with repercussions that cannot be accurately predicted.
City Council member Sean Elo-Rivera and candidate Terry Hoskins duked it out during their city council debate which included the dividing Prop 33 topic. What’s interesting is that no party is decisive on Prop 33. Hoskins opposes it, saying that Prop 33 is “not viable politically” and that it would not solve any problems, while Elo-Rivera supports the bill. Notably both of these men are democrats but they continue to disagree on a plan of action.
Throughout the debate Elo-Rivera spoke with confidence and a projected voice that commanded the narrative of the debate. In return Hoskins provided thoughtful rebuttals striking back when able, allowing the two to engage in an informative and productive debate.
After the council debate a panel was set to take place on the issue regarding the increase in people without homes entitled “Our Housing Emergency.” Panelists Ryan Clumpner, Levi Giafoglione, Drew Moser and Hanan Scrapper spoke on the ideal solutions for this issue.
A major issue of the panel is the $30 million that Mayor Todd Gloria wants to spend with the goal to create 1,000 beds annually. A big portion of this panel covered this topic and the argument boiled down to more housing or more shelter.
Throughout the discussion Moser, CEO of The Lucky Duck Foundation, was the dissenting opinion in the panel and speaking last allowed him to properly formulate his thoughts and offer precise counterarguments. Moser believes the $30 million should go to more shelter beds to help as many people as possible as quickly as possible. When pressed about the quality of shelters Moser offered to tour any of the facilities he oversees with whoever would like to join him, a very respectable and powerful move.
Giafoglione, who serves on the board of Dreams for Change and operated his own shared housing home, came with the experience of being homeless which allowed him a fundamental understanding of the road to housing. In speaking first he set the tone and direction of the other panel members’ responses and he did so effectively, creating an impactful discussion. Giafoglione believes the $30 million should go to housing projects and he strongly believes shared living should be invested in more than it currently is.
Clumpner, vice chair of the Housing Commission, spoke passionately on the need for more beds, readily available detox beds, livable wages for shelter staff and, most importantly, reliable funding for project sustainability. Clumpner spoke loudly and calmly as he laid out what he believes is the best way to tackle this issue, commanding the debate when it was his turn to speak earning him the only session of applause from the audience.
Scrapper, the regional director at People Assisting the Homeless, emphasized the need for more housing stating that people are staying an average of 200 days in a shelter, far longer than is intended by these shelters. Just after she mentioned people are still succeeding through this program but the number of people becoming homeless is overpowering. She goes on to state that there is nowhere for people to go and that housing is not affordable even if there was, because of this she believes the funding should go towards more “inclusive housing.”
The information gained from attending Politifest enhances the public’s understanding of the issues around San Diego, giving them a better understanding of the candidates they will be voting for and inspire a sense of community and dedication to progress.
