By RAUL A. CAMPILLO
The past month has been extremely busy at City Hall for District 7, and filled with many victories for the Navajo communities.
At the Council meeting last week, I voted to allocate $4 million dollars to the Alvarado Canyon Realignment Project, which will alleviate current and projected traffic congestion on Fairmount Avenue, Mission Gorge Road, Alvarado Canyon Road, and the westbound I-8 off-ramp at Fairmount Avenue, along with the adjoining intersections, and will also address localized flooding issues within the Grantville area north of Alvarado Creek. Fixing our infrastructure has been a top priority of mine since I joined the Council last year, and this action will do just that.
In addition to the $4 million for the Alvarado Road Realignment Project, I also secured the following: $1 million for street light installation, $4.7 million for sidewalk repair and $39.5 million for street resurfacing city-wide; and $470,000 restored to the San Carlos Library fund as it was previously transferred to a different city account for a storm water emergency.
Last month, Council President Pro Tem Whitburn and I teamed up to Safeguard San Diego by keeping our city eligible for critical infrastructure dollars from the state. Since banning Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) in 2012, the city has been ineligible for state funding for many of our critical projects. This means our roads, our firehouses, and our core city services that Navajo residents depend on, have lost out on funds. This is why I brought forward an item to the Council’s Rules Committee, which passed unanimously, to Safeguard San Diego and give residents the opportunity to vote to open up our city to all sources of infrastructure funding by reversing the city’s prohibition on PLAs.
I will be hosting a virtual town hall alongside members of the leadership of the Public Utilities Department in order to hear your feedback and answer any questions you might have regarding sewer and wastewater rates. Please register for this free virtual event by visiting: www.sdutilityrates.com.
Lastly, it is my honor to re-state that the Bridge for Max will be built. This effort is being spearheaded by the Lenail/Yoler family, and it has been an honor to be a partner with them throughout this process.
The Bridge for Max funding process was accelerated this past month when State Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins secured a $1.5 million grant to the MTRP Foundation to help fund the Bridge for Max as part of the State’s Fiscal Year 2022 Budget. This, in combination with the robust fundraising effort underway by the family, ensures that there will be sufficient funding for the process to move forward.
It is an honor to serve Navajo families. You can always reach my office by phone at 619-236-6677 or by email at [email protected].
— Raul Campillo represents District 7 on the San Diego City Council.
