The council voted to add the creation of a sidewalk along Ocean Drive into the plans to upgrade the irrigation system and replace turf in Sunset Park to make it safer for people to take their dogs to dog beach, directly across the street.
Currently they have to go into the street or walk across the park, where dogs aren’t allowed, to get to the beach, posing a safety issue for them and their pets.
To save money and make it less inconvenient for park users, the staff suggested combining the sidewalk installation with plans to replace the park’s turf and irrigation system in 2017-2018. Because of an immediate need for the sidewalk, the council decided begin the work this year.
By moving it forward a year the council would be “[solving] a safety problem sooner rather than later,” Councilman Mike Woiwode said.
While she endorsed the idea of a sidewalk, Councilwoman Carrie Downey worried that there hadn’t been enough public outreach. She didn’t buy that there was no opposition to the project, either from sports groups that used the park or neighbors, suggesting that people weren’t aware a sidewalk was going in.
“I don’t think the public knows about this,” Downey said.
She worried that at some point down the line, opposition to the plans could develop, not unlike what happened after the council had allocated funds for a feasibility study for a multi-use path on the beach. The vote set off a firestorm and the council was forced to reverse itself. Downey clearly didn’t want a repeat of that.
Cliff Maurer, Director of Public Services and Engineering, assured her that all the sports groups that use the park and park neighbors had been notified. As the project moves forward the public will have other opportunities to comment.
The project is projected to cost $436,000. The vote was unanimous.
During open communications Harold Myers again took aim at Richard Bailey’s campaign finances. This time he focused on the councilman’s connection to New Majority California, a political action committee (PAC) that espouses traditional conservative values of small government and fiscal responsibility.
Its members include a number of well-known contractors and real estate investors, including Doug Barnhart and Scott McMillin. McMillin is a Coronado resident; the bulk of New Majority members are from San Diego.
By law, PACs are not allowed to contribute to individual candidates, but individual members are allowed. They can endorse, and in the past the San Diego chapter has supported Ron Roberts for supervisor and Kevin Faulconer for mayor. The organization has not endorsed Bailey, and Bailey says that he has not sought its endorsement.
Eight New Majority members have contributed $200 each to his campaign in 2015. Bailey did pony up $10,000 thousand to join.
Myers connected these dots to suggest that Bailey was using the organization to launder money to his campaign. He produced a slide show explaining how it works.
Bailey steadfastly denies laundering money through the organization.
“Legally I can donate up to $100,000 to my own campaign. Why would I contribute $10,000 to get back a handful of $200 donations?” Bailey asked.
It’s true that the same 8 could contribute another $200 in 2016 and put another $800 in Bailey’s campaign chest. This would bring their contributions up to $1,600, a poor return by any standard.
To date the campaign reports contributions from over 140 people. The eight from New Majority represent less than five percent of Bailey’s campaign donors.
Bailey said that he started his campaign early to give him a leg up in the race for mayor, not to raise more money or to circumvent the campaign finance rules.
Myers is skeptical. “Only Richard knows why he started early, although after four years on council and his frequent postings on Facebook, he is very well known,” he pointed out in an e-mail.
“Worst thing that can happen to Coronado is that we lose the ability to govern ourselves,” Myers said. “We need to keep our elections local and we don’t need outsiders contributing to our elections.”
“My most generous contributors are not from across the bridge they are from Coronado,” he said.
Besides, Bailey says money will play a small role in his campaign. He will do as he did when he ran for council – knocking on doors, holding meet and greets and participating in forums. Just as he did last year, Bailey intends to visit every household in Coronado between now and the November general election.
Still, the amount of money Bailey is raising and the involvement of high-powered Republican activists does give pause.
“I have been following campaign financing here for 30 years and this is the first time that I have seen anything quite like this. My concern is that the New Majority California Political Action Committee will use Coronado as an incubator for potential statewide candidates,” Myers wrote in e-mail. “That would leave Coronado with leaders interested primarily in their own political futures instead of Coronado’s.”
