Today’s newsletter is presented by Jackalope Art Fair.
Good morning, San Diego ☀️
Here’s what we have for you today:
- Homegrown craft fairs are a thing around town, but one that’s in multiple cities comes to San Diego this weekend. Welcome, Jackalope.
- A Lakers-Padres connection? Yep. Buss Sports Capital has taken a reported 5% ownership stake in the Friars.
- And shoutout to reader Danny Keiller, who correctly guessed yesterday’s news quiz. The city is paying $10 million to settle a lawsuit over a failed stormwater drainpipe causing a giant sinkhole.
Jennifer Vigil
News editor
Top story
Ordinance to keep parking free at many beach, bay parking lots moves on to city council
Fallout from the Balboa Park paid parking disaster is apparently still unspooling.
That’s really the only way to read a jittery city’s determined effort to get out in front of any bureaucrat or elected official who might have even an inkling about raising revenue in a similar fashion at city beaches and along Mission Bay.
The effort was on display at the San Diego City Council’s Rules Committee Wednesday, where members unanimously forwarded a proposed ordinance to the full council that would not only bar such parking fees for the next 10 years, as initially proposed, but rather “in perpetuity,” as one speaker recommended.
The city has been boxed in, revenue wise, by such a decision before. For instance, by the voters who embraced the notorious 1919 People’s Ordinance, allowing select residents to enjoy free trash collection for a century.
Someone offered a wee murmur of dissent Wednesday — sort of. A staffer with the council’s Independent Budget Analyst told the committee that the office isn’t taking a position in favor of or against the ordinance. The office however warned that it behooves city leaders “to preserve financial flexibility.”
Other cities raise significant funds by charging for beach lot parking, as contributor Karen Pearlman explains. In the Balboa Park aftermath, future discussion of that possibility could be off the table.
Times of San Diego thanks our corporate sponsors. Find out more about sponsorships and advertising opportunities here.
Stories you should know about
⛓️💥 Despite public outcry, migrant arrests surged in San Diego in last 12 months: In total, from early 2025 through Aug. 6, 2026, the most recent date for which figures are available, nearly 18,000 people were arrested by ICE agents in the San Diego area. In July, the monthly total hit 1,964.
🏈 NFL journeyman Josh Johnson, a star at USD, looks to extend career with the Bengals: The quarterback, 40, nearly two decades after his last game as a Torero, is still finding the end zone. He’s hoping to win a spot as the third QB on Cincinnati’s roster.
🏡 Opinion: We need an age-friendly response to rising senior homelessness: Adults 55 and older now represent 33% of San Diego County’s unsheltered population, up from 29% one year ago. One provider writes that “San Diego’s response needs to evolve” with this change.
What else we’re reading
⛳️ Rent for some of San Diego’s leased golf courses is likely too low. The city council weighed in on changing that, following an audit. (KPBS)
🌘 The recent solar eclipse was a no-go for San Diego viewing, but Thursday’s partial lunar eclipse? Different story. Weather permitting, you should be able to watch, and at a decent hour too. (Union-Tribune)
Times of San Diego thanks our corporate sponsors. Find out more about sponsorships and advertising opportunities here.
Locals Only
💿 What’s the best spot to find vinyl records/CDs in the city of San Diego? Let us know and we’ll shoutout you and your recommendations tomorrow.
Remember to subscribe to our weekly newsletters for more hyper-local coverage!