Each step counts

Things tend to get done when people have just had enough. And sometimes, tragedy becomes the last straw for a community.

Allow us to pause for a moment to remember little Hudson O’Loughlin of San Diego. Authorities have identified him as the youngster who was lost after being struck by an alleged hit-and-run driver over the weekend. And yet again it turns out that neighbors have long been worried about traffic and speeds in the area, in this case a four-block stretch in Pacific Beach. Our contributor, Ashlyn Lipori-Russie, has more on why the community has been asking to slow down traffic on Ingraham Street – and perhaps, prevent more heartbreak.

It’s the same in South Bay, where momentum has been building to address the stench caused by sewage flows across the border, along with the health effects of toxins that become airborne in the Tijuana River Valley. In the latest development, announced Thursday, officials are calling for a pipe expansion to help keep pollutants out of the air.

They acknowledge it’s only a temporary fix at what has become known as the Saturn Boulevard hotspot, the source of some of the valley’s most noxious emissions. They also have another goal, to secure funding for two new health studies. One official admitted the actions are “not a silver bullet,” but another called the efforts “a meaningful step we can take now.”

For those fighting for their communities, each step counts.

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