Today’s newsletter is presented by Discover PB.
Good morning, San Diego ⛅️
Here’s what we have for you today:
- Happy Cinco de Mayo!
- The San Diego LGBT Center’s biggest donation ever is causing serious controversy at the nonprofit organization.
- And shoutout to reader Tom Colthurst, who was first to correctly guess the location and year of yesterday’s step back-in-time. Reader Jess Horn, was the first to correctly guess the location. Scroll to the bottom of this email to see if you were correct. 😊
— Brooke Binkowski, news editor; Andrew Keatts, general manager
Top story
$19M gift to The Center sparks deep rift with gay seniors
A generous endowment to the LGBT Center in 2022 has caused years of unexpected issues for the nonprofit organization.
The $19 million endowment has created a major rift between the center and some of its members over transparency, limits on the donations, and – predictably – where the money should go.
Now, the Center has overhauled all of its advisory committees and put a pause on using any of the endowment for the rest of the year while they hammer out legal guidance on its terms. You can read more about good intentions (and which specific roads they pave) in our story by Drew Sitton here.
When you’re finished with that, California’s about to have hundreds of data centers. Where will they get all their water? From us, of course.
Speaking of water, here’s a look at how Mission Bay shaped the history of San Diego, from wetlands to rec lands.
In our opinion section: California could be the model for ethnic studies across the United States.
Also on our radar: Rising rents are pushing out indie bookstores (what is this, 1995? And that didn’t leave us anywhere good), a crackdown on “la mordida,” and a nurdle-removing push up in Carlsbad.
Times of San Diego thanks our corporate sponsors. Find out more about sponsorships and advertising opportunities here.
Stories you should know about
💧 California will soon have more than 300 data centers — but where will they get their water?: About 90% of U.S. data centers get their water from municipal systems, and a nationwide poll found 54% of respondents are worried about those water demands.
🎓 More seniors are graduating from SDUSD this year, district says: The 6,275 seniors expected to graduate from the region’s largest school district this year represents a 1% bump from last year
🌊 Mission Bay: Where a wetland became a resort landscape: Beginning in the 1940s, San Diego launched one of its most ambitious projects: turning a system of mudflats, marshes and seasonal channels into the controlled aquatic park we call Mission Bay.
What else we’re reading
🧑💻 The San Diego Community College District is battling a major cyberattack that started Saturday. (Union-Tribune)
📚 Independent bookstores across the region are fighting to stay alive amid ever-increasing rents. (KPBS)
Times of San Diego thanks our corporate sponsors. Find out more about sponsorships and advertising opportunities here.
Step back in time…
This is a photo of Roseville (known as Point Loma today) in 1890. Did you guess correct? Want to read more, check out this article.
