There is fresh reason to hope that San Diego really can solve its homeless crisis, arresting the moral and political decline that has made us a national disgrace.
Last week, Mayor Kevin Faulconer proposed to raise hotel taxes, through a November ballot initiative that would guarantee funding for the homeless, expand the convention center and maintain roads.
Meanwhile, the city’s Housing Our Heroes program of landlord incentives has put 630 homeless veterans (using mostly federal Department of Veteran’s Affairs funds) — into apartments over the last year, and rent vouchers into the hands of 320 more. It’s a proven strategy that has worked cheaply and efficiently in other cities.
Yet it’s the private, quiet efforts that could ultimately deliver the fundamental change that San Diego needs.
In one prominent example, Peter Seidler, managing partner of the San Diego Padres, and hard-charging businessman Dan Shea have organized executives, academics and philanthropists into a loose network that seems to be steadily expanding its reach.
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