More than 1,000 days after the last transportation bill expired, Congress voted last week to approve a new transportation bill. Unfortunately for those hoping for a bold step into the future, this bill represents a definite step backwards, the last gasp of an outdated 20th century program.

San Diego has made a tremendous difference in the national debate on transportation priorities. We have a bold plan to allocate billions of local and federal monies to transportation alternatives in the next few decades. We are thrilled for having defeated the disastrous House proposal to end all dedicated funding for public transit. At the last possible moment, election-year politics and backroom maneuvering intervened to thwart transportation reform progress, but the movement for a more visionary, 21st century transportation agenda for all Americans has only just begun.

This final negotiated bill has been called a “compromise”, but it’s really a substantial capitulation in the face of threats by the House to include provisions with no relevance to the transportation bill (the Keystone XL pipeline, regulation of coal ash, student loans and flood insurance).

As a result of this “compromise”, the bill

· Cuts money available for walking and biking by 30%,

· Combines Safe Routes to Schools and Transportation Enhancements funding ( walking, biking, trails, transit) into a new pot called Transportation Alternatives,

· Forces Transportation Alternatives to compete with environmental mitigation and minor road construction projects not eligible under current programs,

It dedicates zero dollars to repairing roads and bridges, and cuts the amount of money that cities and local governments would have received, This bill ensures ensures that you have less input and control over major projects that affect you and the quality of your community.

Despite record demand for public transportation service, this deal cut the emergency provisions to preserve existing transit service, does little to expand that service and actually removed the small provision equalizing the tax benefit for transit and parking.

There are a few positives, though:

The dedicated funding percentage for public transit remains the same, though at a lower dollar level. The Cardin-Cochran provision to provide grants to local communities to make their streets safer for walking or biking was also saved from the chopping block. About half the money will be given directly to metro areas, with the remainder used at state discretion.

An exciting new grant program will fund community-led planning for neighborhood revitalization around transit lines. And a major increase in federally backed loans could help regions that raise their own transportation funds stretch them farther and build out ambitious transit plans faster. San Diego as a mega region should take advantage of this, though we will be behind L.A. who already has a plan to advance construction of thirty years of transit projects in ten years.

While we didn’t end up with the bill that we were hoping for, it is clear that this bill represents the last gasp of a 20th century transportation program that has run out of steam. The next bill must focus on repair, maintenance, protected funding for walking and biking and include other provisions that will strengthen our economy and safeguard public health and the environment. With gas prices trending ever upward, and  demand for public transportation booming like never before, demographic shifts show a more diverse America with fewer young people driving and huge increases in demand for more walkable towns and suburbs. More and more people are clamoring for safer streets and healthier communities.

The debate will now shift to Sacramento where many decisions will be made about how to spend this blank check. It imperative to urge California’s lawmakers to make sure that the federal money reflects the priorities of local people, such as seniors trying to get to the doctor, families struggling to make ends meet and trying to get to their job, kids simply trying to cross the street to get to school.

And because the federal bill is only 27 months long,  less time than it took to draft and pass it, the battle for the next one begins the minute this one is signed!

A coalition of business leaders, environmentalists, urbanists, community members, infill developers, transit riders and land use professionals, Move San Diego is strategically working to supporting good policies that create smart mobility solutions, and supportive land uses. With the federal bill delivering a minor “bump in the road,” Move San Diego will continue to forge a path towards reforming transportation by using policy and planning to create more sustainable, healthy, and convenient transportation options throughout the San Diego region.

Getting on the road towards a balanced budget is going to require a new approach — like eliminating corporate loopholes that defy common sense.  For example, it’s time to end taxpayer subsidies to the oil companies at a time when they’ve never been more profitable.  Protecting critical priorities while finding new and innovative ways to balance the budget — that was my record on the city council, it’s my record with the Port Commission, and that’s the type of approach I’ll bring to Congress.

When I was on the City Council,  I set in motion a plan that reduced the overall cost of the pension program while preserving the benefits already paid for by city employees.  Protecting and strengthening programs like Social Security and Medicare will require a similar approach and I’m the only candidate in this race that has actually fought to save pensions for employees and partnered with workers to strengthen benefits, while reducing their overall cost.

I’ve taken this same approach on the Port Commission. When we were faced with a budget deficit, we cut our workforce by 15%, without layoffs or litigation, mostly through eliminating unnecessary management and executive positions and by combining departments.  We’re actually saving and creating more jobs and it’s costing less money. I’m really proud of this accomplishment, and it’s exactly the approach that would bring results in Washington.

Over the next several weeks we will be taking my our message of consensus building and common-sense decision making directly to the voters. I’m confident they’ll know which candidate will fight for them, and more significantly, which candidate will actually gets results.

Please check out my website for more information about my campaign at www.scottpeters.com. Or write to us directly at info@scottpeters.com.

San Diego gas prices among the highest in the U.S.

“San Diego gas prices are among the highest in the U.S.” That was the front-page headline in Monday’s U-T San Diego.

When gas prices are high, more people, particularly seniors, students, others on fixed incomes, and people who drive older cars, turn to public transportation for a reliable, affordable way to get to work, school and around town.  Yet earlier this month, House Republicans, with incumbent Congressman Brian Bilbray in lock step, proposed a highway bill that ends three decades of support for public transportation.

It guts funds for bike lanes and sidewalks, and ends the critically important “Safe Routes to School” program which helps neighborhoods pay for infrastructure improvements that keep kids from getting hurt or killed while walking and bicycling to and from school every day.

House Republicans are trying to de-fund the Safe Routes to School Program.

So less money for public transit and more money for freeways when gas prices are skyrocketing – this makes no sense. And it doesn’t get us any closer to a practical and sustainable national energy policy that reduces our nation’s dependence on fossil fuels and foreign oil.

As a member of Congress, I will make development of a sustainable energy policy a priority.

We must work toward a long-term energy policy that: 1) creates new American jobs; 2) emphasizes greater energy independence; 3) invests in the development of alternative fuels; 4) promotes clean energy technology like wind and solar; 5) ensures greater national security; and 6) provides automakers with incentives for producing fuel-efficient vehicles.

We also need to do a better job of building housing and employment centers nearer to one another to reduce commutes. And we need to invest in making all our communities more pedestrian- and bicycle- friendly.

There are also things we can and should be doing now.

For starters, Congress can act now to stop price-gouging at the pump by holding Wall Street commodities traders and speculators more accountable. Many experts agree that speculation in energy markets drives up the price of oil, which raises the price of gas for consumers. Last year, House Democrats tried to increase funding for the agency in charge of policing price manipulation in oil markets. But Republicans, Bilbray included, voted to slash these funds by almost half.

We’ve also got to stop subsidizing oil companies.

Last year, the five largest oil companies posted record profits of $137 billion. That’s a 75% increase over 2010. Yet, House Republicans, Bilbray included, continue to support enormous tax breaks, deregulation, and subsidies for them, while taking hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from them.

Brian Bilbray alone has taken almost $190,000 from the oil and gas industry. Are the votes and the contributions connected?  The voters are smart and they’ll decide for themselves.

Scott leading planning professionals on a tour of Bird Rock in La Jolla, one of America's "Most Re-Made Neighborhoods"

Last week I got to lead groups of planning professionals in town for a national smart-growth conference on walking tours of the Bird Rock neighborhood in La Jolla.  Bird Rock is now considered a model for how cities can re-make older, urban neighborhoods and turn them into thriving, walkable places where small businesses can flourish. In fact, the conference program book posed the question, “Could Bird Rock be America’s Most Remade Street?”

I wrote about Bird Rock in this blog last fall, about how, as a City Councilman, I worked with residents and business owners who created a new vision for what was then a dreary corridor of empty storefronts that drivers treated as a thoroughfare.  A portion of this $5.6 million project was funded with federal transportation funds aimed at building pedestrian and bike-friendly communities.

Last week, the House Transportation Committee, supported by the Republican leadership, proposed to gut the alternative transportation fund, jeopardizing not just funds for neighborhood projects such as these, but also for all forms of public transportation — and for projects that support alternative transportation like biking and walking — that many Americans count on to get to work and school.  This assault on transit couldn’t come at a worse time. When the economy is struggling and gas prices are high, people need all types of affordable and reliable transportation.

Roundabouts made Bird Rock more pedestrian friendly

The bill also takes away the small portion of Federal Transportation funding sent aside for bike paths, to make communities friendlier for pedestrians, and to create safe passage ways for kids to walk to school. Yet, it leaves completely intact funds for more monstrous highway projects that will lead to more cars on the road, more air pollution, and more dependence on fossil fuels. It’s just bad policy all the way around; it’s bad for our children, our neighborhoods, for small businesses that rely on foot traffic to succeed, and it’s bad for our environment.

This outrageous move essentially rolls back 30 years of federal transportation policy that sets aside a small share of gas tax revenues to fund transit. If approved, long-term stability for public transportation projects, which often take years to build, will be gone. States, cities, communities and their transit systems could lose billions.

For more information about this terrible proposal, go to this link http://t4america.org/blog/ and let your representatives know that you support neighborhoods, walkable communities, bike paths and dedicated funding for affordable mass transit.

My dad, Harvey Peters, my grandparents and Martin Luther, King. Sr.

Hanging on my office wall is this picture of him in his vestments, with my grandparents, and the Rev. Martin Luther King, Sr. Harvey Peters was a Lutheran minister who fought housing discrimination in the Detroit suburbs where I grew up. I said in my post “I am grateful to him, and my mom, for the values they instilled in me and my sisters.” I truly am.

The post received a lot of Likes!  (Okay, four were from my mom and three sisters.)  But that day many people wanted to know more about him.  I am honored to tell you more about Harvey.

In the late 1960s, my dad was the President of a group of interfaith clergy that worked on matters of common concern; one was housing discrimination.

They shared stories and suspicions of segregation, and brought to light that many real estate contracts contained “covenants” precluding home sales in certain neighborhoods to non-whites. They gathered stories from Jewish people and blacks who were steered away from neighborhoods like Southfield and nearby Lathrup, both all-white Detroit suburbs.  He and a woman working with their group once actually posed as a Jewish couple and met with a realtor who only agreed to show them homes in “predetermined” neighborhoods.  They documented and publicized these examples and took action.

First, they reminded their congregations that discrimination was contrary to their fundamental religious beliefs, and urged them to stand up against injustice.  They convinced schools to allow them to provide a curriculum to teachers so they could address prejudice in the classroom. They circulated petitions to urge a stop to housing discrimination, and they proposed an Open Housing Ordinance which was eventually adopted.

Dad brought together a group of realtors and appealed to them as business people and Christians to stop these discriminatory practices and to welcome all newcomers to our community. One realtor was brave enough to stand with him and ask others to join them; he was subsequently fired for his stance.

He met an African American couple who had purchased a home being built in well-to-do Southfield. The man was an assistant school principal and a former Marine who had served our country honorably. His wife was also well educated. They were harassed and warned not to move to the neighborhood.  The men building their home walked off the job when they learned it would be owned by blacks, and the builder asked them, in front of my dad, how much it would take to buy them out and get them to stay away. The husband replied, “We’ll take one million dollars: $50,000 for what we paid and the rest for the insult to our family and our citizenship.”  My dad, the clergy association, and other supporters, including the local police chief, stood with them. By the way, Southfield has come a long way. The city’s current Mayor is an African American woman!

As a result of his involvement in these highly charged issues, dad made many friends, and also some enemies.

One year, shortly before Easter, the phone began ringing at exactly 5:00 a.m. for several days in a row, but there was only silence on the other end when answered. Then, he began finding notes in our mailbox which read:  “You better watch out for yourself and your family. You’re a troublemaker and we know where your children walk to school.”

On the advice of his police chief friend, he decided to get us all out of town for awhile. So on that early morning, we got in the car and I went on my first trip to Washington, DC.

In 1968, after Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy were assassinated, my dad attended a Lutheran Convention in Atlanta, where he met Martin Luther King, Sr. at the Baptist church where King was the pastor. Rev. King asked my dad where he was from, and then asked if he could preach at my dad’s church.

Dad says “Daddy King” was powerful, breathtaking, inspiring, and humbling. Only five months earlier his son was slain, yet, he was preaching a message of reconciliation and hope to a white congregation in the Detroit suburbs. After that, my dad kept up a relationship with him and his sisters, and with their Baptist Church in Detroit.

In my campaign for Congress I’ve talked a lot about problem solving, and my ability to bring people together to accomplish something for the common good.  Dad says it’s in my DNA.

I’m really lucky to have such a remarkable dad, and an equally remarkable mom.  Thanks to you both for letting me tell this story.

cott Peters addresses NEVP Groundbreaking Event

When construction is complete, San Diego Bay will connect with downtown San Diego in an inviting and spectacular way worthy of our dynamic city and of this beautiful waterfront property.  It will be a unique and dramatic gateway between the city and the water, and a brilliant testament to what can be accomplished when people with different points of view are brought together to find common ground for the common good.

Here’s where it is: NEVP Phase I encompasses the area on North Harbor Drive, near the Navy Pier, north to the B Street Pier, and east up a portion of West Broadway. It will create a 105-foot wide esplanade, or walkway, and a total of about 12 acres of public space complete with formal gardens, plazas, shady pavilions and public art by renowned artists. It will be a place where people can meander along the waterfront, take a jog, or bike ride or just enjoy the view!

Eventually, it will be popular not just as a pretty place to pass through, but also as a destination in itself that will draw residents and visitors to special events such as art exhibits and concerts and festivals.

The hardscape and utilities will have special features that define it and make it exceptional among the other sidewalks and streets downtown with distinct paving and medians, and rows of decorative palm trees and lighting. It will be such an extraordinary place that it will draw nice new developments adjacent to it, creating more public spaces for people to enjoy downtown.

Projects of this scale and grandeur never happen quickly, and they don’t happen without spirited public discussion and debate. That can definitely be said of this project.

Many agencies and people contributed to NEVP Phase 1

First, there were several agencies involved: The Port of San Diego, the City of San Diego, and the Centre City Development Corporation, together formed a Joint Powers Authority. So it required a lot of cooperation and compromise, and ultimately approvals from all of these agencies, and from the California Coastal Commission. It also rightly required input from members of the public, many who had really strong opinions that didn’t always line up with the original plans put forward.

And that made it really hard at times; but I very much believe that it will be a better project because of the changes we made to address concerns raised by the public. That’s the way it’s supposed to work! I extend a big thank you to everyone who paid attention and offered suggestions and stuck with it for so long.

When I first started serving on the City Council in 2000, our priorities for downtown were completing the ballpark, building the library and renovating the waterfront with the NEVP.

Look at what we can accomplish when our public leaders listen, bring people together, and forge consensus. We created for San Diego something that will benefit the public for decades to come.

Ribbon Cutting for Port District Phase 2 ADA Improvements

We celebrated with a ribbon cutting ceremony at Chula Vista Bayfront Park. It was a perfect showcase for the variety of work performed – from picnic tables to new playground equipment to the public boat launch. Now all aspects of this seaside recreation area are accessible.

It was a spectacular back drop to the event which was led by members of the Port’s Accessibility Advisory Committee.  I am really proud of what we achieved by working with these volunteers. They identified things you and I may not see, or things we take for granted, like the ability to walk along an unpaved pathway, or to navigate a steep ramp at a boat launch. I thank them for their input.

The improvements completed were made at several popular locations, including Shelter Island, Harbor Island, America’s Cup Harbor, Spanish Landing Park and at Tuna Harbor Park near the Midway Museum in San Diego. Others were made at Dunes Park in Imperial Beach, Pepper Park in National City and at Grand Caribe Shoreline Park in Coronado.

Scott Peters and ADA Advisory Committee Member Bill Stothers

These changes we were the second phase of a three-phase effort to improve compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) throughout the Port’s jurisdiction.  The first phase addressed problems in National City, Coronado and Imperial Beach. And the third phase is being designed now and I look forward to getting moving on it!

Scott Addressing REBOOT Graduation

On Nov. 18, I had the honor of delivering the commencement address speech for REBOOT Class 25. REBOOT is a three-week course that helps members of the military who have completed their service make the transition back into civilian life. This time of change is critical for our veterans. They spend years training to be good soldiers, and once back home, they re-enter their lives as husbands and fathers, wives and mothers, and they re-enter their place in the workforce.

REBOOT helps them prepare for all of these. They provide a tremendous, valuable and critical service, especially here in San Diego where we have the largest concentration of veterans in the nation. Add to this the fact that veteran unemployment across the country is about twice the national average, and you can see there’s a lot of work needed to help veterans get ready to succeed in this next phase of their lives.

REBOOT has received national attention and praise for the skills and training it provides. And, we, as a community need to do our part by reaching out to our veterans and their families with job opportunities, and any other assistance we can provide. We owe them at least that, and much more for their service and sacrifice.

As San Diegans, we are extremely proud of our military; but pride doesn’t pay the bills! I ask that you take a few minutes to check out the REBOOT website, and see if there is a way you can support their cause, even if it’s just by spreading the word to your friends and family.

I am honored they allowed me to be a part of their special day. Here are my remarks to them.

REBOOT Commencement Speech, November 18, 2011

“A couple of years ago I was asked to deliver the commencement address at my daughter’s high school graduation.  It was nice to be asked, especially since I was selected by the students themselves. They knew I had been a City Councilman and the City Council President for a number of years and they wanted me to talk about the importance of public service.

It was a really fun experience, and I was honored to be able to address my daughter and her classmates as they completed this chapter in their lives.  They were very nice afterward and they thanked me for my talk.

Today, I’m the one that is thankful to you. Thank you for letting me a part of this important day.

And it is different because I don’t need to tell any of you about public service.

You have already ably and honorably given service to our nation. You and your families have made immense sacrifices on our behalf. For that I am enormously grateful – grateful to you and grateful to the men and women who came before you in service to our military.

I am sure that the transition from military life to civilian has been challenging.

But I hope it helps a little to know that millions of Americans and San Diegans are behind you, and are grateful to you for what you’ve given us.

We know that not only have you worked and fought to protect and defend the American people, but you also helped the people of faraway lands, including Iraq and Afghanistan, by setting them on a path towards greater freedoms — on a path towards greater opportunities. Now, they have the chance to pursue new dreams.

Today you turn your attention from abroad to home, and in particular, your place at home. Your graduation today from REBOOT is an essential first step.

Some of you are now headed to school, or headed straight into the work force. You are setting out on a path toward new successes. You now have a chance to pursue new dreams.

It is not an easy time for anyone. California is a state where the unemployment rate is about 12%, while the rest of the country is at 9%. We know that veteran unemployment is higher even than that, and as many of you probably know, San Diego County has the largest concentration of veterans in the nation – about 28,000. Number two is Los Angeles with 17,000.

We here in San Diego love our military bragging rights – and rightly so. We should be proud of our contribution to US military strength. And we also appreciate, and have come to count on, the economic contributions of our defense industry.

And we need to step up and do right by our veterans, whether it’s lobbying in DC for a better DOD training program, or for federal funds for job training or just working here on the ground to prepare you, as REBOOT is doing today.

I want to thank you again for your service. I wish you the very best of luck as you move into this new chapter in your lives.

And as you embark on this new mission, remember that you have lived some hard parts already. And while your transition won’t be easy, remember that your classmates are behind you. And San Diego is behind you and your country is behind you.

God bless you all and your families.”

source

Recently the Equinox Center and EDC hosted an event called “The Young & Restless: Winning the Race for America’s Best Talent”, discussing how San Diego can attract 25-34 year old working professionals and keep them happy enough to stay. Sitting comfortably in this demographic and pondering whether San Diego truly is the best place for my husband and me to work and eventually raise a family, the topic genuinely piqued my interest.

During the luncheon, Joseph Cortright, a leading economist specializing in regional economic analysis, innovation and industry clusters, spoke on what cities are currently attracting young talent, why, and in general what we youngins base our decisions upon. In short, it boiled down to well-built urban centers close to major business districts with plenty of public transportation, walkability and entertainment at our finger tips. I definitely agree with these generalizations, hence I live in University Heights, a 10 minute drive from work and arguably one of the most walkable neighborhoods in San Diego. But what I felt was missing, at least from San Diego’s perspective, is the actual opportunity of work.

Joe Cortright speaking at the Luncheon

I grew up in San Diego, so initially the choice to reside here was natural and carefree, but in the past few years diving deeper into my career, thoughts and realities of moving to a larger city have come into play. San Diego is a beautiful, kind and wonderful place to live, but it is difficult to find a stimulating long lasting career in San Diego, especially if you possess a more creative creed.

What’s missing for my husband and me? The abundance of big jobs, big brands, big agencies and career longevity that exists in cities we’ve considered moving to such as LA, San Francisco and even Vancouver, British Columbia, eh. Luckily, we’ve both found jobs we are very happy with, but both have sacrificed some of our greater career wants and strong opportunities to stay in America’s Finest City. Whether that affects us in the long run, we don’t yet know.

Perhaps if I were not right-brain dominant, my perspective would be different and I would be wearing a lab coat somewhere in La Jolla. So I guess my question is, does San Diego simply focus on attracting my antithesis – the scientist and engineer — in order to keep its economy growing? Or should San Diego attempt to recruit bigger companies that creatives could find a home with? At the end of the day, I want a place that is walkable, clean, does not require me to drive much, can feed me delicious and healthy food, and can pay me well so I can enjoy all those things my city provides.  I know that’s a lot to ask, but it’s truth. Luckily, native San Diegans for the most part have a tough time cutting the apron strings and flying our beautiful nest, but if I were not from here and absent were Sunday night home cooked ritual meals with my family, I would have left years ago.

What do you think? What can San Diego do to attract young talent and keep them here for the long run?