Bill Introduced to Protect Events From Environment Reviews

Coalition Backs Vargas, Garrick Bill

A coalition of San Diego-based organizations Friday backed state legislation that would exempt certain special events from needing environmental reviews.

SB 973, introduced last week by Sen. Juan Vargas, D-San Diego, and co- sponsored by Assemblyman Martin Garrick, R-Carlsbad, would exempt events of a limited duration from provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act.

Such events are defined in the bill as recreational tournaments, sporting events, youth tournaments, racing or walking events, fireworks displays, holiday celebrations, concerts, military appreciation events, block parties, weddings, job fairs, festivals and parades, street fairs, beaches and neighborhood cleanups, farmers' markets and art markets.

A controversy broke out in San Diego last year when environmentalists sued the city over the issuance of permits for fireworks shows, particularly a July 4 display at La Jolla Cove.

Attorney Marco Gonzalez prevailed in his argument that the city failed to follow its own written policy to require environmental reviews before handing out such permits. Organizers of the La Jolla fireworks show contended that they didn't have enough money to compile the reports.

The city has since rewritten its policy for issuing special event permits.

"That wasn't what the law was meant to do, preventing children from enjoying parks and watching fireworks," Vargas said. "CEQA is a serious law and it's being trivialized."

Bill Earley, president of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society chapter in San Diego, said his organization depends on events like the annual Rock'n'Roll Marathon for funding.

Laura Farmer Sherman, executive director of San Diego Susan G. Komen for the Cure, said last year's walk in Balboa Park raised $2 million.

About 70 groups belong to the coalition, said Ruben Barrales, president and chief executive of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce. About 500 special events are given permits in San Diego annually, he said.

Gonzalez called the legislation "a political stunt by the city of San Diego and its boosters."

The city could change its own municipal code to make the review process easier for special event organizers, he said.

"It's the San Diego code that's messed up, not CEQA," Gonzalez said. "If fireworks aren't that bad for the environment, why is so much effort being made to avoid studying them?"

Gonzalez and the city of San Diego are embroiled in four lawsuits at various stages of the legal process, he said.

Alleged Ticket-Fixing Scheme

A veteran San Diego County prosecutor and a San Diego police sergeant were charged by the state Attorney General's Office Friday with misdemeanor counts involving an alleged ticket-fixing scheme.

Allison Debow, also known as Allison Worden, and Sgt. Kevin Friedman are each charged with one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice and two counts of alteration or destruction of a vehicle citation.

Debow has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the case, according to District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis.

The criminal complaint, filed by Deputy Attorney General Michael Murphy, alleges that Worden was a passenger in a vehicle driven by another prosecutor, Amy Maund, on May 28 last year when they were stopped for not wearing seat belts.

After Worden was unsuccessful in talking her way out of a citation, she called Friedman and "asked him if there was something he could do about the tickets," the complaint alleges.

Murphy alleged that Friedman removed the originals of the citation form from a basket at a police station without informing the officer, and Debow told Maund that the ticket was dismissed because another woman had complained about the officer.

Dumanis said her office has cooperated with an investigation by San Diego police, but it was more appropriate for the state Attorney General's Office to prosecute the case.

"The District Attorney's Office has a zero-tolerance policy regarding unethical or unlawful behavior by its employees," she said. "If such activity is discovered, our office moves quickly to investigate and hold employees accountable."

The filing document alleges Maund had asked Debow not to do anything about the ticket on her behalf.

Aztec Construction

Construction crews Friday began pouring the concrete foundation for the $104 million student-funded Aztec Student Union on the San Diego State University campus.

The 205,582-square foot replacement for the Aztec Center, whose demolition was completed in August, is expected to open in the fall of 2013, officials said.

The new student union will include Montezuma Hall, a 300-seat multi- purpose theatre, modernized study lounges and courtyards with wireless Internet access, a satellite fitness center, a bowling and games center and a Cross- Cultural Center with various dining establishments.

"As this project rises out of the ground, so does the level of excitement," said Associated Students Executive Vice President Darin Ruiz said. "This foundation milestone is symbolic of all the hard work student administrations past and present have put forth in making this building a reality."

About 60 trucks delivered a total of 600 cubic yards of concrete to the northwest section of the construction site. Sundt Construction, Inc. provided the concrete services. The entire foundation will consist of 4,600 cubic yards of concrete on pouring is completed, officials said.

The building was designed to be Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Platinum certified, the U.S. Green Building Council's highest rating for green buildings, and be the first LEED Platinum student union in the California State University system, officials said.

More than 15,000 tons of materials from the 43-year-old Aztec Center were recycled, including concrete that was crushed and used as structural backfill for the new building, officials said.

-City News Service