CORONADO, Calif. (KGTV) — Regina Gonzalez has worked on Coronado Island for five years, but she can only afford to live in Tijuana and has to cross the border five days a week.
“We wake up around 3:30 in the morning," Gonzalez said. "Sometimes it takes us 45 minutes. Sometimes it takes us two to three hours.”
That’s because living in a place like Coronado Island can be difficult for lower-income families.
“It was never really an option for me I would say,” said Daniel Ortiz, an employee at Gelato Paradiso.
“It’s just out of my price range completely,” Gonzalez said.
According to Realtor.com, the median cost of a home on the island is $2.6 million.
“I mean growing up I always knew Coronado was one of the pricier, more expensive neighborhoods,” Ortiz said.
Since 2021, Coronado has not complied with the state’s affordable housing requirements.
“I hope people realize we need more affordable housing. We sometimes have to work two to three jobs to pay the rent here,” Gonzalez said.
California’s Department of Housing and Community Development has sent the city several letters detailing necessary changes to its housing plans.
A first warning was sent in May of 2021, after the city's first proposal, then a second warning in November of that year. That was followed by a stricter notice in August of 2022 and a notice of violation in December of that year. Coronado is supposed to create capacity for 912 housing units and more than half of those must be for lower-income residents.
“If it was affordable I think a lot more people would be here,” Ortiz said.
But the Mayor of Coronado disagrees with the state's formula for affordable housing. In a statement, Mayor Richard Bailey wrote that the city’s geography, proximity to an airfield, coastal zoning, and high population density make achieving compliance challenging. The city is still working with California to come to a resolution.
