SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — On Friday, Mayor Todd Gloria proposed the city's Development Services and Environmental Services Departments waive fees for building and demolition permits and waste disposal associated with recovery from storm damage over the past several weeks.
Gloria's proposal is set to be presented to the City Council on Monday, would also reimburse recycling costs associated with the reconstruction of damaged private property.
"We've been on the ground listening to residents and businesses impacted by the Jan. 22 storm to ensure we're providing the most effective assistance to help them recover,'' Gloria said. "Another way the city can help is by lowering the costs of rebuilding. These fee waivers will make things a little easier for San Diegans whose lives were changed so suddenly and dramatically by this natural disaster.''
According to the mayor's office, the draft fee waiver does not include fees for expanding structures over those that were destroyed or damaged.
Still, the city will permit amnesty for storm victims wishing to permit and reconstruct previously unpermitted additions.
Early estimates have as many as 1,000 San Diego residents suffered damage to homes, businesses, and personal property in the Jan. 22 storm, with a majority of them in the communities of Mountain View, Encanto, Mount Hope, Shelltown, Southcrest, and Rolando.
City staff estimate the fee waiver proposal will save residents $2.41 million in total. Though the storm this week has resulted in no reports of heavy damage locally, widespread flooding destruction from the much worse spate of downpours two weeks ago prompted Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday to seek an official disaster declaration from President Joe Biden to help the San Diego region recover.
"The late-January storm saw record-breaking rain in San Diego, where the worst impacts were felt in lower-income neighborhoods,'' Newsom noted. "Many folks saw damage to their life's work that can't be recovered without federal support.''
If approved, the action will help hard-hit locals via eligibility for such support as housing assistance, vehicle replacement, food aid, counseling, medical services and legal services, according to the governor's office.
Gloria also proposed additional support for residents with flood-damaged properties through a Debris Assistance Program, which would allow for debris-management services at no cost to eligible flooded properties.
In coordination with the Environmental Services Department, this city program would provide a container or trash bin to be delivered to addresses within the impacted areas for proper handling, recycling, and, or disposal of demolition waste.
Starting Monday, San Diego will accept applications to make emergency grant funding available to small businesses and nonprofits.
These grants will provide up to $2,500 per business and $5,000 for those in the Promise Zone, Opportunity Zone, or Low-Moderate Income Census Tracts.
This weekend, the city's Local Assistance Center at the Mountain View Community Recreation Center will open for storm-impacted community residents.
Hours of operation this weekend are Friday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
