The Coast News
VISTA, SAN MARCOS, ESCONDIDO
VOL. 11, N0. 15
July 19, 2024
Ex-VUSD employee is guilty
City to vote on tax bump
By Laura Place
VISTA — A former Vista Unified School District employee and Carlsbad water polo coach pleaded guilty July 8 to several charges after allegedly molesting a 13-year-old girl at an Oceanside park last year. Conner Chanove, 28, of Carlsbad, pleaded guilty in Vista Superior Court to three felonies, including two counts of lewd and lascivious conduct with a child under 14 and one count of luring a minor for sex, and one CHANOVE misdemeanor count of arranging an illicit meeting with a minor. He previously pleaded not guilty to four felonies in November. Chanove’s plea includes a stipulated 10-year prison sentence, and he has been remanded into custody ahead of his sentencing hearing on Aug. 5, according to San Diego County District Attorney’s Office spokesperson Tanya Sierra. Law enforcement arrested Chanove in November after a woman reported that she had discovered her 13-year-old daughter inside a vehicle with an adult male at Guajome Regional Park in Oceanside. The man was later identified as Chanove. Prosecutors said Chanove’s pants were down, and the girl later disclosed that she had touched Chanove’s penis and kissed him. Law enforcement found Snapchat messages between Chanove and the child detailing plans to meet at the park on the day of the incident. Chanove was working part-time in the Vista Unified School District when he was arrested and had held roles as a substitute teacher, counselor and instructional aide. He also worked as a girls’ coach for the Seaside Water Polo Club in Carlsbad and had previously worked as a lifeguard in Encinitas and Carlsbad.
By Laura Place
most recent Supreme Court ruling,” said Mayor Rebecca Jones. The ordinance explicitly bans the presence of encampments, defined as tents or other temporary structures used to shelter someone or their personal belongings, and “camping paraphernalia,” including tents, mattresses, sleeping bags, buckets, cots, and cooking equipment, on public property. It also prohibits indi-
SAN MARCOS — San Marcos voters will be asked to approve a 1-cent sales tax to generate up to $20 million in additional revenue for various city services in November, following unanimous approval by the City Council on Tuesday. Revenue from the proposed sales tax, which now goes on the Nov. 5 ballot, would go toward law enforcement and emergency response services, maintaining public streets and infrastructure, reducing traffic congestion, and maintaining parks, Escondido trails, playgrounds and community fa- also places a 1-cent sales cilities. The need for tax increase new local revenue on the ballot. sources has grown Story on 5 more apparent in recent years, especially as the population continues to grow and San Marcos maintains one of the lowest shares of property tax in San Diego County at 6.6%. The city had to dip into reserves to close a $3.8 million budget gap in 2023 and could only balance this year’s budget by making cuts in most departments. Without new revenue, the city will not be able to maintain the current quality of life in terms of safety and cleanliness, officials said. “Every budget season that I’ve been here, it’s been nothing but cutting. Cut enough, and you hit bone,” said Councilmember Mike Sannella. “For me, this is really an easy decision. It is never a tough decision to give our residents a voice.” Members of the city’s budget committee, fire department and
TURN TO BAN ON 3
TURN TO SALES TAX ON 5
TWO HOMELESS men sit in a San Marcos parking lot with their belongings. Two weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way, the San Marcos City Council voted to ban encampments on all city-owned property. The ban will take effect after a second reading of the ordinance. Photo by Frank Armstrong
SAN MARCOS MOVES QUICKLY TO ENACT BAN Encampments in public areas soon to be illegal By Laura Place
SAN MARCOS — The San Marcos City Council will amend the municipal code to prohibit homeless encampments on public property, regardless of whether shelter space is available, establishing one of the most restrictive bans in San Diego County. In a 4-1 first-reading vote on Tuesday, with Councilmember María Nuñez opposed, the council agreed to ban encampments on all city-owned
streets, alleyways, parking lots, sidewalks, parks, open spaces, and areas near waterways, including San Marcos Creek. Individuals who violate the ordinance can be issued infractions, including fines, at the city’s discretion. The proposed ordinance, which will become city law if approved by the council after a second reading, was introduced less than two weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a landmark deci-
sion in Johnson v. Grants Pass. In its 6-3 decision on June 28, the court’s conservative majority upheld a ban on homeless camping in Grants Pass, Oregon, finding that laws criminalizing sleeping in public spaces do not violate the Eighth Amendment’s protections against cruel and unusual punishment in the U.S. Constitution. “It’s time to take action. We finally have the law behind us with the
Vista commits $2M for affordable housing By Laura Place
Hoofin’ it
Gigi the mini horse is an Escondido service animal whose owner is teaching to line dance. Page 11
VISTA — The Vista City Council has committed $2 million for an affordable housing project on city surplus land along Vista Village Drive, with another agreement to come before the council for an adjacent affordable project along Palm Drive in the future. The four-story 902 Vista
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Village Drive project proposes 56 permanent supportive housing units (all studios) for those making 60% or less of the area median income (AMI), with half of the units set aside for those making 30% or less and 10% reserved for veterans. The 211 Palm Drive project proposes 70 affordable units for residents 55
and older, making up to 60% of the AMI. On June 25, the City Council unanimously approved an exclusive negotiating agreement with Wakeland Housing Development Corporation and Tideline Partners for the Vista Village Drive project with a $2 million funding commitment. According to the city,
this show of formal support can strengthen the project’s chances of receiving crucial tax credits and other grants going forward. “The goal in it is to keep people housed, and we work together as a team to make that happen, and the goal is to get people healthy, and TURN TO HOUSING ON 7