Chula Vista Councilman Mike Diaz, 62, is running for reelection and said District 4 has many problems. The incumbent, who said he is No Party Preference, said being the poorer side of town, he originally ran because he believed City Hall paid more attention to communities like Eastlake and Otay Ranch. Diaz said he told people in the community that he would change this and believes he has.
Diaz said he is a lifelong member of the community, one of four siblings born in Mexico. He attended all of his early schooling in Chula Vista in Castle Park, married his high school girlfriend and has two children and four grandchildren. He retired after a 30-year career as an Escondido firefighter. Diaz then taught fire fighting skills at Sweetwater High school. Diaz became an American citizen in 1980 and retired in 2011.
“I have lived the American dream,” he said. “I am not a career politician, I believe in term limits, so when people look at me they are not getting a career politician and they are not getting corruption.”
Diaz said the biggest complaints were about streets and potholes and said now they are gone for the most part repaving over eight miles of streets in District 4. He said some streets had not been repaved in 40 years. He said children walking to school had to walk in rain-soaked mud due to lack of sidewalks. During his term, he said the community was provided with 12,000 feet of new sidewalks.
Diaz said before he came into office, police and fire response times were not met in his district. He said now, fire response times are met and by the end of his second term, police response times will be met. He said Otay does not have the services they need.
“There is an inequity there, so we have been putting more resources in that area and one of those is a brand-new fire station, specifically to serve the Otay area,” he said. “We have added two new fire stations in our district.”
Diaz said he cannot remember the last time the Loma Verde Community Center was opened to the public but is currently working with South Bay Community Center to provide critical services for the community that has special needs.
“We are going to provide a youth drop-in center, our Residency Leadership Academy which can be a hub for community residents and engagement activities, family stabilization services, food for families, tax preparation, job preparation, rental housing assistance, support groups and youth prevention and interventions services,” he said. “That park is going to be a hub right smack in the middle of our district where we can meet the needs of people in the community. We are also dumping over $1 million in the back field, redoing the sports field, lighting improvements.”
Diaz said he is working on opening up Lauderbach Park to the public again and it will look like something you would see in Otay Ranch or Eastlake.
Diaz said because he is not a “regular politician” he has no problem taking on controversial programs. One of those is the emergency Bridge Shelter for homeless in Chula Vista. It will be a tent shelter and in non-COVID times will help around 150 families with full wrap around services. He said now, they are waiting for access to the land.
“We are shooting it to be placed just south of Otay Farms on Fourth Avenue and Main Street,” he said. “We have the money. We have the partner through Alpha Project. Mental health, healthcare, job preparation and the many services these folks need. Right now we are just working on getting access to that property and making it happen.”
Diaz said he was instrumental in getting rid of illegal pot shops in the city.
“In April we had 17 illegal pot shops just in my district alone,” he said. “Today, we have none.”
Diaz said he fought hard when he found out that people that wanted to add Accessory Dwelling Units (granny flats) to their homes had to pay $23,000 in fees. He fought and reduced the fees by $13,000 retroactively. Diaz said the average household income in his district is $30,000.
“These folks are not making it paycheck to paycheck. I’m doing everything I can to help them increase their quality of life through being an advocate for them,” he said.
Diaz said District 4 is one of the hardest communities hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. He felt in the beginning that his constituents were not getting the information needed. He said he worked with internet providers and city funds to purchase 2,000 Wi-Fi hotspots, distributed to the community so they had access to information and access to virtual learning.
Diaz said his office called more than 7,000 senior households personally to find out what their needs were and then worked with community partners to get them the services they needed.
“We found many seniors over 70 that are just afraid to get out because they have underlying health conditions and COVID could be catastrophic,” he said. “We work hard with our constituents and are in the trenches every day. As we look at COVID we are making sure that everyone has the services they need.”
Diaz said his COVID action plan first addresses reducing numbers and flattening the curve. Second is maintaining the economy and third the health and wellbeing of the community.
“It is critical, the lifeblood of the federal government’s ability to provide services in states, counties and cities,” he said. “We need to make sure we keep our business open, people working and our economy rolling. The third leg is the health and wellness of our community.”
Diaz said keeping everyone at home creates other problems with violent crimes increasing.
“I suspect that is because we are keeping people at home, locked up in close cramped quarters,” he said. “That is why I have been proposing that we have to get people out of their homes, back to work, and our parks in a safe way.”
