Balboa Park has long been one of the world’s great urban parks, a place generations of San Diegans have enjoyed while learning about science, history, culture, and the arts. San Diegans argue that instead of managing the city budget responsibly, City of San Diego has followed a growing statewide trend by adding new costs to everyday life — including parking fees at a park that has always been a community treasure. I see this as yet another example of policies that place the burden on residents rather than addressing spending priorities. I believe this pattern has gone on for far too long across California. I stood with local families in opposing these new parking fees, emphasizing the need to protect public spaces and keep them accessible to the community. The trend of cities modeling themselves after Sacramento must come to an end. My reforms in Sacramento will set new benchmarks, and I will hold cities accountable to those standards.
