IMMIGRATIONREFORM:IT’SA LOTLIKEGROUNDHOG DAY

Thesituationatthe U.S.Mexicoborderfeelsalotlike GroundhogDay,minusPunxsutawneyPhil.

GroundhogDay wascelebratedatGobbler’s Knobin Punxsutawney,Pa.,on Wednesday.Phillefthisburrow earlythat morning,asusual, to lookforhis shadow. Incase youmissedit,Philsaw hisshadow, whichmeanssix more weeksofwinter.Ifonething istrueaboutthis 136-year-old ritual,it’s this: Nobody givespoor Philanotherthoughtforthenext 364days,oncehispredictionis made. Andsoit goesattheborder. LastSeptember,photosand videosurfacedofagentsonhorsebackswinginglong reinsnear Haitianmigrantswhohad crossedthebordernearDelRio, Texas.A groupof 15,000had amassedundertheDelRiointernationalbridge,livinginmakeshifthutswhile awaitingtheir turn to be processed.Theoppressive conditions were made worse bythe Texasheat,with temperaturesabove 100degreeson consecutivedays.

tionandalongoneofthe city’s busiest Breezebus lines.

“Youcan’t get anycloser to transit than that,” project representative William MorrisonsaidFriday “It’s consistentwiththecity’s Smart andSustainableCorridors Program and its Climate ActionPlan.”

Bothdocumentsadvocate for a planning policy often called“smart growth.”

Itsuggestsbuilding higher density housing inolder neighborhoodsnearpublic transit to create walkable communities reducetraffic congestionandimprove air quality.

Butnot everybodysees the Ocean Creek projectas smart growth.Anonlinepetition requestingthecity’s denialhadmore than200signaturesby Friday.

“Thisproject willcause significant trafficandsafety impacts to the existing Fire Mountain community,” statesthepetition placedon Change.org byOceanside resident Jennifer Meyerdierks.

“Fire Mountainhasbeen arespected,safe, friendly neighborhoodfor over a century,”thepetitionstates.

“Oursafety is anissue, and willbecome a bigger issue withincreasedtraffic.Fire Mountain residents object to thevastincreaseintraffic, congestion,pollution, noise, andspeedingthroughour peaceful neighborhoodwith thisnew high-density development.”

Thedevelopersare aware ofthose concerns and are workingwiththecity to addressthem, Morrisonsaid. Additional studiesare under way ofnearbyintersections and changesthatbetter accommodate theadditional traffic.

“We believe thatopening upSouthOceansideBoulevard will alleviate existingissuesandoffer a route away fromFire Mountain,” hesaid. Thedeveloperalsois workingwiththecity to adda leftturnpocket fromCrouch Street onto SouthOceanside Boulevard.

Smolens

FROM B1

McElroyistheCEOof theAlphaProject,thenonprofitthat runsprograms to helphomelesspeoplethat oversaw operationsatthe camp forthecity. The experienceonthelot at20thand B streets could providelessonsforpossible future “safevillages,” recentlyadvocatedbytheSan Diego Downtown Partnership andothers in response to growingnumbers of homeless peopleandencampments onthestreets.

Butthekindofsuccess therecouldbe a singular experienceandhard to replicate. SanDiego,like other cities,isunderincreasing pressure frombusinesses and residentsnot just to cleanupunsanitary conditions,but to clearoutunauthorizedhomelessencampments.After the Sports ArenaBoulevard operation, peoplewho were livingthere were allowed to return. Theproblem isthere are not a lotofplacesforthose folks togo especiallysince sheltershave limitedor stoppedtakinginpeople because oftherapidly spreadingOmicronCOVID variant.

Indiscussingthe20th and B camp, McElroy em-

Asa country, wewereoutraged.Theincidentdrew swift condemnation fromseniorofficialsinPresident JoeBiden’s administration,whopledged to investigateitin“days,not weeks.”

ButtheDepartmentofHomelandSecurity tookapass, referringtheincident to the U.S.CustomsandBorderProtection’s OfficeofProfessionalResponsibility. Ithasn’tbeen resolved.And we’vemovedon.

Still,thenumbersofundocumentedmigrantscrossingthe U.S.-Mexicoborder continues to grow.According to theBorder Report, U.S.authoritiesstopped 496,148migrantsinthelastquarterof2021, a 137percentincrease overthesameperiodin2020. More than 2millionmigrants were apprehendedor turned themselvesinlast year.

Historically,mostmigrants attempting to crosshavecome from Mexicoorthe Northern Triangle countriesof Latin America—Guatemala,HondurasandElSalvador.Butlast month,theborder filledwith peoplewhose journeys were muchlonger: fromplaceslike

Venezuela,Russia,Ukraine, TurkeyandIndia. Theupswinginborderactivity hasoccurredbecauseof—or despite— U.S.immigrationpolicy,dependingon yourviews. WhenBiden wasonthecampaign trail,hepromised to eliminatethe MigrantProtectionProtocols, betterknownas“Remainin Mexico.”Thepolicy was firstimplementedbyformerPresident DonaldTrump;it requiresasylumseekersarrivingattheborder to waitin Mexicofortheirhearingsin U.S.immigration court. WhileBidenfulfilledhispromise,it wasshort-lived.Remainin Mexico was reinstatedinDecember,followinga courtorder,but withimprovementslike greater access to legal resources.Still,the administrationhasaskedthe SupremeCourt to allowit to terminatethepolicy.Adecisionis expectedbytheendof June.

Expulsions fromthe U.S.have beenhastenedbyTitle 42,a 75year-oldpublichealthlawthat’s becomepandemic-erapolicy.

Title 42 givesauthoritiesthe power to summarilyoustmigrantsonhealth groundswithout providingthemtheirlegallymandatedopportunity to seek protectionhere Justlast week,the DepartmentofHomelandSecurity announcedit wouldbegin returning Venezuelans to Colombiaiftheyhadpreviously resettledinthat country, citingTitle 42. thestate’s requirementsfor high-density housing, and theyhadno choicebut to approve itor facethepossibility of a lawsuit.

High-densityhousingplanned forOceansideBoulevard OceanCreek wouldhave 295apartments and 3,000 squarefeetofcommercialspacenexttothe Crouch Street SprinterStation.

Evenaspolicies comeand go (and comeagain), we’renocloser to solvingtheimmigrationproblem.Itdoesn’tmatterwhethera DemocratorRepublicanisinthe WhiteHouse. We neednewand differentapproaches,insteadof relyingonenforcement to effect change.Ithasn’t worked yet.

Maybe we canstartby recognizingthehumanityinothersand treatingthemwithdignity.

We canfollowthe exampleof Sister NormaPimintel, executive directorofCatholicCharitiesof theRioGrande Valley.In2014, Pimintelfoundhercalling:providingaid to unaccompanied migrant childrenandfamiliesat theborder.Sincethen,herorganizationhashelpedmorethan 150,000people. Pimenteliscarefulnot to criticize U.S.immigrationpolicy.

In October thecity’s PlanningCommissionapproved a four-story, 54-unit condobuildingonSouth CoastHighway, despite objections fromneighborhood residents,alsociting concern aboutstate housinglaws.

State law alsoappears to havetrumpedtheopposition to the585-home North River Farmsprojectproposedfor 177 acres inOceanside’s agricultural community ofSouth Morrow Hills.

North River Farms would placeup to 15 homesper acre,alongwith a hotel, retail shopsandoffices,on itsVillage Core areainwhatisnow farmland.Other partsofthe project wouldbelessdense, withsingle-familyhomes, community gardensand spacepreserved fornative habitat.

Instead,shetalksabouttheimportanceof changingthe way we think about and treat people who aresodesperate to come to our country. Afterall,Pimintelsays, we areallpartofthesamehuman family. Shepoints to negative rhetoric asthesourceofourfear-based thinking. We buildinternal walls tokeepourselvessafe.Andwith wallsinplace,it’s easynot to care. Instead,Pimintelinsists, we need to allowourselves togetclose enoughso we canfeelwhatmigrantsarefeeling.Thecaringwill follow.

UnlikePunxsutawneyPhil, we can’tburrow away.Migrantswill continue to come to our country fromall cornersoftheglobe, seekingeconomicopportunity andsafety. Above all, we need to remember:It’s notaboutpolicy.It’s aboutpeople.

Dinkinispresident of theNationalConflict ResolutionCenter,a SanDiego-based group working to create solutions to challengingissues,includingintolerance andincivility To learnaboutNCRC’s programming,visitncrconline.com.

Reservist

FROM B1 to our core values.”

Constructionis expected to begin bytheendof 2023 andthe firstunits could open in 2025 Morrison said.Sofar noPlanningCommissionor City Councilhearings have beenscheduledfortheproject,thoughthedeveloper hasbeen meetingwithcity plannersandneighborhood residents.

Theapartmentswill range from 591 to 1,301 square feetandhave one, two orthree bedrooms.Somewill be reserved forlow-income residents,butthenumber hasnotbeendetermined yet, hesaid.

Plansinclude 10,000 square feetofinteriorspace for conference rooms, a game room, a gym,dogspaand bike cafe,alongwith a totalof 478 parkingspaces,ofwhich 299 wouldbe covered incarportsor garages.Openspace willincludeacourtyard,pool, spaandbarbecuearea.

Thomas D. Weese, a trustee fortheRobert A. Weese familytrust, ownstheproperty, according to documents on filewith the city Planning Department.The developer isJPI DevelopmentCo.of San Diego andthearchitect isArchitecturalDesign Col- phasizedthere were strict rulesaboutbehaviorthat aren’t typically found at someothercampssetupby othercities. Withoutthem, hesaid, he wouldnot get involvedthistimearound.

“I wouldnotbeinterestedindoing a campgroundthat wouldallow people to usedrugs and bringparaphernaliaon site,”hesaid.That goesfor alcohol as well.

Hesaidthelargetent shelters run bytheAlpha Projectallow peopleat various levelsofinebriation in,buttheycan’tbedisruptive. Use of drugs oralcohol onsite isprohibited. McElroyis a believer inenforcementand rules that require people to behave in return forthesafespaceandservicestheyare receiving.

“There has to besome kindofpersonal responsibility, hesaid.

“Ourfacilitieshave lowbarrier rules butthere are rules,”headded. “Thevast majority ofpeople want to besafe. We don’t want to bringthesameaspectofthe street intoa facility.”

The tentcampsetupin 2017 hadmanyfamilies with children,along with individual womenand individual men.Somecampselsewhere aren’tsofamilyoriented.

LosAngeles,SanFrancisco,Seattle,Sacramento laborative of LagunaHills.

Oceanside hasapproved anumberof higher-density residentialprojects in recent years.Thetrendisencouragedbystate lawsthat require incentivesfordeveloperswhoincludelow-incomehousingandbuildinfill projectsclose to public transit.

Lastmonth,the OceansideCity Council voted 3-2 to approvea singleeight-story building with 115 studio apartmentsand64hotel roomson1/3-acre gated parkinglotat the cornerof Seagaze Drive and Nevada Street.

Trafficandparkingissues ledthelistof concernsraised by neighborhood residents, nearlyallofwhom objected to theheightand density of thebuilding.However the projectwillinclude 12 apartments reserved forlow-income occupants,which allowsit to waive someofthe locallimitsonthings like parkingandbuilding heights.

Mayor EstherSanchez and Councilmember Kori Jensen opposedthe Seagaze project.Butthe councilmajority saidtheproject meets and othercitieshave createdvillage-camps using tents,tinyhomes,pallet houses and otherstructures. McElroy has visited some of themanddeclared them“disasters” becauseof thedrugand alcoholuse alongwithlax rulesthat allow people to “comeand go as you please.”

Atemporary “SafeSleep Village”inLosAngeles receivedmixed reviews,according to KCRW Thecamp didnotputmany restrictions onsubstanceuse.Ifithad, some residentssaidthey wouldn’tstaythere. Thatunderscores a dilemma.Allowingdrugs and alcoholmayseemantithetical to helpinghomeless people,inaddition to potentiallycausingproblemsata camp.Butmanyhomeless peopleuseoneorboth,andif the goalis togetthemoffthe street intoa more sanitary space andthey won’t go becauseofthe restrictions— somecampadvocatesfeel allowancesshouldbemade. Whatthepolicywillbeif SanDiego moves aheadwith asafevillage pilotproject somewhere,astheDowntown Partnershipsuggests, remains to beseen. The 136-spaceSanDiego campnearBalboaPark that tookinsome200peoplehad other restrictionsandservices thatare rare.People there weren’t allowed to

Oceanside voters overturned theCity Council’s approvalof North River Farms with a ballot referendumin November2020 However, thedeveloper IntegralCommunities, filedsuitanda judge ruledthatthe referendum was “preempted”by state Government Code 66300, which theLegislature passedin2019 to maximize housingdevelopment.

Aseparate caseagainst North River Farms, filedby the nonprofitPreserve Calavera overenvironmental issues, remainsundecided andsofar constructionhas notbegun.

In a San Diego court case, ajudge ruledlastmonththat theluxury 525 Olive building goingupinBankersHill overlooking BalboaPark is allowed to be25 percent taller thanthe city’s building heightlimitbecausethe structure includes 18 subsidizedapartmentsforlow-income residents.

Community groupswho suedthe developersaidthe 20-story building would blocktheirviews, was too close to thestreet,castshadows overtheneighborhood anddidn’t fit wellwiththe community. phil.diehl@sduniontribune.com simply walkinandout.

AlphaProjectmembers shuttledadults to and from thesite throughouttheday to appointments and drove children to school.

There were somebumps alongthe way, butnothing that couldn’tbe overcome, such as a minorissueabout gettingcableTVimmediatelyhookedup.

“Nobodyaskedmewhat kind of tents to buy,” McElroysaid. “Theybought thewrongones,but we made it work.”

But then,thehepatitisA outbreakbrought a great senseofurgency toget peopleinto safeshelter quickly.

McElroysaidthe20th and B camp was upand runningin 10 days.

Tweet of the Week

Goes to Ron Nehring (@RonNehring),former chairoftheRepublican Party ofSanDiego County andCalifornia.

“Since 1988,theRepublicannominee forPresident has won thepopular vote exactly...once In2004.Governing requires consentof the governed Spending timetrying to figure outhow to change theprocess to win whilelosingmissesthe point.Earnmore votes.” michael.smolens @sduniontribune.com

Military membersare prohibited fromparticipatingin extremistorganizationsandthePentagonhas increasedefforts to rootout extremisminitsranks inthe wake ofthe Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection. Krvaricdidnot respond Tuesday to a text message sent to a numberassociated with him When a UnionTribune reporter called Wednesdaymorning,a youngman answered, refused to identifyhimself and hung up.“Have a nice day,” themansaid.

Krvaric joinedthe Marinesin July2018 andis currentlyassigned to theSelected MarineCorpsReserve asalight-armored-vehicle Marine.He’s assigned to the4th LightArmored ReconnaissanceBattalion atCampPendleton,the Marinessaid.

According to the SPLC, Patriot Front was founded inthe wake of the deadly2017 Unite theRightrallyin Charlottesville, Va., after breakingoff from neo-Nazi group Vanguard America. Itsfounder Thomas Rousseau,led Vanguard Americamembersat the rally.A manphotographed holdinga Vanguard Americashield, JamesFieldsJr., wenton to drive his carintoa crowd ofanti-racistprotesters,killing one.In2019, Fields was convicted of murderandfederalhate crimes andsentenced to lifeinprison.The groupdeniedFields wasa member In January, activists from the reporting collective UnicornRiotpublished more than400 gigabytesofleaked Patriot Front communications.

“Ostensiblyprivate,uneditedvideosanddirect messages reveal a campaign to organize actsofracialhatred whileindoctrinating teenagersinto national socialism(Nazism),” Unicorn Riot saidin a story announcing the leak.The U-T was unable to independently confirmthe authenticity ofthe documents.Thomas Rousseau,theleaderofPatriotFront, confirmedina podcaston Jan. 27 thatthe organization was hacked.

In a membershipinterview report,“Interviewee 441515” toldthehate group hebelieved inantisemitic conspiracytheories and that non-Europeans shouldn’tbeallowed inthe U.S.unlessthey were “doctors” or a “netpositive to theeconomy.

The applicantdiscussed the MarineCorpsduringhis interview, according to the leakeddocuments,saying hehad a tumultuous experience,including a fightata MarineCorps ball.Healso toldPatriot Frontthathe “foundoutabout Jews”after joiningtheCorps.

The applicant toldthe grouphe was currently working as a guard with the DepartmentofHomeland Security, handlinginmate check-ins.According to his LinkedInaccount,Victor

Krvaric works for contractor StratusSecurity Management,handlingdetainees fortheDepartment of HomelandSecurity.

Theapplicant also told the group he currently works forhisfather’s financial practice. TonyKrvaric,the former chairman ofthe county RepublicanParty andVictorKrvaric’s father, isthepresident and CEO of KrvaricCapital & Risk Management.VictorKrvaricis listedonthe company’s websiteasa clientservice associate.

TonyKrvaric did not respond to a request for comment.HomelandSecurity and the contracting company did notimmediately respond to a requestfor comment Wednesday.

Theinterviewee toldthe grouphe was 21 yearsold and livinginSanDiego,andsaid he wasa first-generationimmigrantandthatbothofhis parents were fromSweden. TonyKrvaric was born and raisedinSwedenbefore immigrating to the U.S.in 1992, hepreviously told Voiceof SanDiego.

Theinterviewee also told Patriot Fronthehadpreviouslybeen“doxed”at a BLM protest.VictorKrvaric was identifiedat a BLMprotest in August2020whenprotestersaccusedhim of “antagonizing them.

ThePatriotFrontinterviewee creditedhis brother with exposinghim toextremistideology. VictorKrvaric’s brother, OliverKrvaric, 23, was theformer headof the SanDiego State College Republicans While in charge oftheorganization,OliverKrvaric tookthe group to the extremeright and frequently engaged with and retweeted accountsaffiliated with the White nationalist“Groyper movement,according to The DailyAztec.

Anarchivedscreenshot ofanInstagram account alleged to beVictorKrvaric’s, published byKPBS, shows that,atonetime,healso identifiedas a “Groyper.” PatriotFronthasbeen active inSanDiego since at least2018, whenits flyers were distributed at SDSU. The flyers,which featured the White supremacistslogan “notstolen, conquered” over a graphicof the continental UnitedStates, were foundin a DailyAztecnewsstandneartheuniversity’s music building.They also featured the group’s website URL:“bloodandsoil.org.”

Anotherformer Marine, LanceCpl.Thomas Martin, sharedthesame graphicon socialmediain2019 Martin was kickedout of the Marinesaftera Union-Tribune investigationinto hissocial mediaaccounts.

It’s notthe firsttimethe grouphashadits communicationsleakedby Unicorn Riot.In2019, Discord messaging app chatlogs from several extremist groups were published,including thoseofPatriotFront.Some ofthe chats revealeddetails about extremistactivity on SanDiego college campuses. andrew.dyer@sduniontribune.com Twitter:@SDUTdyer

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