North County cities like Del Mar, Carlsbad, and Oceanside have been on the frontlines of the housing debate, but not in the way many North County residents were expecting.
Encinitas residents chose a new mayor and two new councilmembers who promised to fight state housing laws that they say are impeding local control, writes our Tigist Layne.
“Instead, elected officials in Encinitas and most other North County cities have been largely compliant with state housing laws, approving large and unpopular affordable housing projects because the state requires them to,” she writes.
Resistance to new developments and higher density isn’t new. But now officials are looking at a new alternative – a statewide ballot measure that would override state housing laws giving local officials control over housing and land use decisions.
Our Top Stories This Year
A student types on a laptop at Southwestern College in Chula Vista on April 9, 2025. / Photo by Vito di Stefano for Voice of San Diego
2025 was full of impactful stories.
From bot students stealing financial aid, to successful strategies to get people housed, our reporters dug into the most immediate issues in the region. We asked our reporters to break down the top 10 stories our readers couldn’t get enough of.
This year our Lisa Halverstadt reported on why the San Diego Housing Commission, forced by insufficient federal dollars, stopped handing out housing vouchers. In the coming year, “the Housing Commission’s decision will likely have reverberations on the city’s ability to help deliver affordable housing projects,” she writes.
Mackenzie Elmer uncovered how the United States broke multiple treaties with Mexico by building a piece of border wall through the polluted Tijuana River. After the federal government refused to produce public records in a timely manner, Voice of San Diego sued them to reveal this information.
Our reporters also broke down the controversy around people living in their RVs in Mission Bay, and why public schools across the county could anticipate more declining enrollment.
VOSD Podcast: Whatever Happened To…
It’s time for a year-end recap with the podcast crew. So naturally we posed the question “whatever happened to” some of our biggest stories this year?
Social media star Bella Ross talked about what happened following Paloma Aguirre’s Board of Supervisors win. The crew also explains that what started as an effort at the county to soften the blow of President Donald Trump’s cuts, just triggered a bunch of employee bonuses.
The crew also gets into the county’s exemption to the vehicle miles traveled policy, local protections created for immigrants, and how our Jakob McWhinney wrote one of our most read stories ever – yes, it involves A.I. robots.
In Other News
- Union-Tribune reporters broke down the news stories to watch for in 2026. San Diego County will play host to one of the highest stakes congressional races, as Democrats will challenge Republican Rep. Darrell Issa. Mass deportations and border security expansion will continue to be a focus for the Trump administration in the region. (Union-Tribune)
- The Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation opened a new health center on the reservation in Dehesa. The new center will serve members of the Sycuan Band, other Native Americans, and the general public in the surrounding community. (Times of San Diego)
- How much would you pay for a cup of coffee? A San Diego coffee shop surveyed customers, and found most people wouldn’t spend more than $8. (Union-Tribune)
The Morning Report was written by Mariana Martínez Barba. It was edited by Andrea Sanchez-Villafaña.