SAN DIEGO — San Diego neighbors who lost everything in flooding three weeks ago packed into city hall Monday as City Councilmembers discussed priorities for the budget. Residents shared how the flooding has turned their lives upside down.
"We are now homeless. Our furniture, every remodeling I just did, everything’s gone," said Mary Landavaso.
Beta Street resident, Jessica, shared a similar experience. She says the flooding happened on her son's birthday.
"It was really hard to pick him up from school and be like hey everything we owned, our entire lives are destroyed and pets died. How do I explain that?" she said.
The floodwaters also rushed through 13-year-old Joshua's home.
"Everything got ruined. Like all my clothes," he said.
He says he hasn't been able to go to school. He doesn't have clothes to wear and the hotel his family is temporarily staying at is far away.
"My friends miss me," he said.
Southeast San Diego residents said they want the council to prioritize them and flood prevention in the fiscal year 2025 budget.
"It's too easy in this city to hoard resources, pile them up in one place while other folks suffer. So that's the question. Are we going to dismantle that?," said Sean Elo-Rivera, council president.
The councilmembers passed a motion to recommend funding in the next budget for storm water maintenance and upgrading water channels close to underserved neighborhoods. This includes creating a capital improvement plan for Chollas Creek. They also said they look to prioritize flood disaster response and recovery.