SDSU’s climate inaction plan

As San Diego State University sets out to acquire a big chunk of Mission Valley in the form of a bitterly fought Qualcomm Stadium takeover, many of the big toys it already owns are being badly neglected. So concludes a September 11 review of campus maintenance by auditors for the California State University system. “Eight of the ten assets we reviewed for [preventative maintenance] program compliance had not been maintained at the scheduled intervals,” says the report.

“The campus did not have standard procedures to monitor the progress of the PM program, including follow-up on pending and aged tasks and identification of any neglected assets.” Also, sloppy security within SDSU’s sprawling maintenance operation was discovered, heightening the risk of thievery and boosting prospective costs to state taxpayers. “During a physical walkthrough, we found a number of materials in plain sight close to the front and along the perimeters of workshops that were unsecured while no employees were present. Additionally, we noted that the physical locks on multiple unattended lockers were unlocked.”

Increasing the heat on officials, the school’s energy management was found lacking. “The campus Climate Action Plan, which could potentially serve this purpose, was in draft form and had not been approved at the time of the audit,” according to the document. In their response to the findings, SDSU officials, led by interim president Sally Roush — who makes $428,645 a year — complained they don’t have enough money to keep up with the aging infrastructure.

“The university accepts the risk inherent in not maintaining all assets at the scheduled intervals provided in the [preventative maintenance] program given the finite resources available at this time. We will continue to advocate for additional funding and staffing to expedite this process.”

... As his fight with SDSU over the ultimate destiny of the stadium formerly known as Qualcomm continues, SoccerCity promoter Nick Stone has been lending a financial hand to local politicos. Latest to benefit: San Diego County’s Republican Party, with $10,000 on July 17. Los Angeles developer Rick Caruso, who lost a 2016 initiative campaign he bankrolled with $10.5 million for a giant mall on the edge of Carlsbad Lagoon — an election effort similar to the one Stone is readying for next year for the stadium land — gave $5000 to the local GOP on July 26.