By Elijah McKee

September 20, 2022 (Lemon Grove) — “Five years or 15 years is not enough time to keep the deed on these to stay affordable,” said Alysson Snow as she laid out her vision for housing developments in Lemon Grove. “I’m looking for things that are at least 50 years. That they can’t do anything with it that’s not affordable until the expiration of those 50 years.” 

Snow leads a newly founded legal clinic through the University of San Diego (USD) called the Housing Rights Project — and she is also one of five candidates vying for open seats on the Lemon Grove City Council this election year. 

She officially qualified for the ballot last month, and has been endorsed by the Spring Valley Democratic Club, the San Diego County Democrats, California State Treasurer Fiona Ma, former San Diego Councilwoman Barbara Bry, as well as several current school board members and city councilmembers. 

By Elijah McKee

September 20, 2022 (Lemon Grove) — “The squeakier wheel gets the oil, right? If you come out and say ‘Hey, this is what we need,’ and you’re persistent, things start to change, remarked ” Jessica “Jessyka” Heredia about virtual access to city meetings. She personally live-streams Lemon Grove City Council meetings on Facebook, while calling for an investment in an official video record.

In an interview with East County Magazine, Heredia reflected, “I get lots of views so I know it’s something that should be done and could be done. And I believe it will be done as a result of me coming and doing that. I’m going to continue to advocate for that regardless of whether I’m elected or not.” 

Heredia officially qualified for the ballot last month, and is now one of five candidates vying for seats on the Lemon Grove City Council this election year. She runs a business in El Cajon that has been in East County for 24 years, sat on the City's Community Advisory Committee (CAC) and the Business Improvement District, and runs the Lemon Grove Support Local social media pages. 

Given the four-year term lengths for councilmembers in Lemon Grove, Jennifer Mendoza is the only current official whose seat could be challenged this year. However, Councilmember Jerry Jones decided to retire after nearly 20 years as a councilmember, creating an open seat and the possibility for two new faces to join the dais. 

For elections within San Diego County this year, every active registered voter will automatically be granted a mail ballot. They will begin being sent out on October 8, and early voting via ballot drop boxes will begin October 10. All in-person poll centers will be open from November 5 through Election Day on November 8. 

In the Lemon Grove field, Councilmember Mendoza has announced her bid for reelection and is the only incumbent in the race. The other four candidates include Heredia, as well as Blanca Brown, Stephanie Klein, and Alysson Snow.  East County Magazine sat down with all five women for in-depth interviews in order to learn more about them and their campaigns. Watch for profiles of all five candidates to be posted in our Communities section for Lemon Grove.