REP. SARA JACOBS SECURES $13.5 MILLION FOR 15 SAN DIEGO PROJECTS

Source: Congresswoman Sara Jacobs

March 10, 2024 (Washington, D.C.) -- Rep. Sara Jacobs (CA-51) secured $13.5 million for 15 local community projects in San Diego in an appropriations package that passed the House today. These projects were submitted by local governments and non-profits across California’s 51st district, from Lemon Grove to Grantville to Miramar. The Senate is expected to pass this package later this week, and then it will head to President Biden’s desk for his signature.

Rep. Sara Jacobs said: “Bringing home federal dollars to San Diego is one of my biggest responsibilities, so I’m incredibly proud that I secured $13.5 million for local projects across California’s 51st district – especially during such a politically fraught time in Congress. This much-needed funding will help address homelessness, support children, prevent wildfires, care for service members and veterans, build beautiful community spaces, and more. I’m excited to see all the good that this funding will do to make our community healthier, safer, and stronger.”

Rep. Sara Jacobs secured $13.5 million for these 15 San Diego projects:

• $1,000,000 for East County Center for Military and Veteran Reintegration to build a Center for Military and Veteran Reintegration (CMVR) in East County. It would serve as a one-stop shop and hub for service members, veterans, and their spouses.
• $850,000 for Grantville Safe Parking Site Construction to build and maintain an overnight Safe Parking site for unhoused individuals living in their vehicles at a County-owned site in Grantville.
• $1,000,000 for Junior Achievement of San Diego County Expansion and Renovation to expand and renovate JA San Diego facilities. This will allow the organization to continue empowering underserved communities and school districts with experiential, real-world lessons and mentors around financial wellness, K-12 workforce development, and a connection to representative mentors in the local business community. 
• $658,000 for Lemon Grove Early Childhood Education Center Bus Fleet Expansion to expand the Lemon Grove Early Childhood Education Center’s bus fleet capabilities, including building EV charging infrastructure. Many parents in the neighborhood struggle to find and afford stable transportation from home to school. Expanding the LGSD fleet will eliminate that barrier for families and increase enrollment and attendance in school.
• $1,439,790 for Lemon Grove Early Childhood Education Center Design to provide facilities needed to support transitional kindergarten expansion. The Early Childhood Education Center will be designed to meet the specific learning needs of 3-5-year-old children. It will include 16 classrooms, playgrounds, outdoor learning centers, gardens, a library, a multi-purpose center, administrative offices, drop-off/pick-up loading, a parking lot, accessibility upgrades, storm sewer improvements, site preparation, and utility work.
• $100,000 for Lemon Grove Little League Field Renovation to help install a new retaining wall to shore up land near a newly formed sinkhole and install facility lights to enable the field and the League to operate during evening hours.
• $250,000 for Little Saigon Street Improvements to transform land adjacent to pedestrian sidewalks and urban streets – spaces that are underutilized and accumulating trash – into mini-parks, pocket parks, community open spaces, and gathering areas that are practical and useful for the community to use and enjoy while increasing community safety and community vibrancy.
• $500,000 for Miramar College School of Public Safety Renovation to help update the aging school building by modernizing teaching, learning, and working spaces.
• $850,000 for the New San Carlos Library to help build the long-awaited, highly anticipated new flagship branch for the Navajo community (encapsulating Allied Gardens, Del Cerro, and San Carlos) within the City of San Diego. The new library will have sufficient staff office space, restrooms, adequate programming and community meeting spaces, a dedicated children’s or teens area, adequate parking, and necessary infrastructure for technology upgrades and improvements. 
• $1,466,279 for San Diego Community College District’s Family-Friendly Study Centers to create family-friendly study centers within SDCCD and expand access to resources that will support students with family responsibilities. 
• $500,000 for the San Diego River Center at Grant Park to construct a 17-acre public neighborhood park, outdoor nature experience facility, and associated support building in a park-deficient community. 
• $1,200,000 for San Diego Safe Parking Program Site Expansion to expand overnight Safe Parking for unhoused individuals living in their vehicles. 
• $963,000 for San Diego State University’s Transmission Electron Microscope for a transmission electron microscope (TEM) to develop the fundamental basis and methods for testing cellular structures. This microscope would allow scientists to observe details as small as individual atoms, giving unprecedented levels of structural information at the highest possible resolution. 
• $850,000 for the University of San Diego’s Teaching Kitchen to construct an innovative Teaching Kitchen that will actively support the crucial connection between diet, physical and mental health, and the prevention of chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and obesity.
• $1,926,000 for Wildfire Technology Commons to centralize resources that can be accessed and used by wildfire technology researchers and innovators. Data and AI will be used as tools for next-generation fire models.