He had to do laundry, pick up dry cleaning and drop a letter in the mail. His problems were a little simpler that afternoon than the huge challenges facing the city. He stepped out of his small Mission Hills apartment - вЂњThe Mayoral Mansion,вЂќ his aide, Nick Serrano, joked - to take out trash as his partner, Adam Smith, took their dog, Diego, for a walk around the neighborhood. 5, however, he was running some errands and preparing for a few days of relaxation before the real work of governing begins. Gloria said he wants to make changes that will reduce traffic congestion and provide enough affordable housing so fewer San Diegans have to watch their children and grandchildren leave the area because of high housing costs. вЂњMy goal is to make the changes that are needed to protect the quality of life that they and their fellow San Diegans cherish,вЂќ he said. But he said those concerns would be unfounded. He said heвЂ™s aware that his election as mayor could create concern for some longtime San Diego residents more accustomed to the string of White Republican men who have led the city for many years. He is a lifelong San Diegan who graduated from Madison High School and the University of San Diego. Gloria often introduces himself with pride as the son of a maid and a gardener. вЂњIf folks are willing to help me to implement that, I suspect weвЂ™ll be able to keep a great number of people there.вЂќ вЂњThe question is more about whether they can support the vision that I laid out as a candidate that has now been endorsed by the people through their votes,вЂќ he said. He said his decisions wonвЂ™t be based on whether FaulconerвЂ™s appointees are Republicans or Democrats. While Gloria has a different perspective and priorities than Faulconer, he said he doesnвЂ™t expect dramatic changes in city staff, at least not immediately. вЂњIвЂ™m happy to use those relationships and connections.вЂќ вЂњWe need partners in Sacramento and Washington to help us,вЂќ he said. Gloria also noted that Democrat Joe BidenвЂ™s election as president could help California and San Diego get more funding to help achieve climate goals. That is one area where his influence in Sacramento could help. вЂњI will be bringing a different point of view when it comes to our need to shift folks to forms of transit that are less consuming of carbon,вЂќ he said. Gloria praised Faulconer for making progress on the plan, but he said the city has not moved quickly enough to reduce peopleвЂ™s reliance on cars in favor of more environmentally friendly methods of getting around. Other priorities will be the housing crisis, which he has tried to address in Sacramento with several pieces of legislation, and the cityвЂ™s Climate Action Plan, which he helped write six years ago. He is a longtime advocate for the вЂњhousing firstвЂќ approach, in which the goal is getting homeless people immediately into more permanent housing than a shelter and then providing them counseling and other support. Though Gloria said all the cityвЂ™s problems are important, homelessness will be his first priority. Gloria was City Council president during the Filner scandal, and he served as interim mayor for eight months between FilnerвЂ™s August 2013 resignation and Mayor Kevin FaulconerвЂ™s swearing-in in March 2014. The future mayor said he also has experience dealing with a crisis, which could help during the pandemic. вЂњWe are confronted by multiple crises that demand urgent attention from this city,вЂќ Gloria said. San Diego also faces one of the largest homelessness problems in the nation, a housing affordability crisis, crumbling infrastructure, calls for police reform and stark inequities between rich and poor neighborhoods. The COVID-19 pandemic has cratered tax revenue for the tourism-reliant city, creating a budget crisis that could rival or surpass the period after the Great Recession of 2008.

He is the first San Diego mayor with statehouse experience since Assemblyman Pete Wilson was elected mayor in 1971.Д«ut Gloria also will inherit more challenges than most mayors. Gloria, a member of the state Assembly since 2016, also is expected to have more clout in Sacramento than previous mayors. (Sam Hodgson / The San Diego Union-Tribune)Дemocrats have controlled the City Council during that entire 15-year period, so Gloria will have a council controlled by his own party.ДЄnd Democrats increased the number of seats they hold on the nine-member panel from six to eight in elections last week.ДЇurther increasing his power, Gloria will be the first mayor in modern history to simultaneously have strong backing from the business community and organized labor, two groups that often are at odds.

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