Steve Stenberg is running for Chula Vista City Council District 2 being vacated by Council member Jill Galvez. After the June elections, the field was narrowed down to Stenberg and Jose Preciado by a close 323 votes.
The 67-year-old Republican was born in Pasadena, moving to Chula Vista when his father took a job as the city’s assistant city manager. His mother is a teacher with the Chula Vista Elementary School District. Stenberg went through the Chula Vista school system, attending Allen Elementary, and Bonita Vista middle and high schools, then moving on to Southwestern College. He is a U.S. Airforce veteran of 11 years, in the reserves while he finished his degree at National University. But during that time, Stenberg began his lifelong career in public service, working for the Border Patrol, U.S. Customs, and then joined the Federal Fire Department, retired, then went back to Del Mar as a defensible space inspector, then to CalFire.
This is not the first campaign for Stenberg. He ran for office in 2018, losing by 804 votes out of 17,000 “as a nobody.”
Stenberg said Chula Vista has the same problems that have existed for too long and he wants to bring his vision for the homeless, housing, jobs, people, parks and libraries to City Council.
Stenberg said right now he is “feeling really” good about his election, but still believes things need to change for the better.
Stenberg said as council members and mayor, what important to remember is that they work for the people.
“I work for the people in my district,” he said. “That is the whole reason I am running for Council. I cannot work for you if you cannot tell me what is going on and what is not going on. And what is working and what is not. To vote for me is to know that I work for you. I have no other jobs. I am retired. This will be my 100% job. This is it. I am coming in to work for my district. This is where I grew up.”
Stenberg said he wants more businesses in Chula Vista and shorten the time frame from application to opening. He said it is particularly a problem with developers since they buy the property far in advance before “ever putting a shovel in the ground,” and during that time they are paying interest on the land and that gets passed on to home buyers.
Stenberg said with the bayfront coming, he wants to see his district using F Street for a trolley, a bike path, and a walking path from downtown Chula Vista to the bayfront. Stopping at Fourth Avenue and F Street.
“It is just one block to Third Avenue, and it is great right now,” he said. “It has many restaurants now, many breweries, still has shops,” he said. “But as far as the building on the bayfront, it is going to be a boom for all of Chula Vista and a boom for District 2.”
Stenberg said the recent closure of Harborside Park caught him by surprise.
“I expected them to go in. I know they talked about, like they do about all homeless camps, they talked about drug use, minor theft, and homeless camps. From what I can tell, most gang activity in San Diego leaves the homeless camps alone,” he said. “A park is meant for the general population, to visit, to have fun. You bring the kids, they play on the swings.
They have barbeques. Parks are not necessarily made up as housing units.”
“A temporary closing,” he said. “If they had a place to put the people, and the people could go to that place, then the people would want to stay in that place because we could offer them a better solution than sleeping on the ground or in a tent in the park. But we do not have any place for them to go. They are building the 60 units off Main Street. But we do not have anything like the East County Transitional Living Center.”
Stenberg said El Cajon does a wonderful job in working with the homeless and he would like to see Chula Vista follow it example with the nonprofits, converted motels, and services offered by the city.
“They probably lead the county in what they do for the homeless,” he said.
“I would love to spearhead something like that.”
Stenberg said the city should also hold events like Stand Down, the annual event for homeless veterans.
“There are a lot of homeless vets,” he said. “They offer everything. It is a one stop shop weekend. Why can we not have that for the regular homeless that are not veterans. Why could we not do that twice a year? People donate clothes. People donate their time, expertise, and help the homeless on the spot? Where is the location? I am thinking of the old Sears building. We could bring semitrucks in with goods and supplies and make it there and I believe there are seven homeless organizations in Chula Vista.”
