In June, former San Diego City Council member Jim Madaffer (2000-2008) was tooling up Sorrento Valley Road in his 2024 Tesla Model X when he struck a pothole in the northbound lane.
Two of his tires blew out. He got a tow, rented a car, replaced the tires, missed work.
It cost him $3,422.77 all told, according to a claim he submitted to the city June 17.
Madaffer now serves on the San Diego County Water Authority and the Colorado River Board of California. He was also a member of the city council that was in office when the pension crisis — brought on by years of underfunding the pension system, while expanding benefits — exploded. To many, the roots of the city’s current, ongoing financial woes can be traced back to the pension debacle.
I reported on the city’s rising insurance costs the other week, focusing on the $116 million in payments over the past decade the city has shelled out from lawsuits and claims against the San Diego Police Department.
It’s worth noting that in that same time the city paid out $106 million from claims against the Transportation and Stormwater departments. Because Stormwater was once part of the Transportation Department the city did not break down the total for each department.
You have to think a good chunk of that comes from the infamously poor conditions of city roads. Fixing and repaving the streets was the top response of the 13,000 city residents who answered a survey on budget priorities in the spring.
Madaffer probably spoke for many when he submitted his claim. Asked to state why the city was responsible he wrote, “Poor road maintenance. Sorrento Valley Road is a disgrace to the city.”
He also included photos of the culprit pothole. One had a dollar bill in it. Madaffer said he put it there for scale, to show how deep the hole was which he described in an interview as a “crater.”
It could also be a symbol. Of how little money the city has to fix roads.