Ricky Hoyt, a retired Navy pilot running for Coronado City Council, wants to use trade leverage on Mexico over the Tijuana sewage crisis and lean on his military connections to help the city navigate its next housing cycle.

Hoyt is one of four candidates competing for two open seats in the Tuesday, Nov. 3 election. Andrew Gade, appointed Councilmember Kelly Purvis and attorney Rebecca King round out the field, according to the city's election page.

In a profile published Monday, Sept. 28, by the Coronado Times, Hoyt laid out positions on sewage, housing, capital projects, e-bikes and surveillance cameras. He has lived in Coronado since 2015, built a rental-property business starting with a VA loan on a triplex, and consulted with former mayors and council members before entering the race. He retired from active duty earlier this year and continues to fly in the Navy Reserves.

Sewage: leverage over good faith

Hoyt called for a three-pronged approach to the Tijuana sewage crisis: a treatment plant on the American side, continued funding for the International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC), and economic pressure on Mexico through regional bodies like the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG).

He wants to tie the sewage issue to trade and the border crossing, which he said would require federal cooperation.

"On good faith is not going to work," Hoyt told the Coronado Times. "If that was going to fix it, it would have been fixed already."

In a Sept. 15 candidate Q&A published by The Coronado News, Hoyt said contaminated coastal waters affect SEAL and other Navy waterborne training, calling it "a military readiness issue" that warrants a seat at the table for the Navy and Department of Defense. He also said he supports Coronado's emergency declaration over the crisis but called it "a tool," not an accomplishment in itself.

Housing and the Navy connection

Hoyt named the upcoming Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) cycle as a key issue for the next council. In the last cycle, Coronado counted planned barracks housing in its housing element. Hoyt said his Navy relationships could strengthen that partnership again.

In a Sept. 21 housing Q&A published by The Coronado News, Hoyt said he opposes Measure D, listed as Measure R-4 on the city ballot, which would raise the R-4 multi-family height limit from three stories to four stories. He also said he supports keeping accessory dwelling units (ADUs) for longer-term residential use rather than nightly or weekly rentals.

"Coronado is a unique, largely built-out coastal community, and I will strongly advocate that the next allocation reflect those realities," Hoyt wrote in the Sept. 21 Q&A.

Capital projects and public safety

Hoyt said the city's library, fire stations and police department all need upgrades. He wants the city to stay ahead of maintenance so deferred work does not cost taxpayers more later.

On enforcement, he supports stricter e-bike rules, including impounding violators' bikes. He opposes Flock surveillance cameras. He said he prefers using data to identify where speeding and noise violations cluster so police can target those areas.

He also named utility undergrounding and flight paths as areas where his military background could help the city coordinate with Naval Base Coronado.

Vote-by-mail ballots are scheduled to go out Monday, Oct. 5, with a voter registration deadline of Monday, Oct. 19.