SAN DIEGO — The City of San Diego is taking action to shut down alleged criminal activity at the Main Street Motel in Barrio Logan by declaring the motel a public nuisance.
San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott filed a lawsuit earlier this month, alleging prostitution, human trafficking and drug activity at the motel.
The Main Street Motel sits around the corner from Dalbergia Street, a hotbed of prostitution that has plagued the city for years.
The red-light district became the focus of several CBS 8 Working for You reports, after residents and business owners complained about sex workers and pimps in the neighborhood at all hours.
“The San Diego Police Department (SDPD) frequently receives community complaints regarding prostitution activity occurring at the premises. This includes reports of scantily dressed females walking on the public street adjacent to the Main Street Motel waiving down vehicles,” the lawsuit stated.
Since 2019, police have been called to the motel 229 times, officers have spent 1,216 manhours at the property, and most of the calls involved prostitution, human trafficking, drugs and disturbing the peace, according to the lawsuit.
Last year, “several pimps were arrested for forcing females including several underage victims to perform commercial sex from the motel,” the lawsuit alleged.
“A picture of the Main Street Motel was included in online prostitution advertisements,” according to the suit.
The owners of the motel, who were named in the lawsuit, did not respond to CBS 8’s messages seeking comment.
A woman claiming to be the manager at the motel told a reporter she had just recently been hired, and the motel owners were out of the country.
A Letter of Agency posted on the motel office window, dated July 2022, authorizes SDPD to arrest people for trespassing. The letter acknowledged the property was having problems with prostitution.
The San Diego City Attorney’s office said it was working on a stipulated agreement with the owners of the motel, that may allow them to stay in business. An announcement should be coming in the near future, a spokesperson said.
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