San Diego dropped to 71st among the country's best-performing cities, per an annual report from the Milken Institute.

Why it matters: The 2025 ranking evaluates U.S. city metros on several economic factors that make it an attractive place to live, including job growth, affordable housing and economic equality.

State of play: The San Diego metro area dropped 34 spots from last year, with big declines in its job growth rankings, particularly in high-tech sectors.

• Part of that was due to a nationwide downturn in the tech industry.

By the numbers: Short term job growth was around 1-1.4% in San Diego, and 4.7% from 2018 to 2023, per the Milken report.

• In 2024, overall job growth was about 0.5% across the region — about half the rate of the U.S., according to Eduardo Velasquez, senior director of research and economic development at the San Diego Regional EDC.

Zoom in: San Diego is seeing job declines in some of the highest-paying and traditionally fastest-growing industries, Velasquez told Axios.

• Life sciences saw a bit of a giveback of the pandemic-era job growth that was fueled in part by a surging investment in biotech tools, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and genomics. The industry is seeing some job losses as the companies "right-size," Velasquez said.
• Employment in the local manufacturing industry, which accounts for nearly one in 10 private sector jobs across the region, has also been hurt by high operating costs and federal funding targeting other markets.

Between the lines: More people are moving out of San Diego than moving in, which has contributed to the employment decline.

• Remote work has also allowed people to do these types of jobs in less expensive cities.
• Since 2019, San Diego has seen an 80% decline for job postings for software developers, one of the region's most in-demand jobs for the past decade, Velasquez said.

The other side: San Diego's tourism and hospitality industries are recovering well, and the national tech industry is set to rebound this year.

• Housing affordability still ranked low in the Milken report, but it improved slightly.

What the report didn't rank

Waymo's autonomous vehicles are coming to San Diego — with human drivers.

Why it matters: The company announced its fleet will arrive this week in San Diego and Las Vegas, where trained drivers will allow them to collect local information in hopes of improving their driverless ride-hail services.

Yes, but: The visit is not a precursor to launching autonomous taxis in San Diego, company spokesperson Sandy Karp told Axios.

• "This is for learning and understanding," she said. "Like any other roadtrip, we go, take in the sights, meet with locals and then go to another destination."

State of play: Karp couldn't say when the cars will arrive, but they'll test in Bankers Hill, Mission Hills, downtown, Sherman Heights, and on I-5 and SR 163.

• They'll be here for a few weeks, before departing for just as long and then returning for two more months, Karp said.
• Waymo did not need special permits or permission to test here, since the cars will be driven by humans, but Karp said they've discussed their arrival with local officials.

How it works: Karp said Waymo chose San Diego for its similarity to cities with existing service, with cars, cyclists and pedestrians interacting in complex environments and on fast-moving roads and freeways, to see when systems behave similarly and when they act differently.

Flashback

🚁 San Diego County is purchasing more firefighting equipment, including an $18 million helicopter, and boosting their brush management techniques. (City News Service)

❎ The El Cajon City Council rejected Mayor Bill Wells' proposal to allow police officers to coordinate with federal immigration enforcement efforts. (NBC 7)

💨 The White House rescinded a memo on the president's order to freeze federal funding Wednesday after its guidance unleashed chaos among nonprofits and state and local governments, including San Diego. (Axios)

San Diego's Lunar New Year celebrations started with a festival in City Heights last weekend, but there are more ways to ring in the Year of the Wood Snake.

The big picture: The holiday, also known as Chinese New Year, celebrates the beginning of the new year following the lunisolar calendar.

Here are some upcoming festivities:

🐼 The San Diego Zoo is marking the occasion Saturday and Sunday with activities focusing on Asian wildlife, plants and conservation efforts.

🐍 The Tết Festival celebrates the Vietnamese Lunar New Year with live performances, rides and concessions from Friday afternoon through Sunday evening at NTC Park in Liberty Station.

🥟 Lunar New Year Brunch rings in the holiday with Chinese dim sum from Imperial Mandarin on Convoy Street.

🐉 Mission Valley's Lunar New Year includes lion and dragon dance performances at the Nordstrom Rack Court.

The bottom line: "This holiday is all about ushering wealth and restarting the new year with foods that symbolize good luck," Jenny Leung, executive director of the Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco, told Axios San Francisco.

Tell a friend

We have a special guest this week for our guessing game of where in San Diego: Kate's dog, Penny.

A clue: Penny is on a mission to befriend this coyote, which is probably friendlier than the others roaming around here.

Respond to this email with your guess of where you can find this stationary coyote for a chance to win some Axios swag!