Council Meeting Recap: The battle over Santa Fe Drive was back — and it’s still spicy. 🌶️ In May, the Council rejected city staff’s recommendations to complete the project and make minor adjustments. The Council instead directed staff to evaluate three alternative options.
At Wednesday’s Council Meeting, more than 40 residents, including many San Dieguito Academy students, spoke on whether to fix or rip out the street’s safety features. Some demanded a return to wider lanes; others urged “improve, don’t remove” and fiscal sanity.
💰 The Decision:
Council voted 4–1 (Lyndes opposed) to move forward with Option B— the priciest and, many say, least safe plan. It removes the protected bike lanes and back-in parking, widens car lanes to 11’, could cost an extra $1.9M and, puts the city at risk of losing a state grant. 🚧
📊 The majority leaned heavily on last spring’s public survey — despite critics calling it unscientific (some even took it twice). The Mayor cited USPS mail delivery issues, though the Postal Service says that’s already fixed.
- 🌮 Food For Thought: Did Council’s decision really balance safety, function, and fiscal responsibility?
Councilmember O’Hara spent 10+ minutes blasting local advocates, such as Encinitas BikeWalk, accusing them as “prioritizing politics and agenda over public safety” and accusing them of “astroturfing”(creating the illusion of widespread grassroots support when no such support exists).
The City Manager & City Attorney confirmed: follow-up actions from the September ICE emergency meeting will return to Council, this week on November 12th. Stay tuned.