🏄 Encinitas Surfboards celebrates 50 years
🅿️ Residents urge council to save safe parking lot
🌳 L-7 park design approved amid tension
🚴 Bike lane bollard removed
⛺️ Stricter Vehicle Sleeping & Camping Rules Unanimously Approved
🌊 Surf School Rules Updated; 10 Teaching Zones Approved
🚸 Pavement Report Accepted
👑 O’Hara Appointed Deputy Mayor
Special Presentations:
🏄♂️ 50 Years of Stoke + a Win for City IT: Encinitas honored Encinitas Surfboards for 50 years of local surf culture, and the City’s IT team snagged a MISAC award for top-tier digital service.
Oral Communications:
A couple highlights from the public speakers…
- Safe Parking Uncertainty: Residents urged Council to keep Encinitas’ Safe Parking Program alive as the JFS contract ends December 31. They asked the City to secure the Senior Center site and partner with Dreams for Change to avoid disruptions for vehicle-dwelling residents.
- 🌮 FFT: Will Encinitas step up—and fast enough—to prevent people from losing a safe place to sleep?
- Offshore Drilling Opposition Requested: Environmental Commissioner Carol Parker pressed Council to submit a proclamation opposing offshore drilling under the new federal proposal. Deadline: Jan 23.
🌳 L-7 Park Design Contract Drama:
Council unanimously approved an $869K design contract for the new L-7 park—but not without fireworks. Residents demanded more public input. Councilmember O’Hara claimed Deputy Mayor Lyndes had a conflict of interest requiring her to recuse herself and delivered a hostile rebuke from the dais. The Deputy Mayor clarified there was no conflict and offered professional design insight.
- 🌮 FFT: How did a $100K donation become a nearly $1M design bill—and why is hostility from the dais going unchecked?
🛣️ Pavement Rehab + Politics:
Council approved pavement rehab standards, but also agreed to remove bollards from bike lanes on a section of Leucadia Boulevard. Interestingly, Councilmember O’Hara accused street-safety advocates of “politics,” prompting confusion and pushback.
- 🌮 FFT: Is it political to want safer streets—or political to accuse community members of being political?
🚐 Sleeping in Vehicles – New Rules Approved:
City staff returned with a new and improved ordinance revision relating to camping and sleeping in vehicles. Council unanimously passed the new ordinance, tightening camping rules:
🛡️ Public Health & Safety Commission:
More Meetings: Council voted to increase PHSC meetings from quarterly to six per year. Unanimous.
🏖️ Surf School Regulations Updated:
Encinitas is tuning up its surf instruction rules to keep pace with the summer swell. The city is approving ten teaching zones from Swami’s to Grandview, and confirming that weekend lessons are fair game. A few locals were worried about crowding and tricky access. The ordinance cruised through with unanimous support.
🌊 Summer Surf School Permits Heat Up:
The lineup of surf schools for Summer 2026 is officially set, and the council is paddling into a bigger conversation about how permits are awarded. Instructors and neighbors called out confusing scoring, short permit terms, and shifting student caps. The council agreed it’s time for clearer standards so long-time local surf programs can stay afloat and thrive. A new Shaffer–O’Hara subcommittee will shape a more consistent, transparent process. Another unanimous vote from the dais.
🛣️ Pavement Condition Report Accepted:
Encinitas has ~168 miles of road and maintains 33.1M square feet of pavement. The City’s Pavement Condition Index (PCI) score is 75—above state and county averages.
City staff presented 3 budget scenarios: (1) status quo funding ($5M/year), (2) maintain PCI 75 ($6M/year), and (3) improve PCI to 78 ($9.5M/year). Council accepted the report unanimously, signaling future discussions on: budget increases, privately maintained roads, utility trench restoration enforcement.
👑 O’Hara Named Deputy Mayor:
The Deputy Mayor role is a year-long appointment that rotates annually. With zero discussion, Mayor Ehlers appointed O’Hara as Deputy Mayor.
- 🌮 FFT: Was this best choice? How should residents feel about a Deputy Mayor known for attacking colleagues, commissioners, and residents from the dais?
🤝 Boards, Committees & City Attorney
Council approved board/committee appointments + added a surf-instruction subcommittee.
Ajit Thind appointed Interim City Attorney; Andrew Jared named Assistant City Attorney.
👉 Final Word: Encinitas politics are riding a swell of tension and tough decisions. 🌊 Stay tuned—the surf isn’t settling anytime soon.