For decades, Encinitas built a reputation as an independent-minded, environmentally conscious, welcoming community. Residents didn’t agree on everything, but there was a shared expectation that local government would reflect the city’s generous spirit and solve problems in the best interests of its residents.
That spirit is becoming harder to recognize.
The City Council’s recent decision not to apply for nearly $4 million in state funding for homeless outreach, despite the recommendation of its own professional staff, may become the defining vote of this council.
Before voting not to apply for the grant, Mayor Bruce Ehlers argued it came with unspecified “strings attached” and he expressed distrust of the California Department of Housing and Community Development, even while acknowledging the city might instead need to rely on local taxpayer dollars.
Councilmember San Antonio echoed Ehlers: “It still freaks me out, the HCD thing.” Deputy Mayor O’Hara said “Housing First in this state has failed miserably.” Councilmember Shaffer initially sounded open to applying, saying $3.9M was “not chump change,” but ultimately voted No without explanation. Councilmember Lyndes was the sole vote in favor of the grant.
Turning away millions of dollars that could have expanded local outreach without raising taxes was a shocking decision – and one that revealed more about the council’s priorities than any city work plan ever could.
Nor was it an isolated moment. Over the past year, City Hall has become increasingly performative and less functional. Council meetings routinely stretch six, eight, even ten hours, sometimes ending after midnight. Residents who want to participate must devote an entire evening – or leave before the decisions are finally made. On June 24, high schoolers applying for the Youth Commission had to wait until midnight for their opportunity to speak. That’s not public engagement. It’s public exhaustion.
Mayor Ehlers bears responsibility for that. One of the mayor’s basic jobs is to keep meetings moving, manage debate, and respect everyone’s time. Instead, discussions wander, speeches expand, and marathon meetings have become the norm.
Under Ehlers, the average regular City Council meeting has grown from the previous council’s 2 hours 55 minutes to 4 hours 9 minutes – an increase of over 42%.
Deputy Mayor Jim O’Hara has become the council’s most prolific contributor to those marathons. Routine agenda items often become lengthy political commentaries only loosely connected to the business at hand. He has also taken to questioning, from the dais, the motives of residents who disagree with him.
Citizens who come before the council should expect disagreement, but they should never have to fear that they’ll publicly berated.
The council’s response to controversy over a newly appointed advisory committee member underscored the same pattern. Over several council meetings, residents repeatedly urged the council to reconsider the appointment because of past racist social media comments. The council majority remained silent for weeks until Councilmember Joy Lyndes forced the issue onto the agenda. The final vote to retain the new commissioner was 4–1, with Lyndes casting the lone dissent.
Beyond City Hall, local politics have also become increasingly toxic. Anonymous social media accounts traffic in scare tactics and personal attacks, while a small circle of politically connected activists is widely perceived to have outsized influence with the council majority. Public confidence suffers whenever people suspect that anonymous backchannel influencers carry more weight than open public debate.
The Encinitas City Council’s rhetoric, priorities, and governing style increasingly resemble the polarization Americans have watched consume politics at the national level. Residents can decide for themselves whether those similarities are coincidental. What can’t be disputed is that the tone of our local government has changed – and not for the better.
The rejected homeless grant was never just about homelessness. It became a window into a broader change in how this council governs, how it treats dissent, and how it defines leadership.
Encinitas deserves better.
Thanks for reading,
–Encinitas Action
Further Reading:
- When the rules become a joke, Encinitas has a leadership problem
- Ehlers ignore’s O’Hara’s chronic tardiness and rudeness
- ‘Common Ground’ shouldn’t mean ‘agree with me, or else’
- Encinitas mom calls out City Council rudeness
- Anonymous outrage accounts are warping Encinitas discourse
- It’s a ‘Housing First’ grant, just don’t call it that
P.S. Sad news to report: we’ve just learned about a pedestrian fatality in Encinitas last evening around 7:16 p.m. A young woman was walking across El Camino Del Norte in Olivenhain when she was hit by a westbound 2025 Nissan Z.
The Sheriff’s Office reports that the driver was uninjured and remained on the scene. The use of alcohol or drugs is not believed to be a factor.
Our hearts go out to the victim’s loved ones and friends, and our Encinitas community mourns with them.