Most of the threats to our Encinitas values were reversed – for now.
Wednesday night, a large crowd of Encinitas citizens held the line against the current City Council’s attempts to erase some of our most sacred ideals from the document that defines our city’s legislative priorities – including equality, inclusivity, gun safety and violence, “active” transportation, and public safety in the face of current ICE abuses.
Dozens of engaged Encinitas residents filled City Hall Wednesday night to support reinstating the items Mayor Bruce Ehlers and Deputy Mayor Jim O’Hara had attempted to remove from the city’s Legislative Program update. The disputed agenda item presented for approval at the meeting was not made available for public input beforehand.
Several of you (shown above) eloquently urged the mayor and new councilmembers to reconsider their surprising attempted deletions.
The council also received over 130 emails, the vast majority of which came from Encinitas Action readers who strongly advocated against expunging several of most residents’ core ideals.
After 2 1/2 hours of staff input, public comments and council discussion, the council voted unanimously to approve a motion that included prioritizing promoting a just, equitable, and inclusive community, added support for legislation promoting gun violence prevention, improved gun safety, mental health-related issues, added support for improved communication and public safety regarding federal agency actions in the community, and enhanced availability and sustainability of disaster insurance for residents.
The council plans to bring back a final version of the Legislative Program to a future meeting.
Here’s to your involvement in making this victory possible!
There will likely be future attempts by the mayor and new city councilmembers to roll back more of our city’s longstanding principles. We must remain on guard during this tumultuous and pivotal election year. We have shown our local elected representatives that, together, we are a force… for good.