The city’s newly elected mayor and two council members were sworn into office Tuesday in front of a packed room that included both their most fervent supporters and the people who passionately backed their opponents.
Sparks flew between the two groups as various public speakers praised the incoming elected officials, or thanked the outgoing ones and presented them with gifts.
Encinitas resident Doug Jones kicked off one fiery segment of the nearly two-hour meeting when he told the outgoing council members, “You could have done a better job.” He said they didn’t even try to work with other cities to fight state housing mandates, a charge the city’s outgoing mayor said was false and showed that Jones “spoke as usual without any clue.”
A while later, Marco Gonzalez, who supported the outgoing council members, said he thought people like Jones “lacked grace, class and perspective.”
Both supporters and opponents chuckled when Sheila Cameron, who served as Encinitas mayor years ago, began her remarks by saying, “Relax, I’m not going to say anything bad.”
The incoming elected officials — new Mayor Bruce Ehlers, new Council District 1 representative Luke Shaffer and new Council District 2 representative Jim O’Hara — told the crowd that they wanted to do everything in the power to preserve the city they love. The three men ran together on a slate that included a vow to fight state mandates regarding accommodating higher-density housing.
“This is a move to the center and we want to be about Encinitas being Encinitas,” Ehlers, who previously was the city’s Council District 4 representative, said as he described how he wants to keep the city’s “small town beach atmosphere.”
Noting that he was born and raised in Encinitas, Shaffer told the crowd, “I am a product of Encinitas. Everything I do will be in the interests of Encinitas.”
Shaffer ran against appointed incumbent Allison Blackwell, who said her time on the council lasted only two years, so she would limit her remarks accordingly. She said the new council members need to remember that thousands of people voted for their opponents, and “I hope you think of them as your constituents and work hard for them, too.”
O’Hara said he was impressed by how many people care so much about the city and thanked his supporters for putting their trust in him, saying he was fully aware of the “weight and the burden” that comes with the job.
The incumbent in his race, Kellie Hinze, did not seek re-election. On Tuesday, she held her new baby daughter during part of the meeting and said she looked forward to having more time with her family in the months to come.
Meanwhile, outgoing mayor Tony Kranz said he considered showing before and after photos Tuesday of the projects that occurred during his 12 years on the council, including the Moonlight Beach lifeguard tower and the Pacific View Arts Center. He said he figured he had attended some 500 city meetings over the years, and “it’s been an honor and a privilege” to serve the city.
After the new council members were sworn into office, Ehlers nominated District 3 representative Joy Lyndes — the only council member remaining in her current post — as the city’s new deputy mayor, saying he wanted to “build bridges” from the old era to the new one. Shaffer and O’Hara both said they supported this move.
