ENCINITAS — The Encinitas City Council will be working through its annual summer recess, as a clerical error in their recent votes on the Housing Element will require them to redo the process.
City officials said that when they voted to approve the At Home at Encinitas ballot measure, the package contained a copy of an older version of the map that outlines the location of the housing sites.
Planning officials discovered the error and brought it to the attention of City Attorney Glenn Sabine, who recommended the council cure the errors with a re-vote, which prompted the City Council to rescind the cancellation of the July 20, July 27 and Aug. 10 meetings.
“I think everyone’s disappointed that we had to cancel the recess, but no one blames staff,” City Councilman Tony Kranz said before the July 13 council meeting. “We just have to move forward and correct the mistake and move on.”
Kranz said the meetings to correct the mistake will be “very brief,” unlike the hours-long sessions that ultimately led to the housing element’s approval.
The cancellation of recess doesn’t necessarily mean that council members are cancelling their summer plans. Both Mayor Kristin Gaspar and Councilman Mark Muir have previous engagements they will honor during the break.
Muir has been planning a European vacation for more than a year, and said he will not be available for the meetings.
“It would cost me more than $20,000 to attend a five-minute meeting,” Muir said.
The City Council said they should have the required three-member majority present at the meetings, but Gaspar said if necessary, she would attend the meetings by teleconference in order to satisfy the quorum requirements.