ENCINITAS — Encinitas Planning Commissioner Rubén Flores has stepped down from his post, citing personal reasons.
Flores, the director of commercialization at the UC San Diego Office of Innovation and Commercialization, was appointed to the board in 2014 to represent residents in New Encinitas.
In recent months, Flores had been absent from multiple planning commission meetings due to his job, which prompted him to step down.
“He has a new and very demanding job and felt he could not continue to serve on the Commission,” Deputy Mayor Lisa Shaffer said in her recent newsletter. “I appreciate his sincere and thoughtful work during his term.”
Tasha Boerner Horvath, the newest member of the five-member commission, called Flores a mentor.
“Rubén Darío Flores was a great Planning Commissioner and role model for me. However, I do understand that for personal reasons he has chosen to step down from the Planning Commission,” she said. “His passion for community, sound judgment and ability to craft solutions that benefit our city will be sorely missed on the Encinitas Planning Commission.”
The city is accepting applications for the position immediately.
Interested New Encinitas residents can apply on the city’s website at encinitasca.gov.
