ESCONDIDO — The City Council took a proactive approach to addressing traffic and fireworks issues while proceeding more cautiously on expanding Measure I investments and implementing cannabis policy during a workshop with staff last month.
In March, council members outlined their priorities for the year. When they reconvened for a second workshop on Sept. 24, they added items that included tackling traffic issues, curbing illegal fireworks, developing a formal plan for sister city relationships, and finding ways to help more people experiencing homelessness get off the streets.
Deputy Mayor Consuelo Martinez said traffic and pedestrian safety have long been problems in Escondido.
“It breaks my heart that we have so many pedestrian fatalities,” Martinez said. “It’s a huge issue in Escondido and has been for a long time.”
Martinez, who represents District 1, said state Route 78 runs through her district and clogs several arterial streets, including Lincoln Avenue. She also raised concerns about bicycle safety, noting many riders do not wear helmets, and warned of a growing e-bike presence.
“We haven’t had an issue with e-bikes like the coast has, but it’s coming,” she said.
Fireworks were also a major concern for Martinez.
“I feel like we’re lagging on firework safety,” she said.
Councilmember Joe Garcia echoed concerns about traffic, fireworks and homelessness.
Councilmember Christian Garcia said that while the city has addressed several homeless “hot spots,” the problem appears to be spreading and becoming more visible.
Thanks to Measure I — the voter-approved 1-cent sales tax initiative — the city has been working to fill staff vacancies that previously limited project progress.
City Manager Sean McGlynn said he hopes to hire a new development services director by next month so Deputy City Manager Chris McKinney can return to the city manager’s office.
“I need to restore capacity not just in other parts of the organization but back in the city manager’s office so we can really start to track these things long term,” McGlynn said.
McGlynn said the council will need to have more policy discussions about traffic, fireworks and drone enforcement in the future.
Council members also discussed adding new homeless shelter beds and other ways to help people off the streets. Both staff and council members noted that the city has invested heavily in homelessness initiatives — such as expanding the COPPS team for outreach and clearing encampments — but public perception still calls for visible results.
“I think people would be blown away if they saw the real cost of this issue in the city,” Mayor Dane White said. “I don’t think people take into consideration the whole scope of it. What we’re being judged on is: are we seeing more or fewer people on the streets, and I think we need to make the changes to reflect that.”
McGlynn also sought more direction from the council on how Measure I funds should be spent. He said he has treated the sales tax as restricted for public safety purposes, but legally, it can be used for any general government function.
“Legally, you can do anything with this funding source. There is no legal restriction on the council,” he said.
One possibility is allocating funds to community events.
Christian Garcia said Measure I funds should stay focused on the initiative’s original priorities — public safety, infrastructure and homelessness — though some event funding could align with those goals.
McGlynn noted that the city has shifted essential services from the general fund to Measure I, but since it’s a temporary 20-year tax, the city must plan for how to sustain those services once the tax expires.
Ultimately, the council agreed to focus on balancing the general fund — which continues to face a deficit — before making any changes to Measure I allocations.
As for cannabis, discussion of placing a business tax measure on the 2026 ballot stalled due to insufficient support. Three council members — White, Martinez and Christian Garcia — backed the idea, while Joe Garcia and Councilmember Judy Fitzgerald opposed it.
Fitzgerald said allowing cannabis businesses could invite “seedy” activity and increase robberies.
“I don’t want a cannabis sign hanging next to the Mercedes-Benz sign,” she said. “I just don’t think this is good overall — it’s a quick buck.”
Joe Garcia said his experience in Las Vegas shaped his opposition.
“I couldn’t walk down the street without the smell,” he said, adding that dispensaries seemed to be everywhere.
Garcia said Las Vegas no longer feels family-friendly because of cannabis use and described residents using marijuana at his mobile home community’s pool, though he did not report them.
Both Fitzgerald and Garcia said cannabis could encourage youth use.
White countered that legal dispensaries operate differently from illicit ones, citing Vista’s 11 legal shops.
“Children do not buy cannabis from a dispensary,” White said. “It’s nearly impossible.”
White said he found no reports of robberies or sales to minors at Vista’s licensed dispensaries and noted Vista Mayor Joe Franklin’s positive reassessment of legalization.
“There’s an argument to be made that if you’re doing it the correct way, you’re actually doing more to protect children,” White said. “We’re not preventing anybody from getting it now by ignoring it.”
White said Escondido should take control of the issue and draft its own cannabis business tax before a citizen-led initiative forces the matter, as happened in Vista and Encinitas.
For now, the mayor plans to assemble a subcommittee to explore options for a potential 2026 cannabis ballot measure.
The council would need four members to place a cannabis business tax before voters.
