CARLSBAD — After months of speculation and campaigning, Carlsbad City Councilwoman Cori Schumacher will serve another term.
She defeated challenger Tracy Carmichael, 47% to 40%, while Barrio resident Simon Angel only mustered 13% of the vote in a special election. Schumacher will serve the remaining three years for the seat, which was vacated on Oct. 8, 2019, after Barbara Hamilton resigned.
Hamilton was elected in 2018 in the city’s first district voting structure. Schumacher was first elected in 2016 as an at-large candidate.
“We’re thrilled,” she said. “Our team was so well-organized and focused. One of the biggest changes in strategies was we focused on the face-to-face conversations.”
After Hamilton’s resignation, the city only has four council members, but the fifth will not be elected until November’s general election. The council started the process to appoint Hamilton’s replacement, but a number of residents decried the action and gathered enough signatures to force a special election.
It is the second loss in less than two years for Carmichael in the District 1 race, as she fell to Hamilton by 2% in 2018.
“I’m disappointed, but it does send a strong message to our community that clear there is change that is happening,” Carmichael said. “While one of the opponents has won the seat, we still aren’t any further ahead than we were in October when the resignation occurred. When people wake up and realize that, it will cause them to have great pause in their way of thinking of where do we go from here.”
Schumacher said her focus now is getting back to work addressing some of the biggest issues facing the city. One of those, she said, is tackling the homeless problem along with diving deep into housing and affordable housing policies.
“Digging into further the issues with homelessness, which is a really complex issue,” Schumacher said. “I’m really looking forward to continuing the collaborative work regionally on that, as well as locally.”
In Del Mar, residents overwhelmingly voted against Measure G regarding the Marisol project, a 65-room hotel with villas, affordable rental housing, 408 parking spaces, restaurants and more than a mile of trails along Scripps Bluff Preserve. Voters struck down the measure 58% to 42%.
The Marisol Specific Plan was proposed on 17.45 acres at Border Avenue west of Camino Del Mar. According to a city economic and fiscal analysis, the project would have generated an estimated $4 million per year in hotel tax revenue.
Meanwhile, Oceanside voters crushed Measure K, 74% to 26%, which would have allowed the city manager to appoint the city clerk and treasurer.
Over in Escondido, voters narrowly defeated Measure Q, a $205 million bond for the Escondido Union School District, which oversees K-8 schools in the city. The measure was struck down, 51% to 49%, but needed 55% to pass.
The funds would have been used to repair roofs, remove asbestos, improve security, renovate classrooms and upgrade other facilities and technology. The district would have been eligible for up to $17 million in state matching funds.
The measure was supported by the district and San Diego County Taxpayers Association, but opposed by the Republican Party of San Diego County.
1 comment
Carmichael’s inscrutable “word salad” comment makes one thing clear…it’s a good thing Cori is on City Council and not her. Let’s keep the momentum going and support Teresa Acosta in District 4.
Comments are closed.