Grover Beach Council adopts reorganized municipal code and changes advisory‑body appointment process

The Grover Beach City Council on Sept. 20 adopted a reorganized, renumbered municipal code and approved an ordinance changing the appointment process for several advisory bodies, voting unanimously on both measures.

City attorney Lomeli said the municipal code update — the first comprehensive recodification since 1988 — is administrative, intended to correct outdated statutory references and make the code searchable online, and did not change substantive provisions. "All substantive provisions remain unchanged," Lomeli said during the council presentation, which included a staff recommendation to proceed with a second reading and adoption and to publish the code through American Legal Publishing.

The council completed the required public hearing, heard questions about how older ordinances will be displayed online and about archival track changes, then voted by roll call to adopt the ordinance to "approve reorganization, compilation, renumbering, amendment, repeal, restatement, and codification of existing ordinances and adopting a new municipal code." The roll call recorded Councilmember Weierich, Councilmember Tuggle, Councilmember McCrory Driscoll, Mayor Pro Tem Robert and Mayor Dee as voting "yes." Staff said the city will send the adopted ordinance to American Legal Publishing to integrate the new numbering and online format.

On a separate ordinance, the council amended sections of the municipal code governing appointments and vacancies for the Planning Commission and the Parks, Recreation and Beautification Commission. Assistant City Manager Erickson said the new process requires applicants to be publicly interviewed before the full council, with selection by council majority at the same meeting; staff will apply the same process to oversight committees for measure K14 and sales‑tax oversight. The council discussed whether to prioritize district representation but did not codify district‑based appointments, opting instead to encourage applicants from all districts and to include district information on the application.

The meeting also approved routine business on the consent agenda — including the award of the construction contract for CIP Project 5002 (sewer systems upgrade), treasurer's reports and an AB 650 support letter — by unanimous roll call. Earlier the council reported that it voted to join and enter the Alvogen opioid settlement following closed session; the settlement motion was made and seconded in the open‐session announcement and recorded as carrying on a unanimous roll call.

What the council said and next steps City staff emphasized that substantive policy changes must still return to the council through the normal amendment process. City Attorney Lomeli said the recodification is intended to improve usability and to make municipal code references accurate and searchable. The ordinance adopting the new municipal code will be published online via the city's code publisher. The appointments ordinance takes effect as adopted; staff will apply the new selection procedure for upcoming vacancies and for the oversight committees noted in the staff report.

Votes at a glance - Motion to join Alvogen opioid settlement: moved (recorded), seconded (recorded); roll call: McCrory Driscoll — yes; Tuggle — yes; Weyrich — yes; Mayor Pro Tem Robert — yes; Mayor Dee — yes. Outcome: approved. - Consent agenda (includes CIP 5002 construction contract and AB 650 support letter): adopted by unanimous roll call. Outcome: approved. - Ordinance (municipal code recodification): adopted by unanimous roll call. Outcome: adopted. - Ordinance (appointments and vacancies amendment for advisory bodies): adopted by unanimous roll call. Outcome: adopted.

The council directed staff to send the adopted municipal code to American Legal Publishing for online publication and to apply the new interview/selection process for advisory‑body vacancies.