Encinitas mayor emphasizes infrastructure, flood mitigation and a 'get stuff done' agenda in State of the City address
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Summary
Mayor Bruce Ehlers outlined 2026 priorities including pavement repairs (PCI now 75), storm-drain inspections and pumps to reduce flooding, a homelessness strategy partnered with San Diego Rescue Mission, stepped-up traffic enforcement and steps to streamline permitting and support local business.
Mayor Bruce Ehlers used the 2026 State of the City address to present a broad set of near-term priorities focused on infrastructure, public-safety enforcement and business vitality.
Ehlers told an audience at the Chamber of Commerce event that the city’s pavement condition index has improved to 75 and that crews have resurfaced about 15 miles of roads this fiscal year with another 18 miles scheduled for completion this summer. “When we allocate the money, we will spend the money, and we'll get it done,” he said, summing the administration’s approach as “get stuff done” (GSD).
The mayor said the city recently installed two pumps along Vulcan (near Orpheus and Union) that materially reduced flooding downstream and credited a cleared NCTD trench for improving channel flow during a 2.6-inch rain event. He said the council commissioned a storm-drain master plan and is video-inspecting the system (many pipes are 50–60 years old) to identify red-flag areas for earlier, lower-cost repairs.
On homelessness, Ehlers described a dual approach of services plus enforcement. He announced a partnership with San Diego Rescue Mission that adds two case managers and one housing navigator; in the first month under the new approach the city engaged 66 people and placed 15 into temporary or permanent housing. “We added a fourth goal to our homeless action plan, focused on protecting community safety through increased enforcement,” he said.
Traffic safety and law-enforcement support were another focus. Ehlers said the sheriff’s department under Captain Shane Watts is conducting monthly maximum enforcement days to target speeding and dangerous driving and that the council approved two additional traffic deputies (one already hired and the second recently added).
Ehlers also highlighted emergency-response and fire-safety work: the city opened a temporary Fire Station 1 at Pacific View to restore downtown response times after the prior station was condemned and has funded design for a relocated temporary Fire Station 6 in Olivenhain to improve coverage. He described regional multiagency wildfire drills and scheduled additional exercises.
The address covered shoreline work as well: the city completed a five-year regional beach sand replenishment in 2024, received an industry award for restored beaches and is participating in a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Coastal Storm Damage Reduction planning effort targeted to provide replenishment every five years if funded; Ehlers said the city also relocated roughly 10,000 cubic yards of tested sand to stabilize Beacon's Beach as an interim measure.
Ehlers repeatedly flagged permitting and customer service as a top operational priority, recounting a personal episode in which a permit stalled for more than a week and only progressed quickly after he used mayoral influence. “That’s a sign of a broken process,” he said, and pledged reforms through a new business commission and process improvements.
He closed by restating the administration’s framing—preserving what residents value while addressing deferred maintenance and public-safety needs—and thanked the Chamber, sponsors and city staff for their roles in advancing the agenda. The mayor’s remarks were followed by final acknowledgments and the program’s conclusion.
