[CALL TO ORDER] [00:00:09] 2025 SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING TO ORDER. WILL THE CITY CLERK PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? COUNCIL MEMBER MAEDA HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER PIKUS HERE. DEPUTY MAYOR DEHOFF HERE. AND MAYOR VOSS HERE. DEPUTY MAYOR DEHOFF, WOULD YOU PLEASE LEAD US IN THE PLEDGE? ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS? ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. NOW, PLEASE JOIN US FOR OUR MOMENT OF SILENCE. THANK YOU. WE WILL MOVE. EXCUSE ME STRAIGHT TO PUBLIC COMMENT. YOU [PUBLIC COMMENT] ARE ONLY ALLOWED TO COMMENT ON THE SINGLE ITEM ON THE AGENDA. WE HAVE ONE SPEAKER, MR. BABICH. GOOD MORNING. YOU'RE DOING THIS BEFORE THE PRESENTATION. YOU WERE LISTED TO ME AS SPEAKING. DOESN'T MATTER. COMMENT DOESN'T MATTER. PETE BABICH, LONG TIME POWAY RESIDENT AND D2 RESIDENT. I THINK THIS IS EITHER MY FOURTH OR FIFTH TIME SPEAKING ON THIS SUBJECT ABOUT APPOINTMENTS VERSUS ELECTIONS. AND SO I JUST WANT TO SAY, FIRST OF ALL, ELECTIONS ARE A COST OF DOING BUSINESS FOR A DEMOCRACY. YES, SOMETIMES THEY'RE MESSY. SOMETIMES YOU DON'T GET THE ANSWER YOU WOULD LIKE. BUT COST IS SHOULD NEVER BE A REASON TO APPOINT OVER HOLDING A SPECIAL ELECTION. A SPECIAL ELECTION COSTING $1 MILLION WOULD ONLY BE LESS THAN 4% OF THE GENERAL FUND RESERVE. AND IF YOU TOOK ALL OF THE RESERVES, IT WOULD BE LESS THAN 1.3%. SO COST IS NOT AN ISSUE, RIGHT? WE CAN COVER THAT WITH OUR RESERVE FUNDS. THE OTHER ISSUE IS REPRESENTATION. YES, IT'S NICE IF MY COUNCIL MEMBER AND MY DISTRICT LIVES IN MY AREA, DRIVES THE SAME ROADS, SHOPS AT THE SAME STORES. BUT QUITE FRANKLY, I COULD TALK TO ANY OF YOU ABOUT AN ISSUE I HAVE. AND SO I'M NOT WORRIED ABOUT A VACANCY RIGHT NOW THAT WE URGENTLY HAVE TO HAVE SOMEBODY THERE. SO I ABSOLUTELY ENCOURAGE YOU TO NOT GO BACK ON YOUR PINKY SWEAR. HOLD THE ELECTION, SPECIAL ELECTION, AND LET'S MAKE SURE THAT, IN FACT, IN FACT, MY OWN VIEW, I WOULD ONLY HOLD A SPECIAL ELECTION FOR THE MAYORAL SEAT IN THE LAST YEAR OF THE TERM, AND IT WOULD BE FOR THE FOUR REMAINING COUNCIL MEMBERS TO SELECT THE MAYOR FOR THE TEMPORARY TERM. AND THEN WE'D HOLD A SPECIAL ELECTION FOR THE OTHER ONE. SO I ENCOURAGE YOU TO GO FORWARD ON THIS PROPOSAL. LET'S HOLD A SPECIAL ELECTION. LET THE APPLICANTS NOT HAVE TO FIND THREE OF YOU TO DECIDE WHO TO VOTE FOR, BUT GO OUT AND TALK TO ALL OF US. SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MAYOR VOSS, FOR ACTUALLY PROPOSING THIS. AND THANK YOU. AND LET'S GO FORWARD WITH THE SPECIAL ELECTION. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. PETE. WE [1. Discussion and Possible Action to Fill City Council Vacancy] WILL MOVE TO THE STAFF REPORT DISCUSSION. POSSIBLE ACTION TO FILL CITY COUNCIL VACANCY. CITY ATTORNEY ALAN FENSTERMACHER WILL PRESENT THE ITEM. ALAN, TAKE IT AWAY. GOOD MORNING. WE'LL KEEP IT BRIEF SO WE HAVE A VACANCY IN THE DISTRICT TWO SEAT THAT IS EFFECTIVE ON NOVEMBER 5TH. AND AS WE KNOW, WE'RE GENERAL LAW CITY. SO WE'RE, YOU KNOW, CONSTRAINED BY THE GOVERNMENT CODE, WHICH TELLS US THAT WITHIN 60 DAYS, THE CITY HAS TO APPOINT OR CALL A SPECIAL ELECTION TO FILL THE SEAT. AS AS REFERENCED, IN APRIL, THE CITY COUNCIL ADOPTED A RESOLUTION THAT ANY VACANCIES OCCURRING WITHIN THE FIRST 18 MONTHS OF A TERM WOULD BE FILLED BY SPECIAL ELECTION. SO WE'RE AT 11 MONTHS, SO THAT WOULD QUALIFY. SO STAFF'S ASSUMING THERE WILL BE A SPECIAL ELECTION SO THAT THE THE HAS TO BE CALLED, LIKE I SAID, WITHIN THE NEXT 60 DAYS NOT OCCUR, BUT THE ELECTION HAS TO BE CALLED. AND THEN ONCE [00:05:02] IT'S CALLED, IT HAS TO BE AT THE FIRST REGULARLY ESTABLISHED ELECTION DATE. THAT IS NOT LESS THAN 114 DAYS FROM THE CALL OF THE ELECTION. THE ELECTIONS CODE IS JUST A LOT OF MATH. SO IF IT WAS CALLED TODAY, THAT WOULD BE THE APRIL 14TH, 2026 ELECTION DATE. IF IT WAS CALLED ANYTIME AFTER DECEMBER 20TH, THAT WOULD BE THE JUNE 2ND, 2026 ELECTION, WHICH IS THE STATEWIDE PRIMARY DATE. THERE IS ALSO I THINK WE TALKED ABOUT THIS BEFORE. THERE'S A SMALL CITY ALL MAIL OPTION THAT WOULD BE MAY 5TH, 2026 IF. BUT THE CITY COUNCIL WOULD ALSO HAVE TO ADOPT ANOTHER RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THAT WHICH IS NOT CURRENTLY AUTHORIZED IN THE CITY. SO THOSE ARE YOUR OPTIONS. STAFF'S JUST LOOKING FOR DIRECTION. WE DON'T HAVE A RESOLUTION TO CALL THE ELECTION HERE TODAY. SO WE'RE LOOKING FOR DIRECTION ON WHAT TO BRING BACK AND WHEN. SO THAT'S IT. THANK YOU. THANKS, ALAN. I'LL KICK THINGS OFF. EXCUSE ME. FIRST OF ALL, DIDN'T EXPECT TO BE HERE THIS SOON. WE THOUGHT WE WOULD BE WAITING FOR THE CERTIFICATION IN DECEMBER FROM THE REGISTRAR OF VOTERS. BE THAT AS IT MAY, WE MADE A COMMITMENT BACK IN APRIL THAT IF WE HAD A VACANCY IN THE FIRST 18 MONTHS OF A TERM, WE WOULD HOLD A SPECIAL ELECTION. I WILL NOT BACK DOWN ON THAT COMMITMENT. I BELIEVE A SPECIAL ELECTION IS A WAY TO GO, BECAUSE THAT PERSON SELECTED WILL BE ABLE TO FULFILL THE BALANCE OF THE TERM, WHICH WOULD BE ANOTHER ROUGHLY THREE YEARS OR TWO AND A HALF YEARS BY THE TIME ALL IS SAID AND DONE. I DO FEEL LIKE WE NEED MORE INFORMATION FROM THE REGISTRAR, AND THIS IS A TOUGH TIME OF YEAR TO GET INFORMATION. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW THE COST OF A APRIL SPECIAL ELECTION. THAT WOULD JUST BE US. I'M NOT REALLY INTERESTED IN A MALE ONLY ELECTION. I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO KNOW THE COST OF AN ELECTION WHERE IT IS CONSOLIDATED WITH THE STATEWIDE PRIMARY. I SUSPECT THERE ARE SOME SAVINGS TO BE HAD THERE, AND THERE ARE ONLY SIX WEEKS BETWEEN THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF BOTH OF THOSE ELECTIONS, SO I DON'T SEE THE TIMING AS BEING A MAJOR FACTOR. SO THAT'S THE WAY I'M LEANING. BUT I LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING MY COLLEAGUES THOUGHTS. WHO WOULD LIKE TO GO FIRST? MR. VICKERS? I HAD A FEW QUESTIONS AND THEN I WILL GIVE SOME COMMENTS. BUT FIRST OF ALL, IF YOU'RE SAYING THAT IF A RESOLUTION COMES IN ONE OF THE MEETINGS BEFORE DECEMBER 20TH, THEN EVEN IF WE WANTED A JUNE ELECTION DATE, WE'D HAVE WE'D BE FORCED TO HAVE THE APRIL 1ST. YEAH, CORRECT. TO HAVE THE JUNE DATE, YOU'D HAVE TO ACTUALLY CALL THE ELECTION AFTER AFTER DECEMBER 20TH. AND WE HAVE NO REGULARLY SCHEDULED MEETINGS UNTIL JANUARY, SOMETHING LIKE 14TH AFTER THAT. SO IT'D HAVE TO BE A SPECIAL MEETING, WHICH WOULD BE MORE THAN 60 DAYS FROM NOW. SO YEAH, WE'D HAVE TO HAVE A SPECIAL MEETING FOR THAT. OKAY. THAT MAKES THAT. AND WE DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH EITHER ONE OF THESE COSTS, I TAKE IT. BUT WHEN YOU'RE A STAFF REPORT SAID LOW TO MID SIX FIGURES, ARE YOU TALKING 100 TO 150,000 OR 400 TO 600,000. I THINK THAT'S THAT'S AMBIGUOUS I THINK YEAH, I MEAN AT THIS POINT WE'RE I'M JUST I BASE THAT ON PREVIOUS, YOU KNOW, 150 TO 300,000 TYPE ESTIMATES WE'VE GOTTEN. WE JUST DON'T KNOW. AND I AND I, I WOULD ASSUME THE JUNE ELECTION IS CHEAPER, BUT I DON'T KNOW BY HOW MUCH. AND THAT'S JUST A PURE ASSUMPTION. WE DID WE DID ASK THE ROV. BUT IN TALKING TO KERRY, I DON'T THINK WE'RE GOING TO GET A RESPONSE UNTIL THEY'RE DONE COUNTING ALL THE VOTES FROM THIS ELECTION AND THEY'RE STILL WORKING ON. OKAY. SO YEAH. AND NOW FOR MY OPINION DISCUSSION. BASICALLY, I WOULD PREFER THE EARLIER DATE ONLY BECAUSE IT'S GOING TO TAKE 30 DAYS AFTER THAT BEFORE THE REGISTRAR CERTIFIES THE RESULTS. AND I THINK AT TWO MONTHS EXTRA FOR DISTRICT TWO MIGHT BE WORTH A LITTLE EXTRA A LITTLE EXTRA MONEY. SO BUT IF IT'S A BIG DIFFERENCE IN COST BECAUSE YEAH, WITH THE JUNE 2ND ELECTION, THEY WON'T BE ACTUALLY SITTING ON THIS COUNCIL UNTIL MID-JULY. SO THAT'S WHY I'D LEAN TOWARDS THE APRIL 1ST. BUT COST IS AN ISSUE. HOWEVER, AS MR. I THINK BABICH HAD POINTED OUT, COST SHOULDN'T BE OUR PRIMARY MOTIVATION, BUT IT IS NICE TO GET VALUE FOR OUR MONEY. SO THAT'S ALL I HAD. JENNY. ANYTHING. I'M LEANING TOWARDS THE JUNE DATE, BUT I'M NOT TOTALLY MARRIED TO THAT. I JUST FEEL LIKE IT WOULD BE THE LOWEST COST WITH THE HIGHER HIGHEST VOTER TURNOUT. AND WE'VE BASICALLY BEEN PICKING UP COUNCIL MEMBER SLACK ALL YEAR, SO IT'S NOT A HUGE DIFFERENCE. WE'LL STILL CONTINUE TO TAKE THE CONCERNS OF DISTRICT TWO RESIDENTS, JUST LIKE PETE MENTIONED. AND. YEAH, DEL MAR IS GOING TO BE WITHOUT ONE [00:10:05] OTHER COUNCIL MEMBERS FOR TWO YEARS AND FOUR MONTHS. SO EITHER WAY, WE'RE DOING BETTER THAN THEY ARE. MR. DEHOFF. THANK YOU. ACTUALLY, I SPOKE TO FORMER DEL MAR REPRESENTATIVE. THEY'RE HAVING A LOT OF TROUBLE THERE WITH THAT SPLIT COUNCIL. I'VE ACTUALLY A QUESTION BASED ON ONE OF PETE'S COMMENTS HERE. SO PETE HAD TALKED ABOUT DOING AN APPOINTMENT AND I WAS WONDERING, WE HAD MADE A COMMITMENT, AND I INTEND TO FOLLOW THROUGH WITH THAT COMMITMENT FOR THE TECHNICAL MEASURE, DOES OUR COMMITMENT, YOU KNOW, CONTRAVENE STATE LAW IN THAT IN THAT RESPECT, THE CITY WOULD HAVE TO RESCIND THE RESOLUTION. BUT OTHER THAN THAT, YEAH. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. AND I ACTUALLY MENTIONED THAT BECAUSE I SPOKE WITH A NUMBER OF ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES AT A MEETING RECENTLY. AND WE TALKED ABOUT THE ELECTION BECAUSE IT WAS, YOU KNOW, ON EVERYONE'S MIND. AND WHEN THEY ASKED WHAT THE NEXT STEPS WERE, YOU KNOW, I TOLD THEM, WE'RE GOING TO DECIDE ON FRIDAY OR TALK ABOUT IT ON FRIDAY. AND WITHOUT FAIL, EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM SAID, OH, SO YOU'RE GOING TO DO A SPECIAL ELECTION? BECAUSE THAT WAS THAT'S THE THAT'S THE DEFAULT. THAT'S WHAT EVERYBODY DOES. I'M SORRY. THAT'S WHAT I MEANT. I'M AT MY APOLOGIES. I MEANT TO SAY APPOINTMENT THERE BECAUSE EVERYBODY DOES AN APPOINTMENT. THANKS FOR THE CORRECTION. AND SO WHAT I THINK, YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE GOING TO DO A SPECIAL ELECTION, I'M LEANING TO A SPECIAL ELECTION. YOU KNOW, THAT'S GOING TO BE UNUSUAL. BUT I THINK IT'S IT'S A MATTER OF THE IMPORTANCE OF, YOU KNOW, KEEPING YOUR WORD AS A COUNCIL, YOU KNOW, AS A LEADER. AND WE MADE THAT COMMITMENT BACK IN APRIL. AND I INTEND TO FOLLOW THROUGH WITH THAT. IN TERMS OF THE DATE OF THE ELECTION, YOU KNOW, I AGREE THAT THE JUNE ELECTION WOULD PROBABLY HAVE BETTER ENGAGEMENT. I DON'T HAVE ANY INFORMATION ON THE COSTS, AND I DO THINK THE COSTS ARE IMPORTANT. SO I DO THINK WE NEED TO GET GET SOME INFORMATION BACK ON THAT SO WE CAN MAKE A, YOU KNOW, MAKE A FULLY INFORMED DECISION. SO I'M GLAD THAT COUNCIL MEMBER MEAD AND DEPUTY MAYOR DAYHOFF MADE THE POINT ABOUT ENGAGEMENT IN A JUNE ELECTION, TYPICALLY SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER PARTICIPATION THAN A SPECIAL ELECTION. AND I THINK THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT, ESPECIALLY IF IT COMES WITH SOME COST SAVINGS. AND AGAIN, THE CERTIFICATION WOULD ONLY BE SIX WEEKS AFTER AN APRIL ELECTION CERTIFICATION. BUT I THINK IT'S CLEAR WE ALL WANT TO HEAR MORE FROM STAFF ONCE THEY HEAR MORE FROM THE REGISTRAR. SO I WOULD MAKE A MOTION TO CONTINUE THIS ITEM FOR FURTHER DISCUSSION. ONCE WE HAVE THAT ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, AND I WOULD SAY WE SHOULD HAVE IT BY OUR DECEMBER 16TH REGULAR MEETING, WHICH WOULD THEN BE BEFORE THE CUT OFF FOR THE CITY COUNCIL COULD MAKE A DECISION. LOOKING FOR A SECOND FOR THAT MOTION. SECOND, FROM DEPUTY MAYOR DE HOFF. THIS IS A ROLL CALL VOTE. WILL THE CITY CLERK PLEASE CALL THE ROLL COUNCIL MEMBER MEAD. AYE. COUNCIL MEMBER PIKUS I. DEPUTY MAYOR DE HOFF I AND MAYOR VOS. AYE. ITEM PASSES. THANK YOU. WITH THAT, WE ARE DONE. THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.