Unplanned opening on the planning commission

New Encinitas needs a new voice on the city’s Planning Commission as Ruben Flores, a commissioner since 2014, has stepped down for personal reasons.

According to Encinitas Deputy Mayor Lisa Shaffer, Flores felt he could not continue due to a demanding new job. He was named the director of commercialization for UC San Diego’s Office of Innovation and Commercialization in March.

Fellow planning commissioner Tasha Boerner Horvath, who represents Old Encinitas, is sorry to see Ruben go, but says this is an great opportunity for someone from New Encinitas to step up and make a difference.

“Ruben has been a role model to me because of his intelligence and sound judgement,” Boerner Horvath told the Encinitas Advocate. “Getting somebody like Ruben will be really hard. It’s important, especially for New Encinitas, to have a planning commissioner who really understands the area.

“Ruben was a strong champion for community character.”

The unscheduled vacancy leaves the city looking for an applicant who lives in New Encinitas to fill the reminder of the term, which ends in March 2017. Applications are due by June 30.

Members of the Encinitas Planning Commission meet on the first and third Thursday of each month to make final determination on applications such as Coastal Development, Conditional Use Permits, Tentative Tract Map, Zoning Code Interpretation, projects in more than one community planning area. The Commission also makes recommendations to the city council on issues such as General Plan interpretation and amendment, Zoning Code amendment and Zoning Map amendment, among others.

Interested citizens, who are registered to vote in the city of Encinitas, can apply online at www.encinitasca.gov. Physical applications may be picked up at the City Clerk’s Office at 505 South Vulcan Ave. or obtained by email by sending a message to khollywood@encinitasca.gov.