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It has been just over three weeks since we declared a traffic safety emergency, and I want to start with a sincere thank you for making it a priority to be safe and courteous on the road, whether you’re biking, walking or driving. You may have noticed new banners on display throughout the city to remind all of us to share the road, slow down and create safer streets together.
Our team is hard at work on a long-term plan to address traffic safety, which we will present to City Council in just under two weeks on Tuesday, Sept. 27. Details on additional upcoming meetings plus these updates below:
- Moving forward on traffic safety and mobility
- South Carlsbad Boulevard projects
- Kitchen caddies available again for organic composting
- Carlsbad Police present preparation and policy for active shooter emergencies
- Environmental review of potential future housing sites
- Clean Energy Alliance update
- Find inspiration at Saturday’s Author Talk event
- Upcoming meetings
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Traffic safety update
We are continuing to implement the immediate actions presented to the City Council when it ratified our proclamation of local emergency Aug. 30.
- These are things we could advance immediately, such as increasing traffic enforcement, raising awareness of the rules of the road and other traffic safety information, and making bike lanes more visible.
- All fall under one of the “three Es” of traffic safety:
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On Tuesday, the City Council approved a project that will prioritize the implementation of dozens of projects contained in our Sustainable Mobility Plan, adopted by the City Council in January 2021.
- The City Council already accelerated several projects when approving this fiscal year’s budget.
- This project approved Tuesday includes developing a new approach to funding transportation infrastructure through something called a “multimodal impact fee.”
- Basically, this means instead of charging developers a fee based on cars, we would be able to collect development fees to help fund improvements in all the ways people travel around our city, like bike infrastructure and wider sidewalks.
Learn more.
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Update on south Carlsbad Boulevard projects
City staff shared an update at Tuesday’s City Council meeting on plans to protect a 1-mile stretch of south Carlsbad Boulevard from Manzano Drive to Island Way from future sea level rise while prioritizing walking and biking paths.
Three roadway designs are being evaluated through the grant-funded project. Right now, we are focused just on that 1-mile segment that is part of the sea level rise adaptation project. The city’s general plan identifies several priorities for the entire stretch of south Carlsbad Boulevard from Manzano Drive to La Costa Avenue. The long-term goal is to transform that segment of road to a coastal street with slower speeds, more space for biking, walking and gathering and more access to the beach.
Next steps
- City staff are working with those who live and have businesses along this section of south Carlsbad Boulevard to refine the options.
- The city is completing a traffic study for the 1-mile project and will present results to the Traffic & Mobility Commission by the end of the year.
- On Sept. 27, city staff will present a plan to change the striping on the southbound side of this 1-mile road segment, which will change the western-most lane to create more space for biking, walking and parking and leave one lane for traffic. This has been planned, but we moved up the timing due to our traffic safety emergency proclamation.
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Free kitchen caddies back in stock
Carlsbad residents who haven’t picked up a free kitchen caddy from Republic Services can do so at two events this month.
- These small containers can be used to store food scraps in the kitchen so you don’t need to take them out to your green compost bin several times a day.
- Republic Services will host two pick-up events and make them available at the Palomar Transfer Station, which is just north of Palomar Airport Road, off El Camino Real.
Friday, Sept. 16
8 a.m. to noon
Poinsettia Community Park
6600 Hidden Valley Road
Saturday, Sept. 24
8 a.m. to noon
Cole Library
1250 Carlsbad Village Drive
Monday - Saturday (ongoing)
8 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Palomar Transfer Station
5960 El Camino Real
Contact Republic Services directly to learn more at 760-332-6464 or carlsbadservice@republicservices.com.
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Carlsbad Police share preparation and policy for active shooter emergencies
Also at Tuesday’s City Council meeting, the City of Carlsbad Police Department detailed its in-depth approach and extensive training for a potential active shooter emergency.
- Shootings at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, underscore the importance of ongoing training, development and equipping of public safety personnel and the community.
- The Police Department has a policy that specifically addresses the response to active shooter incidents, directing officers responding to an active shooter incident:
“If a suspect is actively engaged in the infliction of serious bodily harm or other life-threatening activity toward others, officers should take immediate action.”
This policy is intended to ensure that department personnel understand their responsibility to intervene immediately to minimize the potential for loss of life. This important obligation and expectation of officers is reinforced through ongoing training. All officers have already completed at least eight hours of training, and some even more.
Learn more.
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Clean Energy Alliance year one report
Clean Energy Alliance Executive Director Barbara Boswell joined us at Tuesday’s City Council meeting to recap the first year of operations.
- The Clean Energy Alliance is a joint effort among several North County cities to purchase power from more renewable sources.
- That energy is then delivered to customers through the SDG&E infrastructure.
- Carlsbad, Del Mar and Solana Beach were founding members. Escondido, San Marcos, Vista and Oceanside have recently joined.
About nine out of 10 Carlsbad households are now purchasing their power through the Clean Energy Alliance.
Learn more.
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Environmental study for potential housing sites
Housing affordability remains an important priority for the City of Carlsbad.
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Our plan to promote the creation of more affordable housing, called the Housing Element Update, was approved by the state in 2021.
- One part of the plan involves rezoning certain properties to allow more housing units to be built.
- We worked with the community to choose potential sites, and the next step is to perform environmental studies.
- This analysis will help inform the final selection of sites.
Input opportunity
If you would like to provide input into the environmental impact analysis, there are three opportunities coming up:
In person meeting
Sept. 26, 6 p.m.
Faraday Administration Center
Virtual meeting
1635 Faraday Ave.
Sept. 28, 6 p.m.
Register online
Via mail or email through Oct. 14 to:
Scott Donnell, Senior Planner
City of Carlsbad
Planning Division
1635 Faraday Ave.
Carlsbad, CA 92008
Scott.Donnell@carlsbadca.gov
Learn more.
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Inspiring authors to speak at Dove Library
During a special author panel on Saturday at the Dove Library, three inspiring authors will share their stories of resilience and survival.
- They’ll touch on topics including the refugee experience, substance abuse, mental health struggles, poverty and trauma.
- The free event, presented in partnership with Adventures by the Book, will feature award-winning authors Shugri Said Salh, Jesse Leon and Jillian Haslam.
Voices of Inspiration
Saturday, Sept. 17, 2-3 p.m.
Schulman Auditorium
Carlsbad City Library
1775 Dove Lane
Free
Starting at 1 p.m., resource tables will be available in the Dove Courtyard from community groups including:
Learn more.
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Get involved: Upcoming meetings
The next City Council meeting will be held Sept. 27 at 5 p.m. in the City Council chamber. A link to the full agenda and staff reports will be available on the city’s website by the Friday before the meeting.
Meanwhile, these city meetings are planned next week:
- Sept. 19, 5:30 p.m. – Parks & Recreation Commission
- Sept. 20, 3 p.m. – Economic Development Subcommittee
- Sept. 21, 5 p.m. – Planning Commission
- Sept. 22, 5 p.m. – Growth Management Citizens Committee
Before I sign off, I’d like to thank you once again for helping to model safe driving, biking and walking practices. We are a community where people care for one another, and I can’t think of a more important way to demonstrate that than when we’re on the road.
Scott Chadwick
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