Four candidates will compete for two Del Mar City Council seats on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

City Clerk Sarah Krietor certified the ballot on Sept. 14, according to a legal notice published in The Coast News. Listed in ballot order, the candidates are Planning Commissioner Meghan O. Spieker, former Finance Committee member Jeff Sturgis, incumbent Councilmember Terry Gaasterland and former Finance Committee member Jas Grewal.

Gaasterland is seeking a third term.

The second seat has been vacant since September 2024, when Councilmember Dwight Worden resigned due to health concerns, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported. The four remaining council members could not agree on an appointee or on whether to call a special election, leaving the seat open for nearly two years.

Grewal and Sturgis both applied for that appointment in 2024, according to the Union-Tribune. Spieker was appointed to the Planning Commission in January 2025 to replace Deputy Mayor John Spelich after he was elected to the council.

"I am a third generation Del Mar resident who cares deeply about our city and have been actively engaged in Del Mar's civic life for years," Sturgis said in his candidate statement, as reported by the Union-Tribune in August.

The San Diego County Registrar of Voters is scheduled to begin mailing vote-by-mail ballots the week of Oct. 5. The last day to register is Oct. 19.

Mail ballot drop-off locations, including the Del Mar Civic Center and Del Mar Branch Library, are open Oct. 8 through Nov. 3. Vote centers open on Election Day from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., with some locations opening up to 11 days earlier. Details are available at the city's election page and at sdvote.org.

Sandy Lane seawall hearing set for Oct. 13

Separately, the Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on a coastal development permit for 2940 Sandy Lane at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13, at Del Mar Town Hall, 1050 Camino del Mar.

The project, filed by Sandy Lane, LLC, would remove an existing rock revetment and seawall and replace them with a new seawall that meets current standards, according to the legal notice. The work is expected to return approximately 1,500 square feet of public sandy beach.

The Del Mar Design Review Board reviewed the project at its July 22 meeting, found it consistent with the city's Design Review Ordinance and recommended it advance to the Planning Commission, according to city records.

Residents who want to comment on the Sandy Lane project can attend the Oct. 13 hearing or submit written testimony to the Planning Commission beforehand.