Efforts by the Poway City Council to fill an open seat on Tuesday night led to a vote to appoint Christopher Pikus to the seat and several calls from residents for the resignation of Council member Tony Blain.
While a majority of the speakers at the meeting ed a special election for the open seat on District 1, the council voted 3-2 in favor of appointing Pikus, a master engineer at Broadcom and member of the Poway Budget Review Committee from 2022-24. Out of six candidates who applied for the position, five of them made presentations at the meeting.
Council member Peter De Hoff complimented Pikus on his resume, which he said included a law degree, engineering background, and understanding of the budget process.
“Everyone has different skill sets that they bring to the table,” De Hoff said before recommending Pikus to fill the vacancy. “District 1 needs someone who can onboard quickly and who understands water rates and budgets.”
Pikus will serve until his term ends after the November 2026 general election.
New council Jenny Maeda and Blain voted against the appointment.
Blain came under fire Tuesday over accusations of bribery and extortion over several emails he sent, which were included in the agenda. In one email to De Hoff, Blain threatened De Hoff with a recall effort if he did not vote in favor of a special election for the open seat.
In another, he said he would vote yes for De Hoff to become deputy mayor in exchange for De Hoff voting “yes” for a special election.
De Hoff, Mayor Steve Vaus and others said Blain’s emails appear to violate state law, which prohibits bribery to public officials in exchange for votes.
“I cannot see this as anything other than vote trading and extortion by a public official,” De Hoff said. “This is unprecedented and unacceptable.”
Speaker Yuri Bohlen said the process of deciding between an appointment or special election was “overshadowed by the unethical behavior of Tony Blain.” Bohlen asked him to resign.
In an interview before the meeting, Blain said the accusations against him were “all politically motivated, false lies.”
“There’s nothing going on except for my attempt to be cooperative and work with City Council ,” Blain told The San Diego Union-Tribune.
He didn’t comment directly on the accusations during the meeting.
Vaus said before the meeting that “the appropriate steps have been taken” regarding Blain. “I have full confidence in our legal system and our (district attorney’s) office,” he said.
Later, De Hoff made a motion to discuss formally censuring Blain at the Feb. 4 City Council meeting, which was backed by other council .
The open council seat has been a topic of controversy since Council member Brian Pepin, who represents District 1, announced in late November that he would be reg to focus on his political and communications consulting company, 1892 LLC.
The council voted unanimously Dec. 3 to replace Pepin by appointment instead of holding a special election, with council saying an appointment would be quicker and less expensive than an election.
The San Diego County Registrar of Voters estimated it would cost $225,000 to $300,000 for a standard special election, and $150,000 to $225,000 for an all-mail election, according to a staff report. At the earliest, an in-person and by-mail special election could be held on Nov. 4, and an all-mail election could be held on Aug. 26, according to the report.
At several meetings, residents have demanded a special election, saying the council has made three appointments since 2015 and that the people should have a say.
On Tuesday, 11 residents spoke in favor of a special election and 22 written submissions ed the election.
Hiram Soto, who ran for council against Pepin in 2022, told the council that he believes the council majority wants the appointment to keep control of the council.
Melissa Morris said a special election would build public trust. Appointments are not the way democracy is defined, she said.
Morris also said that the large audience at the council meeting was evidence of the desire for public participation in government.
She asked the council that if they appoint a new council member that it be a temporary appointment and a special election should also be held “so people can approve or disapprove of your choice.”
Anita Anders, a 20-year resident of Poway, however, favored a council appointment. Anders said a special election could be costly and District 1 needs immediate representation.
“Let’s choose one candidate who is qualified and let’s get on with the business of running a city,” Anders said.
The city started accepting applications from potential candidates to fill Pepin’s vacant seat on Dec. 4 and had received six by the Jan. 10 deadline.
The candidates were Pikus; Gregg Brandalise, owner and founder of Blindfold Studios, a Poway-based company that produces voice-over recordings; John Carson, a self-employed businessman who serves on the boards of a number of Poway organizations; Hannah Mondo, founder and owner of the creative communications business, Mondo Creative, and a former legislative aide; Peter James Neild, an employee of Mind Rhythm Inc. and founder, CEO and president of Heart Force Science Group; and Ronald Allan Romero, an author and editor. Romero was not at the meeting.
When Pikus took his place at the dais after his appointment, he said he intends to listen to the constituents and follow in the footsteps of his role model, former Councilman Dave Grosch.
“It’s truly an honor to serve you,” Pikus told the audience. “I intend to put in effort to do justice to the position and serve the people of Poway.”
Pepin voted on the appointment after City Attorney Alan Fenstermacher denied a challenge from Soto and resident Chris Cruse, who argued that he shouldn’t participate because he and his family vacated their residence shortly after he submitted his resignation letter and rented it out on Jan. 15.
In other action, the council voted 3-2, with Blain and Maeda opposed, to name De Hoff as deputy mayor.
Near the end of the meeting, City Manager Chris Hazeltine told Blain that he has filed a complaint with the city’s Human Resources Department about his actions, which he said included “bullying, threatening, intimidating and retaliatory behavior.”
When Blain’s turn to speak came up at the council comment portion of the meeting, he would only say that Fenstermacher had “contributed thousands of dollars” to Vaus’ campaign in the past. A visibly angry Fenstermacher said in response that he did nothing legally wrong by contributing $500 to Vaus’ campaign for the county Board of Supervisors in 2020.
He said Blain had threatened to fire him a number of times and had sent him multiple emails demanding his resignation even though Fenstermacher said he had done his job and answered his questions “in great detail.”
“You are a bully. You ‘ve been harassing me for months and I’ve tried to be professional,” Fenstermacher said. “This is enough.”
He said he had considered reg.
“You are a walking liability that has consistently ignored my advice on numerous important issues and I take no responsibility for the legal trouble you will inevitably get this city into and have already gotten yourself into,” he said.
Fenstermacher said he would no longer answer emails from Blain unless directed by a majority of the council.
San Diego Union-Tribune staff writer Kristen Taketa contributed to this story
