Councilman Dave Grosch and Colleagues Reflect on His First Year in Office

With more than enough required signatures collected to put a term-limits initiative on the November 2012 ballot, the sun has set quite nicely on Councilman Dave Grosch’s first year in office.

“It’s been lots of hours, lots of time,” said Grosch, who gathered 3,200 signatures with the help of several volunteers and will continue to before the Dec. 19 deadline. “It’s been a six-month effort.”

And though the word “fun” comes up often when he talks about his job, the outspoken Grosch still hasn’t swayed in his opinion.

“I’ve been on the Council one year and I can tell you that eight years is plenty,” he said. “I think having a turnover every eight years will be good for Poway. If it’s good enough for the president, it’s good enough for a Poway City Councilman.”

When he looks back on the past year, it’s not just the term limits initiative he remembers, but the personal relationships fostered with his constituents—a carryover from his nine-month grassroots campaign. 

Grosch says working for Poway has given him the opportunity to meet people he otherwise wouldn’t have, as well as reconnect with those he knew while his children were growing up. He says he’ll sometimes arrange to meet people at Starbucks and, though he hasn’t kept count, estimates that number is in the dozens.

“Sometimes I can help; sometimes they want me to listen. And I can do both,” he said. “I’ve met a lot of people through email. Usually I help them find out how to do X, Y and Z, and that’s an easy thing to do.”

A small-business proponent, Grosch says he’s attended nearly every monthly mixer hosted by the Chamber of Commerce. There he discusses the issues at hand with local business owners and “at least I let them know I’m there for them.”

Often, the issues relate to signage needs or the city’s permit process, such as recently when a customer of a local liquor store called because the owner needed assistance. After the situation was resolved, the Grosches met the caller and his spouse for coffee.

“And we just talked,” he said, adding how cool it was that the man was an animal trainer at the zoo. “Here he was saying, ‘Oh God, I’m talking to a City Councilmember’ and here I was saying, ‘Oh God, I’m talking to an animal trainer.’ ”

Grosch’s personal approach is a trait Councilwoman Merrilee Boyack has noticed, too.

“I’ve been impressed with his willingness to reach out to the people and go see their situations and try to help them,” said Boyack, who originally voted in favor of considering term limits, but doesn’t support the current measure because it stipulates a maximum of two terms.

Councilman Jim Cunningham agreed, saying that Grosch has “carried with him many of the same passions he had that convinced him to run for office ….”

Boyack says she is proud that Grosch has “kept the campaign promises that he has made,” a comment that not only applies to his term-limit efforts, but also his refusal to use the city’s monthly stipends during his tenure.

Grosch says he’s “always complained about” the city’s spending in that regard, and that he simply doesn’t require the combined $350 “need-it-or-not” car and cellphone allowance.  

“I don’t travel $300-a-month’s worth; Poway is not that big,” said Grosch, clarifying that he will instead submit a mileage report and did allow the city to buy the actual cellphone he uses for work. “We should get paid for our expenses—actual costs.”

Though he didn’t want to, he had to accept the city’s health insurance because his wife’s company won’t offer coverage for a spouse if they can secure their own through their employer.

Along with the issue of stipends, Grosch had to sort out the city’s rules and regulations, and Council protocol specifically.

“I know at first he struggled with the rules that we have to operate under,” Boyack said. “Those are very challenging and they don’t permit discussion or negotiation prior to a vote, and that takes some getting used to.”

Grosch, too, will admit that when asked what difference a year makes.

“Obviously, I have a better understanding of how the city works,” he said.

He also has a good understanding of the votes that go before Council, but that’s because he’s known for doing his homework and studying each case.

“He’s a hard worker,” Cunningham said. “He seems to earnestly want to research issues and meet the folks involved, get out on the street and see for himself what’s going on, which is a great attribute. And I think he enjoys it as well.”

And while he’ll continue to study each vote and respond to every email, Grosch says he’s looking forward to some downtime after the intensity of collecting petition signatures. He’ll start campaigning for term limits midyear, but for now it’s about time for his constituents, his family and that never-ending honey-do list.

“It’s nothing special,” he said of his house chores. “(My wife) works 40 hours a week; I don’t work 40 hours a week ... It’s fair. She cooks and I do a lot of other things.”