The La Jolla Community Planning Association is collecting ideas from residents about topics the board should be looking into as it tries to bring broader and more policy-based discussions to its monthly meetings.
Some of the topics raised at the group’s meeting June 6 were speed limits, historic preservation, tourism, La Jolla’s commercial district and others.
“I feel that, rather than discussing this house or that e-bike or whatever, this would be a good time for the public and the trustees to … look at what we should talk a little more about in the future … rather than just respond to the city or state when these things arise,” said LJA President Harry Bubbins.
He added that items would be researched and added to future agendas based on timeliness.
One suggestion was to have La Jolla be a participant in a study underway under Assembly Bill 43, which gives municipalities the authority to reduce speed limits on roads contiguous to a business district and others that are deemed particularly unsafe for pedestrians and bicyclists. They already were authorized to lower the speed limit in school zones.
“We need to focus on making sure our community is part of the study so we get the corridors that are deemed eligible for these slowing programs,” said area resident Kathleen Neil.
With the recent addition of the La Jolla Park Coastal Historic District to the National of Historic Places, La Jolla resident Diane Kane recommended the board discuss how to maintain the area.
“I think it’s important going forward for this precious resource to have maintenance, because we seem to have a problem getting things regularly maintained,” Kane said. “We could develop a plan for things like how often trees should be trimmed or how often things need to be repainted … and give it to [San Diego] Parks & Rec.”
Others suggested looking at La Jolla’s downtown area and how it is affected by tourism and whether vacant parcels are being used in the best way.
LJA trustee Dan Courtney wanted to discuss the evolving issue of single-family housing used for mental health services in light of a house in La Jolla Shores being used by the Mental Health Center of San Diego.
Trustee Joe Terry continued to request creation of a checklist for the board to use when reviewing projects.
La Jolla Shores resident Janie Emerson recommended that LJA do something along the lines of the March 14 La Jolla Town Council “One Voice” forum, which invited local leaders to speak about their organizations.
“It looks like we’ll have a full slate of policy items for the next few months,” Bubbins said.
He added that he would reach out to applicable city and state agencies for additional resources.
Other LJA news
Consent agenda: Two projects were removed from the board’s consent agenda, which lists decisions of applicable subcommittees and typically is ratified all at once without discussions or presentations. Those two items will be heard in full during a future meeting.
One involves two properties at 5970 and 5990 Camino de la Costa in Lower Hermosa. The home at 5970 would be remodeled and the one at 5990 would be demolished to make room for a guesthouse and subterranean garage. Terry pulled it from the consent agenda because of concerns over views and treatment of trees.
The other is a project that would demolish a 3,500-square-foot house and build an approximately 8,000-square-foot house at 2352 Calle del Oro. The project would include two stories with a 350-square-foot roof deck. Landscaping would be added. It was pulled from the consent agenda on the urging of Emerson, citing concerns about code compliance.
Board seat: A special election to fill a trustee vacancy will be held in August. So far, only one candidate has come forward, but a candidates forum is scheduled for LJA’s July meeting.
To find out about running for the seat, visit lajollaa.org.
Next meeting: Given the Fourth of July holiday, LJA will next meet at 6 p.m. Thursday, July 11, at a location to be determined. Learn more at lajollaa.org.
