Given the number of Bird Rock-related projects coming down the pike — and some that already have been approved — members of the Bird Rock community intend to make their presence known at upcoming La Jolla planning group meetings.
Bird Rock Community Council members specifically plan to target meetings of the La Jolla Community Planning Association, which advises various San Diego city agencies on land-use matters.
They hope residents will attend those meetings in “mass numbers” to give their comments about Bird Rock-area development projects up for review and to seek reversal of an LJCPA decision supporting Adelante Townhomes, a project to build a two-story, 14-unit residential building.
Upcoming projects
At LJCPA’s June meeting, three Bird Rock-area projects were pulled from the consent agenda for full review at a future meeting. Items on the consent agenda typically are approved all at once without discussion.
The three developments intended for full review include one to remodel and add to a two-story house at 625 Wrelton Drive to make it three stories. Another is a plan to remodel a two-story house at 5960 Camino de la Costa with new back and side yard features and balconies. The other is a proposal to demolish a two-story house and build a new two-story house with an accessory dwelling unit at 5646 Chelsea St.
At the Bird Rock Community Council’s meeting July 12, board President Joe Terry encouraged Bird Rock residents to attend the August LJCPA meeting to state their opinions on those projects and eventually become LJCPA members.
“The more people we have from Bird Rock on the LJCPA, the more people we will have that represent us, the general community, rather than special interests,” Terry said.
LJCPA next meets at 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 3, at a location to be determined. The agenda (including the projects up for full review) will be posted 72 hours in advance at lajollacpa.org.
Adelante Townhomes
Similarly, Bird Rock Merchant Group member Craig Bender said he is asking residents to attend LJCPA meetings en masse to ask that it rescind its support of the Adelante Townhomes project.
LJCPA voted in favor of the proposal in May after months of local reviews.
Developer Murfey Co. is seeking a coastal development permit to demolish an office building and construct the townhomes building with a basement level, covered parking and roof decks at 5575 La Jolla Blvd., at Forward Street. The project would total 21,485 square feet. The 14 townhomes are to be offered for sale, with one unit considered affordable for low-income residents.
Because the project includes the affordable unit, Murfey Co. requested a waiver to a La Jolla Planned District Ordinance requirement that 50 percent of ground-floor space in new developments be reserved for retail in Zone 4, which includes La Jolla Boulevard.
The lack of ground-floor retail has been an issue of contention since the project was first proposed in November. In subsequent hearings, opponents have questioned whether waivers and incentives being used to bypass the retail requirement are being applied correctly.
The La Jolla Planned District Ordinance Committee determined in March that the project does not conform to the PDO. Nevertheless, LJCPA voted to support it two months later.
Bender said he wants Bird Rock residents to ask LJCPA to take back its approval.
Terry told the La Jolla Light that new questions have been raised about whether the project is compatible with San Diego Housing Commission requirements, plus questions about the vacancy rate on La Jolla Boulevard and more.
Other BRCC news
Fourth of July: Terry praised the annual Fourth of July parade in Bird Rock as a “great success” with hundreds of people in attendance.
“It was a fantastic event with amazing support,” Terry said. “The level of community involvement is one of the things that makes Bird Rock such a special place, and this was a good example of the community coming together to make something fun happen.”
The Beaumont Avenue Fourth of July Parade, organized by Murfey Co., was themed “Surfin’ USA” and encouraged residents to participate with non-motorized floats.
Lighting: Terry said the BRCC board is continuing its effort to better light the business district along La Jolla Boulevard to make it “safer and a better invitation” for patrons. In communications with applicable San Diego departments, ideas included putting lights in the street trees on the sidewalk and on the medians, he said.
To proceed with the project, “we need to know what types of tree lighting, such as up lighting, down lighting and/or string lighting on the tree trunks or limbs, [that the] Parks & Rec Department will approve,” Terry said. “Once we know the permissible alternatives, we will present them to the Bird Rock community in order to identify a preferred alternative and then pursue funding and city approval for that alternative.”
Next meeting: BRCC will not meet in August. Thus, the next meeting will be at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 5, at Bird Rock Elementary School, 5371 La Jolla Hermosa Ave. There also will be limited Zoom access. More information will be posted at birdrockcc.org. ◆
