It’s hard to believe in today’s red hot economy, but at least one part of La Jolla looks decidedly down on its luck. The Bird Rock area is surrounded by expensive homes and is a stone’s throw from the ocean, but its business district looks distinctly shabby. Several retail properties have been vacant for years and restaurants open and close on a regular basis. In the words of one resident, "If something is not done (to the business district) soon, the tone of the whole neighborhood could be adversely affected, including the value of nearby homes."
There are various opinions on what caused the decline of the business district. For years local merchants have wanted a beautification program to make the business district more attractive, but several plans floundered due to a lack of funding and leadership. Although the City of San Diego will fund storefront improvements, few owners have taken advantage of such grants. Some people have even called for the traffic lights at Forward to be replaced with stop signs, in the hope that slower traffic would translate into more business.
"Although the beautification and stop sign programs are great ideas, they don’t address the root of the problem," said Scott Peters, candidate for the District One seat on the City Council and veteran land use attorney. "The real problem goes back to poor planning and zoning decisions. Right now, there is little demand for retail and office use in Bird Rock, evidenced by the low rent, deferred maintenance and a dearth of new construction."
According to Peters, the area would significantly improve if zoning laws were changed to allow construction of attractive residential projects in place of some of the retail mandated by the current inflexible zoning laws. "Bird Rock only needs retail stores to serve local needs, like a corner grocery and convenience store, restaurants, coffee shops, dry cleaners, and the like. Right now, there are too many office stores and not enough customers," Peters added.
If Bird Rock’s business district cannot improve itself when times are good, is urban blight in La Jolla a possibility?
