Village Lights, a Point Loma Association-sponsored project to improve lighting in the community’s “downtown,” will be dedicated with a free family-friendly community celebration titled “Light Up the Night” on May 9.
“This project has been in the works since 2018, so it is very gratifying to see it come to fruition,” said PLA board member, spokesperson, and local Realtor Beth Roach. “We had money granted from both the County and City. We also did a fundraising drive over the last several years with more than 250 people donating. Those donations will go toward plaques and pavers, which will commemorate donors and their family members and is a symbol of what Point Loma means to them.”
The centerpiece of this multi-phase project is a canopy of lights hung between Talbot, Canon, and Rosecrans streets. Four years ago, the Projects Committee of PLA had the vision to preserve a place of history on the Peninsula by creating the Village Lights.
“The lights will create a memorable experience for generations to come as they drive and walk beneath them, highlighting the village as a walkable, family-friendly, heart of the Point within the Peninsula,” said the PLA in a statement.
Previously, J.T. Barr, a landscape architect who chairs PLA’s projects committee, noted the new canopy lighting is somewhat of a departure from landscaped medians and public sculptures the group has worked on before. “We really wanted to be caring more about beautification, and having a greater vision, being able to dream big to show we can have more of a visible impact on the community,” he said. “This was an opportunity to showcase the Village by shining a light on it with festival lights strung across the street. We wanted to create a level of light and visibility that creates an ambiance, an experience of elegance and scale.”
The Village Lights project was seeded with a $60,000 grant from the County of San Diego through former supervisor Greg Cox’s office and $5,000 from the City through Council District 2.
More than 250 individuals and 30 businesses were sponsors of the Village Lights project, while engineering and design services were provided by DPR Construction, Schmidt Design Group, ELEN Consulting, Rick Engineering, BWE, and American Wiring.
“We look forward to the final lighting ceremony and the sparkle that it will bring to the community,” said Amy Hesselink, owner of La Playa Books.
The May 9 celebration will officially dedicate the Village Lights. At 5:30 p.m., there will be live music at the Point Loma Assembly building at 3035 Talbot St. hosted by First Friday Music Club, and at historic Jennings House Café, with musician Chris DeVito.
Guests can also pick up a passport and compete in a scavenger hunt for prize giveaways by touring local businesses open all evening.
At 7 p.m. festivities continue with a short program and mayoral proclamation for the Village Lights. Mayor Todd Gloria and County Supervisor Terra Lawson Remer are expected to attend.
Lastly, at 7:30 p.m., the lights will go on and the community will celebrate under the lights.
Since its founding in 1960, the PLA has worked diligently to enhance the quality of life for peninsula residents, businesses, and visitors through the implementation of strategic and impactful public space improvements.
For more information about the Light Up the Night event, visit PointLoma.org.
