After eight years, the Children’s Pool Plaza project has come to fruition – and those responsible are throwing a wing ding to celebrate.On Sunday, Dec. 9, La Jolla Parks and Beaches and Casa de Mañana are co-hosting a celebration unveiling the new plaza.
The community celebration, unveiling plaza improvements in the 800 block of Coast Boulevard, will include music by broadcaster Ron Jones, the “Voice of La Jolla,” along with a display by youth services La Jolla librarian Angie Stava with an on-site book check out. There will also be a photo stand (boy and girl surfers with face space) for photos as well as free sugar-free Zollipops and an ice cream truck.
Spearheading the project was Phyllis Minick, a community activist and La Jolla Parks and Beaches member, who discussed what prompted to her take action.
“What it really was was just huge crowds, not only along the sidewalk but out in the street, strollers with babies and bicycles and cars pulling in and out,” said Minick. “At the time, the sidewalk in many places was only about 18-inches, and now in some places that’s been widened to eight feet. It was dangerous (then) and ugly.”
Walkway improvements envisioned a vastly improved pedestrian flow along Coast Walk, double-seat walls, shade trees, repairs to the existing gazebo, the addition of interpretive/historical/educational signage and use of native plants on the bluffs to control erosion.
Asked if it was all worth it, Minick said the proof is in the end result.
“It’s a much-beloved, much-visited area,” she noted, adding, “It’s one of the most-visited places in San Diego.”
Minick said a total of $280,000 was raised privately for the plaza project, while pointing out the City took over the project about mid-way through the process.
The La Jolla Merchants Association was one of four major civic organizations along with LJPB, La Jolla Town Council and La Jolla Community Planning Association that supported plaza improvements, voting for the plaza project as their top choice for local park improvements.
“As a result, the City Council provided funds in two consecutive budget periods to build this project,” said Minick. “Most importantly, a new bronze plaque bearing names of all major donors is now in place for permanent viewing. When you visit the site, you can find the plaque embedded in a boulder alongside a seating wall toward the north end of the plaza. Additionally, a large sign names all contributors of both funding and services,” Minick said. Children’s Pool Plaza community celebration What:?La Jolla Parks and Beaches and Casa de Mañana are co-hosting a community celebration unveiling the plaza’s improvements in the 800 block of Coast Boulevard. When:?Sunday, Dec. 9 from 1 to 3 p.m.
