Many La Jolla residents have called for the Village to break off and become its own municipality for decades. But Cindy Greatrex, president of Independent La Jolla, the nonprofit civic organization dedicated to that cause, says it’s time to get serious. At an Aug. 12 La Jolla Town Council (LJTC) meeting where she addressed the crowd as a guest speaker, Greatrex cited dramatic growth and urban sprawl as reasons to reignite the group’s mission. “San Diego is now the 8th largest city in the U.S., with a population of more than 1.3 million,” Greatrex said at the meeting. “La Jolla has about 44,000 people. That’s a pretty quiet voice in a big place.” “It’s safe to say that not all of our needs are going to be met when we need them to be,” she added. Greatrex argued that fire, police and lifeguard services — as well as public schools — could be better managed on a local level. Also, she said, it would be easier to enforce local planning and development codes through the La Jolla Planned District Ordinance (PDO). “The idea is to separate, take care of ourselves and not have to go through the city for everything that needs to be done,” she said. Greatrex assured the audience that the plan was not just a pipe dream and explained that a clear path exists if the Village wants to secede. First, the measure would have to get on an election ballot, which could be accomplished by obtaining signatures on a petition from 25 percent of La Jolla’s registered voters. Once on the ballot, the measure would require approval from 50 percent-plus-one of San Diego voters. The Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO), a state organization dedicated to assisting with the formation of local governments, is also be involved in the process. Currently, Independent La Jolla is working with LAFCO to determine boundaries and create a map for the potential new city. “Out of the entire process, this is probably the longest part,” Greatrex said. “The mandate states that you cannot use existing maps, so you not only have to determine the boundaries of the 92037 ZIP Code, you have to create a topography of every street and alley in La Jolla.” Some audience members raised questions about whether the city of San Diego would be willing to let La Jolla — and its tax dollars — go. “We give a pretty decent amount of money to the city, but not as much as you would think,” Greatrex responded, noting that La Jolla generates a high amount in property taxes, but not from sales tax, hotel tax or public transportation. Still, La Jolla would be required to pay a revenue mitigation payment — comparable to alimony in a divorce case — of about $4.7 million per year to the city for anywhere from four to six years, Greatrex said. “This will take an enormous amount of advocacy,” Greatrex said. “But it can be done.” Greatrex estimated that the measure would not reach a ballot for another two years. Even if it does fail at that point, she said, there is still hope. “We simply start again the following year,” she said. Local residents interested in the cause are encouraged to attend Independent La Jolla meetings, held the third Wednesday of each month at 6 p.m. in the La Jolla Library, 7555 Draper Avenue. “We really want to hear your ideas, both what you want and don’t want to see happen,” Greatrex said. “So far, the feedback has been very positive.” To learn more, visit www.inde-pendentlajolla.org.