Seven candidates are vying for six available seats in the La Jolla Community Planning Association’s upcoming board election.
The election will be held Thursday, March 4, with results announced at the board’s meeting that night. Board terms are three years.
A candidates forum was held during LJCPA’s Feb. 4 meeting online, with each candidate given the opportunity to make a brief statement. Formal statements have been posted on the LJCPA website, lajollacpa.org.
The slate of candidates ranges from the association’s current president to an architect, a refugee and more:
Zuzana Hostomska
Zuzana Hostomska
(Courtesy)
An admitted “new kid on the block” in community planning, Hostomska said she has lived in La Jolla since the mid-1980s and is a retired scientist.
“I came from a refugee camp in Austria where an AIDS epidemic was raging in that time. I joined a small start-up aimed at finding a treatment for AIDS. … Today’s pandemic reminds me a lot of those days,” she said. “I raised my children in La Jolla, driving between schools, labs and my office.”
She said she attended LJCPA meetings and was impressed with the “focus, knowledge, dedication of all the trustees.”
Issues that caught her attention were the 30-foot building height limit, short-term vacation rentals and lack of park spaces, she said. “I know how to address projects and programs. My simple motivation is to protect La Jolla from negative pressures and provide a beautiful place for future generations.”
Diane Kane
The 18-member board’s current president, who is up for re-election, said she has lived in La Jolla since 1995 and has been involved in community service since her junior high school days in Ohio.
“I got involved with LJCPA through the Development Permit Review subcommittee, which I joined right after I retired. I have been a member of that committee for 11 years,” Kane said. “I am completing my first term as president, and if you feel I have done a decent job, please re-elect me for another term of office.
“In the last year, we have accomplished quite a lot with subcommittees. I’ve been trying to clean up a lot of the vexing issues that continually annoy a lot of people in La Jolla. We put together a Planned District Ordinance update committee for La Jolla Shores and that has been submitted to the city. … We did some code compliance with DPR and continuing that this year.”
Claude-Anthony Marengo
Claude-Anthony Marengo
(Courtesy)
Marengo, a principal with Marengo Morton Architects in La Jolla, where he grew up, is a past LJCPA trustee and served on some of its subcommittees.
“I love playing with the code,” he said. “With the economic change we are going through and the antiquated codes we are using and the changes the city is going through, it’s good to have a voice from someone that deals with the city all the time. Their process is difficult right now, and as much as we have had a learning curve in hosting meetings on Zoom … the city is [having more difficulty]. I would love to share my perspective and give some diversity to LJCPA and help in the transition for a new future that we are going to see in our retail market and residential zones.”
Glen Rasmussen
Rasmussen, a retired attorney and a La Jolla resident since 1971, said he has two grown children who went to La Jolla schools.
“I’ve been on LJCPA about five separate times,” he said. “My last term ended in 2019 due to a medical issue. I’ve served on the PDO Committee and several other joint committees, I’m a past LJCPA vice president and past president of the [La Jolla] Town Council and the Kiwanis Club” and was once a business owner in Windansea.
“I try to listen to all points of view and make the best decision that I can on complex issues,” he added.
Jodi Rudick
With 20 years of formal public service, Rudick, executive director of the La Jolla Village Merchants Association and a Coastal Access and Parking Board member, said she would bring to LJCPA “a passion for seeing La Jolla become this vibrant, active, energized community.”
“I was a parks and recreation commissioner for the city of Oceanside and Carlsbad; I have experience working with communities all over the country,” she said. “I am proud of the fact that I have been to all 50 states and have had a chance to work in all 50 states. I am a park and recreation advocate. … La Jolla has magnets in the form of its natural resources [and] marine life, and I love using those resources to help attract people to our Village.”
John Shannon
Shannon, who is running for re-election, said he “never intended to be so deeply involved in community boards, groups and committees. However, my natural curiosity and belief that it does matter pulled me into service some 20 years ago.”
He currently serves on LJCPA, La Jolla Parks & Beaches, La Jolla Shores Association, PDO and DPR committees and Vision La Jolla.
“My nature is that I look at the big picture. I enjoy the community and identifying opportunities, anticipating and solving problems,” said Shannon, who moved to La Jolla in 1982 to attend UC San Diego. “I actively support walkable communities, locally owned small businesses and park and beach accessibility.”
Brian Will
The current Development Permit Review Committee chairman was not present to read his statement, but it reads: “There are a number of challenges that face our community and not the least of which is navigating a complex and often self-contradicting municipal code. As such, I think it is critical that the CPA include one or more design/construction professionals among its trustees. Further, I believe we need to bring vitality back to The Village and that we need to protect the charm of our seaside and single-family neighborhoods. We have to make walkability and livability a priority again. La Jolla is so much more than just a day trip for San Diego tourists.”
Will, an engineer and architect, said he was born and raised in La Jolla and previously served two terms as an LJCPA trustee.
To vote in the election, LJCPA members must have attended at least one meeting in the 12 months up to and including the February 2021 meeting. Learn more at lajollacpa.org/about/elections/2021-elections. ◆
