The La Jolla Recreation Center is one step closer to having a temporary bocce court installed, and its advisory board hopes work on the project will begin imminently.
San Diego Parks & Recreation Department area manager Rosalia Castruita told the La Jolla Community Recreation Group during its Jan. 27 meeting that she is “working on getting a few documents that have to be attached to the right-of-entry” permit application.
The right-of-entry permit will allow non-city employees to build the court, which is planned for city land on the Rec Center grounds along the Draper Avenue sidewalk.
Castruita said the documents must include a list of “any equipment that’s going to be used during the project” by the construction or landscape companies.
CRG Chairwoman Mary Coakley Munk said she would provide an equipment list.
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Coakley Munk said she’d like to get the temporary court, which has been in the works since fall 2017, “installed as soon as possible. We want to see how much use it would receive relative to whether it’s something we will incorporate in our future playground plans.”
“We’re hoping that can be installed in the next month or so at a time when people should be socially distancing yet hopefully getting out,” she added, referring to the COVID-19 pandemic. “It’s something that would be an appropriate activity under the circumstances.”
Castruita said “once the paperwork is submitted … it usually takes a month to a month and a half” for such a project to be completed. The paperwork will go through several city departments before the right of entry is approved, she said.
“I know it’s been months slash years,” Castruita said, “but everything needs to be in place in order to move forward. “We’re not there yet … but we’re getting very close. Thank you very much for your patience.”
Other CRG news:
Virtual Valentine’s craft: Recreation Center Assistant Director Brittany Mitchell said a virtual craft class to make a Valentine’s Day heart wreath will be held at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 10, for children ages 5-10, although “children outside that age are welcome to attend.” The class is free; participants must register at sdrecconnect.com with code 85292. Mitchell will reply with the meeting link and a list of supplies.
Rec Center still closed: Despite the state’s regional stay-at-home order being lifted Jan. 25, the Rec Center remains closed except for passive use of the grounds, Castruita said.
Recreation Center Director Jesse DeLille said “we’re also still allowed to permit out youth activities,” from which the Rec Center receives income via fees. Currently, a few youth basketball and soccer groups and an adult fitness class are using the Rec Center grounds, he said.
Pickleball continues to be popular, DeLille said, adding that “there are three consistent groups that come” to use the courts.
He said use of the pickleball courts, which are laid over the basketball courts, don’t interfere much with use of the basketball courts. “We haven’t had the need to put open play rules,” he said. “It’s just first come, first served. We haven’t had too many conflicts.”
If there are conflicts over use of the space, DeLille said, “we’d start to implement some type of schedule [and] put up signage to tell people of the schedule.”
Board election delayed to July: The CRG voted unanimously to delay the annual election of board officers, scheduled for this month, to July.
The motion was made “because there hasn’t really been an opportunity for people to be very involved,” Coakley Munk said, referring to the pandemic. She said the “hope [is] that by July, there will be a lot more to look at in terms of accomplishments and people will be more back in the swing of things.”
CRG member Jan Harris said “there probably needs to be some more continuity and things. It would be nice for people to just continue on in their roles for a few more months until things sort out a little bit.”
DeLille asked if delaying the election means that those voted in would serve six-month or 18-month terms. The regular officer term is a year.
“We’ll determine that a little closer to the time,” Coakley Munk said.
Next meeting: The Community Recreation Group next meets at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 24, online. For more information, call (858) 552-1658. ◆
