Planning begins for Leucadia beautification

By: ADAM KAYE - Staff Writer
Residents asked to attend workshops | Saturday, February 16, 2008 11:44 PM PST ∞

ENCINITAS ---- Planning sessions for a multimillion-dollar improvement program on North Coast Highway 101 begin this week, and residents who long have waited for a beautified commercial strip are saying thank you ---- and it's about time.

"Leucadia's been promised some attention for a very long time," said Kevin Cummins.

Talked about for nearly 10 years, the beautification effort is planned for nearly two miles of the historic, tree-lined coastal route, from A Street north to La Costa Avenue.

Along that storied stretch, restaurants, art galleries, antique shops and motels stand shoulder to shoulder in an eclectic hodgepodge.

Generic, off-the-shelf development is frowned upon in this community of Encinitas, where English spiritualists are said to have settled in the late 1880s. An unofficial mantra appears on T-shirts and bumper stickers: Keep Leucadia Funky.

The city has hired consultants to collect comments from the community, and the information they gather this week is expected to someday translate into landscaping, meandering sidewalks and gathering spaces along the highway.

The $4.2 million project would work its way from south to north, with detailed planning and construction starting on the half-mile segment between A Street and North Court. A construction schedule has not been set.

Visions of a spruced-up commercial strip have tempted many community members since 2001, when the city completed the Downtown Encinitas StreetScape Program. Since then, however, city and state authorities have adopted flood-control and housing policies that some residents say might conflict with that vision.

'We listen first'
Community activists in Leucadia say they want a main drag that celebrates local history, is inviting for pedestrians and has plenty of trees and parking.

To make that happen, the city has hired a Solana Beach-based design firm, MW Peltz + Associates, to gather suggestions from the community and prepare designs.

Officials from the firm introduced themselves to the City Council last week.

Mike Nichols, project manager and a Solana Beach City Council member, told the council he hoped workshops will draw large numbers of residents ready to share their opinions.

He summarized how his firm would approach the project:

"We listen first," he said, "then start designing."

The listening will begin during a 6 p.m. workshop Thursday at Oak Crest Middle School, 675 Balour Drive.

A second workshop is set for 8:30 a.m. Saturday at City Hall, where participants will meet and ride a bus to the project area. The session will include a walking tour and brainstorming sessions.

In addition to the consultants from Solana Beach, a moderator who specializes in planning workshops will get people talking, Nichols said.

From Savannah to Waikiki
Contacted by telephone last week, Dan Burden said he flies all over the country ---- from Savannah, Ga., to Waikiki, Hawaii ---- to host planning workshops.

Every year, Burden said, he works with nearly 200 towns to develop what he called "walkable communities," where motorists and pedestrians can coexist peacefully.

Successful projects, he said, have plenty of public dialogue on the front end.

"If we don't work together, then we end up with results that nobody wants," Burden said. "If we agree upon the things we need most to protect and preserve, and we work together, then we end up with the things that give us a really bright vision for the future."

The evolution of a community can generate worry, which Burden said he addresses with an open and transparent process.

"Any time we fear change we end up with terrible things," Burden said. "We cannot use fear as a design tool."

Some community members, however, say they worry that city and state policies could hamper the effort to improve North Coast Highway 101.

Rethinking policies
One such local policy originates from the city's engineering department. It requires that the ground floor of buildings along flood-prone stretches of the highway be elevated up to three feet above the level of the sidewalk.

As a consequence, some buildings require stairways and ramps to reach the elevated front doors. That can be bad for business and can create visual clutter in the business district, some community members say.

That's something that consultants will need to look into during the new planning process, Planning Commissioner Tom McCabe said during a recent meeting.

Another policy that has angered residents originates from Sacramento.

The so-called "density bonus" law allows developers to build more homes on a lot than might normally be allowed if some of those homes are set aside for low-income people. Under the law, developers can sidestep city parking requirements and other local development standards.

Because of these policies, city officials should rethink the kinds of development permitted for downtown Leucadia, some activists said.

"What we don't want are strip malls and buildings built right up to the sidewalk," said Rachelle Collier, president of the Leucadia Town Council. "If we can do something where we fix the specific plan or modify the specific plan to go with the streetscape, that would be the ultimate."

If that can't happen, Collier said she hopes that plans for the highway at least leave plenty of room for trees. She was not alone in making a case to protect and enhance the signature tree canopy that overhangs stretches of the coast highway through Leucadia.

During the past year ---- to the dismay of community members ---- the city and North County Transit District alike have removed mature trees along the highway.

"For me, (it's) the canopy. We just have to have the canopy back," said Councilwoman Teresa Barth.

Contact staff writer Adam Kaye at (760) 901-4074 or akaye@nctimes.com.

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