Former 76 station on Pearl Street demolished; construction on new mixed-use building to start in January

After sitting in a dilapidated state for more than a year, the former 76 gas station at 801 Pearl St. in La Jolla was demolished Sept. 27 to make way for a mixed-use building.

Jerzy Secousse, president of the new owner, Newport Beach-based C3 Development, said crews would be onsite for the next week or two for clearing and cleanup work.

“Construction is not scheduled to start until January ... but we were able to secure a demolition permit now and thought the community would prefer an empty lot instead of an abandoned gas station for the next couple of months,” Secousse told the La Jolla Light.

Former owner David Bourne planned to build a 20,595-square-foot, two-story mixed-use building consisting of 26 residential units and two retail spaces on the former 76 service station site at 801 Pearl St. in La Jolla, as depicted in this rendering. New owner C3 Development says it plans essentially the same project.

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The building permit application, filed in July, indicates the property will be developed into a mixed-use building with retail spaces and residential units, plus parking and landscaping. It is the same project the La Jolla Community Planning Association approved in 2019.

At the time, LJCPA voted in favor of plans submitted by developer David Bourne to demolish the service station and build a 20,595-square-foot mixed-use structure. The two-story project was described as 26 residential units (including two considered affordable housing), two retail spaces on the ground floor and a lot with 23 parking spaces. Bourne died last year, and the property has been in a partially demolished state since.

Secousse said in August that the project is the same one Bourne proposed, “with a few design updates to the interior to make the smaller units more functional.” ◆