La Jolla News Nuggets: Streetlights; Build Better SD; Apple TV+ film; playhouse and Bird Rock galas; more

Some streetlights back on in La Jolla Shores

After being dark for months, several streetlights in La Jolla Shores are back on following repairs by the city of San Diego.

“All the boardwalk lights appear to be working now and they light up the boardwalk nicely,” said Shores resident Charlie Brown. He added that on March 6, he observed nine temporary lights attached to existing poles along Paseo del Ocaso, where the lights were not working.

Brown said eight lights on La Jolla Shores Drive are still not working.

Matt Griffith, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria’s City Council District 1 community representative, encouraged residents to continue to use the city’s Get It Done app to report streetlight outages.

“Our streetlight program has been retooled to identify and repair significant blocks of streetlights by using six points criteria: high-crime areas, neighborhood blocks with multiple outages, high-injury areas, historically underserved areas, age of service notification and service level by community planning area,” he said at the March 1 Bird Rock Community Council meeting.

March 10 webinar to address Build Better SD initiative

The city of San Diego will hold a virtual workshop at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 10, for residents to learn more about the goals of the Build Better SD initiative announced by Mayor Todd Gloria in February. After a short presentation, participants will have an opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback.

The Build Better SD initiative (sandiego.gov/buildbettersd) aims to do away with old planning policies that restrict incoming public infrastructure fees to a single community and instead is intended to create a more efficient citywide funding program.

“Because of our outdated method of funding infrastructure projects, some of our communities are being left behind,” Gloria said in a statement. “Build Better SD will break down barriers to get more things done in our communities by allowing us to prioritize investments in areas where the needs are greatest.”

City Councilman Joe LaCava, whose District 1 includes La Jolla, said “the developer impact fee program is broken and has been for a long time. As it stands, the program cannot deliver the needed infrastructure and facilities that community plans promised. Our older communities need a new approach. ... I support Build Better SD.”

The initiative is expected to go to the City Council for consideration this spring.

To register for the workshop, visit bit.ly/BBSDMarch.

La Jolla Country Day grad’s novel is adapted for Apple TV+ film

La Jolla Country Day School alumna Jandy Nelson’s young-adult novel “The Sky is Everywhere” has been adapted into a feature film, which premiered last month on Apple TV+ and in select theaters.

Nelson’s debut novel, which came out in 2010 in the United States, is now published in more than 30 countries. Nelson is from La Jolla Country Day’s class of 1983.

The film, directed by Josephine Decker, is a drama that follows 17-year-old musical whiz Lennie Walker as she grapples with the sudden death of her older sister, along with the conflict in her relationship with her late sister’s grieving boyfriend and a new boy at school.

Playhouse gala to feature Broadway performers

Daphne Rubin-Vega will perform at the La Jolla Playhouse gala on Saturday, March 19.

(Courtesy of La Jolla Playhouse)

La Jolla Playhouse’s annual gala will be held Saturday, March 19, at the Sheila & Hughes Potiker Theatre in La Jolla, featuring Broadway performers James Monroe Iglehart and Daphne Rubin-Vega.

Proceeds from the event, co-chaired by playhouse trustees Debby Jacobs and Kay Gurtin, will support the playhouse’s New Play Development and Learning & Engagement programs.

Iglehart is a Tony Award winner for his role as the Genie in Disney’s “Aladdin” and starred in La Jolla Playhouse’s Broadway-bound musical “Memphis.”

Rubin-Vega, who is in the recent film “In the Heights,” earned a Tony nomination for her role as Mimi in the original Broadway production of “Rent” and appeared in La Jolla Playhouse’s productions of “Miss You Like Hell” and “Faust.”

The evening also will honor playhouse trustee Sheri Jamieson, who launched the Sheri L. Jamieson New Work Development Fund, and Tony-nominated actor and playwright Charlayne Woodard, who has written and/or appeared in several playhouse productions, including the 2021-22 season opener, “The Garden.”

A menu crafted by chef Jeffrey Strauss of Pamplemousse Grille will be paired with select wines.

The event will conclude with an after-party featuring a performance by DJ and musician Alex Seaver, professionally known as Mako, along with cocktails and desserts.

For more information, email gala@ljp.org.

Bird Rock Foundation to celebrate 40 years at gala

The Bird Rock Foundation, which raises money for Bird Rock Elementary School, will celebrate 40 years with a spring gala and auction this month.

Proceeds from the March 19 party, themed “Havana Nights,” will support educational activities and help fill budget gaps. Past years’ proceeds have funded additional teachers to achieve smaller class sizes and have helped with playground support and art, technology, music and science activities.

The gala will feature an auction, dinner, live music and more. Donations also are accepted to send a Bird Rock Elementary teacher to the gala.

Learn more or buy tickets at birdrockfoundation.org/fundraiser/annual-gala.

Volunteers sought to clean up Coast Walk Trail

Friends of Coast Walk Trail will hold a cleanup, walking tour and weed-pulling event at 9 a.m. Saturday, March 26.

For the past several years, Friends of Coast Walk Trail has worked with the La Jolla Parks & Beaches board and the city of San Diego to carry out improvement projects on the trail, which runs between Coast Walk (a short street west of Torrey Pines Road between Prospect Place and Amalfi Street) and Goldfish Point.

Friends President Brenda Fake said planting projects on the trail would be the focus this year. “Everything is about getting rid of invasive [plant species] as much as we can and replanting the area with natives,” she said.

To start the effort, volunteers will be tasked with pulling weeds and picking up debris in certain areas. Volunteers will meet at the Cave Store at 1325 Cave St. Learn more at friendsofcoastwalk.org.

New Dr. Seuss-inspired books to feature diverse creators

Sketches of fantastic creatures by Dr. Seuss that have never before been published will see the light of day in new books being written and illustrated by a group of up-and-coming authors and artists, according to the company that owns the intellectual property rights to Dr. Seuss’ works.

The new line of books will include original stories inspired by previously unpublished illustrations selected from the late La Jolla author’s archives at UC San Diego, Dr. Seuss Enterprises said in a statement March 2, the writer’s birthday.

The new authors and illustrators will represent a diverse cross-section of racial backgrounds to represent as many families as possible, Dr. Seuss Enterprises said. The books, under the banner Seuss Studios and published by Random House Children’s Books, will be geared toward readers ages 4-8.

The announcement came exactly a year after the business founded by the family of Dr. Seuss — whose real name was Theodor Seuss Geisel — said it would stop publishing six Dr. Seuss titles because they include racist and insensitive images. — The Associated Press

La Jolla philanthropist establishes endowment at Rady Children’s Hospital

Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego has announced the creation of the Galinson Family Endowed Chair in Palliative Care through a contribution by La Jolla philanthropist Elaine Galinson.

Galinson’s gift is through a donor-advised fund managed by the Jewish Community Foundation that her father entrusted her to oversee.

Rady Children’s palliative care program has already served nearly 700 families.

La Jolla Community Center receives energy grant

The La Jolla Community Center has received a $3,000 grant from Energy Upgrade California, a statewide initiative committed to educating and motivating California residents to help meet the state’s energy goals.

The Community Center will use the grant to promote the benefits of energy-efficiency measures, said center Executive Director Nancy Walters.

“We are dedicated to doing our part to increase energy efficiency in our community,” such as a solar roof project completed in 2021, she said.

La Jolla Town Council recruiting potential trustees

The La Jolla Town Council is recruiting potential trustees through Friday, April 8.

Candidates must live or work in the 92037 ZIP code and should have attended at least three Town Council meetings in the 12 months before the election.

Nominees will be interviewed and presented by the LJTC Executive Committee. Each candidate must complete consent to serve and conflict of interest forms before being accepted.

Trustees will be sworn in Thursday, May 12. For more information, visit lajollatowncouncil.org.

— Compiled by La Jolla Light staff ◆