La Jolla traffic board gives approval to street closures and no-parking zones for Concours d’Elegance

The La Jolla Traffic & Transportation Board gave its approval to requests for street closures for the 2023 La Jolla Concours d’Elegance and for a memorial bench at the La Jolla Bike Path during its meeting last week, the group’s first since October.

Concours d’Elegance: On Jan. 18, T&T unanimously approved temporary street closures and no-parking zones on portions of Coast Boulevard and other roads for the Concours d’Elegance, scheduled for Friday through Sunday, April 21-23.

Organizers for the 17th year of the Concours, a luxury and classic car show at Scripps Park, requested no-parking zones for Wednesday through Sunday, April 19-23, on Coast Boulevard between La Jolla Cove and Girard Avenue, according to event planner Laurel McFarlane of McFarlane Productions.

Additional no-parking zones would be set up from 3 a.m. to 8 p.m. April 23 on Coast between Prospect Street and Ocean Street and along Herschel Avenue between Prospect and Wall streets.

Also on April 23, Coast Boulevard would be closed between Prospect Street and Girard Avenue, and Girard would be closed between Coast and Prospect from 3 a.m. to 8 p.m. Ivanhoe Avenue would be closed between Prospect and Cave Street from 5 to 9 a.m.

The event map is unchanged from previous years, McFarlane said, though a schedule change has moved the traditional Saturday night party to Friday.

On Saturday, April 22, the Concours instead will present “Porsches on Prospect,” lining 75 Porsche vehicles along Prospect Street, though that will not require a road closure, McFarlane said.

Advisories will be posted two weeks ahead of the closures, with additional signage about the no-parking zones posted 72 hours ahead, she said.

“It’s just a fantastic event,” T&T Chairman Brian Earley said. “It puts La Jolla on the map worldwide.”

For more information, visit lajollaconcours.com.

Memorial bench: T&T also unanimously supported a proposal for installation of a bench on the public right of way at the La Jolla Bike Path.

A memorial bench is proposed for an area of the La Jolla Bike Path.

(Screenshot by Elisabeth Frausto)

Jim Neri of Neri Landscape Architecture presented for his client, a family looking to establish a bench to memorialize their deceased child, Michael Brooks.

The family wanted a bench “near where children were playing, because the child died young,” Neri said.

The bench is proposed for an area just north of Via del Norte, where two swings hang from a eucalyptus tree.

The bench would be made of wood and concrete, with a divider down the middle to discourage people from sleeping there, Neri said. The bench also would have a plaque commemorating Michael.

In addition, a path would be formed with GraniteCrete, a porous material that looks like decomposed granite and requires no maintenance. The path would be wide enough to adhere to the Americans with Disabilities Act, with an area at the end for a wheelchair to turn around.

The project would cost about $18,000, funded entirely by the donating family, which also has pledged $1,000 for ongoing maintenance, Neri said.

A rendering depicts a bench and an accompanying GraniteCrete path proposed for an area at the La Jolla Bike Path just north of Via del Norte.

(Screenshot by Elisabeth Frausto)

Neri said he has informed nearby residents of the plan and “they don’t oppose it.”

He added that he will apply for San Diego city permits after T&T’s approval.

T&T board member Eric Gantzel said he likes the idea because kids with bikes often congregate in the area and “having a space with a bench in the shade is perfect.”

Next meeting: The La Jolla Traffic & Transportation Board next meets at 4 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 15, online. To learn more, email bearley1@san.rr.com. ◆