Wine shop, fitness studio sign get the go ahead in Bird Rock

By Dave Schwab

daves@lajollalight.com

La Jolla Planned District Ordinance (PDO) Committee unanimously endorsed a wine shop with a small tasting area, as well as signage for an indoor spinning cycling studio planned in Bird Rock.

The vote was 9-0 for both projects by the committee, which makes recommendations to La Jolla Community Planning Association (LJCPA), La Jolla’s city-recognized advisory group making land-use recommendations.

Bird Rock Fine Wine will be located at 5687 La Jolla Blvd. in the space formerly inhabited by G Whiz Party & Papery. The Rush Indoor Cycle Studio will be nearby at 5628 La Jolla Blvd.

Wine shop owner Ken Chalmers told the committee his plans are to have a retail wine shop with a limited tasting area accommodating a maximum of 8 people with 5 or 6 shared parking spaces in the rear.

“You’re not serving food?” asked committee member Deborah Marengo of Chalmers. “It’s wine tasting, not a bar?”

“I’m about retail,” replied Chalmers noting he could have food, but has no immediate plans to do so, though serving cheese and salami could possibly be added later.

After the committee meeting, Chalmers, who previously worked in the wine industry in Northern California for six years, said he intends to carry a mix of 40 percent California wines, 60 percent wines from the rest of the world.

“I’m a huge fan of Italian and French,” he noted, adding he needs to get two different licenses before he can open, which he anticipates happening in March or April.

Applicants Tim Suski and Corey Spangler unveiled a T-shirt with their new indoor cycling shop’s logo, white on a grey background. They said that would be the coloration planned for their new standard sign on the front of their business, with an opening planned for the end of January.

“Greys are fine,” noted group chair architect Ione Stiegler. “Just as long as you’re not having the whole building be black (a PDO violation).”

The La Jolla PDO Committee meets the 2nd Monday of the month at 4 p.m. at La Jolla Rec Center.