Chair's Message

Dare to dream: PLA Enhancement of Nimitz Greenbelt Parkway

Nimitz Blvd is an important 2.2 mile north- south arterial that connects North Harbor Dr and Sunset Cliffs Blvd/I- H 8. It extends from the ocean basin of the San Diego River to the San Diego Bay. Along its course, it abuts in the north to Robb Field Skate Park, Dusty Rhodes Dog Park, Bill Cleator Park , Barnes Tennis Center and the Peninsula YMCA and merges into beautiful N. Harbor Drive with easy, direct access to Harbor Island, Shelter Island and downtown in the South. Correia and Dana Middle School and Point Loma High School are all within a mile of Nimitz Blvd.
PHASE 2
In 1999, the Point Loma Association started the first phase of Nimitz Blvd. beautification. It consisted of planting pines and bougainvillea along a segment of the median. The PLA is now embarking in beautifying a second segment: from the Famosa Bridge to W. Pt. Loma Blvd. We want to remove the ugly black asphalt and replace with attractive stamped concrete, colorful softscape and, in the future, median art work.

The Point Loma Association and others, envision Nimitz Blvd as a beautiful, transformative gateway enticing hundreds of thousands of south-north bound commuters, children and tourists to safely bike, walk and drive through our Point Loma neighborhood. Safe cycle 1 bicycle tracks, attractive median plantings and median art work with traffic calming intersections and well placed pedestrian cross walks and bridge would connect schools and residential neighborhoods with scenic miles of already existing bicycle paths, several parks/tennis courts and stunning water fronts. This would encourage more biking/walking exercise to and from schools, outdoor activity by residents, increased park utilization and tourism.
PHASE 3
Nicole Burgess, Chair of the District 2 Bike/Pedestrian Advisory, has submitted a Caltrans Transportation Planning Grant Proposal for Nimitz Blvd. that would encompass many of the above changes. She needs all the support our community can muster. Her hard work and vision could convert Nimitz into the Greenway Parkway it should be!

Dear Point Loma Association member:

Another year has breezed by, and it is time for your membership renewal. In this era of low investment returns and bank account interest, your PLA membership investment is yielding you a whopping windfall!

We have given you a new Catalina/Canon median and finished the largest median project ever undertaken by the PLA at the entryway of Point Lorna (Sea World Dr/Nimitz). We have refurbished trash cans along Rosecrans, planted four new flower basins in the village and provided an informative Town Hall Forum presenting all SD mayoral candidates. The Mean Green Team in their sartorial fluorescent vests have lovingly maintained over 18 different sites in our neighborhood, planting and ridding them of weeds and litter.

We have ablated graffiti and stimulated several additional partnership projects around our neighborhood. Lastly, we hope you enjoy the upcoming free Point Lorna summer concerts at the park.

We are not only prudent and thrifty with your money, we are hardworking and visionary. Exciting new projects are on our radar. Invest in US. It may be the best investment this year!

Warmly,
Cecilia Carrick: e-mail Chair@PLAweb.org

Anatomy of a Neighborhood
by Cecilia Carrick

As a physician, anatomy was my trade, the microscope my tool. These days, I have traded in my microscope for a pen and a shovel to focus on a new subject: our unique Point Loma neighborhood. It is where buoys, beacons and sails bob and glisten on our waters; where Jacarandas, Golden Medallions, dovetailing Mexican Palms and bursts of bougainvillea grace our thoroughfares; where American flags and headstones line our roads, reminding us of sacrifice, privileges and blessings; where a National Park provides beautiful vistas and trails; where Cabrillo, proud discoverer with rich Portuguese heritage, decided to land.

We live in paradise, but not without the sweat equity of a special group called the Point Loma Association. Our Mean Green Team enhances our neighborhoods on a daily basis by planting, trimming, weeding and picking up trash and homeless debris. We bring the community together for free summer concerts – run solely by volunteers who put on a complex event with deceptive ease. We engage professional artists to transform utility boxes into beautiful works of art. We persuade property owners to bring down billboards clean graffiti and rid our streets of empty magazine racks. We spend countless hours meeting with authorities, appearing before commissions, making phone calls, writing letters and interfacing with government and Navy representatives to address traffic, noise and pollution in our neighborhoods.

The energy, doggedness and hard work of Point Loma Association volunteers makes us look fit and feel good. We are a group of neighbors and business people just like you, who, for FIFTY YEARS have been volunteering on your behalf. Join in. Support your team. If you do not have time to volunteer, support us financially. We welcome you and are grateful for any or all.

Why donate? This is what it takes to keep Point Loma beautiful:

$30,000/year: Gardening, weeding, planting and maintenance of over 15 different public Point Loma areas
$5,000/year: Tree trimming
$2,000/year: Utility Box Art projects
$70,000/year: Point Loma Park Summer Concerts