The Bordeaux Avenue proposal has neighbors and permit reviewers concerned about environmental aspects including flora impact and fire prevention.
Amid neighbor opposition and trustee concerns about environmental impact, a project to add an accessory dwelling unit in The Shores failed to receive official support at the April 16 meeting of the La Jolla Shores Permit Review Committee.
The project at 2734 Bordeaux Ave would add a one-bedroom, one-bathroom detached accessory dwelling unit at the existing single-family residence on a 0.91-acre site above Birch Aquarium.
Rendering by Island Architects
The structure would be just over 1,000 square feet, applicant representative Patrick Vercio said; the project removes earlier plans for guest quarters.
The applicant team has met with the neighbors several times since planning began a few years ago, Vercio said, stating the plans have been modified based on community feedback to include shortening the height to take up more space horizontally, ensuring brush management and more.
“Design is an iterative process,” he said. “We believe that community engagement helps us hone in and refine the design.”
Neighbors at the meeting, however, disagreed, citing specific objections to the plans that have not been resolved through collaboration.
Noting the San Diego Municipal Code limits the development on a site containing environmentally sensitive lands to a maximum footprint of 25%, La Jolla architect Phil Merten calculated the proposed Bordeaux Avenue development plus the existing structure and brush management zone is at 26.2%, he said.
The measurements are of “major concern,” Merten said.
“The neighborhood is very concerned about any additional structure going … into the canyon,” Bordeaux neighbor Elaine Schneider said, adding allowing construction there would set a “terrible precedent” for encroachment into the natural ecosystem.
Other neighbors spoke up with similar opposition, citing impacts on the environment, brush management and more, with others reiterating that their concerns have not been heard.
Vercio said “there are no encroachments into environmentally sensitive land” with this project and further emphasized the ADU’s open space has been previously graded land and checked by soil engineer and biologist visits.
PRC trustees nonetheless echoed concerns with the environmental impact and lack of neighbor support.
“There’s a lot of pushing into the canyon with this house,” PRC trustee John Shannon said. “I’m not in favor of this.”
“There’s some vociferous opposition from every single neighbor. There wasn’t a single person in favor of this,” PRC trustee John Pierce said.
PRC voted 6-0-1 (with the chair customarily abstaining) that findings cannot be made to support the project; the project will be heard at a future meeting of the La Jolla Community Planning Association.
