The Association for the City of La Jolla has gotten further in the quest for La Jolla’s incorporation than any previous attempt.

The Association for the City of La Jolla has formally applied to the San Diego Local Agency Formation Commission to investigate whether cityhood for La Jolla is feasible.

La Jolla is currently a community within the city of San Diego, beholden to San Diego’s laws and policies; other groups have tried and failed since the 1950s to seek La Jolla’s independence. 

LAFCO Executive Officer Keene Simonds accepts the application/Mark Munoz

Only ACLJ, with its LAFCO application filed Jan 29, has gotten this far. 

The quest for La Jolla’s cityhood, which ACLJ believes would be beneficial to both La Jolla and San Diego, is a multiyear effort, with the LAFCO application including a petition in support of the application; application and other fees funded by $66,000 in donations; a boundary map of a proposed city of La Jolla; and ACLJ’s preliminary fiscal analysis, which shows La Jolla generates $83.8 million in revenue while costing the city $74.8 million in services.

“We just keep jumping these hurdles,” ACLJ President Trace Wilson said of the work to assemble the large application.

With the application submitted, it’s “now time to get more strategic,” Wilson said, as ACLJ needs to continue raising funds and working towards cityhood.

Within 30 days of application, the San Diego Registrar of Voters will verify the petition signatures and notify ACLJ if the required number – 25 percent of registered voters in La Jolla – has been met.

If not, ACLJ will have 15 days to collect the missing signatures.

“The clock is ticking,” Wilson said. 

ACLJ also has to fund a financial consultant hired by LAFCO to perform the county agency’s Final Comprehensive Fiscal Analysis, which Wilson expects to take the rest of the year. 

In all, ACLJ needs to raise about $400,000 more to continue its pursuit, which will include subsequent LAFCO fees and associated consulting, legal and administrative expenses.

Should the LAFCO application review determine cityhood is viable, the issue will be presented to San Diego voters, maybe on the November 2028 ballot, Wilson said.

Before then, ACLJ is thinking about broadening the skillset of its board, forming financial and other committees, and engaging with consultants to help with the effort, he said.

“I feel better and better about” the movement, Wilson said.

For more information, visit cityoflajolla.org. To donate, visit cityoflajolla.org/donate.

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