The Association for the City of La Jolla is “still working hard” towards self-governance, moving through what Association President Trace Wilson calls the planning and investigation stages.

La Jolla is currently a community within the city of San Diego, beholden to San Diego’s laws and policies; ACLJ believes incorporating La Jolla into its own city will be “socially and fiscally” beneficial, Wilson said, for the entire San Diego region.

With the preliminary, comprehensive fiscal analysis – which details whether La Jolla’s self-governance would be financially feasible – completed in 2023, ACLJ knows the initiative is viable, Wilson said. 

The group has also conducted an exploratory poll, sent to about 400 San Diego residents outside La Jolla asking them “how they feel about this effort,” Wilson said.

The results were “as expected,” he added, showing ACLJ “we need to get out to the broader San Diego community and educate them on how this is a positive effort for the entire region, for San Diego and La Jolla.”

The poll also shed light on which communities in San Diego need more information, Wilson said, noting focus groups will be formed.

Next up, ACLJ will ask La Jollans to support the initiative via a petition.

The signatures of 25 percent of registered voters in La Jolla (about six to eight thousand signatures) are required to move the proposal forward, which means an application to the San Diego Local Agency Formation Commission, which helps communities incorporate.

Wilson estimated ACLJ would apply for LAFCO approval in August. 

After LAFCO approval, the initiative would move to a dual public vote: La Jolla residents will need to vote whether they support self-governance; San Diego residents outside La Jolla will also have to vote to support the detachment.

The process is lengthy but worth it, Wilson said. “We know that it’s a positive thing for San Diego.”

Visit cityoflajolla.org to learn more or donate to the effort.