By Bob Witney, LJA Member;
Mr. Whittemore, Ms. DeJong, Mrs. Naegle, Mr. and Mrs. McCormack, it is refreshing for our community to see you have chosen to respond to my open letter to Sherri Lightner as individuals, instead of using your characteristic playbook of hiding behind the names of small but vocal non-profit groups. This deceptive strategy of preventing applicants and our community from knowing (i)The small enrollment numbers of your groups, (ii)The individual identities of your group’s members and (iii) If your members are affiliated with our La Jolla Community Planning Association and/or our Councilperson, has been extremely effective in the past. Or did you choose to respond as individuals based on the advice of your attorney, given your current litigious groups; “Save La Jolla”(37-2011-00089460-CU-WM-CTL ) and “La Jolla Shores Tomorrow”(37-2012-00093782-CU-TT-CTL ) are in litigation with the City of San Diego?
On the other hand, it is understandable you resort back to your old playbook when your groups or its members are accurately exposed for violating the regulations our community has put into place. This is when you launch into your campaign of personal attacks, misrepresentations and distortions of the facts to our neighbors, the newspapers and our decision makers, and when you attempt to direct the conversation away from the issue by discrediting your adversary, with a list of false allegations. This ploy was implemented in your recent letter in which you referred to the well documented code violations against 2210 Avenida De La Playa (2210) and 2226 Avenida De La Playa (2226) as “ludicrous, mean spirited and uniformed”. If I chose to use your strategy I could simply describe you with the same baffling language. But the facts are (i) It was you who “ludicrously” claimed I instigated the investigation of code violations on the property owner at 2222 Avenida De La Playa (2222). (ii) It was you who dishonestly described 2222 as the personal residence of Ms. Sasaki. (iii) It was you who knew these allegations were absolutely false! This was just your “mean spirited” attempt to destroy my character with another wave of your distortions of the truth. As neighbors of 2222, you knew this building was not her personal residence but rented to San Diego Bike & Kayak for the past five years.
The truth is Ms. Sasaki has been receiving approximately $8,000 a month in rent for her commercial building. Nevertheless, Ms. Sasaki or the current property owner promptly corrected their City issued code violations. (iv) You also inaccurately alleged my properties are in violation of the community development codes. Now, who is “revealing their fundamental ignorance regarding how Neighborhood Code Compliance works?” So you understand, my mixed-use buildings are located in the Commercial Center of La Jolla Shores. However, unlike the above mentioned newer and remodeled buildings located at 2210 and 2226, my buildings were built in the early 1950’s and have never been remodeled. My current uses were previously conforming uses; therefore the San Diego Municipal Code and the La Jolla Shores PDO allow these current uses and parking to be “grandfathered” in. I am willing to make myself available 24/7 at your convenience to meet with you individually, or with what ever group you’re calling yourself today, and a Neighborhood Code Compliance Officer to discuss your dishonest and hypocritical claims. If you choose not to meet with me, perhaps a retraction statement in next week’s paper would be appropriate. Mr. Whittemore would you and your consultant, the President of LJCPA Mr. Tony Cristfi, meet with me, my consultants, and a Neighborhood Code Compliance Officer to discuss the code violations on your property and your neighbor’s property to the north?
You described my letter as an inappropriate and politically motivated attack on Sherri Lightner. What comments in my previous letter to my Councilperson were politically motivated? Or was it the friendly picture I found on Sherri’s Facebook page that accompanied my letter? The picture of our Councilperson embracing Myrna Naegle the property owner of 2210 at her “Campaign Kickoff Picnic”! This is the identical picture, that for some reason Ms. Lightner’s office has demanded our local newspapers remove from their websites.
Nevertheless, thank you for coming forward and updating our community on the code violations at 2210 Avenida De La Playa (2210). Based on your response, the denial of a DS-18 exemption from the City of San Diego and after almost two years of delay, perhaps our community can now rest assured the violations are not being ignored and they will be corrected “to code” in a timely fashion. The community, however, is perplexed as to why you failed to mention the status of the code violations at 2226 Avenida De La Playa. Is it because the, property owner Mr. Vaughn Woods, is the founder and President of one of your small more vocal groups “La Jolla Shores Tomorrow?” Is it Mr. Woods’s intentions to also bring his building into compliance?
Thank you in advance for your retraction statement and an update to the code violations for Mr. Vaughn Woods’s building.