no one here said anything about banning anything... especially since the thing is nearly built.
it's not good for encinitas though. the traffic will negate getting good soup at whole foods and if you're gullible enough to buy property 100 yards from a train crossing... well.
it IS an ugly building. the condos are so tight together that the roofs overlap.
Bulk and mass are inconsistent with beach town, and more consistent with urban renewal and larger scale development that we see in North Park, Little Italy, UTC, etc. which are high density areas.
That said, a bunch of these along El Camino Real would be a great change.
I'm for good urban design. I'm for keeping the charm of Encinitas and not turning Encinitas into every other redeveloped "new urbanism" bandwagon town.
You hit in on the nose. No one is openly for doing things that are lame. Instead we put a fresh name on it and say its all good and call anyone who questions it a selfish nimby.
I don't care what pacific station looks like. When that sort of high density happens all over downtown, the city will be different. There will be some good aspects and some bad aspects to that. It will be more crowded and avoiding crowded urban environments is why most people decided to put down roots in Encinitas.
We could have a grocery store without Pacific Station's 4 stories, so how does this make our life better?
All this commplaining yet most people will not do diddly about it by getting involved in the general plan update. Beside bitching about it, what are you going to do that produces results. Are you going to elect someone with a brain and out Danny this election? Are you going to get involved in the general plan update?
The developer really worked with the town and city on getting input. I don't think we could have stopped it.No I am not happy about it , because I hate the stories. I am worried about Whole Foods with all the negativity about selling produce etc from China.
Things like this will go on and on unless we have a new City Council. The reason we incorporated into a City was to avoid what the County was doing. Now, we have a Council that is doing just what the County would have done. What have we gained? If each poster would get out and walk the streets in the next election to get Dan out, that would be a start. Of course, we need someone that will run and can take the heat from the developers. Who is willing to do that We may have to recruit a city activist and help that person to get elected. Are you willing to put in the time and energy? If not, stop bitching because you will get more of the same.
2:54 - My point is that it is very difficult to down-zone, once you have up-zoned. Property owners and developers with big dollars will want compensation for the loss in value of their properties. You're right, it's never too late, but it could have been much easier.
Everyone who cares about this city should go to General Plan workshops and participate in any way they can. What they say will be part of the record. The general plan we get will depend largely on the council we elect in 2010 (and maybe 2012).
We need need to un-elect Dan ASAP, followed by Jerome and Jim. Otherwise, all the citizen participation in the world will not fight the developer (and union) interests.
3:02 - We've tried and tried and I think we're tired and exhausted. Many of us have put money and energy into campaigns, only to have our candidates lose. It gets old. For every Teresa, we seem to get stuck with a Dan. It's always 3-2 or 4-1 against us. It's very demotivating - and many of us feel this way.
Hmmmm, let's see. 40 condos will be for sale there soon. How many have sold at the other Loftoplex at B and 101? I kind of feel sorry for the builder. He'll never be able to pay the 36 million back he's sunk into this project and it will go back to the bank. I think I'll like the way it looks better than the lofts anyway, but nothing beats the classic looking duplexes on Vulcan across from it. I like that it's all tucked away behind (above and below) the tacky older businesses on the corner. Parking will never be a problem because few will be able to live there. And the ones that do will experience that room that the I Love Lucy gang did when they rented a motel room next to the tracks.
and to the pissy whiners including Mary.... who ever said life is easy?
I have realized the fact that life will involve challenges through all of life until your last breath. Its the way it is.... if you want pure peace, pass on.
If you want Encinitas to be a better place keep on fighting. Del Mar and Solana Beach get it and have good councils.... for years Solana Beach was just like Encinitas with Clueless Joe K. leading the way... now they put him in a box and the smart council is running Solana Beach..... of course with positive political change their quality of life and property values of Solana Beach skyrocketed.
Now its Encinitas Turn.... especially Leucadia!
Stay active Mary don't give up and whimp down.... its time to fight and win the council we deserve.
I don't think so... its called quiet zone coming....
San Diego is going it in their downtown area and so will Encinitas once we get a council that can think towards positive things instead of buffing out employee pensions and developer interests.
Get Danny out and we are well on our way. Get active in the elections and lets get Danny out and better Encinitas!
I understand that John DeWald has a group of investors behind him. Nice if that list were to be made public. Those 47 condos are going to be hard to sell. The naysayers who said they would become short term rentals will probably turn out to be right. That's not the promise of smart growth.
At Wednesday's council meeting Jerome Stocks was suddenly talking about quiet zones for the railroad. I think it finally dawned on him that his developer friend DeWald would need some "special" help similar to what he has done for Michael Pattison and David Meyer on many occasions.
The last election was an example of political gamesmanship. Bond indicated that he was not running. Because of this there were a lot of cadidates running that caused the vote to be split between them. Rachelle would probably have won if Bond had not announced at the last moment. I do feel that overall, Bond has been foot for the city in many ways. He has been very consistently a fiscal conservative and a worthy watchdog for our city. The pensions, that in hindsight, were not wise, were viewed as appropriate. We are the only ones that believed that Camalot would never change. Probably, if wall street had not created credit default swaps and rating agencies had not graded bad loans as good loans and the Bush years had not removed most oversight, we would have been able to handle this crisis better. It is bad, but certainly getting better than last year. I hope DeWalds project is a big success. I encourage those who care to keep caring and work for the changes that are the best for the most.
I just cannot figure out why they have balconys on the east side. So you can sit out and wave to the commuters on the Coaster while inhaling the diesel fumes?
Bond stayed around too long. I remember at the Cardiff candidates forum in 2004 he was tipsy and not totally coherent, He was the fiscal guardian earlier.
It doesn't take hindsight to have realized that the city would soon be built out, the tech boom would go bust, the housing bubble would burst, and that the ever increasing revenue stream couldn't go on forever. Yet the council voted as if none of that would ever happen.
I remember when the council passed the 15% staff raise a short while ago, there were public speakers warning not to do it. And lots of people squawked when pension benefits were raised. Did anyone really think that you could pay pensions at such a high level and not run into trouble? The council did.
Don't expect a quick recovery. The fundamental problems are too deep. I just heard a federal government report saying the worst of the housing crisis is yet to come because of high unemployment and variable mortgages that will soon be reset. At least there is some honesty now. We were in la la land before, and a lot of people knew it. But there were too many people making big money who hoped it would never stop.
Bond ran again because he was not guaranteed a paid spot in some rinky dink local money sucking position. Career politicians only care about one thing, the ubiquitous pocketbook..the one that opens from ours to theirs. Public servants are few and far between. The only councilmember with integrity, dignity and decency is Barth. The rest are vomiticus terribilis.
When whole foods leaves, the space is so large they will break it up. A goods source told me that the 99 cent store and the women's resource center already have eyes on the space.
"The Royal Canton was one of the best Chinese food places ever..."
I remember the Royal Canton. It was great. So was George's. But few know the secret of the funky building itself. Originally it was a Steak House. From birds, the building is shaped like a T-Bone Steak. Guess human may ultimately enjoy that vision soon from their perch atop Pacific Station.
It's ugly. The roof line is 1960's architecture.
ReplyDeleteWhole foods will be great but parking underground and above will be atrocious.
I can't wait for the underground parking - that will be a huge improvment for downtown Encinitas.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to live 10 feet from a train passing by at 70 mph, blowing that great shrieking whistle.
ReplyDeleteThe city approves these projects to increase the tax base to provide the money to pay $250,000 salaries and outrageous pensions.
Taxpayers revolt!!
I don't mind the new project. I don't like the $250k salaries and pensions.
ReplyDeleteGotta say the curved roof is a very tired architectural gesture here in Encinitas. It's like a wave- get it?
ReplyDeleteHowever, the project should be a great addition to downtown.
Why?
ReplyDeleteWhat would be the criteria for a good and bad change to downtown?
ReplyDeleteGood for Encintas.Damn the naysayer BAN BAN BAN crowd.
ReplyDeleteLeucadia Native
I bet the Whole Foods is outta there within 18 months and Walmart Jr. moves in.
ReplyDeleteban roll-on?
ReplyDeletegotta stay fresh...
no one here said anything about banning anything... especially since the thing is nearly built.
it's not good for encinitas though. the traffic will negate getting good soup at whole foods and if you're gullible enough to buy property 100 yards from a train crossing... well.
it IS an ugly building.
the condos are so tight together that the roofs overlap.
Heterogenous design = good
ReplyDeleteHomogenous design = bad
(for our Downtown)
Look at all the cities/towns that are considered to have 'character'
How does ENC measure up?
This town is full of artists and aesthetes...but oviously not in Planning or the CC...
Philistinism comes to mind.
Who are you kiddin'... Walmart sells the same cheap crap that every other department store sells. They just sell it for cheaper.
ReplyDeleteBulk and mass are inconsistent with beach town, and more consistent with urban renewal and larger scale development that we see in North Park, Little Italy, UTC, etc. which are high density areas.
ReplyDeleteThat said, a bunch of these along El Camino Real would be a great change.
so what change do you see for downtown Leucadia. Currently the same zoning provides for the same type of building.
ReplyDeleteIf you don't like it, get active with the general plan update that is underway. After all, its your town. Whats stopping you?
I'm for good urban design. I'm for keeping the charm of Encinitas and not turning Encinitas into every other redeveloped "new urbanism" bandwagon town.
ReplyDeleteShould we ban strip clubs from downtown?
ReplyDeleteIs anyone openly against "good urban design"? Or "keeping the charm of Encinitas"? Yeesh.
ReplyDeleteI'm for clean air and cute puppies and happiness, how about you?
Bob,
ReplyDeleteYou hit in on the nose. No one is openly for doing things that are lame. Instead we put a fresh name on it and say its all good and call anyone who questions it a selfish nimby.
I don't care what pacific station looks like. When that sort of high density happens all over downtown, the city will be different. There will be some good aspects and some bad aspects to that. It will be more crowded and avoiding crowded urban environments is why most people decided to put down roots in Encinitas.
We could have a grocery store without Pacific Station's 4 stories, so how does this make our life better?
All this commplaining yet most people will not do diddly about it by getting involved in the general plan update. Beside bitching about it, what are you going to do that produces results. Are you going to elect someone with a brain and out Danny this election? Are you going to get involved in the general plan update?
ReplyDeleteI am. Are you?
The developer really worked with the town and city on getting input. I don't think we could have stopped it.No I am not happy about it , because I hate the stories. I am worried about Whole Foods with all the negativity about selling produce etc from China.
ReplyDeleteThe time to stop it was when the Encinitas Specific Plan was written. It's too late now for that part of town. And maybe Leucadia.
ReplyDelete2:01
ReplyDeleteIts never TOO LATE
It's only MORE WORK.
Get involved in the New General Plan NOW
Things like this will go on and on unless we have a new City Council. The reason we incorporated into a City was to avoid what the County was doing. Now, we have a Council that is doing just what the County would have done. What have we gained? If each poster would get out and walk the streets in the next election to get Dan out, that would be a start. Of course, we need someone that will run and can take the heat from the developers. Who is willing to do that We may have to recruit a city activist and help that person to get elected. Are you willing to put in the time and energy? If not, stop bitching because you will get more of the same.
ReplyDelete2:54 - My point is that it is very difficult to down-zone, once you have up-zoned. Property owners and developers with big dollars will want compensation for the loss in value of their properties. You're right, it's never too late, but it could have been much easier.
ReplyDeleteEveryone who cares about this city should go to General Plan workshops and participate in any way they can. What they say will be part of the record. The general plan we get will depend largely on the council we elect in 2010 (and maybe 2012).
We need need to un-elect Dan ASAP, followed by Jerome and Jim. Otherwise, all the citizen participation in the world will not fight the developer (and union) interests.
3:02
ReplyDeleteWell.....SIGN ME UP
Teresa is a 'keeper' though
3:02 - We've tried and tried and I think we're tired and exhausted. Many of us have put money and energy into campaigns, only to have our candidates lose. It gets old. For every Teresa, we seem to get stuck with a Dan. It's always 3-2 or 4-1 against us. It's very demotivating - and many of us feel this way.
ReplyDelete5:55 I'll second that
ReplyDeleteHmmmm, let's see. 40 condos will be for sale there soon. How many have sold at the other Loftoplex at B and 101? I kind of feel sorry for the builder. He'll never be able to pay the 36 million back he's sunk into this project and it will go back to the bank. I think I'll like the way it looks better than the lofts anyway, but nothing beats the classic looking duplexes on Vulcan across from it. I like that it's all tucked away behind (above and below) the tacky older businesses on the corner. Parking will never be a problem because few will be able to live there. And the ones that do will experience that room that the I Love Lucy gang did when they rented a motel room next to the tracks.
ReplyDeleteI agree with 3:02-
ReplyDeleteand to the pissy whiners including Mary.... who ever said life is easy?
I have realized the fact that life will involve challenges through all of life until your last breath. Its the way it is.... if you want pure peace, pass on.
If you want Encinitas to be a better place keep on fighting. Del Mar and Solana Beach get it and have good councils.... for years Solana Beach was just like Encinitas with Clueless Joe K. leading the way... now they put him in a box and the smart council is running Solana Beach..... of course with positive political change their quality of life and property values of Solana Beach skyrocketed.
Now its Encinitas Turn.... especially Leucadia!
Stay active Mary don't give up and whimp down.... its time to fight and win the council we deserve.
Pacific Station cost $36 million? LOL. FAIL FAIL FAIL
ReplyDeleteI don't think so... its called quiet zone coming....
ReplyDeleteSan Diego is going it in their downtown area and so will Encinitas once we get a council that can think towards positive things instead of buffing out employee pensions and developer interests.
Get Danny out and we are well on our way. Get active in the elections and lets get Danny out and better Encinitas!
I understand that John DeWald has a group of investors behind him. Nice if that list were to be made public. Those 47 condos are going to be hard to sell. The naysayers who said they would become short term rentals will probably turn out to be right. That's not the promise of smart growth.
ReplyDeleteAt Wednesday's council meeting Jerome Stocks was suddenly talking about quiet zones for the railroad. I think it finally dawned on him that his developer friend DeWald would need some "special" help similar to what he has done for Michael Pattison and David Meyer on many occasions.
The last election was an example of political gamesmanship. Bond indicated that he was not running.
ReplyDeleteBecause of this there were a lot of cadidates running that caused the vote to be split between them. Rachelle would probably have won if Bond had not announced at the last moment. I do feel that overall, Bond has been foot for the city in many ways. He has been very consistently a fiscal conservative and a worthy watchdog for our city. The pensions, that in hindsight, were not wise, were viewed as appropriate. We are the only ones that believed that Camalot would never change. Probably, if wall street had not created credit default swaps and rating agencies had not graded bad loans as good loans and the Bush years had not removed most oversight, we would have been able to handle this crisis better. It is bad, but certainly getting better than last year.
I hope DeWalds project is a big success.
I encourage those who care to keep caring and work for the changes that are the best for the most.
It is rumored that Dewald is cooking his books. Investors beware.
ReplyDeleteI just cannot figure out why they have balconys on the east side. So you can sit out and wave to the commuters on the Coaster while inhaling the diesel fumes?
ReplyDeleteBond stayed around too long. I remember at the Cardiff candidates forum in 2004 he was tipsy and not totally coherent, He was the fiscal guardian earlier.
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't take hindsight to have realized that the city would soon be built out, the tech boom would go bust, the housing bubble would burst, and that the ever increasing revenue stream couldn't go on forever. Yet the council voted as if none of that would ever happen.
I remember when the council passed the 15% staff raise a short while ago, there were public speakers warning not to do it. And lots of people squawked when pension benefits were raised. Did anyone really think that you could pay pensions at such a high level and not run into trouble? The council did.
Don't expect a quick recovery. The fundamental problems are too deep. I just heard a federal government report saying the worst of the housing crisis is yet to come because of high unemployment and variable mortgages that will soon be reset. At least there is some honesty now. We were in la la land before, and a lot of people knew it. But there were too many people making big money who hoped it would never stop.
The Royal Canton was one of the best Chinese food places ever...
ReplyDeleteBond ran again because he was not guaranteed a paid spot in some rinky dink local money sucking position. Career politicians only care about one thing, the ubiquitous pocketbook..the one that opens from ours to theirs. Public servants are few and far between. The only councilmember with integrity, dignity and decency is Barth. The rest are vomiticus terribilis.
ReplyDeleteWhen whole foods leaves, the space is so large they will break it up. A goods source told me that the 99 cent store and the women's resource center already have eyes on the space.
ReplyDelete9:27 - Perfectly put.
ReplyDelete"The Royal Canton was one of the best Chinese food places ever..."
ReplyDeleteI remember the Royal Canton. It was great. So was George's. But few know the secret of the funky building itself. Originally it was a Steak House. From birds, the building is shaped like a T-Bone Steak. Guess human may ultimately enjoy that vision soon from their perch atop Pacific Station.
"The Royal Canton"
ReplyDeleteWe called it the "Royal Trashcan"
Can't wait for it to open, love the salad bars.
ReplyDelete