Leucadia Visibilty Triangle

Leaving La Especial Norte parking lot onto the historic coast highway 101 isn't easy, even when driving in the big 'ol van.

Tunnel Time

Worky worky at the Swamis tunnel.

Haggo's Tacos!

Located on the corner of W. Glaucus and N. Coast Hwy 101.
Cool place and owned by friendly people.

Leucadia vs Solana Beach

The Solana Beach rail infrastructure is impressive man.

Leucadia Liquor installed a new deck!

Looks good. Now put out some tables and chairs out and get the deli going.

Mattson2 Free Show at Enc Library today at noon

Maggie Banner Image Approved

Encinitas Patch story: Council OK’s Uncovering of Houlihan’s Image on Arts Alive Banners

 The 4-1 vote came after much public outcry.

 Excerpt: The Arts Alive banners along Coast Highway 101 will soon bear the portrait of late Encinitas Councilwoman Maggie Houlihan. Houlihan’s image is currently covered with vinyl stickers—but in a 4 to 1 vote with Encinitas Deputy Mayor Kristin Gaspar opposed, City Council voted Wednesday to allow those stickers to be removed through the request of the applicant, Danny Salzhandler of the Artists’ 101 Colony. 

See also Coast News story

See also: Encinitas Undercover 

El Torito Market

Located 1 block north of Leucadia Blvd on our beloved coast highway 101.
Stop being a yuppie snob and driving to Whole Foods. Support El Torito. They gots super yummy tacos!

Leucadia Post Office

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Still one of the best places in town to run into friends and get some commerce done at the same time.

Leucadia Yeti

New 7-11 in North Leucadia!!!

In the retro Mobile station.
Now Leucadia has not one, but two 7-11's. So take that Cardiff, you one 7-11 town you.

New Light, or Confirmation?

April 6, 2012
Leichtag Foundation Purchases Iconic Ecke Property to Grow a Platform for North County Community and Jewish Life

The Leichtag Foundation announced today that we have signed an option agreement to purchase the Paul Ecke Ranch property in Encinitas. The Foundation plans to create a cultural and community resource for the San Diego region and the Jewish community. Paul Ecke Ranch, located between Saxony Road and Quail Gardens Drive adjacent to the San Diego Botanic Garden, is 67 acres of land that currently houses over 850,000 square feet of greenhouse space.

The Paul Ecke Ranch is a family owned and operated business started in the early 1900’s. In 1923, operations were relocated to Encinitas, helping to establish it as the Flower Capital of the World. Today Paul Ecke Ranch is a worldwide leader in the breeding and development of flowering plants and is one of the top five growers in the US based on greenhouse area managed by the company. Core to the company’s success is its focus and dedication to retailers, as well as the growers who serve them. With facilities in the United States, Mexico, Guatemala, Denmark, and Spain, Paul Ecke Ranch employs or contracts more than 1,000 staff dedicated to research and development, production, marketing, and sales. Paul Ecke Ranch also licenses and distributes product from more than 30 other plant partner breeders. The Saxony Road property in Encinitas has been home to three generations of Eckes. As Paul Ecke III has positioned Ecke Ranch for the 21st century, he redesigned the business model to be more sustainable for the long term. Today, the Saxony Road location houses research and development and its retail trend design center, as well as company administration.

Leichtag Foundation founders Toni and Lee Leichtag, of blessed memory, lived and worked in North County and deeply cared for their community. The purchase of the Paul Ecke Ranch property honors their loving legacy. The Leichtag Foundation focuses its philanthropy on combating poverty and increasing self-sufficiency for residents of coastal North County; supporting and inspiring vibrant Jewish life in coastal North County; strengthening education about the Holocaust and its modern-day lessons for tolerance, understanding, and civility; stimulating renewal, service, and social activism in Jerusalem, Israel; and building strong connections and relationships between San Diego and Israel. We see the purchase of this property as a way to ensure the land’s use as a unique space that advances the Foundation’s strategic goals and inspires the community .

While we don’t yet know the details of the site’s long-term use, we believe the kind of uses that will be explored include urban farming, service learning, expansion of the San Diego Botanic Garden, educational and cultural programs, and support of a strong Jewish community in North County. Our purchase ensures that it will not be used for development of residential subdivisions, commercial office parks, or shopping centers.

The Leichtag Foundation’s next step will be to explore opportunities and establish the long-term vision and a phased plan for the site. We anticipate that refining the vision will take years and will be informed by resources like the current City of Encinitas General Plan Update, the Vision for a New Commons in Encinitas, and other recent community visioning projects. We will always be informed by evolving community needs. The Leichtag Foundation will seek additional community input and invite visionary ideas to address identified needs in ways that are appropriate to the site. Of course, any plan for this land will go through the appropriate public process that includes community engagement.

So, what can you expect today? There will be continuing agricultural use. Paul Ecke Ranch will hold a multi-year lease for their flower research and development while they seek a new location. Other growers will continue to lease and utilize greenhouse space for years to come. The Leichtag Foundation will also explore complementary uses, such as urban farming, service learning, and community engagement, which may start in the near term.
The Leichtag Foundation believes in the importance of transparency and in keeping our community informed. The Leichtag Foundation encourages those interested in receiving updates and hearing about opportunities to participate to visit our website at www.leichtag.org.

Old Encinitas Ranch RE Developments

North Leucadia Modern

The vacant lot on W. Jason and Hwy 101 is now a snazzy modern building. A bakery is slated to open up there which will be nice.

The Great Leucadia Coaster Conspiracy

Recently Encinitas mayor Jerome Stocks suggested that North Leucadia get a Coaster train stop. On the surface this sounds like a great idea since currently many Leucadians commute in the morning to the Encinitas train station. However there may be a deeper motivation. Read below.

From the inbox:

A Coaster Stop in Leucadia would make it a 'Smart Growth Area' and that means the zoning could be taken from R15 and R 22 (15 or 22 residential units per acre) to R 30.

The City is currently updating it's General Plan and due to State imposed sanctions, must add some 1,500 residential units to our current zoning. The first idea was to change the zoning in some areas along El Camino Real from 'Commercial' to 'Mixed Use'. This would allow apartments to be built over some retail and commercial centers. Needless to say, the folks in New Encinitas think that's a bad idea mostly because of the traffic issues.

The folks at the State, who need to approve the new Plan, insist that major up-zoning go into 'Smart Growth Areas' which means near public transportation and the only 'public transportation' New Encinitas has is busses. The State prefers trains as they are permanent.

If they add a Coaster Stop to the Leucadia corridor, Leucadia will be the new 'Smart Growth' area in Encinitas. Taking the heat off New Encinitas and leaving Leucadia to take a major portion of the State enforced up-zoning.

We do not want to pit ourselves against our friends and neighbors in New Encinitas. The housing that is being forced on the City needs to be portioned out in a fair and reasonable way. The burden should not fall heavily on any one community.

Please keep your eyes and ears on this issue.

Jerome Stocks did not discuss this with City Councilwoman Teresa Barth before he proposed it to North County Transit District. He also did not discuss it with either the Leucadia MainStreet Association or the Leucadia Town Council. We have no way of knowing who he did discuss it with or whose idea it was. Pretty clever though for anyone who'd like to see their property up-zoned in the updated General Plan.

#1. A Transportation Center with trains and busses is planned for Ponto in Carlsbad, just a short distance up the road.

#2. No rezoning was considered for the Leucadia Corridor because it is covered by a Specific Plan and any zoning changes should be made there.

Note: The Leucadia Specific Plan runs from Encinitas Blvd to La Costa Blvd, Vulcan on the east and zig zags on the west side along La Vita and Melrose. It does not include very much of the residential areas

Blogger's note:

Is there fear that a Whole Foods style development will occur on the Leucadia coast? While the Whole Foods commercial parts seem to be a rocking success the residential aspects have not.

If Leucadia's coastal corridor were to undergo a major upzone do you envision a real estate land grab of developer's buying up older beach properties, tearing them down and building new high density buildings?

Is that a realistic scenario? If the Leucadia Streetscape is ever completed does that make Leucadia a target for mega-developers?

Mixed Use in the New Encinitas El Camino Real commercial zone was probably a viable idea assuming people want to rent apartments above a TJ Maxx.

Will the next generation of Leucadians want to rent an apartment above Karina's when they are in the twenty's?

The reality is all those cute little kids attending Paul Ecke Central will need apartments to rent in 12-15 years.

Doesn't the community of Leucadia deserve their own train station?