Last October, a vehicle went through a fence at the La Jolla Recreation Center and knocked over a light post, taking out a playground structure that was later removed.
While the space on the north side of the playground remains vacant, Eddie Stover, a La Jolla resident since 2020, launched a fundraising effort in November to raise $40,000 to install a piece of ocean-themed playground equipment there. An idea he’s floated is a whale-shaped slide, which is what his fundraising target is based on.
Raising $40,000, Stover says, would likely allow for one fixture. But even more funding could allow them to increase their scope.
“If it could go above $40,000, we’d be more excited to include even more items and maybe even bigger items along with that,” Stover told La Jolla Light. “But $40,000 was the smallest number that led to something that was big enough and good enough to say the project was worth it.”
Stover’s interest in enhancing the park grew out of more frequent visits there with his two-year-old daughter, Ryland. During these visits, Stover said he has met other parents that have expressed interest in restoring or enhancing the park.
“You want a positive reflection of your neighborhood,” Stover said. “Even if you’re not enjoying the park yourself, knowing there’s a safe area for kids to go and play really helps improve the general enjoyment of the [community].”
In addition to raising funds for at least one structure, Stover said he and others he has spoken with are interested in painting the playground and possibly aiding in landscaping, as part of “a bit of a facelift across that park.”
La Jolla Town Council is listed as the beneficiary of the fundraiser, but La Jolla Town Council president Mary Soriano said the project is headed by Stover, and that the Town Council’s support is solely in the capacity of being a 501(c)(6) tax-exempt non-profit sponsor.
Funds, she added, will be managed through a separate financial institution, not La Jolla Town Council. Other costs would be factored into the overall replacement budget, and would require city of San Diego approval.
The city of San Diego Parks and Recreation Department is aware of the initiative, but not working in coordination with Stover or the Town Council, city spokesman Caleb Olsen told the Light. But Olsen said that the department “appreciates community efforts that improve our facilities for the benefit of all park users and activity participants.”
The effort is unrelated to an ongoing plan to renovate the 110-year-old Rec Center at 615 Prospect St., which looks to raise more than $36 million to upgrade the building and add new amenities to the exterior including a trellis, open space, a bocce court and backboard courts for practicing sports such as tennis.