Volume XVI, Issue 4
www.solanabeachsun.com
Jan. 19, 2012 Published Weekly
Council votes to become successor RDA Move a reaction to state dissolution of redevelopment agencies BY CLAIRE HARLIN EDITOR@DELMARTIMES.NET
The Solana Beach City Council voted on Jan. 11 to become the successor agency to the city’s Redevelopment Agency (RDA), which will dissolve on Feb. 1 following the California Su-
■ Foundation leader pushes for increased access to healthcare. Page 4
preme Court’s Dec. 29 ruling that the Alternative Redevelopment Program Act is unconstitutional. Some 400 similar redevelopment agencies statewide, created in the 1940s, will disband under the decision, meant to supply about
$1.7 billion collectively to the state’s $26 billion deficit. “Revitalizing the Cedros Avenue train station in Solana Beach with a mixed-use shopping and residential center is most threatened by the state Supreme Court’s decision to eliminate rede-
velopment agencies,” said City Manager David Ott in a statement following the high court ruling. He estimated that the city would lose out on $3.7 million in redevelopment funds that would have helped pay for a $25 million transportation
hub development, an effort that was previously on the table in 2008. The city and North County Transit District failed at that time to make the then-$72 million project happen, and have been working to propose a new development since.
SEE RDA, PAGE 6
Modifications OK’d for Stevens Avenue mixed-use project
Solana Vista Science Discovery Day
Developer working to make SB Corporate Centre more bike-friendly BY CLAIRE HARLIN EDITOR@DELMARTIMES.NET
■ An interview with 52nd District hopeful Brian Bilbray. Page 5
After citing poor economic conditions and maxing out on time extensions totaling two years, American Assets trust on Jan. 11 presented a revised plan for its Solana Beach Corporate Centre project and was granted more time by the Solana Beach City Council. The council unanimously approved (with two council members recused) development permits for the 10,300-square-foot, singlelevel retail and office building and two-level parking structure planned for the southeast corner of Stevens
Above: Solana Vista Elementary School students learned about topics such as “Walloping Weather,” among others, on Jan. 13 during Science Discovery Day at the campus. See page 3 for more photos. Right: Landon is eager to learn. PHOTOS: JON CLARK
Avenue and San Rodolfo Drive. The development company, which was granted a similar extension last March for Lomas Santa Fe Plaza, is also planning a mixed-use development for the 1.76-acre lot located at South Coast Highway 101 and Dahlia Drive, bought for $6.85 million in October. Mark Swenson, of Studio C Architects, said the Solana Beach Corporate Centre will include restaurant, office and retail establishments. The American Assets leasing department is still in the process of gathering ten-
SEE STEVENS, PAGE 6
TV producers searching for ideas head to local resident’s website ■ Travel writers share secrets on how to ‘Plan Your Escape.’ Page B1
BY JOE TASH Somewhere in America, an idea for the next hit reality television show is hatching in someone’s brain, and Scott Manville wants to bring it to life. Six years ago, the local resident launched The TV Writers Vault, a website
(www.tvwritersvault.com) where anyone with an idea for a new television show can catch the attention of television executives with the power to bring such concepts into reality. Over the past 18 months, Manville said, the site has caught fire, with
traffic tripling. Two reality shows, one in Canada and one in the United States, have made it to the airwaves after being pitched originally on The TV Writers Vault, he said. “What I like about our site is a housewife in Missouri can pitch an idea and
a producer who produces “American Idol” can like it and produce it,” said Manville. “It’s truly a wide-open door to buyers of ideas for shows. It’s all about the idea.” The way the site works is this: a writer who has a script or proposal for a new
show pays a membership fee of $40 per month, which allows him or her to post the idea on the site. A roster of television executives, now numbering more than 300 strong, visits the site regularly to search for ideas with
SEE PRODUCERS, PAGE 6
JOHN R. LEFFERDINK
619-813-8222
www.johnlefferdink.com
ANGELA MEAKINS-BERGMAN
LISA KELLEY
CONNIE SUNDSTROM
VERONICA MOORE
858-405-9270
858-880-5242
858-334-8114
619-250-5076