On Oct. 23, two picnic tables, a barbecue and a patch of GraniteCrete paving opened to the public at Ellen Browning Scripps Park. It's a small addition, and it arrives while several nearby spots are going the other way. Point La Jolla is closed year-round. South Casa Beach has been closed since January 2024, and Laureate Park sits behind construction fencing. The Children's Pool beach closes on Dec. 15.
Taken together, those spots show where La Jolla's coastal improvements now come from. The new grove got built because volunteers raised the money and kept a lapsed permit moving. The next big reopening on this stretch, the South Casa Beach staircase, is on the same footing. If you're planning holiday walks with visiting family, this is what the shoreline looks like when they arrive.
Two Tables and Three Years of Paperwork
The San Diego Union-Tribune's La Jolla Light report traces the second grove back to January 2024. That's when volunteers first asked the city of San Diego for a right-of-entry permit. The permit was signed in January 2025, ran until January 2026 and came with an option for a six-month extension. Organizers needed that extension because donors had committed only half of the construction cost.
Project organizer Alexandra Corsi of La Jolla Parks & Beaches went looking for the rest. The Kiwanis Club of La Jolla gave a $10,000 grant, La Jolla Parks & Beaches added another $10,000, and the original donors increased their gifts. Then a new city planner was assigned to the project, and the extension was never properly secured. The volunteers had to restart the permit review before construction could begin on Sept. 14.
Corsi credited Brian Malk, Ann Lipschitz, La Jolla Parks & Beaches president Ann Dynes and secretary Tim Seery, and the Kiwanis Club. She also thanked Jim Neri of Neri Landscape Architects and Alan Cronin of Geared For Growth Landscaping for logistical support. The new grove follows the design of the first one, which opened in December 2022. That project moved tables, improved access for people with disabilities and added a plaque honoring Selma Malk, a longtime resident of La Valencia Hotel whose family provided early funding.
"It's so useful to have a break in your day and be able to sit down at a picnic table and see this view," Corsi told the La Jolla Light. Scripps Park now has two picnic groves built to the same design, and both began with private funding.
Walking South From the Grove
From the new tables, the usual route toward the seals runs past several closures. Some are permanent and some are seasonal, in this order:
- Point La Jolla and Boomer Beach. The old May through October pupping closure no longer applies. On Sept. 18, 2023, the San Diego City Council adopted an ordinance making the closure year-round, and the city then received a Coastal Development Permit amendment from the California Coastal Commission. Nothing reopened on Nov. 1. The details are on the city's Point La Jolla page.
- Children's Pool beach. This beach closes to public access every year from Dec. 15 through May 15 for harbor seal pupping season, according to the city's lifeguard page. It is also one of nine beaches with a permanent San Diego Lifeguards station.
- The Children's Pool seawall. The beach closes, but the 95-year-old seawall stays open except during high tides and large swells, lajolla.ca reported in June. The metal gate used to close the wall during big surf was "worn out and severely rusted," city spokesperson Benny Cartwright said, and crews removed it June 5. Caution tape replaced it. As of that report, the city had no timeline for a new gate.
- South Casa Beach. The beach and its staircase have been closed since January 2024, when winter storms eroded the bottom steps.
On a calm December day, the seawall is the best place to see the seals once the beach below it closes. On a big-swell day, the wall is meant to be closed, and as of June caution tape stood where the gate used to be, so check the surf before you bring guests.
Point La Jolla is also in the news this fall. Lajolla.ca reported that on Oct. 22, Mayor Todd Gloria, City Council President Joe LaCava, Coastal Commission Executive Director Kate Huckelbridge and Rep. Scott Peters sent a joint letter to NOAA. It asks for a more consistent federal enforcement presence at the Cove and for the city to be given authority to enforce the Marine Mammal Protection Act. City park rangers can currently only educate visitors or ask them to leave.
Who Is Carrying Each Fix
Who is leading each project tells you a lot about when it will reopen.
| Spot | Status this winter | Who is leading the work | Expected timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scripps Park second picnic grove | Open since Oct. 23 | La Jolla Parks & Beaches volunteers, private donors, Kiwanis Club of La Jolla | Complete |
| Children's Pool beach | Closes Dec. 15 | City of San Diego, annual rule | Reopens May 15 |
| Children's Pool seawall gate | Removed, caution tape in place | City of San Diego | No timeline as of June |
| South Casa Beach staircase | Closed since January 2024 | La Jolla Coastal Conservancy, with the city facilitating | Estimated late 2030 |
| Laureate Park, La Jolla Shores | Fenced and closed | City of San Diego | Repairs expected January, park likely closed into early 2027 |
South Casa is the clearest example. City repairs "have lacked the considerable funding required," according to lajolla.ca's June report. The Coastal Commission approved preliminary plans on June 10 with the La Jolla Coastal Conservancy as lead applicant. The nonprofit takes on all project costs, engineering design, permit filings and construction contracting, and the city facilitates.
The plan replaces the damaged lower steps and adds a new landing supported by caissons. It also turns the lower run of stairs parallel to the shoreline to reduce direct wave impact. Design and permitting run from 2026 through 2029, followed by about a year of construction, with reopening estimated for late 2030. The repair still needs its own coastal development permit. The Conservancy is a recently formed nonprofit that partners with the city on privately funded improvement and maintenance projects from Coast Walk Trail south to Whale View Point. That covers most of the walk described above.
Up at the Shores, a Pocket Park Behind Fencing
North at La Jolla Shores, Laureate Park on Avenida de la Playa is fenced off between El Paseo Grande and Paseo del Ocaso. Sewer Pump Station 27 sits at the site, and the closure follows damage to its sewer main. The fencing went up in late September. City spokesperson Jennifer McBride told the La Jolla Light that sewage reached the surface on July 10 and was contained right away. She said there is no ongoing spill and that crews check the site daily.
According to the Union-Tribune's La Jolla Light coverage, the next step is a proper bypass pump to replace the temporary fixes. The city expects repairs in January, and the park will likely stay closed into early 2027. Parking around the park is tighter than usual. Cones block stretches of 90-minute street parking, and spaces on El Paseo Grande and Paseo del Ocaso are fenced off as a staging area for construction equipment.
Terry Kraszewski, who runs the nearby Ocean Girl apparel and gift shop, told the La Jolla Light she hopes "the park will be restored in good condition for the neighborhood to enjoy once again." On the same block, Casa Del Lobo, a coffee-and-ceramics shop at 2246 Avenida de la Playa, opened Aug. 18. With the pocket park closed, it's a nearby place to sit on this part of the avenue.
Between the Cove and the Shores After Dark
If you drive guests between the Village and the Shores in the evening, you'll likely pass a city project on Torrey Pines Road. The plan replaces the K-rail between Prospect Place and Coast Walk with guardrail. Work is scheduled Sunday through Thursday nights from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. through March 2027, with the northern westbound lane and the bike lane closed during work hours. The roadway is expected to be clear for daytime traffic. The sidewalk is planned to stay open at first and later close, with pedestrians sent to the south side. The La Jolla Shores Association's notice says the turn lane, sidewalks and bike lanes may also be affected during the day at times.
December brings its own Village traffic. The 70th annual La Jolla Christmas Parade & Holiday Festival is on Sunday, Dec. 6. The route starts at Kline Street and Girard Avenue and ends at the La Jolla Recreation Center, where the festival runs in the afternoon. The schedule is on the parade's official site. Nine days later, on Dec. 15, the Children's Pool beach closes for the season, and the seawall becomes the place to see the seals until mid-May.
The new grove and the South Casa plan both came from volunteers, donors and a nonprofit. If you're weighing a home near the Cove or the Shores and want to understand how these projects affect the blocks you're considering, Sonja Huter is glad to walk the shoreline with you and talk it through. Work With Sonja.