La Jolla Cove

La Jolla Cove is the name for a row of shoreline parks and small beaches. The La Jolla Community Plan, the city’s long-range guide for La Jolla, splits the coast into parts for beach access. This one is Subarea E (the plan’s name for the Coast Boulevard section). It runs past Ellen B. Scripps Park, the Cove itself, Shell Beach, Children’s Pool and Coast Boulevard Park. When I show a home on this edge of the Village, I start with the street, the park frontage and the rules on that lot. That means coastal rules, and how a remodel or historic review may apply. A nickname on a flyer is not enough.

Where it is. The City’s coastal access Subarea E, Coast Boulevard, covers the shoreline walk from Ellen B. Scripps Park to the end of Coast Boulevard Park. Prospect Street and Coast Boulevard are the main streets for cars. Public parking is limited to Coast Boulevard and adjacent local streets. You can see the shore from the walkway along the bluff edge, from Scripps Park to the end of Coast Boulevard Park.

La Jolla Cove. A small beach of about 0.4 acre at the north end of Ellen B. Scripps Park. Concrete stairs lead down the bluff. The City’s text calls the Cove and the bluffs next to it an important scenic and historic place. It also names the Cove as the site of the La Jolla Roughwater Swim.

Ellen B. Scripps Park. A shoreline park of about 5.6 acres on the bluff. The City’s text notes a scenic walkway along the bluff edge, a ramp to Boomer Beach, heavy use and no parking lot.

Coast Boulevard Park and the beaches south of it. A shoreline park of about 4.55 acres that runs south. Places the plan names in this section include Shell Beach, Children’s Pool (a beach of about 0.7 acre behind a seawall), South Casa Beach and Wipe-out Beach. Appendix G of the plan notes that public access at Children’s Pool is limited during harbor seal pupping season (December 15 to May 15). Check the posted rules with the City.

The name vs. the map. The Cove and Scripps Park are in Subarea E, at the shoreline edge of the Village. They are not Subarea F (Windansea) and not Kellogg Park or La Jolla Shores Beach. Compare with La Jolla Village, Windansea, La Jolla Shores, bluff homes, Guides and La Jolla.

This area is part of the La Jolla Community Plan, in the coastal strip of Subarea E. Check your lot on City maps. The extra rules on each lot change from street to street.

Height: 30 feet. Prop D and SDMC §132.0505 limit buildings to 30 feet on city land west of Interstate 5. SDMC is the San Diego Municipal Code, the city’s book of laws. Check with City Development Services.

Kinds of buildings. Shops and visitor businesses along Prospect near Scripps Park and the Cove, at the edge of the Village. Apartments and condos in Zone 5 of the La Jolla PDO, west and north of the shopping core toward the shore. The PDO (Planned District Ordinance) is a special set of City rules for the Village. Subarea 5A is the ocean side of Prospect from Eads to La Jolla Boulevard; check the map. Apartments and condos also line Coast Boulevard. Check the zone on your lot.

Older buildings and coastal checks. Work on a building 45 years or older can call for a historic review under SDMC §143.0212. See La Jolla 45-year historic review. Shoreline and bluff remodel notes: remodel rules and bluff homes. Fire and insurance maps: La Jolla fire & insurance. Guides: Guides. Selling? Start with seller prep.

General information, not legal advice. Check with City Development Services for your address.

Also: La Jolla · Guides · bluff homes · Shores · Farms · Bird Rock · Hermosa · Barber Tract · Country Club · Heights · Mt. Soledad.