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Interact Club students Tessa Lowe of La Jolla High School and Emily Halaka of University City High School paint a door at the rear of the police storefront.
Jeff Raich of Prudential California Realty and La Jolla Interact student Blake Kirland prepare to plant a donated succulent.
Members of the Rotary Club of La Jolla, the La Jolla Real Estate Brokers’ Association (REBA) and high school students involved in Rotary’s Interact Club brandished brushes, shovels and smiles to paint and landscape a long- neglected police storefront in Pacific Beach Saturday, April 27.
The volunteer effort was in honor of Rotary International’s annual Rotarians at Work Day, which promotes the organization’s concept of ‘service above self.’
Sherry Craycroft digs a hole for an incoming succulent plant. Pat Sherman photos
The building at 4439 Olney St., which also serves police who patrol La Jolla, provides a place for law enforcement and volunteer senior patrol officers to complete paperwork and take meal breaks.
The volunteers planted sod, as well as jade, aloe and other succulent plants donated by Realtor Carol Uribe. The team also painted fascia and window trimming with paint donated by Sherwin Williams. Dewhurst & Associates construction oversaw the entire project, helping line up contractors to install everything from new kitchen cabinets to bathroom fixtures and tile flooring. They include: Chism Brothers, Gold Coast Design, Adept Plumbing, D&N Electric, Dal-Tile, Studio Stratton cabinets and West Coast Drywall & Paint.
“They were unbelievable,” said project coordinator and Rotarian Nancy Gardner of Dewhurst. “They literally got all the sub-contractors involved, most of which volunteered. It was quite an endeavor.”
Rotarian and La Jolla Town Council member Nancy Gardner stands next to a holding pen for police beach cruisers (not people, she assures) inside the newly remodeled police storefront.
San Diego Police Captain Brian Ahearn, with SDPD’s Northern Division, called the renovation “a testament to how much people appreciate their San Diego Police officers.
“No words can express just how appreciative the men and women of SDPD are for the generosity displayed by so many,” Ahearn said. “We will continue to work hard for you. The storefront symbolizes the bond that brings community and police so close to one another. … The community truly stepped up to significantly improve the working conditions for their San Diego Police officers.”
Rotarians, Realtors, the La Jolla Town Council and other La Jollans raised more than $25,000 for the project, Gardner said. Another $24,000 is still needed to purchase new LAN lines and heating and air conditioning.
“It’s truly a community effort until we get it completed,” Gardner said.
— Pat Sherman
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