Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Shoring Up Slowing Contributions

— Three years ago, Del Mar Unified School District decided to sell off a 5.3-acre parcel of surplus property located in the heart of the city, at Ninth Street and Camino del Mar, for $8.5 million. Over the last twenty years, the Del Mar Shore property has been home for some of the school district’s administrative services, all of Del Mar little leagues, a makeshift dog park, and the Winston School for children with learning difficulties.

Looking to save the open space from high-density development, a group of Del Mar residents, along with Winston School officials, raised over $5 million to purchase the land-- quite the accomplishment, even for the silk-stocking denizens of Del Mar.

But now, with 37 months left on the loan, an outstanding balance of $3.5 million, and an ebbing economy, the non-profit heading up the efforts, Friends of Del Mar Parks, is scrambling to shore up the remaining balance to the City of Del Mar.

Sponsored
Sponsored

At the December 15 Del Mar City Council meeting, during the monthly fundraising status report to council members, president and founder of Friends of Del Mar Parks, Joe Sullivan explained the details of their new campaign.

“Last month we instituted the 41/36 campaign, where if every household in Del Mar did their part to pay off the $3.5 million balance, it would come to about $1500 per household, which divided by 36 months is only $41 dollars a month, about the amount that you probably send to the gym that you never go to.”

Since that campaign started, Sullivan said, more than 30 new contributors have signed on.

Councilmember Richard Earnest responded. “The project is a great idea but I’m assuming that when people sign up for that per month deal, we’re getting the money up front because we have things to pay off.”

“No, we’re transferring the money to the city when it comes in. So in the last two months we’ve transferred $58,000. The way that the 41/36 campaign works is people generally sign up with a credit card and we draft them each month.”

A day after the presentation, Sullivan elaborated on the difficult task of raising the remaining $3.5 million and the need for implementing the new campaign.

“In order to do this, I’ve got to be an optimist. My experience is, there is an enormous amount of generosity in the people of Del Mar and people clearly see this as a very important part of the community and a place for kids. Clearly this financial meltdown has made it more difficult. It’s just natural that philanthropists and charitable people have less to give this year and I think that people are going to tend to focus in on their traditional charities. There’s no question that this financial meltdown has slowed down the efforts of this campaign. This 41/36 campaign is a response to that.”

For more reasons why you should cancel your gym membership, go to delmarshores.org.

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

San Diego beaches not that nice to dogs

Bacteria and seawater itself not that great
Next Article

East San Diego County has only one bike lane

So you can get out of town – from Santee to Tierrasanta

— Three years ago, Del Mar Unified School District decided to sell off a 5.3-acre parcel of surplus property located in the heart of the city, at Ninth Street and Camino del Mar, for $8.5 million. Over the last twenty years, the Del Mar Shore property has been home for some of the school district’s administrative services, all of Del Mar little leagues, a makeshift dog park, and the Winston School for children with learning difficulties.

Looking to save the open space from high-density development, a group of Del Mar residents, along with Winston School officials, raised over $5 million to purchase the land-- quite the accomplishment, even for the silk-stocking denizens of Del Mar.

But now, with 37 months left on the loan, an outstanding balance of $3.5 million, and an ebbing economy, the non-profit heading up the efforts, Friends of Del Mar Parks, is scrambling to shore up the remaining balance to the City of Del Mar.

Sponsored
Sponsored

At the December 15 Del Mar City Council meeting, during the monthly fundraising status report to council members, president and founder of Friends of Del Mar Parks, Joe Sullivan explained the details of their new campaign.

“Last month we instituted the 41/36 campaign, where if every household in Del Mar did their part to pay off the $3.5 million balance, it would come to about $1500 per household, which divided by 36 months is only $41 dollars a month, about the amount that you probably send to the gym that you never go to.”

Since that campaign started, Sullivan said, more than 30 new contributors have signed on.

Councilmember Richard Earnest responded. “The project is a great idea but I’m assuming that when people sign up for that per month deal, we’re getting the money up front because we have things to pay off.”

“No, we’re transferring the money to the city when it comes in. So in the last two months we’ve transferred $58,000. The way that the 41/36 campaign works is people generally sign up with a credit card and we draft them each month.”

A day after the presentation, Sullivan elaborated on the difficult task of raising the remaining $3.5 million and the need for implementing the new campaign.

“In order to do this, I’ve got to be an optimist. My experience is, there is an enormous amount of generosity in the people of Del Mar and people clearly see this as a very important part of the community and a place for kids. Clearly this financial meltdown has made it more difficult. It’s just natural that philanthropists and charitable people have less to give this year and I think that people are going to tend to focus in on their traditional charities. There’s no question that this financial meltdown has slowed down the efforts of this campaign. This 41/36 campaign is a response to that.”

For more reasons why you should cancel your gym membership, go to delmarshores.org.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

3 Tips for Creating a Cozy and Inviting Living Room in San Diego

Next Article

Mary Catherine Swanson wants every San Diego student going to college

Where busing from Southeast San Diego to University City has led
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader