Despite public commitments from local government officials that beach access at La Jolla Cove will remain open to humans, the La Jolla Parks & Beaches group wants to be more hands-on in the discussion about people and sea lions at the local landmark.

At its Sept. 23 meeting, the LJP&B board voted unanimously to create a working group for a La Jolla Cove Access Project.

The group’s mission is to “align the community [and] create and execute a plan assuring continued public recreational access to The Cove.” It plans to work with applicable city of San Diego departments, federal agencies and various other interested parties.

Among its stated goals and responsibilities are:

• “Maintain focus on both human and pinniped security”

• “Work with experts to study/understand eco-balance of sea life and implications on long-term access and health of The Cove”

• “Provide responsible updates/communication at public forums”

• Obtain funding for related projects as needed

“We are looking for immediate, interim and long-term solutions,” said working group co-chair Stephanie Kelly. “We recognize that there is information we don’t have, but waiting a couple of years to get that information doesn’t solve the immediate problems. So we’re taking this in steps.”

The group will not address beach areas beyond La Jolla Cove. “We want to stay focused on The Cove so we can make progress and move forward,” Kelly said. “We’re trying to get to something we could accomplish.”

LJP&B board member Diane Kane argued that tourism management also should be a stated goal. She noted that in recent hearings about conflicts related to sea lions and humans at La Jolla Cove, tourists uneducated in how to behave around the marine mammals were seen as the primary problem rather than people who live in the area and are familiar with how to navigate The Cove when sea lions are present.

Though public access to La Jolla Cove remains unrestricted, the years-long issue of beach access rights for people and protections for marine mammals against human misconduct has led in La Jolla to partial-year public closure of the Children’s Pool, which is home to harbor seals, and year-round closure of Point La Jolla, where sea lions haul out.

On July 3, Michael Ruiz, chief park ranger for the San Diego Parks & Recreation Department, issued recommendations emphasizing “the importance of staying away from sea lions in the water or … on the beach” at La Jolla Cove.

His advisory came as the city cited recent videos of people getting too close to sea lions at The Cove, sometimes resulting in scary and potentially dangerous reactions from the animals.

Soon after, some members of La Jolla planning groups called for the city to create a sea lion management plan that would include methods for deterring or even removing the pinnipeds in the interest of preserving human access.

A week later, at the July 11 La Jolla Town Council meeting, San Diego City Councilman Joe LaCava reiterated earlier statements that he would fight for continued public access to the beach at La Jolla Cove.

“I want to make sure everyone here knows that it is a very bright line that I am going to maintain public access to the beach and to the water at La Jolla Cove,” said LaCava, a La Jolla resident who represents the community as the council member for District 1.

Later in July, the La Jolla Parks & Beaches board discussed the issue of people and pinnipeds at a standing-room-only meeting, with many in attendance arguing that uneducated tourists were a big part of the problem.

On Sept. 12, the Town Council held a forum about La Jolla Cove featuring comments from agencies including the Sierra Club Seal Society, San Diego lifeguards, La Jolla Cove Swim Club, San Diego Tourism Authority and more.

A common complaint was a lack of clarity about who is responsible for enforcement of laws applicable to human/sea lion interactions.

In light of being told that many agencies are responsible for small parts of the issue but none is responsible for it all, several people proposed ideas for projects to keep people a safe distance from pinnipeds without relying on one entity.

The Town Council, for example, is working to produce a video in hopes that tourists planning a trip to La Jolla will see it and learn how to navigate the area and the sea lions.

Many speakers said current signs addressing interactions with sea lions are ineffective, and they proposed stronger wording such as “Enter at your own risk.”

Some recommended changing city laws so violators can be ticketed.

San Diego officials said in August that the city is pursuing several new strategies to try to keep people and sea lions apart at La Jolla Cove while keeping The Cove open to public access.

The measures include enhanced education and signs at the entrances to La Jolla Cove, revised public announcements and better collaboration with other agencies.

City spokesman Benny Cartwright said the signs are expected to be up by the end of the year.

Other Parks & Beaches news

Beach cleanup: Robyn Davidoff, representing the Sierra Club Seal Society, said at LJP&B’s Sept. 23 meeting that her group participated in the 40th annual Coastal Cleanup event at Scripps Park, La Jolla Cove, Children’s Pool and Whale View Point on Sept. 21.

Volunteers picked up 28 pounds of trash, including seven pounds of recyclables, and more than 1,000 cigarette butts, she said. Some of the more unusual items picked up were 50 feet of rope, a glass pepper shaker, a glass vase, clothing and plastic toys.

La Jolla Bike Path: LJP&B member Barbara Dunbar reported a “successful” recent cleanup of the La Jolla Bike Path and said more will come monthly.

“They are cleaning out a lot of dead brush and are concerned because this could potentially be a bad fire season, so they want to be on top of that,” Dunbar said.

Next meeting: The La Jolla Parks & Beaches board next meets at 4 p.m. Monday, Oct. 28, at the La Jolla Recreation Center, 615 Prospect St. The agenda will be posted in advance at lajollaparksbeaches.org. ♦