Mr. Tony G. worked for years to make La Mesa Emporium in the Village a reality. This concept thrives at Liberty Station, Little Italy’s Food Hall, and the Windmill Food Hall in Carlsbad and would have been very popular in La Mesa.
La Mesa’s permit process was so obstructionist, Tony eventually threw in the towel and sold the building. It is now a real estate office.
At my prodding and with a 5:0 vote of the La Mesa City Council, the City now produces a Permit Activity Report every quarter. The City also hired a firm to evaluate and improve La Mesa’s permit process.
This firm will be making its recommendations to the City Council at the next City Council meeting, Tuesday, February 28th, at 6 p.m. at City Hall.
If members of the public tell their stories to the La Mesa City Council, the City Council should recognize the dysfunction of our permit process prompting them to vote yes on implementing the firm’s recommendations.
Additionally, the mayor appointed Councilwoman Dillard and me co-chairs on the Standing Permit Committee. We are scheduled to meet the second Wednesday of every month with residents and business owners struggling to obtain their permits and city staff responsible for awarding permits.
Ms. Dillard’s and my goals are to facilitate communication between permit seekers and permit givers and to make the process user-friendly and expedient.
DURING CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS
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