Several wonderful neighborhood activities took place in College Area during January and more are planned for February.
College Area Cleanup Day
In support of our wonderful neighborhoods, the College Area Community Council has begun sponsoring monthly cleanups. Locals are encouraged to spruce up areas around their residence or business or even take a walk to pick up trash along the way. Neighborhood beautification efforts will typically take place on the last Sunday of each month.
People who participate can be entered into a drawing for a gift card donated by a local College Area business, thanks to the involvement of the College Area Business District. Thank you to Vons for donating the January prize. The drawing was scheduled to take place at the monthly CACC meeting on Feb. 6. To enter future drawings, take a selfie or photo showing your participation on College Area Cleanup Day. Email your photo(s) on the day of the event with the subject heading “Sunday Cleanup” to [email protected]
Hardy Elementary School campus modernization
Two important planning workshops were recently held at Hardy Elementary School, on Jan.17 and 31.
They provided school staff and parents, as well as community members, with the opportunity to learn about and give input to plans for modernization of the campus. Participants heard a presentation by San Diego Unified School District staff and project consultants. They learned about contemporary, as well as anticipated future needs of students and school employees, and about ideas to support learning and instruction through architectural design, facilities enhancements, sustainability and more. The first drawings from the architect and other steps will be reviewed and discussed as the planning process continues.
Located at 5420 Montezuma Road, Hardy has been educating neighborhood children since 1957 and currently serves nearly 400 students in Universal Transitional Kindergarten through fifth grade. Capital improvements are funded by the School District’s Propositions S and Z, and Measures YY and U, approved by voters in 2008, 2018 and 2022. For more information go to https://fpcprojects.sandi.net or SDUSD Facilities Planning and Construction Division at (858) 637-3604.
Public art mural installation in Rolando-College Area
SDG&E and ArtReach are collaborating to install a community-inspired public art mural in the Rolando and College Area just off El Cajon Blvd. They will be hosting a public ribbon-cutting celebration at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 15 in front of the SDG&E 62nd Street Substation, located at 4641 62nd Street.
The artwork for this project was designed by ArtReach muralist, Katy Yeaw, with inspiration from neighborhood residents who shared their ideas during a public input session in the College-Rolando Library last December. The artwork will reflect the input of those who gave suggestions at that meeting and through ArtReach’s online questionnaire.
ArtReach provides visual arts education throughout San Diego and has partnered with the CACC, College Area Business District and others to create local murals at College Area schools and at 5547 El Cajon Blvd. at The Little Flower. Please plan to attend this very special ribbon-cutting ceremony. Everyone is invited. There will be light refreshments supplied by local eateries and speakers from SDG&E and ArtReach, as well as City Council President Sean Elo-Rivera. Mark your calendars now to help celebrate the collaborative efforts of @artreachsd, @sdge, and College Area and Rolando neighbors!
College View Estates
By JEAN HOEGER
Gary and Krista D. participated in the College Area Community Council’s monthly trash pickup (pictured in top photo).
The most recent CACC-sponsored Cleanup Day took place on Jan. 28, the last Sunday of the month. They worked together cleaning a section of Montezuma Road at Collwood Blvd, as well as along Yerba Santa Drive and Yerba Anita Drive.
In addition to trash, including two hubcaps and other car parts, they also stopped to clear all the rocks that had tumbled down the hill onto the road during the recent rains around their College View Estates neighborhood.
It’s a great thrill to see a clean section of road after the CACC Cleanup Day. Thanks for all those car horn toots of appreciation. Hope to see everyone out in the neighborhood on a future Cleanup Day.
Take it from Gary and Krista who said, “It’s more fun than you would think, especially with trash grabbers!”
Mesa Colony
By SUSAN GRANT
Interns from San Diego Fire Rescue and other City and County departments and agencies have been spending countless hours at the College-Rolando Library to help with the flood relief effort. They are working nonstop to process donations which have been arriving daily at this major collection site. 
The items collected are being dispatched to areas in the city that desperately need aid. While this operation will be close during actual periods of inclement weather, everyone is determined to get the donated items to where they are most needed as quickly and safely as possible.
The College-Rolando Library has the distinction of being the most productive donation site so far.There are three others that have been set up by the City. Kohta Zaiser, the Deputy Director of Community Engagement & Intern Manager, said logistics like access to parking, traffic flow and storage are important for an Emergency Response Site.
The College Area community has been amazing! We are so proud of our Library staff and of all the community members who have made donations to other San Diegans in need. Many thanks, as well, to the interns and volunteers who have moved and organized every donation, and City staff who quickly set up and managed this and the other sites throughout the city.
