La JoLLa Light
Enlightening La Jolla Since 1913
Vol. 99 Issue 52 • December 29, 2011
Online Daily at www.lajollalight.com
Residential Customer La Jolla, CA 92037 ECRWSS PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID SAN DIEGO, CA PERMIT NO. 1980
INSIDE
Four scientists lead cutting-edge research projects, A4
children’s Pool seals remain in the news
2011: Oh what a year it was! controversy over Mount Soledad cross
Historical Society looks back at World War II, A6
Galleria JAN marks its 25th anniversary, B7
By Dave SchwaB hile global financial upset, continued Middle East turmoil, and the Republican presidential candidate race grabbed national headlines all year, the local news here in La Jolla was, thankfully, a lot less tumultuous. Here’s a month-by-month reminder of what occurred in The Jewel in 2011.
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January • The 20-plus-year legal battle over the constitutionality of Mount Soledad’s landmark cross continued with a rally to defend keeping the Korean War
Memorial centerpiece in place in the wake of the 9th Circuit Court’s ruling that the cross was an illegal religious symbol on federally owned land. • Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) got the green light to do a $25 million climate research project. • A master plan for long-anticipated Torrey Pines Road improvements was unveiled. February • A call for a new farmers market at La Jolla Methodist Church in Bird Rock was issued and later scuttled
See 2011, a8
The Real world goes live in Bird Rock
art & wine festival raises cash for schools
Mixologists share seasonal sippers, B1
Spring attack on La Jolla potholes
UcSD celebrates 50th anniversary
Playhouse’s Jesus christ Superstar earns rave reviews
Four La Jolla homes fetch more than $10 million this year By PaT SheRMan Four residential properties in La Jolla sold for more than $10 million this year, including San Diego architect Wallace E. Cunningham’s contemporary opus, “The Razor.” Perched above Torrey Pines State Reserve at 9826 La Jolla Farms Way, the 11,000-square-foot estate boasts an open, minimalist design of white polished concrete and floor-to-ceiling glass that emphasizes its uninterrupted views of ocean and sky. The home, which has never been occupied, has been featured in television ads for Calvin Klein and Visa. It has a vanishing-edge pool and two-story guest-
house. Records show it cost roughly $32 million to build. “In my 32 years in real estate it is without question one of the most architecturally significant and beautiful homes I’ve ever seen,” said Jeffrey Nunn, branch manager of Coldwell Banker La Jolla. Laleh and Niloo Monshizadeh of Coldwell Banker represented the buyer, Donald Burns and Bob Hurwitz of Hurwitz James in Beverly Hills represented the seller, Jimmy Donald Cooksey, Jr. Despite its opulence, records show the home had both federal and state tax liens placed on it, and remained on the market
See hoMeS, a13
Known as The Razor, the home at 9826 La Jolla Farms way, sold for $14.1 million on Dec. 21. Courtesy
GREG NOONAN
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