Joe's Blog

Hi Folks,

I’d like to use this first blog post to introduce myself to those in La Mesa who don’t already know me. My name is Joe Kitzman, and my family is proposing the Park Station project. We have owned our land for more than 50 years thanks to my late grandfather, Andy Kitzman. It was his wish to revitalize this location and create a lasting legacy through a signature project on this unique site. It is the ideal entrance to La Mesa’s downtown Village business district and would be an optimal spot for a new gateway to La Mesa.

Members of the community have asked us what this project will look like, so we’ve developed new project renderings that will show folks our vision for Park Station. Click here to see the new images.

Our family is excited to bring to La Mesa a smart-growth, mixed-use project that will allow residents to walk to key services and amenities, take a trolley to work or school, gather with friends and family in community parks and plazas or walk to the La Mesa Village. A project like Park Station that mixes retail, residences and community gathering spots is in line with the City of La Mesa’s General Plan, which aims to “preserve and enhance the Downtown Village area as the City’s symbolic center providing for a vibrant commercial, civic and residential district designed and developed at a human scale to encourage activities and travel.”

Park Station will also provide an economic boost for the City of La Mesa by generating up to an estimated $1.6 million annually in sales, property and hotel taxes. These monies could be used to fund essential city services, such as police and fire protection, infrastructure and maintenance. In addition, the project will create up to 450 permanent jobs for residents here in La Mesa as well as hundreds of construction jobs throughout the build out of the project.

As longtime community members of La Mesa, our family knows what it is that makes this town special. We believe that Park Station is important because it preserves open space in La Mesa and provides transportation options, new places to eat and shop, and recreational opportunities. More and more young families are moving to La Mesa, and these are the types of projects that appeal to these folks.

We will continue to reach out to the community for feedback and comments. Check in to this blog regularly for project updates and more information about Park Station at the Crossroads of La Mesa.

Thanks,

Joe