ENCINITAS — The Encinitas City Council approved a construction contract with Prestige Prime Engineering to build a pedestrian path along La Costa Avenue between Interstate 5 and North Vulcan Avenue.
More than $2 million in construction and consulting contracts — including funding for the La Costa Avenue Pedestrian Pathway Project — were approved unanimously as part of the consent calendar at the council’s Aug. 26 meeting.
Prestige Prime Engineering received the contract to build the pedestrian infrastructure along the Leucadia roadway. Altogether, the city allocated more than $1.3 million for the project, including contingencies and inspection costs, according to city documents.
The council approved funding for the pathway’s design in June 2023 after residents raised concerns about the lack of safe pedestrian infrastructure in that part of the city.
The council approved the La Costa Pedestrian Pathway’s final design in June.
Prestige Prime Engineering submitted one of six bids for the project, narrowly outbidding A.B. Hashmi Inc. by less than $5,000, or less than half a percent of the overall bid.
Construction is expected to begin in November 2026 and be completed by spring 2027.
Geotechnical contract
As part of the same action, the council also approved a $700,000 contract with Geopacifica Inc.
The five-year contract covers a range of geological issues the city may encounter, including reviews of development projects and concerns about sinkholes and bluff collapses.
Geopacifica is a longtime city consultant. During a council meeting in June, Jim Knowlton, an engineer and geologist with Geopacifica, said he had been consulting for the city for nearly as long as Encinitas has been incorporated.
At that meeting, Mayor Bruce Ehlers said Knowlton had been “our eyes and ears as an expert and have been for 30 plus years.”
Fire Station 5
The council also approved spending about $260,000 to repair shower facilities at Fire Station 5, located at 540 Balour Drive.
A staff member noticed a loose tile in the men’s restroom shower in March 2025, according to the city.
A follow-up investigation found moisture trapped inside the wall and determined that mold had resulted from deficiencies in the shower pan waterproofing. The investigation also found the same deficiencies in the showers in the women’s restroom.
The affected areas were ultimately repaired, including plumbing work and the replacement of walls, flooring and tiles.
