VISTA — The Vista City Council has ordered the demolition of a historic church property that is slated for a 176-unit housing project, after declaring the site a public nuisance due to trash buildup, graffiti, and rampant trespassing at the vacant buildings.
Located at 165 Eucalyptus Avenue, the 2.9-acre circular lot in downtown Vista is home to the century-old New Community Church, comprising several buildings. Back in 2023, city officials approved plans for a housing project at the site proposed by developer LLJ Cross Park, LLC, known as the Park Avenue Apartments.
The buildings have been vacant for around a year since the church relocated to another site along South Santa Fe Avenue. Since then, neighboring residents and business owners say they have watched it become a hotspot for trash, graffiti, and trespassing by squatters and local youth.
Jeff Laird, who lives up the street from the property, said he has seen plywood placed over the broken windows only for it to be ripped down the next day by people entering the building. Laird said he has spoken with city code enforcement and the developer to share his concerns, but the issues persist.
“We’ve seen the property fall into severe disrepair,” Laird said. “Meanwhile, the people of the community have to deal with the eyesore, the squatting, the tagging, trash dumping, breaking windows.”
In early March, the Vista City Council declared the property a public nuisance and said the city would proceed with demolition on the property owner’s dime if the issues were not addressed within 30 days.
On April 14, the City Council agreed to loan $500,000 to LLJ Cross Park for the demolition, which is set to begin in May. The loan has an annual interest rate of 6.25% and must be repaid within two years.
City Council members did not sugarcoat their frustration with the property owner at their March meeting.
“We significantly increased the value of this property for the owner by changing the zoning, and I feel somewhat disrespected by the property owner, because they’ve allowed a nuisance situation to exist that a great number of our residents have complained about,” Mayor John Franklin said.
City staff said they opened a code enforcement case for the property in September. Since then, they have been in regular contact with the owner about repeated violations, including unsecured property, illegal occupancy, and the accumulation of trash.
Several citations have been issued totaling around $20,000, said Assistant to the City Manager Joshua Sino Cruz. LLJ Cross Park was also advised of the March nuisance hearing, but no representative attended.
“Although the owner has indicated the structures are planned for demolition, the property must still be secured and properly maintained in the meantime. However, the building remains unsecured and the violations continue to persist,” Sino Cruz said.
Lt. Nick Backouris of the Vista Sheriff’s Station said they have received 19 calls for service related to the property over the last 12 months.
LLJ Cross Park declined to have a comment included in the story.
Kerry Herrington, owner of the home goods store Re:Find Off Main, directly across the street from the church, said she has seen kids on bikes breaking into the building and knows there are several people living inside.
Herrington said she has reached out to the city several times to ask them to address the issues, including within the past few days, but they either don’t respond or tell her to call the Sheriff’s Office.
She noted that businesses downtown pay extra on their business licenses to the Central Vista Business Improvement District for the area’s beautification.
“When you have the historic downtown, when you charge the people down here so much, and you allow this to happen, it’s a slap in the face,” Herrington said. “I feel like the city let us down, everyone who is over here.”
She said she is glad the building is being demolished, but worries about the occupants who will have to find somewhere new to live. She also hopes the property will remain secure after the demolition.
City Councilmember Jeff Fox also works in an office directly across from the church property, and said he can confirm the issues residents have described.
“Every morning I’d kind of see people come out of the building in the morning, and late at night they’d go right back in … It was quite obvious what is happening with it,” Fox said.
The property owner has also allowed the buildings to be used by the Vista Fire Department and the Vista Sheriff’s Station for training.
Housing project next steps
Park Avenue Apartments will include four stories, with the ground floor below street level. It will have a total of 294 parking spaces, including a parking structure, 6,000 square feet of indoor amenities, and 33,000 square feet of outdoor common space.
The majority of the 176 apartments will be market-rate, and 18 will be restricted for very low-income households, or those making up to 50% of the area median income, or AMI. Apartment sizes will range from 624 to 1,162 square feet.
Because the site is surrounded by a mix of residences and businesses, the buildings are designed to look attractive from the street with varying facades and heights, according to the project website. Park Avenue Apartments was permitted to exceed local density standards under the state’s density bonus law, in addition to local limitations on heights and setbacks.
According to a city staff report, the property owner said they expect to obtain financing for the project by January 2027.
