Pacific Beach's Bayside Playgrounds Took Two Very Different Roads Back. A Third Is Still Waiting Out the Summer Rule.

The playgrounds at Fanuel Street Park and Crown Point Park spent close to two years fenced off and empty. By this summer both were open again, and both were rebuilt with inclusive equipment so kids of all physical and sensory abilities can play on the same structures. The city's general budget paid for neither one. In the same months those fences came down, that budget closed 13 of the 24 public restrooms around Mission Bay Park.

Where the money came from explains what you see along the bay this fall. It explains which play structures are open, which parking lot may still have equipment on it, and why the restroom near your favorite picnic spot has a December date on it.

Fanuel Street Park Went Around the Waiting List

The old Fanuel play structure came out in August 2024, after the city found heavy corrosion from king tides. A city replacement would have meant a long wait. Instead, Pacific Beach resident Dan Smith of Zoom Recreation partnered with the San Diego Parks Foundation to raise nearly $200,000 in donations, and Zoom Recreation installed the new structure for free.

The city held a groundbreaking at 4000 Fanuel St. on May 4, 2026, and expected installation to take about two weeks. City spokesperson Tyler Becker described it as "a collaboration between the city, the San Diego Parks Foundation, and Zoom Recreation, which generously donated the new equipment that they are manufacturing and installing," and said the project also included new safety surfacing and sand play elements.

Close to two years of empty sand, then about two weeks of installation once the money and equipment were in hand. Fanuel waited on funding far longer than it waited on construction.

Crown Point Was Paid For by the Bay Itself

Crown Point came back through a completely different funding stream. Its playground and the parking lot next to it were funded by the city's Mission Bay Park Improvement Fund, which Beach & Bay Press reported as a $5.5 million project. Construction started in March 2025. City budget documents break the work into a playground project and a separate parking lot estimate that add up to more than that figure, so treat $5.5 million as approximate.

The fund itself is written into the City Charter. Of all Mission Bay lease revenue above $20 million, up to 65 percent goes into the fund once the San Diego Regional Parks Improvement Fund receives its share, and that money can only be spent inside the Mission Bay Park Improvement Zone, on wetland and habitat restoration and on deferred maintenance. The hotels, marinas and other leaseholders around the bay effectively pay for the bay's upkeep. Axios San Diego reported in June that because these playgrounds have their own funding source, they could skirt the city's budget woes.

Crown Point also kept building through the summer, which most bayfront projects are not allowed to do. The California Coastal Commission's summer construction moratorium runs from Memorial Day through Labor Day, and the Commission waived it for the Crown Point playground. In June, Becker said the city was aiming to finish by the end of July and that "some grassy areas will need to remain closed for an additional three months to allow the new sod to acclimate to the environment." If the project finished close to that target, some of the lawn could stay fenced into late October. The later Beach & Bay Press update confirmed that certain areas would stay fenced while the new sod takes root.

Not everyone waited for the ribbon cutting. Over one June weekend, Axios spotted someone who had somehow gotten past the fence and had the whole Crown Point playground to themselves.

The construction also moved one of the neighborhood's longest-running traditions. The Pacific Beach Town Council's 46th annual PAESAN barbecue, Police and Emergency Services Appreciation Night, honored the firefighters at Stations No. 20 and No. 21 this year. It was held Sept. 23 at De Anza Cove, 3000 N. Mission Bay Drive, instead of its longtime home at Crown Point.

"We're doing it over at De Anza again, because of the construction on the playground. It was a beautiful venue last year. It worked out really well, it was actually better for parking and had a nice breeze. … We might just be there forever now." Liz Garcia, Pacific Beach Town Council vice president, speaking to the San Diego Union-Tribune

South De Anza Cove Is Running on the Summer Rule's Calendar

The third bayside playground hasn't reopened yet. South De Anza Cove draws on the same Mission Bay fund, so money isn't what's holding it back. The Coastal Commission calendar is. Axios reported in June that South De Anza playground construction was on hold for the summer moratorium and was expected to finish in early 2027.

The South De Anza work is split across three Capital Improvements Program projects. Together they cover an accessible playground, a new comfort station, basketball courts, lighting, landscaping, stormwater facilities, boat launch ramp improvements and a repaved parking lot. Becker said most of the work was expected to be done before Memorial Day. Phase 3 was scheduled to start after Labor Day and covers repaving the parking lot, concrete improvements and final landscaping and irrigation. The city estimated $14.5 million for all three projects and completion by spring 2027. Labor Day fell on Sept. 7 this year, so that work could begin as early as Sept. 8.

Ventura Cove, at the Mission Beach end of the bay, follows the same timing. Its first phase, the parking lot, is finished. Phase 2 was also scheduled to begin after Labor Day: tearing down the old restroom, installing a prefabricated one, and adding accessible sidewalks and parking, landscaping and conduit for future electric vehicle charging. Becker expected major work to wrap up in October, then a plant establishment period of several months, with everything done by early 2027 at an estimated $4.4 million from the Mission Bay Park Improvement Fund.

The fall schedules for De Anza and Ventura come from city plans published in May, and no later public update has confirmed the start dates. Expect some fencing at both sites before you head out with a stroller or a paddleboard.

The Restrooms Are the Part Still on a Clock

Restrooms run on general fund money, and they're the one piece of the bayfront without a guaranteed year. The city's Fiscal Year 2027 budget closed 13 of Mission Bay Park's 24 public restrooms in early July. On Aug. 12, Mayor Todd Gloria, Council President Joe LaCava and Councilmember Jennifer Campbell announced that all 13 would reopen starting Aug. 14. The money came from Community Projects, Programs, and Services allocations in Council Districts 1 and 2, plus general fund dollars freed up by higher-than-expected state grant funding.

That funding covers the rest of calendar year 2026. The city will take another look at its finances at the mid-year budget review and decide then whether the restrooms can stay open for the full fiscal year. The reopened restrooms are at El Carmel, Ventura Point, Bonita Cove East, Hospitality Point, Vacation Isle West, South Shores, North Cove, Crown Point South, Ski Beach North, Ski Beach Middle, Tecolote North, Playa Pacifica III and De Anza South.

That list includes Crown Point South and De Anza South, the two restrooms nearest the playgrounds that lease money just rebuilt. LaCava called the district funding "just the start of how we keep them open year-round." The new play structures at Crown Point are paid for. Whether the restroom by that playground stays open after December 31 will be decided at the mid-year budget review.

We love tracking the small stories that shape daily life by the bay, from who paid for a playground to which restroom has a December deadline. If you're wondering how changes along Mission Bay could affect your own corner of Pacific Beach, The Kaiser Team is happy to talk it through. Book a consultation and let's compare notes.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.