San Diego’s sweeping effort to make neighborhood planning groups better organized and more diverse might also lead to the ouster of groups currently representing La Jolla and Hillcrest.
Rival groups in those communities are asking the city to let them replace the existing neighborhood groups, arguing they match the local demographics better and would be more effective leaders.
The existing groups , which both want to continue leading those neighborhoods, have submitted proposals to boost the diversity of their own membership and become more relevant to their communities.
The City Council is scheduled in May to choose between the rival and existing groups, and to decide whether three dozen other groups elsewhere around the city are eligible to keep representing their neighborhoods.
The council’s decisions will complete a nearly two-year process that aims to boost the professionalism and diversity of the groups, which have faced backlash in recent years for frequently opposing ambitious projects and policies.