How a Simple Idea Sparked a New Bay Park Community Group

For two Bay Park friends, a search for a local Fourth of July event led to a grassroots movement to better connect the Bay Park community. A couple of weeks and an incorporation later, the Bay Park Community Council was born.

What is the Bay Park Community Council?

The volunteer-run Bay Park Community Council, envisioned by its president, Michelle Bellon, and vice president, Megan Schuck, aims to connect local residents through events, meetups, volunteer projects, and more. Its inaugural event will be Bay Park After Dark: Movie Night at the Bay, on February 22. It’s a free event at Mission Bay where people are invited to bring a blanket and cozy up for a movie under the stars.

Megan said the plan was to start small, with three different types of events: the movie, a service-related project, like a beach cleanup, and a block party. The plan to start smart quickly evolved to include park events and a membership celebration. As the organization grows, it will continue to add events based on community feedback.

“We wanted to do a service project because we are always looking for ways to give back, and get our kids to give back,” said Megan. “And our flagship event is going to be a block party down near Luce, and we are so excited about it.”

She continued, “We don’t have all the details yet, but it’s likely in the summer at some point.”

Pending permitting, the event will block off a section of the street and feature a band and community vendors. For Michelle, who works in the government space, organizing comes naturally, so she’s taken on the role of navigating permits, providing strategic direction, and managing the legal formation and governance aspects of running a non-profit.

The Story Behind the Bay Park Community Council Founders

Michelle and Megan, along with the other members of the council, Lauren Tinsley, Phillip Arrington, and John Eby, became fast friends when their oldest boys were in the same transitional kindergarten class at Bay Park Elementary School.

While not current council members, Rachel Arrington, Paul Newell, and Rae Newell were all early contributors to the organization’s incorporation.

“We were all searching for community,” Megan said. “We were looking for people with similar-age kids, and we found it within each other. And now we just want to expand it.”

While Lauren is a Bay Park/Clairemont native, the rest of the council moved to the neighborhood within the past decade.

A Tale of Two Downtowns

Michelle and her husband were living the urban East Village downtown life a decade ago, and when her company relocated to an office on Morena Boulevard, she discovered the gem that is Bay Park.

“I worked in Bay Park for many years, which is how I discovered the neighborhood and realized, ‘Oh, wow, there are tons of houses over here, and this is super central, and you’re still close to the water, but not ‘on’ the water from a price perspective,” shared Michelle of her first thoughts of the neighborhood.

It was around that time that Michelle and her husband were thinking about starting a family, so suburban life sounded appealing. They moved to Bay Park in 2018 and have no regrets.

Michelle affectionately refers to the area along the Morena corridor as downtown Bay Park and to the neighborhood’s upper hills as uptown.

“I think of downtown and uptown Bay Park as the core areas,” said Michelle, using air quotes to emphasize downtown and uptown jokingly. “But Bay Park is so much bigger than I realized, and I think there’s so much opportunity to showcase all the special parts and little corners of this place.”

An (At First) Unwilling Resident

Megan and her husband, John, are both on the council. Like Michelle and her husband, they were child-free and living in North Pacific Beach 15 years ago, but were ready to grow their family and looking for a more family-friendly neighborhood.

John, who is a San Diego native with ties to Clairemont, having attended Holmes Elementary School as a child, suggested Bay Park. Megan wasn’t having it.

Like many transplants who start off “west of the 5,” our neighborhoods seem almost foreign to them. “At that point, I was like, ‘What’s Bay Park? What’s Clairemont? I don’t want to move there,” said Megan. “I somehow had the upper hand in that, and we found ourselves in Kensington.”

Megan and John had a couple of kids while living in Kensington, but when they neared school age, Megan reconsidered Bay Park. They bought a home in the neighborhood, and she quickly fell in love with Bay Park.

She told her husband, “Why didn’t you convince me more the first time around?

Community to the Core

Phillip, who is originally from Florida, is the only council member with out-of-state roots. The different life experiences of each member lend to the council having a broad perspective on how it operates. But at its core, and the common thread that unites each member, is a passion for the Bay Park community.

Perks of Membership + How to Get Involved

The Bay Park Community Council is a not-for-profit organization. To help fund ongoing events, it offers membership levels, including individual, family, and lifetime family memberships. Members receive priority access to events and members-only event invites. They’ll also get discounts on merchandise.

Local businesses that wish to support the council can become official sponsors. In addition, community residents are invited to volunteer with the council.

The council currently has two open spots on its board as well.

Megan emphasized, “We are just excited by what Bay Park has to offer, and it’s [the BPCC] really for people who live, go to school, and work in Bay Park, as well as our neighbors and anyone who loves to spend time here. It’s really for all generations.”