Bankers Hill, sometimes known as Park West, is a long established uptown San Diego neighborhood near Balboa Park. It is bordered to the north by Mission Hills and Hillcrest (at Upas St.), to the south, past Date Street, by Downtown (at Interstate 5, the San Diego Freeway), to the east by Balboa Park, and the west by Interstate 5, Little Italy and San Diego International Airport.
The area is primarily residential south of Laurel Street and west of 5th Avenue. Many new construction projects are ongoing as of 2009, creating condominiums along 6th Avenue facing the park. Locations further west allow an elevated, panoramic view of Downtown, San Diego Bay, the airport, Coronado, Harbor Island and Mount Soledad. Many homes date from the late 19th century, including some which have been restored as offices or bed-and-breakfast inns. Architects Irving Gill, William Hebbard, Richard Requa, and Frank Mead designed homes in this area. The area acquired the name "Bankers Hill" because of its reputation as a home for the affluent.[1]
The neighborhood is densely populated and has inadequate parking, so the city included it in the Uptown Partnership, a quasi-governmental organization which is supposed to improve traffic flow and parking in the neighborhoods it serves. However, the Bankers Hill/Park West Community Association complained that they are not getting their share of the funds generated for this purpose, leading their city councilman to recommend a formal parking advisory committee be created for the Bankers Hill area.[2]