Downtown San Diego, also referred to as Centre City, is the city center of San Diego, California, the eighth largest city in America. In 2010, the Centre City area itself had a population of more than 28,000. Downtown San Diego serves as the cultural, financial center and central business district of San Diego County.
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The city of San Diego was originally focused in Old Town near the Presidio. In 1850 William Heath Davis and four partners purchased 160 acres (65 ha) of land in what is now Downtown San Diego, believing that a town closer to the waterfront would attract more trade. They laid out a street plan and built a wharf and warehouse, but nothing much came of their planned development.[1]
In 1867 Alonzo Horton purchased 800 acres (320 ha) of pueblo lands in the current Downtown area, and in 1869 he added Davis’s 160 acres (65 ha) to his holdings; the area was referred to as the Horton Addition.[2] Davis’s wharf had fallen to pieces by then, but Horton realized the area was still ideal for a harbor.[3] He built a new wharf at the end of Fifth Avenue in 1869.[4] He vigorously sold property and gave away land to promote development of the area, fueling the first of San Diego’s many real estate speculation booms. People flocked to the area, which became known as New Town, because of its better access to shipping. In 1871 government records were moved to a new county courthouse in New Town. By the 1880s New Town had totally eclipsed Old Town (as it is called to this day) as the heart of the growing city.
In 1885 the transcontinental railroad reached San Diego. The Santa Fe railway station opened downtown in 1887. (That station was replaced in 1915 by the Downtown landmark Union Station which is still in use.) In 1886 the city’s first electric lights and first streetcars were established in New Town.[5] In 1912 the Spreckels Theater opened downtown, the first modern commercial playhouse west of the Mississippi.[6] A new commercial pier, the Broadway Pier, was built by the city in 1913.
In the 1910s, Downtown became one of the many San Diego neighborhoods connected by the Class 1 streetcars and an extensive San Diego public transit system that was spurred by the Panama-California Exposition of 1915 and built by John D. Spreckels. These streetcars became a fixture of the neighborhood until their retirement in 1939.[7]
In 1964 the multi-story City Hall and Community Concourse were dedicated on a four-block-square property at 202 C Street. Recent mayors and city councils have discussed building a replacement city hall, but no replacement plan has been approved.
In the 1960s, Centre City began to fall into a state of disrepair and disrepute. Major businesses and stores moved from downtown to suburban shopping malls. Downtown became known as a hangout for homeless people and sailors on liberty. Tattoo parlors, bars, and strip clubs were predominant forms of business. Trash littered the Gaslamp Quarter, many 19th century Victorian houses were rundown, and there were few buildings of significant size (the tallest building at the time was fourteen stories, the locally famous El Cortez Apartment Hotel).[8] Despite this, low- and mid-rise buildings were beginning construction.
In 1975, redevelopment plans were created for Downtown.[9] In 1985, Downtown underwent more redevelopment with the completion of Horton Plaza, the Gaslamp Quarter revival, and the completion of the San Diego Convention Center. Petco Park, a baseball ballpark used by the San Diego Padres, opened in 2004.
Located in Central San Diego, Downtown San Diego is delimited by San Diego Bay to the west and southwest, Bankers Hill, Middletown, and Balboa Park to the north, Sherman Heights and Golden Hill to the east, and Barrio Logan and Logan Heights to the southeast. San Diego International Airport is just northwest of downtown.
Due to San Diego International Airport's (Lindbergh Field) proximity to downtown, there is a FAA imposed 500-foot height restriction on all buildings downtown.[10] The height regulation exists because when planes approach the airport, any structure taller than 500 ft. could interfere with flight operations and potentially cause a collision.[11]
The United States Postal Service operates the downtown San Diego Post Office at 815 E Street.[12] The city's main public library is located across the street from it at 8th and E streets. Other government buildings downtown include City Hall and other city administration buildings, the State of California office building at 1350 Front Street, and a three-block federal office complex at 8th and Front streets. County and federal courthouses are also located downtown.
The Downtown area contains numerous sites that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. They include:
The Civic Theatre in the Community Concourse is the home of the San Diego Opera as well as traveling shows. The San Diego Symphony is headquartered at Copley Symphony Hall, a renovated movie palace on 7th Avenue originally built in 1929 as the Fox Theater. The Spreckels Theater at 1st and Broadway, in continuous operation since 1912, hosts local and traveling performances and productions. The Balboa Theatre, built in 1924, re-opened in 2008 after extensive renovations as a venue for live performances and concerts. Both the Spreckles and the Balboa theaters are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Other downtown theaters include the Lyceum in Horton Plaza, which hosts the San Diego Repertory Theatre as well as concerts and art shows, and the Sledgehammer Theater. Night clubs such as the House of Blues and Croce’s feature well known musical groups.
The Columbia (waterfront) neighborhood of downtown hosts the Midway aircraft carrier museum ship, as well as the eight ships and boats of the San Diego Maritime Museum, headlined by the Star of India.
The San Diego Convention Center and Petco Park are located downtown.
The Horton Plaza and Seaport Village shopping and dining complexes attract visitors as well as local residents.
More than 200 cruise ships a year call at the cruise ship terminal. A passenger ferry connects downtown San Diego with Coronado, and San Diego Bay harbor tours depart from Harbor Drive.
Downtown events include the Big Bay Balloon Parade, held in conjunction with the Holiday Bowl; the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Parade and Festival; the Parade of Lights featuring holiday-decorated boats on the Bay; and the San Diego Street Scene music festival.[13]
The downtown area is served by the San Diego City Schools. Washington Elementary School is located in the downtown area. San Diego High School and San Diego City College are located in the northeastern corner of downtown adjacent to Balboa Park. Middle school students from downtown attend Roosevelt Middle School in the Balboa Park area.[14]
A few private or religious schools exist in the area.[15][16] California Western School of Law is located downtown.[17]
Streets are laid out in a grid pattern and many are designated for one-way traffic. North/south roads have both names and numbers. The named roads begin with Harbor Blvd then move east past Pacific, Kettner, India, Columbia, State, Union and Front Street. The roads then numbered and are called Avenues, starting at 1st Avenue and contunuing to Park Blvd (12th Ave) The general pattern is that even numbered streets head south, and odd numbered streets go north. East/west streets are laid out alphabetically from A to K, with the exception of D,H & I which are replaced with Broadway, Market and Island streets respectively. Steets north of A Street are named after trees and start with Ash Street, and going up to Laurel.
Main thoroughfares include Broadway and Market Streets (east/west), and Harbor Drive, Pacific Highway and Park Ave (north/south).
Three freeways either pass through or start/end in downtown San Diego. Highway 163 ends in downtown with the southbound lane of the freeway becoming 10th Ave and 11th Ave becoming the northbound lane at Ash Street. Interstate 5 passes above the downtown area and is accessible from selected streets outside of the actual downtown area or at the intersection of 10th/11th and Ash (where 163 starts/ends). Additionally, Highway 94 enters downtown from the east, with westbound 94 becoming F Street and G street becoming eastbound 94.
The downtown area is served by the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System, the San Diego Trolley. There is also a commuter train linking downtown with northern San Diego County, called the Coaster, which also stops at communities along the San Diego County costaline, as well as the Amtrak passenger rail system.
Parking is mainly concentrated in various "pay to park" lots, with metered parking spaces along side most streets. There is also parking available at the County operation center (located between Harbor Drive and Pacific Highway, just north of Ash), as well as Horton Plaza and Seaport Village shopping areas.