Clairemont, San Diego

Clairemont
Community of San Diego
Clairemont Location within Northwestern San Diego
Coordinates: 32°49′14″N 117°11′24″W / 32.820461°N 117.190133°W / 32.820461; -117.190133
Country	United States
State	California
County	County of San Diego
City	City of San Diego

Clairemont Mesa is a suburban neighborhood in northern San Diego with a population of 80,000.^[1]

It includes the separate neighborhoods of North Clairemont, South Clairemont, Clairemont Mesa East and Clairemont Mesa West. It is bordered by State Route 52 in the north, Interstate 805 in the east, Interstate 5 in the west, and the neighborhood of Linda Vista on the south.

The neighborhood was first developed in the post-war building boom of the 1950s.^[2]

Etymology

Developers Lou Burgener and Carlos Tavares called their community Clairemont after Tavares' wife, Marjorie Claire.^[3]

History

Clairemont Development in the 1950s (Courtesy of San Diego Historical Society)

In 1950, Carlos Tavares and Lou Burgener developed what became San Diego's largest post-war subdivision. Originally dubbed, "The Village Within a City",^[4] people started living in Clairemont in May, 1951.^[5]

Clairemont's design represented a new concept in community living because it did not incorporate the traditional grid system of uniform blocks and streets. Instead, winding streets and scenic view lots took advantage of the canyons and bluffs overlooking Mission Bay. The first homes, built by Burgener and Tavares Construction Company, had highly customized floor plans.

The developers assembled the necessary acreage to develop Clairemont from three primary land holdings: the Peavey Cattle Ranch, Mission Bay Heights (owned by the Hazard Family), & Tecolote Heights (owned by Jack & Dan Danciger).^[4]

Before any homes were built in the new development, Tavares & Burgener invested $125,000 in off-street improvements including sewers, water, and access roads; this was necessary because the proposed development was not adjacent to any developed areas.^[4] The original Subdivision map that used the name “Clairemont” for the first time was approved and recorded by the County of San Diego on October 16, 1950. The map was named “Clairemont Unit #1, Map #2725”. This is the area in Clairemont that includes Deerpark Dr., Burgener Blvd., and Grandview St. from Field St. to Jellett St. According to Burgener, "Between 1952 & 1954, seven homes were constructed a day".^[4] It is also noted that Clairemont was the largest development of its kind in the country.^[4]

Within a few years, several thousand houses had been constructed, including single family homes, duplexes and apartments. Since Clairemont was somewhat removed from the city proper, commercial business and retail shopping, schools, libraries and other city amenities were designed into the overall plan. Although the concept of suburban living is commonplace today, this approach was considered novel and Tavares' vision for Clairemont had far-reaching implications for San Diego as it stretched the city limits outward and began the now familiar pattern of migration from city to suburb.^[6]

Today, the only land that remains vacant in Clairemont (once a vacant prairie) is San Clemente Canyon & Tecolote Canyon.^[4] Local residents rallied to save both canyons from development and were designated parks in the 1970s.

Milton Street was the only access from Old Highway 101 (Morena Boulevard) up to the new subdivisions.^{[citation needed]} The 1950s and early 1960s added many new shopping centers and access roads to crisscross the area. Many of the original shopping centers have been redeveloped.^{[citation needed]}

Geography

Tecolote Canyon Golf Course^[7] is in the bottom of the southern canyon area. There are streams and trails that extend into finger canyons in the area. Wildlife is seen throughout the canyons. This includes coyotes, wild green parrots and the owls which Tecolote Canyon is named after. Trails extend through the bottom of the canyons for hiking or mountain biking.^[8]

Notable residents

• Adam Gnade, novelist
• Phil Konstantin, television personality, author^{[citation needed]}
• Cleophus Prince Jr., the "Clairemont Killer,"^[9]
• Kendra Wilkinson, model and television personality

Education

• Marston Jr. High^{[citation needed]}
• James Madison High School
• Clairemont High School
• Islamic School of San Diego^[10]
• Health Sciences High and Middle College School^[11]
• Lindbergh/Schweitzer Elementary School^[12]
• Whitman Elementary^[13]
• The Child's Primary School^[14]
• Maria Montessori Schools^[15]
• CPMA Middle School (Creative Performing Media Arts)^[16]
• Innovation Middle School^[17]
• San Diego Mesa College

References

External links

• Clairemont
• Clairemont Newspaper

Coordinates: 32°49′13.66″N 117°11′24.48″W / 32.8204611°N 117.1901333°W / 32.8204611; -117.1901333