Hillcrest, San Diego, California
Encyclopedia
Hillcrest is a neighborhood in San Diego, California
northwest of Balboa Park and south of Mission Valley.
Hillcrest is known for its tolerance, diversity, and locally-owned businesses, including restaurants, cafés, bars, clubs, trendy thrift-stores, and other independent specialty stores. Hillcrest has a high population density, compared to many other neighborhoods in San Diego, and it has a large and active lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT
) community.
. Many streets are lined with trees. There are Craftsman
homes and Mid-Century modern
apartment buildings.
The neighborhood is bound by Mission Hills to the northwest, Bankers Hill and Balboa Park to the south, University Heights to the north, and North Park to the east. A large ridge overlooking San Diego Bay
borders the neighborhood to the west.
Hillcrest is part of the Uptown community planning area, which consists of the neighborhoods of Mission Hills, Hillcrest, Bankers Hill, Park West, and University Heights.
-covered mesa. Kumeyaay
Indians inhabited numerous villages scattered throughout the San Diego region. Spanish colonization brought the first of twenty-nine California missions with the founding of the nearby San Diego Mission
. Presidio Park
in Mission Hills and Old Town
just down the hill are a part of San Diego history.
In 1870, Mary Kearney obtained a deed from the city for the land that eventually became Hillcrest. In 1871 Arnold and D. Choate, two real estate developers, obtained that property. George Hill, a wealthy railroad tycoon, then purchased the land. Real estate development began in 1910 and the area was built out by 1920. During the 1920s and 1930s Hillcrest was considered a suburban shopping area for downtown San Diego.
In the 1910s, Hillcrest 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 this neighborhood until their retirement in 1939.
In 1940 the "HILLCREST" lighted sign at the intersection of University and Fifth Avenue was first erected, donated by the Hillcrest Women's Association, a group of local female shopkeepers. After falling into disrepair, it was taken down and rebuilt in 1984.
After World War II
, Hillcrest was left with an aging infrastructure and population.
During the 1970s gays and lesbians began to establish residences, businesses, and organizations in Hillcrest.
1974: Protesting the city’s refusal of a parade permit, 200 gays and lesbians marched through the streets of downtown for the first time.
1975: The first city-permitted gay pride parade
was held.
1980: The Center for Social Services, founded in Golden Hill in 1973 -- now called the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Community Center, and generally known as "the Center" --moved to Hillcrest.
1984: The Hillcrest Business Association, a business improvement district, was formed.
1985: The Hillcrest Business Association hosted the first CityFest.
1994: A new Vermont Street pedestrian bridge was completed. The span, featuring public art, cost $1.2 million.
2001: Mercy Gardens -- formerly the Sisters of Mercy Convent, which housed nuns from 1926-1990 -- was remodeled for use by the HIV-positive community.
On August 2, 2007, a 100th birthday cake was served to the public, marking Hillcrest’s first one hundred years; there were Hillcrest Centennial events throughout the year.
2007: The Hillcrest Town Council was formed to give residents a voice.
The 2000 Census indicates median family income in 1999 was $61,741 ($80,011 in 2010 inflation adjusted dollars).
In 2000, there were 43 percent of households in Hillcrest (zip code 92103) headed by unmarried couples who were gay or lesbian.
's Third district; the current councilmember is Todd Gloria
.
The Uptown Planners is an elected planning group composed of residents, property owners, and business people from the Uptown area; it advises the city on land use and other issues.
An ad hoc town council provides a conduit for information from citizens with the government. The Hillcrest Town Council is an organization of local residents that was formed in 2007. It meets monthly. Its mission statement is "To provide a voice & enhance the quality of life for Hillcrest renters & homeowners while supporting actions that benefit our neighborhood."
. Among other activities, it sponsors the annual "Taste of Hillcrest," which offers food and drink samples from over 20 local bars and restaurants.
The commercial area of Hillcrest is noted for its many restaurants. Nearby Balboa Park provides recreational and cultural opportunities to Hillcrest residents. Scripps Mercy Hospital
and the UCSD Medical Center
are located here.
Hillcrest is served by State Route 163 at the University Avenue, Washington Street and Robinson Avenue exits. University Avenue and Washington Street are the major east-west thoroughfares in Hillcrest; Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Avenues connect Hillcrest to Downtown San Diego through Park West and Bankers Hill.
There is bus service connecting to Downtown as well as to the Mission Valley trolley stops because of the presence of the University Avenue and El Cajon Boulevard transit corridors, the two busiest in the metro region.
, Bankers Hill
, and other uptown areas, the city council in 1997 created a special parking district called the Uptown Partnership. The Uptown Partnership receives a portion of the income from area parking meters, amounting to about $700,000 per year. The money is supposed to be reinvested in the community to improve parking availability, traffic circulation, transit effectiveness, and pedestrian mobility.
For their first several years the Uptown Partnership worked on trying to build a parking garage in the Hillcrest area. They abandoned that idea in 2009, finding the cost to be prohibitive. They decided to focus their efforts instead on improving turnover at metered spaces, by increasing the cost per hour and expanding the hours of meter operation. They budgeted $2 million to upgrade every parking meter in Uptown. That plan met with considerable local opposition. Some local citizens and groups called for the Uptown Partnership to be dissolved, pointing out that it has created only 50 new parking spaces in its 12-year history - by converting parallel parking
to diagonal parking on San Diego Avenue and by realigning the Normal Street median, a project which got underway in 2009. During its 12-year existence the Partnership has spent more than $2.5 million, including $350,000 a year on salaries, supplies, and rent. A county grand jury in May 2010 criticized the Uptown Partnership for spending three times as much on salaries and operating expenses as on projects, and for creating so few new parking spaces. As of November 2010, the board of directors voted to terminate its relationship with the city of San Diego, effective December 29, 2010, and the future of the Uptown Partnership was in doubt.
Other regular events in Hillcrest include a weekly farmers market on the grounds of the local Department of Motor Vehicles, a Book Fair and Mardi Gras.
In 1994 former mayor and current talk-show host Roger Hedgecock
led a group of protesters calling themselves "The Normal People". They wanted to march in the Pride parade “in political disagreement to the homosexual agenda.” When rejected by the organizers of the parade, Hedgecock brought the matter to court. He filed a lawsuit, arguing that their exclusion violated San Diego's "Human Dignity Ordinance." The Superior Court rejected their claim, arguing that their right to march was not protected under the ordinance, since the Pride event was private and the "Normal People's" message was intended to interfere with the event.
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
northwest of Balboa Park and south of Mission Valley.
Hillcrest is known for its tolerance, diversity, and locally-owned businesses, including restaurants, cafés, bars, clubs, trendy thrift-stores, and other independent specialty stores. Hillcrest has a high population density, compared to many other neighborhoods in San Diego, and it has a large and active lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
) community.
Geography
Hillcrest is an older neighborhood which has gone through gentrificationGentrification
Gentrification and urban gentrification refer to the changes that result when wealthier people acquire or rent property in low income and working class communities. Urban gentrification is associated with movement. Consequent to gentrification, the average income increases and average family size...
. Many streets are lined with trees. There are Craftsman
American Craftsman
The American Craftsman Style, or the American Arts and Crafts Movement, is an American domestic architectural, interior design, landscape design, applied arts, and decorative arts style and lifestyle philosophy that began in the last years of the 19th century. As a comprehensive design and art...
homes and Mid-Century modern
Mid-century modern
Mid-Century modern is an architectural, interior and product design form that generally describes mid-20th century developments in modern design, architecture, and urban development from roughly 1933 to 1965...
apartment buildings.
The neighborhood is bound by Mission Hills to the northwest, Bankers Hill and Balboa Park to the south, University Heights to the north, and North Park to the east. A large ridge overlooking San Diego Bay
San Diego Bay
San Diego Bay is a natural harbor and deepwater port adjacent to San Diego, California. It is 12 mi/19 km long, 1 mi/1.6 km–3 mi/4.8 km wide...
borders the neighborhood to the west.
Hillcrest is part of the Uptown community planning area, which consists of the neighborhoods of Mission Hills, Hillcrest, Bankers Hill, Park West, and University Heights.
History
Initially, Hillcrest was a chaparralChaparral
Chaparral is a shrubland or heathland plant community found primarily in the U.S. state of California and in the northern portion of the Baja California peninsula, Mexico...
-covered mesa. Kumeyaay
Kumeyaay
The Kumeyaay, also known as Tipai-Ipai, Kamia, or formerly Diegueño, are Native American people of the extreme southwestern United States and northwest Mexico. They live in the states of California in the US and Baja California in Mexico. In Spanish, the name is commonly spelled...
Indians inhabited numerous villages scattered throughout the San Diego region. Spanish colonization brought the first of twenty-nine California missions with the founding of the nearby San Diego Mission
Mission San Diego de Alcalá
Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcalá, in San Diego, California, was the first Franciscan mission in the Las Californias Province of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. It was founded in 1769 by Spanish friar Junípero Serra in an area long inhabited by the Kumeyaay Indians...
. Presidio Park
Presidio of San Diego
El Presidio Reál de San Diego is an historical fort established on May 14, 1769, by Commandant Pedro Fages for Spain. It was the first permanent European settlement on the Pacific Coast of the United States. As the first of the presidios and Spanish missions in California, it was the base of...
in Mission Hills and Old Town
Old Town San Diego State Historic Park
Old Town San Diego State Historic Park, located in the Old Town neighborhood of San Diego, California, is a state protected historical park in San Diego. It commemorates the early days of the town of San Diego and includes many historic buildings from the period 1820 to 1870. The park was...
just down the hill are a part of San Diego history.
In 1870, Mary Kearney obtained a deed from the city for the land that eventually became Hillcrest. In 1871 Arnold and D. Choate, two real estate developers, obtained that property. George Hill, a wealthy railroad tycoon, then purchased the land. Real estate development began in 1910 and the area was built out by 1920. During the 1920s and 1930s Hillcrest was considered a suburban shopping area for downtown San Diego.
In the 1910s, Hillcrest became one of the many San Diego neighborhoods connected by the Class 1 streetcars
San Diego Class 1 Streetcars
The San Diego Class 1 Streetcars were a fleet of twenty-four unique streetcars that were originally built to provide transportation for the Panama-California Exposition in Balboa Park. The cars were designed by the San Diego Electric Railway Company under the leadership of John D. Spreckels and...
and an extensive San Diego public transit system that was spurred by the Panama-California Exposition of 1915 and built by John D. Spreckels
John D. Spreckels
John Diedrich Spreckels , the son of German-American industrialist Claus Spreckels, founded a transportation and real estate empire in San Diego, California in the late 19th and early 20th centuries...
. These streetcars became a fixture of this neighborhood until their retirement in 1939.
In 1940 the "HILLCREST" lighted sign at the intersection of University and Fifth Avenue was first erected, donated by the Hillcrest Women's Association, a group of local female shopkeepers. After falling into disrepair, it was taken down and rebuilt in 1984.
After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Hillcrest was left with an aging infrastructure and population.
During the 1970s gays and lesbians began to establish residences, businesses, and organizations in Hillcrest.
1974: Protesting the city’s refusal of a parade permit, 200 gays and lesbians marched through the streets of downtown for the first time.
1975: The first city-permitted gay pride parade
Gay pride parade
Pride parades for the LGBT community are events celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender culture. The events also at times serve as demonstrations for legal rights such as same-sex marriage...
was held.
1980: The Center for Social Services, founded in Golden Hill in 1973 -- now called the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Community Center, and generally known as "the Center" --moved to Hillcrest.
1984: The Hillcrest Business Association, a business improvement district, was formed.
1985: The Hillcrest Business Association hosted the first CityFest.
1994: A new Vermont Street pedestrian bridge was completed. The span, featuring public art, cost $1.2 million.
2001: Mercy Gardens -- formerly the Sisters of Mercy Convent, which housed nuns from 1926-1990 -- was remodeled for use by the HIV-positive community.
On August 2, 2007, a 100th birthday cake was served to the public, marking Hillcrest’s first one hundred years; there were Hillcrest Centennial events throughout the year.
2007: The Hillcrest Town Council was formed to give residents a voice.
Demographics
The 2000 Census showed that the neighborhood's residents had a median age of 39 and that 49.3% had college degrees.The 2000 Census indicates median family income in 1999 was $61,741 ($80,011 in 2010 inflation adjusted dollars).
In 2000, there were 43 percent of households in Hillcrest (zip code 92103) headed by unmarried couples who were gay or lesbian.
Government
The neighborhood is governed by the elected officials of the city of San Diego. It is part of the San Diego City CouncilSan Diego City Council
The San Diego City Council is the legislative branch of government for the city of San Diego, California. The city councilmember seats are all officially non-partisan by state law. There are currently 8 members of the city council, which will be expanded to 9 members in 2012 under the terms of a...
's Third district; the current councilmember is Todd Gloria
Todd Gloria
Todd Gloria is an American elected official in San Diego, California. He serves as a San Diego City Councilmember representing District 3. He was elected to a four-year term in 2008...
.
The Uptown Planners is an elected planning group composed of residents, property owners, and business people from the Uptown area; it advises the city on land use and other issues.
An ad hoc town council provides a conduit for information from citizens with the government. The Hillcrest Town Council is an organization of local residents that was formed in 2007. It meets monthly. Its mission statement is "To provide a voice & enhance the quality of life for Hillcrest renters & homeowners while supporting actions that benefit our neighborhood."
Economy
The Hillcrest Business Improvement Association has existed since 1921; in 1984 it became a city-approved Business Improvement DistrictBusiness improvement district
A business improvement district is a defined area within which businesses pay an additional tax or fee in order to fund improvements within the district's boundaries. Grant funds acquired by the city for special programs and/or incentives such as tax abatements can be made available to assist...
. Among other activities, it sponsors the annual "Taste of Hillcrest," which offers food and drink samples from over 20 local bars and restaurants.
The commercial area of Hillcrest is noted for its many restaurants. Nearby Balboa Park provides recreational and cultural opportunities to Hillcrest residents. Scripps Mercy Hospital
Scripps Health
Scripps Health is a nonprofit health care system based in San Diego, California. The system includes four hospitals and 19 outpatient facilities, and treats a half-million patients annually through 2,600 affiliated physicians....
and the UCSD Medical Center
UCSD Medical Center
UC San Diego Health System is an academic health system in San Diego and has been in operation since 1966. It is composed of UC San Diego Medical Center, Thornton Hospital, Moores Cancer Center, Shiley Eye Center, Sulpizio Cardiovascular Center and Jacobs Medical Center , as well as other primary...
are located here.
Transportation
Hillcrest is a walkable neighborhood with cafés, restaurants, and shops near the main residential pockets.Hillcrest is served by State Route 163 at the University Avenue, Washington Street and Robinson Avenue exits. University Avenue and Washington Street are the major east-west thoroughfares in Hillcrest; Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Avenues connect Hillcrest to Downtown San Diego through Park West and Bankers Hill.
There is bus service connecting to Downtown as well as to the Mission Valley trolley stops because of the presence of the University Avenue and El Cajon Boulevard transit corridors, the two busiest in the metro region.
Parking
Lack of parking is a major problem in the Hillcrest area. By one estimate, Hillcrest is at least 100 spaces short of meeting the demand for parking, and the deficit could increase to 750 spaces by 2025. The parking shortage is so acute that the opening of a new 36-space parking lot in June 2010 was front-page news. In an attempt to deal with the parking shortage in Hillcrest as well as Mission HillsMission Hills, San Diego, California
Mission Hills is a neighborhood of San Diego, California, USA. It is located on hills just south of the San Diego River valley and north of downtown San Diego, overlooking Old Town and San Diego Bay. It was subdivided on January 20, 1908 as a smaller portion of what is now referred to as Mission...
, Bankers Hill
Bankers Hill, San Diego, California
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 , to the south, past Date Street, by Downtown , to the east by Balboa Park, and the west by Interstate 5, Little Italy and...
, and other uptown areas, the city council in 1997 created a special parking district called the Uptown Partnership. The Uptown Partnership receives a portion of the income from area parking meters, amounting to about $700,000 per year. The money is supposed to be reinvested in the community to improve parking availability, traffic circulation, transit effectiveness, and pedestrian mobility.
For their first several years the Uptown Partnership worked on trying to build a parking garage in the Hillcrest area. They abandoned that idea in 2009, finding the cost to be prohibitive. They decided to focus their efforts instead on improving turnover at metered spaces, by increasing the cost per hour and expanding the hours of meter operation. They budgeted $2 million to upgrade every parking meter in Uptown. That plan met with considerable local opposition. Some local citizens and groups called for the Uptown Partnership to be dissolved, pointing out that it has created only 50 new parking spaces in its 12-year history - by converting parallel parking
Parallel parking
thumb|250px|right|Parallel-parked cars in [[Washington, D.C.]]thumb|250px|right|A motorist gets assistance parallel-parkingParallel parking is a method of parking a vehicle in line with other parked cars. Cars parked in parallel are in one line, parallel to the curb, with the front bumper of each...
to diagonal parking on San Diego Avenue and by realigning the Normal Street median, a project which got underway in 2009. During its 12-year existence the Partnership has spent more than $2.5 million, including $350,000 a year on salaries, supplies, and rent. A county grand jury in May 2010 criticized the Uptown Partnership for spending three times as much on salaries and operating expenses as on projects, and for creating so few new parking spaces. As of November 2010, the board of directors voted to terminate its relationship with the city of San Diego, effective December 29, 2010, and the future of the Uptown Partnership was in doubt.
Culture
Hillcrest "CityFest" is an annual street festival which features food, live entertainment, a beer garden and street vendors.Other regular events in Hillcrest include a weekly farmers market on the grounds of the local Department of Motor Vehicles, a Book Fair and Mardi Gras.
Pride Festival
San Diego Pride is an annual celebration each July for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. It features the Pride Parade followed by a two-day festival in Balboa Park. It is sponsored by San Diego LGBT Pride and is considered to be the largest civic event in the city of San Diego.In 1994 former mayor and current talk-show host Roger Hedgecock
Roger Hedgecock
Roger Allan Hedgecock is a conservative talk radio host and former mayor of San Diego, California. His show is syndicated by Radio America. Hedgecock still resides in San Diego...
led a group of protesters calling themselves "The Normal People". They wanted to march in the Pride parade “in political disagreement to the homosexual agenda.” When rejected by the organizers of the parade, Hedgecock brought the matter to court. He filed a lawsuit, arguing that their exclusion violated San Diego's "Human Dignity Ordinance." The Superior Court rejected their claim, arguing that their right to march was not protected under the ordinance, since the Pride event was private and the "Normal People's" message was intended to interfere with the event.