SAN DIEGO DOWNTOWN

Downtown San Diego is the city center of San Diego, California, USA, and the central business district of the surrounding metropolitan area.

Downtown San Diego is literally the city center as the name "Centre City" implies, as it is located in the heart of San Diego County.

Many of the city's tallest, most important, and historic buildings are in this area.

History of Downtown San Diego

In the 1960s, Centre City began to fall into a state of disrepair.

Due to the struggling economy, most of the area was abandoned.
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 twelve stories, the locally famous El Cortez building).

Despite this, low- and mid-rise buildings were beginning construction. By the 1970s, Centre City San Diego was experiencing urban renewal.

The San Diego-Coronado Bay Bridge (known locally as "Coronado Bridge") was built in 1969 to relieve commuter stress on the San Diego-Coronado Ferry Service, but the skyscraper boom didn't start until the completion of Horton Plaza in 1985, the Gaslamp Quarter revival, and the completion of the San Diego Convention Center.

The completion of PETCO Park in 2004 fueled increased growth and investment, and consequently accelerated gentrification especially in East Village. Downtown along with the beach communities of Mission Beach and Pacific Beach are now considered as the three centers of nightlife in San Diego County; numerous bars, restaurants, and cafes dot 5th and 6th Avenues in the Gaslamp Quarter in downtown. Little Italy Horton Plaza San Diego Convention Center PETCO Park Downtown San Diego at Night as seen from Coronado.

Buildings in order from right to left:

Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego, Emerald Plaza, Manchester Grand Hyatt Seaport Village, One America Plaza, Park Place, Embassy Suites San Diego Bay Geography Downtown San Diego is delimited by San Diego Bay to the west and south, Bankers Hill, Middletown, and Balboa Park to the north, Barrio Logan and Sherman Heights to the southeast, and Golden Hill to the northeast.

San Diego International Airport is just northwest of downtown.

Districts and neighborhoods

• Columbia, the west district of downtown.

• Core District, the central (business) district of downtown.

• Cortez Hill, the north-east district of downtown.

• East Village, the east district of downtown.

• Gaslamp Quarter, a two by ten block night life district in central downtown.

• Little Italy, the north-west district of downtown.

• Marina, the south-west district of downtown.

• Horton District. The title 'Horton District' is used primarily by San Diego tourist offices; locals deem it to be part of the Marina District.