Did you know that there is a budding music scene in the Ball Park District of the East Village of downtown San Diego? On Thursday nights you can go to Mondo Gelato and hear local artists perform original music along with the occasional out of town mnusical guest. A block away you can go to Java Jones on a Friday night and catch up to three acts playing original and cover songs. Admission for both places is FREE!! On tuesday nights you can go to Basic Urban Kitchen and check out graphic artists and their works.

This is a great way to meet up with friends and neighbors and hang out somewhere other than your living rooms. Passing time in a relaxing setting with local talent as the backdrop. The urban lifestyle continues to get better and better. These are but a sampling of what is to come in this area of Downtown. Other areas of downtown boast plenty of entertainment as well with the House of Blues, Hard Rock Hotel, 4th & B and Anthropology to name a few.

Have fun in your downtown neighborhood!

Part of the downtown lifestyle is the “walk-to-your-favorite-place-to-eat-ability” (and apparently, long run on hyphenated words) anyway… Living down here affords you the opportunity to walk out your lobby and spend a few minutes on the streets until you get to your destination. Today, this destination just happened to be the Kebab Shop, located at 630 9th Avenue in the East Village of Downtown San Diego.

The low down: Doner’s, Schawarma’s, Kebab’s and salads that are really good. Decent prices for a lot of flavor.

the Doner’s are what we would think of like a burrito. More of an A la Carte item. Lamb, Chicken or Veggie Doner’s are available. They come with the excellent yogurt sace, cabbage and onions. A side of fries or saffron Rice is just a little bit more. Or one of the many salad options are really good too.

the Schawarma is just about the same ingredients as the Doner but in sandwich style.

The Kebab- beef, lamb etc comes with a hot side and a salad. Great value and a plate full of food. No disappointing big appetites here.

Three salad meal available where you can pick three of the salads and get them in one plate.

No frills, four walls ethnic music playing all you can drink sodas and darn good food. Great for lunch on up to a late night filler. They also have an assortment of import beers as well.

This eatery is in the East Village about two blocks due North of Petco. Caters to foot traffic from Nexus, Fahrenheit, M2i, Metrome, Moto Villas, The Mark, Park Loft, Diamond Terrace, ICON, Park Terrace, Alta and Diamond View Tower office building. All places within a five minute walk. Go check it out!

Ever look around your home and think,”where did all this stuff come from?” I did it all the time out in the burbs. Plenty of place to store junk in a garage or the back yard. But that junk was never used. It was just junk. I look around my loft now and I realize that you can see EVERYTHING. It puts you in a state of mind of “what do I really need and what will I really use?” and then the right sizing comes in. Do you really need three couches, six night stands, multiple coffee tables etc? Do you still wear the t-shirts from High School (twelve years ago) that boast a city championship, the Michael Jackson jacket and the moon boots? Is it necessary to continue to keep a pile of four month old and older magazines? Do you really think it is necessary to have a weight set in what could be your office area?

Urban living to the rescue. Assess all the stuff laying around. Donate to Father Joe, Goodwill, Salvation Army or the Purple Heart. Give stuff away to friends and family or E-bay it- make a couple dollars on it. Simplify your living area, clear your space and your mind at the same time. Enjoy the clean edges of your home that weren’t meant to be hidden by boxes and other things previously mentioned. Just because there is space in the home doesn’t mean it needs to be filled. Allow it to stay open for air and light flow. You’ll find that 1,000 square feet can be more than enough space for a family if properly managed. If you have a kitchen island, allow it to be your breakfast/dinner table as well. A great idea is to have dual purpose for your space. Store stuff under the bed instead of the closet. It will free up closet space. Also, an office desk can be created to utilize the space underneath for more clean storage. Just a few ideas from someone who lives in a loft. Have fun!

The low down on color coated parking spaces in Downtown San Diego. Everyone should read this:

While hanging out in front of Mondo Gelato in the Fahrenheit building in downtown San Diego I noticed there was not one but four different colors painted on the curb. Green, Yellow, White and Red. People have asked what the difference is so I thought I would put this on paper for everyone to read.

RED- No Parking Anytime/No Stopping Anytime. If any part of your vehicle extends into the red zone you could be ticketed.

WHITE- Passenger Loading Zones- these are in effect 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, unless otherwise posted

YELLOW- Commercial Loading Zones. Trucks and Commercial Vehicles can stop for 20 minutes to load or unload goods. Passenger vehicles may stop for 3 minutes to load/unload passengers. Yellow is in effect from 6 am to 6 pm, Sundays and City Holidays excepted unless otherwise posted.

BLUE- Vehicles displaying a distinguishing placard or license plate issued to Disabled Persons by the California DMV may park in this zone. Out of state/country placards are also honored. If you have a disabled placard you can also park at green curbs or in time limit zones with no time restriction and at metered spaces for free and no time restriction. Parking in the blue crosshatched area designated for wheelchair lifts is prohibited and subject to fine.

GREEN- Short Term Time Limit Zones. Limited to the time period stenciled on the curb or posted on a sign. Time limits are 15, 30 minutes and in effect from 8 am to 6 pm Monday thru Saturday. Sunday and City Holidays excepted.

Parking meters have time limits, hourly rates and hours of enforcement for parking posted directly on the meter. A vehicle may not be parked in a metered spot longer then the posted limit and feeding the meter is prohibited PARKING METERS WITH YELLOW POLES ARE JURISDICTION OF THE PORT OF SAN DIEGO AND MAY HAVE DIFFERENT ENFORCEMENT REGULATIONS.

This was taken from a pamphlet given at the City of San Diego Parking Enforcement. All regulations are subject to change. We are not giving parking advice, just passing along the nfo given to us to help your stay in downtown San Diego more enjoyable

An article in todays Union Tribune discusses Chairman Bernanke’s signal to Congress that there will be another rate cut. Making money even less expensive. That is good news for homebuying,i.e. getting a loan. With the conforming limits having been raised and the cost of money being cut, it makes it attainable to get a loan for a home. Especially when you think about how it will affect Downtown San Diego Lofts and Condos with their prices. Now, it is due to this sluggish economy, low consumer confidence and rise in energy prices (to be commented upon down below) that is spurring this on. Read the article and form your own opinions on the matter.

As for Oil… a show on the History channel the other day (where my fellow History Channel watchers at?!?!) discussed the topic of oil, the cost of it and the supply of it. It is all but dried up in the US, as was predicted by one of Shell Oil’s head Geologists back in the 50’s. His name was Hubbard and in the 50’s he predicted the US production of Oil woild peak in the 70’s and all but run out by the 21st century. It was met with a lot of grumbling. You didn’t say things about our country back then that were negative. Rosie the Riveter would smack you upside the head. In this much more Liberal age, a lot of things are said freely. Like, the US pruduces 8 million barrels of oil per day but consumes nearly 24 million per day. We are getting two thirds of our oil from somewhere else. A lot of these somewhere elses aren’t aways very friendly to us and they are taking our wealth (I will leave the definition of that word up to the reader).

Why do I write this? Because, simply put, if you don’t want to pay exhorbinant prices at the pump on a semi weekly basis then you ought to live near where you work. It can cut down on those costs. Shorter commute time, less gas used, more public transit i.e. the trolley or bus can lessen your expenditure.

So there you have it. My spin on how to survive/take advantage of our current situation.

With everything going on in the real estate market, nothing tells the truth more than the actual numbers. The following blog is a template for something new we will be doing on a monthly basis for 92101 Urban Living.

In this graph you can see that the quantity of units sold in January ‘07 and January ‘08 are very similar, with a difference of 22 properties

With this graph it is very interesting to note the sales of new construction vs. resale

This will be a common trend in 2008 to see the columbia ditrict showing the most amount of sales. Four buildings being delivered in 08 are in the Columbia District: Bayside, Electra, Saphire Tower, Breeza.

One of the beautiful things about living in downtown San Diego is that this fine city is still growing it’s idenity and the community can help to mold this idenity into one complimenting it’s resident’s. The city has recently planned to cut a plan with a private developer to destruct and rebuild the 1960s-era Civic Center and create a new Civic Center. Two developer finalists are asking the publics opinion and feedback.
Why care? What is a Civic Center anyway?
A Civic Center is generally is a prominent space within a community that is constructed to be its focal point or center. Usually it contains one or more dominant public buildings, often times a government building and major permormance center. One of the most well known and well developed Civic Centers is the San Francisco’s Civic Center. San Francisco’s Civic Center is comprised of an area that contains many of the city’s largest government and cultural institutions. It has two large plazas; the Civic Center Plaza and United Nations Plaza, and a number of buildings in classical architectural style. Their Civic Center includes City Hall,, Supreme Court of California, San Francisco Public Library, War Memorial Opera House, Davies Symphony Hall, Herbst Theater, Asian Art Museum and much more. It is a cultural hub of the highest form where all of the cities important decisions and events take place.

So what would you like to see developed?

Comment on the San Diego Civic Center project.

• March 13: 6:30 p.m. at Qualcomm Stadium, Club Level, 9449 Friars Road.
• March 15: 10 a.m. at Malcolm X Library, 5148 Market St.

Check out this Union Tribune article for more information….See You There!

Another major transformation is being completed in Downtown San Diego. Out with the old and in with the new, and improved in this case. For the past eight years Hilton has worked on the transformation of the heavily polluted former Campbell Shipyard; adjacent to the new hotel site. The Campbell Shipyard operated from 1910 until 1999. Also located in this area were a manufactured gas waste facility and a bulk petroleum distribution facility. Remedial actions included chemical stabilization of contaminated ground and removal. $13.2 million was spent to remove or treat over 80,000 yards of soil and sediment from the water and land and then planting 1.5 acres of eel grass.

The newly named Hilton San Diego Bayfront will include:

• 385 foot tower
• 5,360 square feet of retail space
• 106,000 square feet of meeting space
• 23,082 square foot health club
• 1,200 private rooms
• 14,000 square foot restaurant
• 4.3 acre public park
• A water taxi dock to serve hotel guests

The total acreage of this site is 12.8 acres and the hotel is due to open in the fall.

There are numerous benefits to the new Hilton…

• Over $7 million in sales and property taxes annually
• TOT estimated at over $8 million annually for the City of San Diego
• Gorgeous waterfront park and plaza for both the community and hotel guests
• Approximately 600 jobs created in tourism and service industries
• Approximately $2 million in public art to be purchased by Hilton
• And an estimated $6 million annaully in Port revenue from the hotel and parking structure

*statisical information from sandiegoport.com*

My business partner once made a great observation. He said, it’s great to live in a neighborhood where opening day at Petco Park in Downtown San Diego is a deadline for new businesses, restaurants and shops. How true. All the new places are trying to be open for the masses that come down for opening day of the San Diego Padres Basebull Club. The thousands of people that walk around the streets brings a certain electricity to the neighborhood of the East Village that gets into the veins of even those who don’t like baseball. Take my wife for example. Before we moved down here hse had no care or intrest in nine guys in the field watching one guy try to hit a ball. Now, two years and coming upon our third season later, she is concerned about the Padres keeping Khalil Greene on the roster and is wondering if Trevor will be able to go a few more years. We walk from our Fahrenheit loft home to the games, a block away. It is awesome. On the way we see the businesses that are already here like Mondo Gelato, Basic Urban Kitchen and Wonderland. We are excited about the ones that are frantically trying to get built out as well. The new grocery type market in the TR Produce building, Manhattan style steakhouse coming along J street, The Tilted Kilt and many more. Start swinging those hammers, lads, as there are lots of people on their way. As a side note-It’s so much nicer when you can walk to it instead of drive.

Today my wife and I took our six year old to ride her bike at Petco Park. As usual, she did a couple of loops between the trees and then made a bee-line to the playground. We followed her, pushing our newborn in her stroller. What was different about this day, and pretty awesome as well, was that there were already three little kids playing there. As she joined in on the fun, more and more kids began showing up to play. Four years ago you wouldn’t have seen this. It was not much of a family place. Now, Amid all the loft buildings of downtown San Diego in the East Village there are children everywhere you look, newborns to preteen agers. A once desolate environment is slowly converting to a more family friendly environment! Don’t miss out on this beautiful Rennaissance