Living in Downtown San Diego has so much to offer. I mean, who would mind a summer concert in the middle of the Little Italy District on a warm summer night? Not me…

The Marine Band San Diego will perform on August 6th and this is a free concert for all Downtown San Diego Condo & Lofts home owners, residents and visitors. Pack your picnic bag and head over to Date Street to enjoy this Italian inspired neighborhood and all that it has to offer. For more information about the concert visit the Association of Little Italy.

The arguments for the new plaza plan at San Diego’s historic Balboa Park is heating up. Some don’t like the fact that the overall appearance of the park will be altered, others don’t like that not allowing cars to enter the plaza will crowd streets around Balboa Park with people looking for parking. No matter what the outcome is, not everybody is going to be completely happy with whatever outcome of the proposed 40 million dollar plan. A hearing was held the other day for officials to weigh out the pros and cons of Irwin Jacobs plan for the park.

To read more about the Plaza plan click on Balboa Park and to read 92101 Urban Living’s former blog about click on Balboa Park in Downtown San Diego might become more pedestrian friendly…

This summer has been a very busy summer for the Port of San Diego with the arrival of more than 600 alternative energy components.

This could potentially be an sign of an economic recovery both here in Downtown San Diego, the United States and the world. The first of the many shipments of wind blades and engine boxes arrived here in San Diego from Spain and were dropped off at the Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal. These products were stored at the marine terminal for a short time until a large wind farm in Honduras purchased some of them.

The busy summer at the Port of San Diego has been a great for Downtown San Diego Condo & Loft home owners and residents by creating new jobs for many people. Business doesn’t look like it will be slowing down anytime soon, at the end of this month General Electric will be importing 126 wind towers form China and another 76 tower blades from Brazil. Around the same time, Mitsubishi will be sending about 50 hubs and engine boxes from Japan. These shipments from General Electric and Mitsubishi will be delivered to the Port of San Diego then shipped up to Tehachapi, California to the second largest wind farm in the world Tehachapi Wind Farm.

Hopefully this means that the economy is picking up and more and more jobs will be created in other industries.

The Del Mar horse races are in full effect for 2011…or should I say hat races? This years race schedule runs from July 20th through September 7th, 2011. The races are a great way for Downtown San Diego Condo & Loft home owners and residents to take a day trip from the city to see some world class horse racing. The fun doesn’t stop at the races, Del Mar has some great restaurants and hotels to eat and stay at. Del Mar is in the Northern part of San Diego county located about 20 miles North of Downtown San Diego. Get your family & friends together and and take the train straight up to the famous party place. Check out more information at Del Mar Racing.

As I am sure you already know…we Downtown San Diego Condo and Loft home owners, business owners and residents has been given the opportunity to be apart of the design concepts for the new public open space at Horton Plaza. The last out of three meetings is to be held in the Gaslamp District where the design team will be giving a presentation. Come on down to Horton Plaza on Tuesday July 26th with start at 6.15pm.

The new space is presented by CCDC, that is working on behalf of the City of San Diego’s Redevelopment Agency and Westfield Horton Plaza retail center. The corner of 4th Avenue and Broadway is being transformed into a world-class urban plaza comparable to Union Square in San Francisco or Pioneer Courthouse Square in Portland. Horton Plaza will be almost the size of an entire city block and will host more than 200 civic events and community celebrations every year.

The former Robinsons-May building will be removed to make room for the new plaza…and this will also provide more public open spaces and creating a lively cultural center for where we can host a variety of community gatherings, civic celebrations, outdoor concerts and performances, movies and farmers’ markets. The existing historic Horton Plaza, including its iconic fountain, will also be rehabilitated as part of this project.

To read more about this project click on CCDC and to read 92101 Urban Living’s former blog click on Horton Plaza Park Expansion - Approved and Horton Plaza invites you to be apart of design concepts for new public space…

As a Downtown San Diego Condo home owner its always fun with having the Comic-Con going on but it can be a little bit too crowded down here. So for my family Sunday I was thinking about taking a little cruise down the coast to the surfers paradise Imperial Beach.

Who hasn’t tried building that castle on the beach…trying to impress you buddies, your kids or the other family who has the whole picnic theme down to a dime. The Championship of castle building is what is going on down here today.

Come on down and join this great community where the streets will be filled with vendors offering food, arts and crafts, t-shirt and of course the best sandcastles in the world.

For more information click on The U.S. Open Sandcastle Competition.

                                                                                                                                                           From the entrance of home #1806, you are struck by both the contemporary and simplistic design style. Unlike many urban units, there is a small foyer entrance and hallway before entering the kitchen and living areas. The floor to ceiling windows provides a sense of space and natural light. From the living room, you have full views and perspective of the 7th Ave Corridor between J and K Streets. To the South is Petco Park and to the North is the Downtown San Diego city skyline.

$3150/month, unfurnished, 2 bed/2bath, 1 parking space, $3150 security deposit, no pets, available now!

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This Downtown San Diego Condo in The Legend located in the East Village/Ballpark District is a contemporary and elegant West facing 2 bedroom unit. There are hardwood floors in the living room, kitchen and hallway and carpet in the bedrooms. The kitchen reflects the luxury appointments and fixtures we have come to expect from the Legend development. Two spacious bedrooms provide master and guests with a sense of ample and open room and both bedrooms have good sized storage space as well. You can step out on to the private patio space that has some peek views into Petco Park, and feel the energy of the East Village/Ballpark neighborhood. One of the best features of The Legend is location. In your front yard, you have the Ballpark, and the evolving K and J Street business corridors. In your backyard, the new San Diego Public Library is being built. Such great plans are developing for this section of the East Village/Ballpark neighborhood infrastructure and unit #1806 sits right in the middle of it all.

THE LEGEND: Finished in 2007, The Legend is yet another Bosa Development, defining the Downtown skyline. The Legend’s 170 high rise condominiums and 8 town homes will provide a perfect balance of privacy, luxury and convenience right in the heart of downtown. Views of San Diego’s waterfront, the city lights, Park at the Park and the San Gabriel mountains add to the inspiring atmosphere of high rise living.

An elegant courtyard entrance, creating a private enclave approaching the lobby, provides a fitting and impressive sense of arrival for residents and their guests. The concierge service and 24-hour gate attendant add a sense of belonging while an ambiance of refinement and contemporary sophistication is apparent throughout the building. Legendary amenities include a 2nd floor rooftop deck looking out over Park at the Park complete with pool and spa, fully-equipped fitness room, roof garden & BBQ area, steam, sauna & change rooms. The 7th floor social lounge, which opens out onto a 3,200 square foot rooftop deck also overlooking Park at the Park, complete with outdoor fireplace and barbecue area ensures there’s always plenty of space for social and recreational activities.

For more information contact Sofia at 619-992-5144 or sofia@92101urbanliving.com.

Being a Downtown San Diego Condo and Loft home owner in Downtown San Diego really has its benefits…one of them, all the great restaurants our neighborhoods are offering. For me..the East Village/Ballpark District holds me dear…as it is here i work, live and eat!

Have you ever been down to BASIC Urban Kitchen and Bar? This really cool urban place has been honored by the San Diego’s Business Improvement District (BID) Council by being named the 2011 BID Business of the Year at the Small Business Awards. BASIC excelled in all the criteria businesses were judged on, including business staying power, growth, financials, innovations and BID support.

Since Jon Manging opened up the doors to BASIC, the restaurant has received several awards, including an honor for “Design Excellence” by San Diego Home and Garden Magazine, “Best Pizza in San Diego” by NBC’s Golden Local and a “Silver Fork” award by Riviera Magazine.If you haven’t been here yet…come on down and try this fabulous place!

Want to see a Gray Whale? San Diego Bay restaurant dinner guests, Downtown San Diego Condo & Loft home owners and other visitors have had a little extra excitement this month in Downtown San Diego.

Throughout the last week several people have reported that they have seen a large Gray Whale exploring the San Diego Bay.

Whale migration usually ends in April but that doesn’t mean that some don’t hang out longer. It is estimated that more than 20,000 whales pass through San Diego each year moving between Baja California and Alaska.

This isn’t the first time that whales have been spotted in the Bay, last year a whale was nicknamed “Diego” and hung out in the Bay for about a month. These whale sightings really boost business for Downtown San Diego and Bay restaurants, not to mention boat tour companies. I say the whales are welcome to stay as long as the want…and I am sure you would like that too..

The last couple of days, the Chilean Ship Esmeralda has been docked at the B Street Pier Cruise Ship Terminal in Downtown San Diego and has been open to the public to tour.

The 371 foot long sailing ship with four 160 foot tall masts attracted hundreds of curious Downtown San Diego Condo & Loft home owners, residents and tourists down to the San Diego Bay so they could have a hands look for themselves. The ship is scheduled to set sail tomorrow Monday July 18th to continue its quest for San Francisco, Vancouver and Victoria in British Columbia. After making those stops the Esmeralda will sail to Hawaii and Tahiti before returning to Chile.

Esmeralda set sail in May from Valparaiso Chile and has visited many ports since then with its first ever coed crew of 196 people. When the 6 month trip is complete and the ship is back in Chile Esmeralda will have traveled more than 26,000 nautical miles and visited 12 different ports. Pretty cool…