Santa Ana has become a cool place to be, and that is scaring a lot of people. (San Diego: renting, crime rate)

[bobby_jo]

But why do you identify 'older white people', but not 'huge brown families'?

Maybe cuz they're not all brown?

Wouldn't it have just been better to say

Better why? There's no intended racism; it's the statistical racial makeup of the neighborhood. There were several comments throughout this thread about white flight, middle upper-class white people and where they're situating themselves in the County, and so on. There seems to be an implication that "no white people would live in Santa Ana," which is patently untrue, as half my neighbors are white. It's an area that is in racial transition; I've got no issues with it, just stating the facts as they currently are in my neighborhood and how they're changing.

It's also a neighborhood that is transitioning from retirees that have been here forever and huge families, to young couples with kids -- which was the main point of what I was trying to say.

But thanks for the subtle accusation of racism, that's always fun.

[Urban Planner]

Originally Posted by bobby_jo

Wow, a whole lot of people talking crap about a place that they don't even live in.

I DO live in Santa Ana (Mabury Park area), and I'm thrilled at the improvements in downtown.

We've owned our house here for 10 years, and seen a lot of changes that you could only see if you were actually living within the area. Our neighborhood when we moved in was comprised of two sorts of people: old white people who have been living here for 40 years, and huge immigrant families (sometimes 10-12 people in a 3-bedroom house). I'm seeing a massive shift in the last 2-3 years of fewer huge families and more young couples -- I see so many more baby carriages than I used to! And a lot more indication of yuppie-types -- people jogging during the day, much nicer cars, people walking purebred dogs, etc. It's all small stuff, but when you see it all adding up, it means something.

Now, admittedly, I don't live in one of the really ghetto areas -- living on the edge of Tustin means that it's a fairly decent neighborhood compared to other parts of Santa Ana. But we're definitely seeing an improvement in the overall vibe of our neighborhood, and I'm all for it. I guess I'm supposed to feel bad that the poor people may get pushed out, but I can't shed a tear too much if it means that crime will be reduced, and the neighborhood will be cleaner and safer...and that my property values will go up. After the hit we took after the real estate market crashed, I'd be happy if we eventually got back to the price point that we bought at...

Love hearing comments like this. I have friends that have lived in Madison Park (5 minutes south of Downtown) and they have echoed your comment. Same shift going on in their neighborhood although it has always been a working middle class area (50K-90K). The only major "problem" areas in this city have now been isolated to neighborhoods with large 4/8 plexes on small lots like Townsend or Myrtle street areas. All the other neighborhoods throughout the city are all going the right direction.

With all that's happening in DTSA now, it's just going to keep on fueling this citywide improvement.

[rosa surf]

Originally Posted by dober1

So cool if you are from Tijuana.

Tijuana has a growing culinary and arts culture and is actually a pretty hip city. Some of the best west coast sushi you will ever have is in Tijuana (yes, I said Tijuana). Super fresh and creative.

Their annual arts festival is amazing, similar to large events in LA or SF. I was there recently and had gourmet coffee, Baja CA wines and Argentine steak while checking out hundreds of art stands.

Not a good comparison my friend.

[dober1]

I would not eat anything from Tijauna.

[TimTheEnchanter]

Originally Posted by bobby_jo

Maybe cuz they're not all brown?

Better why? There's no intended racism; it's the statistical racial makeup of the neighborhood. There were several comments throughout this thread about white flight, middle upper-class white people and where they're situating themselves in the County, and so on. There seems to be an implication that "no white people would live in Santa Ana," which is patently untrue, as half my neighbors are white. It's an area that is in racial transition; I've got no issues with it, just stating the facts as they currently are in my neighborhood and how they're changing.

It's also a neighborhood that is transitioning from retirees that have been here forever and huge families, to young couples with kids -- which was the main point of what I was trying to say.

But thanks for the subtle accusation of racism, that's always fun.

But why identify the race of the people at all? My aunt is one of the older people who has lived in Santa Ana her whole life other than two years during WWII when her husband was based in WA.

So why not identify the "huge immigrant families" by race? You say your usage of the race of the older neighbors wasn't intended to be racist , "it's the statistical racial makeup" and the huge immigrant families are "not all brown", but 80% of Santa Ana is brown and only 10% are Asian, so statistically speaking most are going to be brown. So why not identify them by what their racial make-up is?

You may not think you are being racist when you single out the older residents, but in identifying them by race, you are making a racial observation. Only you know the motivation.

I am not saying you are racist, but what I am saying is next time someone else makes an observation where race is a factor, people should not play the racist card if it is merely the facts.

[RudyOD]

Originally Posted by rosa surf

Tijuana has a growing culinary and arts culture and is actually a pretty hip city. Some of the best west coast sushi you will ever have is in Tijuana (yes, I said Tijuana). Super fresh and creative.

Their annual arts festival is amazing, similar to large events in LA or SF. I was there recently and had gourmet coffee, Baja CA wines and Argentine steak while checking out hundreds of art stands.

Not a good comparison my friend.

I agree. Tijuana has so much going for it, and as much as I like the boon that is going in DTSA, it is still a baby compared to the mature and diverse cultural offerings of TJ. Even the craft beer scene in Tijuana is stronger than all of OC put together. TJ isn't for everyone though. Neither is LA or Santa Ana or South OC, for that matter.

Back to Santa Ana though. I think people are mixing up cool with other aspects like perceived safety, family friendly etc. Some places, like Los Feliz, have all of the above, other places, like Highland Park and Santa Ana have the cool part down, but need work on the other aspects. There are definitely changes going on, both on the city and neighborhood level, that only those live in and frequent the city often would be able to notice. These are mostly positive changes too.

[Urban Planner]

Originally Posted by RudyOD

Back to Santa Ana though. I think people are mixing up cool with other aspects like perceived safety, family friendly etc.

Well in my original post, i did touch upon more than just the "cool" aspect. Not only is it cool, it's also gotten much safer and all the other stuff I mentioned.

[rosa surf]

Originally Posted by dober1

I would not eat anything from Tijauna.

I don't care. I was just pointing out that comparing Tijuana to Santa Ana is pretty ridiculous.

[LuvSouthOC]

I have not been to Tijuana in ages and am curious to see if there are indeed improvements. I used to go routinely many many years ago. Since I am as old as dirt, that means nothing.

I would eat in Tijuana, but not salad or other things impacted by the water!

[rosa surf]

Originally Posted by LuvSouthOC

I have not been to Tijuana in ages and am curious to see if there are indeed improvements. I used to go routinely many many years ago. Since I am as old as dirt, that means nothing.

I would eat in Tijuana, but not salad or other things impacted by the water!

well I am not going to lie and say the whole city has improved- unfortunately there are still the well known social problems that exist in Mexico.

At the same time, it has a large middle class population and has had a cultural and culinary boom. People started caring more about the city and developing things there. They have everything from book festivals, paella festivals, art festivals, everything you can think of. The Centro Cultural was expanded and modernized, and holds events all the time. And they are not skimpy events.

I recently went to a restaurant called Verde y Crema, a beautiful place with farm to table Mexican food. It was amazing.

http://verdeycrema.com/wp-content/ga...y/img_2810.jpg

The place where the Caesar salad was invented has been re-vamped into a classy restaurant:

[url=http://www.caesarstijuana.com/]Caesars[/url]

Of course, if you don't want to go to Tijuana, renowned Tijuana/Baja chefs are opening restaurants in San Diego offering unique Mexican food. I am excited about Bracero opening in Little Italy soon:

[url=http://sandiego.eater.com/2015/2/9/8007959/super-cool-new-details-revealed-about-little-italys-bracero]Cool New Details Revealed About Little Italy's Bracero - Eater San Diego[/url]