A lot of people in North county don't want to go to Downtown San Diego (San Jose: home, neighborhoods)

[Jenkay]

Originally Posted by CNYC

What's the parking situation like ?

Big ol' parking lot, no shortage of spaces the times I've been there.

[CNYC]

Originally Posted by Jenkay

Big ol' parking lot, no shortage of spaces the times I've been there.

Thanks !

[malcorub16]

Originally Posted by kettlepot

Regarding C Street, yes it is horrible. And interestingly, in this case I believe the trolley is a big part of it. The tracks drove off the car traffic which gave it a dark and desolate feel which drove off the pedestrians which caused street level businesses to close. I wonder if they had made it a subway, if that would have prevented the problem. Turning it into an elevated would have made it worse by darkening the street even more. Or maybe it wasn't the trolley at all, and what has ruined C street is that buildings on Broadway cast too much shadow on the street. Whatever it is, the street is dark and desolate.

Imperial Trolley stops also has the C Street feeling X's 10. Perhaps the empty store fronts, the jail and concentration of bail bonds offices also have something to do with the feel on C Street.

Locals from outside of the area will still visit this immediate area from time to time to go the SD Courthouse, see a performance at the Civic Theater or watch a band at House of Blues. Symphony Hall is also just a block away.

People here criticize DTSD so much, it quite frankly its better than most downtowns that become concrete ghost-towns on the weekends and evenings.

[the topper]

Originally Posted by malcorub16

Imperial Trolley stops also has the C Street feeling X's 10. Perhaps the empty store fronts, the jail and concentration of bail bonds offices also have something to do with the feel on C Street.

Locals from outside of the area will still visit this immediate area from time to time to go the SD Courthouse, see a performance at the Civic Theater or watch a band at House of Blues. Symphony Hall is also just a block away.

People here criticize DTSD so much, it quite frankly its better than most downtowns that become concrete ghost-towns on the weekends and evenings.

I don't know about that: Philly, Seattle, Boston, SF. Portland, Denver, San Jose, Chi and Indianapolis are better than Dt. SD.

* Big mistakes to locate county jails/bail bonds downtown! 2/3 of downtown is bad with only parts of Little Italy/Gaslamp/waterfront being nice areas. East Village is bad despite high rise/ mid rise housing/hotels and Petco Park. Ok, the immediate Petco Park is ok, and that's it. Overall, I'd say downtown is still blighted for the most part and desperate in need of serious revitalizations/overhaul.

[malcorub16]

This is a list I personally have come up with in 15 mins of why locals will still go downtown (outside of work and school) despite its issues.

Baseball, the Padres play there several times a week when at home, a ticket to a game is still affordable for families and groups of co-workers.

Petco Park for concerts, fairs and other types of shows/sports.

Watch concerts of performances at Symphony Hall, Balboa Theater, SD Civic Center or House of Blues.

Young people still FLOOD The Gaslamp seemingly almost any night of the week.

Art Walk in Little Italy .

The Farmers Market in Little Italy.

People will go downtown to take their out of town guests to Sea Port Village and go for a boat tour on the Seal or the Harbor Excursions/Hornblower.

People still go downtown for the airport.

Couples will go out on dates in Little Italy.

People still go downtown to go to court or jury duty.

Families will come downtown to visit the Central Library or Children's Museum, especially when there is an event happening at either.

Comic Con attract thousands of locals downtown.

Bayside concerts at Embarcadero Park South and Sea Port Village.

Local families still come downtown to eat at the Spaghetti Factory.

Cuatro Milpas in Barrio Logan.

Convention Center, there is always something going on here.

There are frequently festivals on 5th Street.

Concerts, events and the finish of the Rock and Roll Marathon at the Water Front Park.

Families will visit the Water Front Park just to visit it during the summer time.

People will go downtown to bail loved ones out of jail.

I am sure there are many other reasons I've not listed, but to my point, LOCALS WILL STILL VISIT AND SPEND MONEY DOWNTOWN FOR ONE REASON OR ANOTHER. MY guess is that many SD locals visit downtown at least once per year.

[echo42]

I'm from Bonita and I don't want to go downtown anymore. It has become a cesspool of humanity.

SDPD-Failure
City of San Diego Gov- Failure
SANDAG- Failure
Father Joe's Village of the damned-Failure

whole other thread here:

Not going downtown anymore

[bloom]

Good enough list by malcorubthis, except Cuatro Milpas and Spag. Factory should be removed, and I would add one of the Contemporary Art Museums near the Sante Fe train station.

[malcorub16]

Originally Posted by bloom

Good enough list by malcorubthis, except Cuatro Milpas and Spag. Factory should be removed, and I would add one of the Contemporary Art Museums near the Sante Fe train station.

Thanks bloomingdales, I personally don't like Cuatro Milpas, but locals from outside of DT still seem to flock to it as there is usually a line out the door.

I also forgot about the Sprekels Theatre. I can't think of another single area in SD hat has this much to offer, sure La Jolla and Coronado are clean, very nice and tranquil but the attractions are limited.

[CNYC]

Public Bathrooms.

Where can people use bathrooms downtown when the public library closes ?

[aewan68]

Originally Posted by CNYC

Public Bathrooms.

Where can people use bathrooms downtown when the public library closes ?

Any back alley or street corner, the smell is strong of course that applies to many cities.