How is Mt. Hope/Chollas View and the Gompers area? (San Diego: crime, townhouse)

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by jpatterson01

Is the crime/gang a problem in Mt Hope area every night or just something happening once a month? If it's once every few months that people get shot, how is it different from say, Rolando or Emerald Hills, which you say is more safer?

The difference is that the gang members LIVE in Mt Hope. They probably won't bug you if you mind your business but your neighbor might get shot in his driveway. There is almost never a gang-related shooting in a residential neighborhood in Rolando and only very rarely in Emerald Hills or North Encanto (especially in the sections with large lots and canyons)

When people put big iron gates around their front yards.... that's an easy way to know you are in a gang area. You won't see that in Rolando or Emerald Hills, but practically every house in Chollas View has one. You sound like you don't know these areas very well at all, I wouldn't even consider them unless you have a lot of experience with these sections of San Diego.

[moved]

That's true, and I'm sure that you haven't driven around there at night. And I wouldn't advise doing that!

[jpatterson01]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

The difference is that the gang members LIVE in Mt Hope. They probably won't bug you if you mind your business but your neighbor might get shot in his driveway. There is almost never a gang-related shooting in a residential neighborhood in Rolando and only very rarely in Emerald Hills or North Encanto (especially in the sections with large lots and canyons)

When people put big iron gates around their front yards.... that's an easy way to know you are in a gang area. You won't see that in Rolando or Emerald Hills, but practically every house in Chollas View has one. You sound like you don't know these areas very well at all, I wouldn't even consider them unless you have a lot of experience with these sections of San Diego.

Thanks for your response. I tend to avoid area with a lot of apartments if I were to buy an investment home. However, I noticed in the Mount Hope area, it's mostly all single-family homes and little condos/townhome/apartments. So, where do these gangstas live at in general? With their mommy/daddy living in their home and sneaking out to gangbang at night? Or, do most come from a large gang family and thus live in the same house altogether?

[moved]

They live with mommy and daddy, and go out at night.

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by jpatterson01

So, where do these gangstas live at in general? With their mommy/daddy living in their home and sneaking out to gangbang at night? Or, do most come from a large gang family and thus live in the same house altogether?

Both, and there are quite a few apartment complexes on Market.

If you have 250k to invest I would look at someplace like Chula Vista instead.

[sdlife619]

There was a shooting just 2 days ago in Mt Hope/Mountain View, some guy shot at some cops and tried to flee, at the same time they were chasing other suspects in a van.

Also there is always some sort of gang parties going on, it was the same area were a 16 year old girl was shot to death right in front of her friends house for no reason


So ya, the place is hood/ghetto/dangerous.

[jpatterson01]

Thanks for the info Sass.

About the shooting incident, wasn't that in National City (Palm Ave.)?

[shmoov_groovzsd]

Hi, I know this thread is a little older but just wanted to share my opinion of the Mt Hope area as I have an offer on a house near Costco north of Market Street (Gateway area). I am looking at moving there with my wife. We are what I would consider middle class but here in SD the definitions are a little skewed. We both work for very large tech firms here in SD and are comfortable with our lifestyle. However I absolutely refuse to pay over 400k for a 800sq foot bunglaow in North or South Park....just ridiculous.
A little background: I have lived in the Gaslamp/Marina district for over 6 years renting a condo and waiting for prices to come down in the county. For the past couple of years I have been researching and visiting the southeast outerlying areas of downtown to buy some property (quite frankly one of the only areas to realistically afford without being housepoor or living to far south). It amazed me how close an area like Sherman Heights is to downtown and how drastically different it is to Bankers Hill and Hillcrest.

Now granted anyone from SD knows that not only was downtown totally rundown, but so were the areas I just mentioned north of downtown. They all have houses from the same era etc etc. just more run down not looked after. I wouldnt necessarily call it dangerous (I was born in NJ, let me take you to Camden or Newark to see a ghetto). These areas have since been "gentrified"....geez you should have seen La Jolla 30 years ago!

Now about Mt Hope and SE San Diego: Financially and politically, its has without a doubt been waiting in the shadows to emerge. Its been an often ignored area for investors and when some investment has come in, did not live up to expectations. There is definitely a stigma about SE SD, some true others a little artificially blown up. It is also part of the SEDC (southeastern Development Corporation) which is an arm of the CCDC for downtown development and has had some pretty bad PR over the past decade with corruption charges amongst its executives etc. You can look up on google the SEDC and the plans that in place for redeveloping.

The MT Hope area (and immediate areas) no doubt has some troubled streets and gang activity... so dont think I am looking at this with rose colored glasses. I have lived in the ghetto before out east and as with any area that has a perceived high crime rate or is run down, most yuppie types stay away. AFAIK if you mind your own business and give these guys respect, they never have any problems with you. They are gang members, not high school bullies so they tend to deal with problems with other gangs. Generalizing areas that have gang activity is like generalizing the legalizing pot debate: saying that once it goes legal all of the pot buyers turn into meth addicts.

I dont have any problem living in an area that is heavily concentrated with latinos or whatever other ethnic groups there might be. To many viewers of these forums, ethnic = danger. As a matter of fact I prefer the diversity.

All in all, this area will change. For the better or worse I dont know. But if my home purchase goes through there, I hope to an active member of the community to help it develop to what the people that care about it want it to be. I would say that anyone commenting any negativity about SE SD probably watches the news too much or "heard" about the whole "anything south of the 8" is ghetto. In perspective: Carmel Valley used to SD backcountry and downtown SD was a bunch of warehouses and prostitutes (well the prostitutes are still there lol.

[sdlife619]

You sound like a gentrifier,a person that is trying to force unwanted change, acting like you want to improve the area, be part of the community, when you are not even from there. SESD doesn't need people like this, because eventually, whatever improvements are being made, will most likely lure the outsiders and greedy developers, rather than helping the poor that live in these communities by making them more affordable, not more expensive due to the increase of property value's and speculation. Or saying "OMG, this area is soooooo...up and coming!" Ah...shut the hell up!! Real Estate agents love to exaggerate and false advertise. I just hope the people in SESD fight gentrification as much as possible, since it's starting to slowly take place. Once a neighborhood is branded and labeled as a tourist spot, or a new hot spot, that's when the damage has been done.

This is the last thing we need on our hands, yuppy snobs and hipsters being priced out of North Park, Hillcrest, and South Park, parts of Downtown, to start moving into the hood, replacing long time residents, by, buying them out, or being forced out through redevelopment.

[shmoov_groovzsd]

Originally Posted by sdlife619

You sound like a gentrifier,a person that is trying to force unwanted change, acting like you want to improve the area, be part of the community, when you are not even from there. SESD doesn't need people like this, because eventually, whatever improvements are being made, will most likely lure the outsiders and greedy developers, rather than helping the poor that live in these communities by making them more affordable, not more expensive due to the increase of property value's and speculation. Or saying "OMG, this area is soooooo...up and coming!" Ah...shut the hell up!! Real Estate agents love to exaggerate and false advertise. I just hope the people in SESD fight gentrification as much as possible, since it's starting to slowly take place. Once a neighborhood is branded and labeled as a tourist spot, or a new hot spot, that's when the damage has been done.

This is the last thing we need on our hands, yuppy snobs and hipsters being priced out of North Park, Hillcrest, and South Park, parts of Downtown, to start moving into the hood, replacing long time residents, by, buying them out, or being forced out through redevelopment.

I agree with you 110%.That was not the intention of my post. If being latino and coming from a low income household my whole life means gentrification, then I think we have different definitions about what you call gentrificaition. I am an average working class guy period looking to raise a family....dont know what that has to do with pushing people out or making them like something I like. You tell me where there is anywhere here in SD that is actually working class that isnt about keeping up with Tom, Dick and Jane. You are probably 619 style from your name and thats fine, this is where my problem IS definitely NOT.
Its pretty easy pointing fingers about gentrification and so fourth but as far as I am concerned, your problem is definitely not with me. Go contact Tony Young if you have a problem with "gentrifiers" moving in or the people that are making clear cut decisions on the situations in these areas. In other words, be part of the solution. You clearly have internet, so google Tony Young (District 4 councilman) about the problems you have with "no voice" in these areas. My post had nothing to do with change in these areas to make them "like" areas that are expensive. Observations are much different than saying "woohoo look people its safe here and really cool" about certain areas like I mentioned in South Park, Downtown, La Jolla and Hillcrest are for historical perspective. Observations about change.