East Village vs. Downtown (for singles) (apartment complex, lease, loft) - San Diego - California (CA) - City-Data Forum

dakicka · 07-19-2009, 05:17 PM

SORRY- I MEANT East Village vs. LITTLE ITALY"

I am within a week of picking an apartment downtown and have it narrowed down to cortez hill, little italy, or east village. i put a deposit down on a dynamite apartment complex in cortez hill at 8th and beech and my only gripe is it seems a bit further away from 'the action.' it is about .70 miles away from the 3 main hot spots to be--- 3 laps around a track each way. while i know that is not THAT far at all, i'm looking to live somewhere in a 'community' where i feel i hop out of my doorstep and meet people within my 'hood.

i'm hearing mixed reviews about little italy in that it's a lot of tourists or couples and east village sounds to surely be the hip/trendy singles spot. the negative i hear/see about east village is there seems to be ongoing never-ending construction and also it's on the outskirts of homeless shelters and a bit more grungy depending upon how far east you go... i was looking around ballpark or just north between 11th and 8th areas. i want to stay out of actual gaslamp.

would like to hear your thoughts as to what is a better 'scene' and good neighborhood feel where i can mingle with the locals and go to restaurants or nightclubs without going for a mile walk.

NYSD1995 · 07-19-2009, 09:29 PM

Little Italy is better, there is no comparison, nothing really cohesive in East Village yet.... most of the people down there are there from somewhere else to see the Padre game.

sdlife619 · 07-20-2009, 02:15 AM

Yep true dat

Even though Little Italy has become generic, plasticky and less original, I still like it because you do have a sense that your in a neighborhood with a community feel. East Village is about partying and having fun.

SDgyrl · 07-20-2009, 07:16 PM

Regarding "Little Italy", make sure you can tolerate the train horns. I lived there for a while and found them intolerable...especially the loud freight train. Other than that, the neighborhood is great but the trains were definitely a deal breaker for me.

dakicka · 07-20-2009, 09:42 PM

thanks for the input all... i re-clocked the time from cortez hill to all the action, and it seems just too far away so it's definately looking like east village right now. im just hoping for some good deals to come through craigslist in the next few days before my lease is up! i've driven down to sd from oc 4x this week and hope to find something soon! if you hear of any nice 1br apartments/condos in east village that have a pool/jacuzz and nice community def. keep me in the loop

sdurbanite · 07-21-2009, 08:47 PM

I like both areas, but for what you are looking for LI might be a better fit.

I have friends that own in EV and of course, they like it there better than the other downtown 'hoods. The Good - Definitely a little rougher than LI, but it's close enough/yet far enough from the Gaslamp. If you look here, I'd stay west of the trolley tracks and closer to the Ballpark. More loft type options in EV. No plane or trolley noise, Basic, Cafe Chloe. Pedestrian bridge being built to link to SD Bay. The Bad - more homeless milling around, streets not as vibrant as LI, probably bad on Padre game days. Due to the economy, the construction in this area has slowed down alot. It's a good thing, really.

LI is less touristy than the Gaslamp, and more neighborhoody. The Good - Close to the bay for walks and biking, popular local hangouts (Princess of Wales, Waterfront, Airport Lounge, a few wine bars...Enoteca, Unwine, Tango), trolley nearby. Fillippi's and soon Luigi's! The Bad - trolley nearby, airplane noise depending on location.

Cortez Hill isn't so bad, really. Definitely the quietest of the downtown neighborhoods (sans airplane noise), but since it's the highest point downtown, I'm sure some the the highrises have great views of Balboa Park and the rest of downtown/bay.

Just wondering, do you already have a job lined up? If so, I honestly think SD will be better than OC. And don't forget you have Bankers Hill, Hillcrest, Golden Hill nearby. With OB, PB, MB a little further away.

Keep us posted on where you decide to live.

dakicka · 07-22-2009, 12:25 PM

thanks sdurbanite. I will be running my own business that gives me a lot of flexibility and also will be keeping the door open for more of a steady job as I move downtown. I haven't found the right apartment yet for me. I pulled out on my deposit at this nice cortez hill apartment because it is .90 miles from little italy and east village and .75 from gaslamp--- just a bit too far to walk in my opinion. And in living in downtown SD my goal is to walk around and feel a part of a neighborhood and the happening scene/action. I think east village is right up my alley and I'm aggressively hunting for a place between 1000-1300 max 1BR or large loft/studio. I think your feedback on the areas are dead on with what I've seen in my 4 trips down there this past week.