What happened to Spring Valley (San Diego, Chula Vista: sales, apartments, landscaping)

[LostSanDiegian]

I was just there two weeks ago and it sucks now. I grew up there and now I it looks like it went to hell!

[Carrie2979]

I'd like to second that! I grew up there. My parents still live there and everytime I drive there (I live in the Pt. Loma area now) I think i'm in T.J.!

[sdlife619]

It's always been a hell hole A.K.A "Trash Valley", SV has not changed one bit in the last 10+years, it was nice in the 80's from what I hear and turned into a ghetto in the 90's, but yeah it's pretty crappy overall.

I bet you drove down Jamacha, huh? If so, well then end of story, actually what's way worse than SV is Paradise Hills near Cumberlane St. , Lincoln Acres, now that's ghetto.

[jksouthbay88]

I think SV needs like a mall or a major commercial strip like a Mira Mesa Blvd or something.That can turn that community around a little bit.Look at National City in 2009.Just go back to even 2002 NC was very rough and tough.Worse in the 1980's and 1990's but improving about every month the last 3 years or so.

Also if Spring Valley was not county ran(it's own city) it would be a lot easier to have a redevelopment plan.

[grannydad]

I grew up in the Casa De Oro area of Spring Valley since 1961 and talk about changes!! Even CDO is rough now. Moved two years ago to Tx and so have two of my sisters since I came here. We all went to Monte Vista. It is definately not what is was between 1961 and 1980. Once it started filling up with apartments(and boy has it ever) it has continued to go down hill. But so has El Cajon and even areas of La Mesa are not good anymore. And forget Lemon Grove! Yikes!!!

[sdlife619]

I think National City really wants a piece of the pie that Chula Vista has been eating for the longest time. Yeah I agree with JK, NC has really started to improve many areas in it's city, like luring Walmart off Highland, and trying to attract big box businesses to help with income. Highland Ave is still pretty hood, but the city planted trees and flowers to spruce up the street and make it look a little nicer, basically to cover up or to absorb some of the nastiness that Highland is known for, but then you have to maintain the vegetation, and that cost money.

Same with ECB near the College area, trees has been planted everywhere with new landscaping on the center divides and I see maintenance workers all the time cutting, trimming, and watering the plants.

What's amazing is all this planting and improving has happened in last 3 or 4 years. You kinda wonder why NC didn't do this 20 years ago?

I too remember when NC was rougher back in 2002, I remember seeing tons of lowriders cruising up and down Highland for fun, and cops constantly cracking down on Chicano men and women for no reason just to cause a stir and hopefully deter them from ever cruising Highland again. I think the city but a ban on cruising Highland which I personally think is wrong, why are the hot rodders never bothered? The stereotype of lowriders will never change, it doesn't matter what people try to say, cops and the general public see lowriders and person behind the wheel as a no good trouble maker when all there doing is enjoying what they built especially when they are from a car club.

One question I do have is where are they getting the money to improve it's infrastructure in a poor city when they're broke? I know they raised the sales tax, but it's not enough. I just hope NC doesn't become too nice to the point where housing gets more expensive, land becomes more expensive which starts to price out the poor and lower middle class people. All it takes is one massive redevelopment plan to attract greedy developers to change a city forever. I know NC wants this to happen because they are tired of there bad image and are looking for ways to improve it, but they shouldn't do it at the expense of it's residents. Gentrification has hit San Diego like a storm, and it wont stop, now Barrio Logan is on the radar for hipsters, and yuppies which pisses me off because the Barrio has deep history behind it and shouldn't taken for granted. All I can hope for, is that the people in the barrio will fight back and prevent it from happening. It wont be long until all of the poor area's of SD and NC will be swept up by developers and wealthy people that have no business in a poor community.

Dang I really got off track, but yeah because SV is in an unincorporated location, not much can be done.

[1AngryTaxPayer]

IMO it's the govt that has let all of these areas turn sour by not enforcing any of the existing laws on the books. It's a shame. I really feel for all the seniors forced to retire in these hoods that bought their place back in the 60s and now are trapped in their own house.

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by 1AngryTaxPayer

IMO it's the govt that has let all of these areas turn sour by not enforcing any of the existing laws on the books. It's a shame. I really feel for all the seniors forced to retire in these hoods that bought their place back in the 60s and now are trapped in their own house.

I actually think it was the greedy city and county governments that got drunk on tax revenues by allowing developers to build in apartment density.

[jksouthbay88]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

I actually think it was the greedy city and county governments that got drunk on tax revenues by allowing developers to build in apartment density.

!!!THANK YOU!!!
Totally on you for that one.Kind of sounds like you are talking about Art Madrid-La Mesa but im not sure.

But one thing that "can" be done is SV can be made into it's own city maybe?Get there own government,own police and fire,public service like recreation and "city crews"(street maintnince)and all that good stuff like say Poway El Cajon or Chula Vista has.Orange County cities like Aliso Viejo(2001) Laguna Woods(1999) and Laguna Hills(1991) where not cities until there respective years.Maybe a Spring Valley(20....)?

I think all immediate areas like SV Bonita or even Fallbrook;anywhere that's "connected" to the general San Diego Super-Region.