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Renting an Apartment in Hillcrest
What You Should Know
Hillcrest is a neighborhood in the Uptown area of San Diego near Balboa Park.
Uptown (as opposed to nearby Downtown San Diego) traditionally consists of the
neighborhoods of Mission Hills, Old Town, Hillcrest, Bankers Hill, Park West and
University Heights west of Park Boulevard.
Hillcrest is an affluent, older San Diego neighborhood, mostly residential,
featuring tree-lined streets, and traditional homes. It lies between Mission
Hills and Bankers Hill on a ridge overlooking San Diego Bay to the west and
Mission Valley to the east.
Hillcrest is known for its tolerance, youthfulness, "alternative" culture,
diversity of age and income, locally owned businesses, restaurants, stores and
cafes. The neighborhood is walkable and pedestrian friendly, owing to its grid
street pattern and denser developments compared to the more common sub-urban
style in newer developments outside the city core.
Regular events include a a weekly farmers market, Book Fair, CityFest, Mardi
Gras, and the annual Pride Parade for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender
(LGBT) community. The Hillcrest Association representing businesses, and the
Uptown Planners representing residents interested in planning issues, work to
make Hillcrest attractive for shoppers and residents. The Uptown Shopping Center
located at University and Vermont is considered a national model for mixed-use
residential and commercial development.
Nearby Balboa Park provides recreational and cultural opportunities to Hillcrest
residents, as does its proximity to downtown with its bayfront promenade,
convention center and nightlife in Gaslamp Quarter.
Hillcrest remains the residential and commercial hub of San Diego's gay and
lesbian community. Prominent gay bars are mostly located within the community.
The route of the annual Pride Parade goes from University Avenue to Sixth
Avenue, ending at the west entrance to Balboa Park. The LGBT community center
("The Center") is located in Hillcrest. Hillcrest and Mission Hills are also
home to Scripps Mercy Hospital and the UCSD Medical Center.
Transportation in Hillcrest
Hillcrest is served by California State Route 163 at the University Avenue,
Washington Street, and Robinson Avenue exits.
University Avenue and Washington Street are the major east-west thoroughfares in
Hillcrest; Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Avenues connect Hillcrest to Downtown San
Diego through Park West and Bankers Hill.
There is ample bus service connecting to Downtown as well as to the Mission
Valley trolley stops.
History
Initially, Hillcrest was a chaparral-covered mesa. Kumeyaay Indians inhabited
numerous villages scattered throughout the San Diego region. Spanish
colonization brought the first of twenty-nine California missions with the
founding of the nearby San Diego Mission. Presideo Park in Mission Hills, and
Old Town just down the hill, are a treasure trove of San Diego history.
In 1870, Mary Kearney obtained a deed from the city for the land that eventually
became Hillcrest. In 1871 C. D. Arnold and D. Choate, two real estate
developers, obtained that property. George Hill, a wealthy railroad tycoon, then
purchased the land. Real estate development began in 1910 and the area was built
out by 1920. During the 1920s and 1930s Hillcrest was considered a suburban
shopping area for downtown San Diego.
In 1940 the "HILLCREST" lighted sign at the intersection of University and Fifth
Avenue was first erected, and later restored in 1977 and rebuilt in 1987. After
World War II, Hillcrest was left with an aging infrastructure and population,
but by the 1970s gays and lesbians began to settle in Hillcrest and revitalize
the community.
Events of significance for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community
1970: Members of the LGBT community begin to establish residences, businesses
and organizations within Hillcrest.
1980: The Center for Social Services founded in Golden Hill in 1973 -- now
called the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Community Center, and
generally known as "the Center" --moves to Hillcrest.
Protesting the city’s refusal of a parade permit, 200 gays and lesbians march
through the streets of downtown for the first time.
1981: The first city-permitted gay pride parade is held.
1984: The Flame, formerly a supper club on Park Boulevard, opens as a lesbian
bar.
1986: Maureen O’Connor is elected mayor. She becomes the first elected official
to ride and march in the Pride parade.
1993: Christine Kehoe, now a state senator, is elected as the community's
representative to the San Diego City Council. She is the first openly
gay/lesbian elected official in San Diego.
1994: A new Vermont Street pedestrian bridge is completed. The span, featuring
public art, costs $1.2 million.
Former Mayor Roger Hedgecock heads a group of protesters calling themselves “The
Normal People”. They want to march in the Pride parade. A court denies them
permission.
2001: Mercy Gardens -- formerly the Sisters of Mercy Convent, which housed nuns
from 1926-1990 -- is remodeled for use by the HIV-positive community.
Local public television station KPBS airs the documentary “Searching for San
Diego — Hillcrest.” Hillcrest Business Association president Hulda “Sissy” Isham
is one of many featured individuals in the documentary.
2002: The Fourteenth Annual Open Air Book Fair moves from Normal Heights to
Hillcrest’s Fifth Avenue, drawing 5,000 literary enthusiasts.
Superior Court Judge Bonnie Dumanis, a Hillcrest resident, is elected San Diego
District Attorney. She becomes the highest ranking, openly lesbian law
enforcement officer in the nation.
2005: City Councilmember Toni Atkins, who represents Hillcrest, is elected
Acting Mayor of San Diego by her fellow Councilmembers following the resignation
of Mayor Dick Murphy and conviction on corruption charges of Deputy Mayor
Michael Zucchet. San Diego becomes the nation's largest city with an openly gay
or lesbian chief executive. She would step down from the post following the
November election of new mayor Jerry Sanders.