YOU ARE HERE: Neighborhood Signs throughout San Diego’s BIDs

YOU ARE HERE: NEIGHBORHOOD SIGNS THROUGHOUT SAN DIEGO'S BIDS

San Diego is known for its neighborhood identification signs that stand proudly at the heart of commercial districts. With such varied signs (that’s right, they’re not all neon!), it’s not surprising that many of the signs have rich histories and unique features.

County Supervisor Shows Sign of Support for Kensington

Just last week, the San Diego Union Tribune featured a story on the Kensington Sign. Click here for a great article about the sign’s history and the Kensington community’s involvement in repairing and replacing the sign: http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080117/news_1cz17sign.html. Because the sign is neon, maintenance and electric costs are quite high. The Kensington-Talmadge Community Association, a nonprofit organization, pays $3,000 in electrical bills each year, and $1,000 for each repair call. A new sign, to be installed this spring, will be paid for in part by a $40,000 civic-improvement grant from County Supervisor Ron Roberts. The grant’s requirement for matching funds was handily exceeded by community members who donated $45,000.

This left me wondering about the other signs in San Diego. Which BIDs have signs? Where are they, how did they pay for them, and who maintains them? El Cajon Boulevard, Gaslamp Quarter Association, Hillcrest, Kensington, Little Italy, Mission Hills, Normal Heights, North Park, and University Heights all have signs, although not all are BIDs. And, as I learned in my research, each sign has its own story.

Signs of Hard Work in North Park

According to Jude Thomas, former Executive Director of North Park Main Street, the original North Park sign was installed in the 1910’s, and hung over the intersection of 30th Street and University Avenue much in the same way the Hillcrest sign hangs over University Avenue at 5th Avenue. “The original sign was paid for by the ‘North Park Businessmen’s Women’s Auxiliary’, as a gift to the neighborhood,” said Thomas. Thanks, Ladies! Thomas continued, “When it came into disrepair, it was removed and eventually replaced in 1993 by the ‘North Park Business Association’ with the current sign, http://www.northparkmainstreet.com/, just two years before North Park Main Street was formed.” Maintenance on the sign is paid for by North Park Main Street. And here’s an interesting tidbit: although typically silent, the North Park sign is equipped with a CD player that could be used to play music through speakers in a nearby utility box.

Normal Signs

27 years ago, the Adams Avenue Business Association held a little street festival as a fundraiser for a neighborhood sign. The event was a success in two ways; first, enough money was raised for the ‘Adams Avenue Business Association Normal Heights’ sign, now hanging across Adams Avenue at Felton Street; second, that little festival grew up to be the Adams Avenue Street Fair, Southern California’s largest free 2-day music festival. http://www.adamsaveonline.com/..., (check it out on September 27th and 28th, 2008). Adams Avenue Business Association Executive Director Jim Schneider finds repairs on the sign are easily made. “Because the MAD (Maintenance Assessment District) maintains the sign, it’s fairly easy and a good turnaround time in regards to repairs.” Ah, it’s all about the MAD Engineer’s Report!

Signs of an Icon in the Gaslamp

The Gaslamp Quarter Association sign was the second neighborhood sign in San Diego, after Hillcrest. http://www.gaslamp.org/articles/articles/gaslamp_renaissance.html. Like the Adams Avenue Business Association, the Gaslamp Quarter Association used a fundraiser to pay for the sign. As I write this, I can hear GQA Executive Director Jimmy Parker correcting me; I’m sure Mr. Parker would want to me to clarify that the AABA must have copied the GQA, since the Normal Heights sign came after the Gaslamp Quarter sign! Either way, the “Sign of the Times Auction” was a great success, and enough money was raised for the sign. The event, now known as the ‘Lamplighter Awards,’ is now the GQA’s #1 fundraiser, with over 600 people in attendance. 

Signs of Growth

What about the BIDs that don’t have signs? In City Heights, City Heights Business Association Executive Director Enrique Gandarilla has received grant funding and held community workshops on a new sign that will be installed across University Avenue at the 15 freeway. Click here to see a rendering of what the sign will look like: http://www.cityheightsba.org/special.html. Other BIDs, such as Discover Pacific Beach, are just beginning to consider installing a sign. So, those of you that have them, expect some friendly phone calls from your peers asking, “hey, how did you get that sign, anyway?”