Downtown San Diego Stories
Saturday morning is one of my favorite times to walk around the Gaslamp. It’s not crowded, there’s parking, and the old buildings have grandeur in the a.m. sunlight. Except for the occasional jogging conventioneer, you …
The aggro spirit present in many rap lyrics bubbled up when an impromptu curbside verbal battle between two local crews got physical outside the Tower Bar in May of 2013. Don’t expect any inter-artist aggression …
As many as 1000 activists pushing a broad range of causes gathered downtown Tuesday evening (November 29), the fourth anniversary of the "Fight for 15" movement backed by fast-food workers and labor unions to raise …
They may range in size and scope, but most of the nearly 150 breweries and tasting rooms pouring across greater San Diego have at least one thing in common — their looks. Since the majority …
Kevin Hellman says he was convinced to come back and resurrect the San Diego Music Awards, which will be held March 21 at the House of Blues downtown. Hellman told the Reader two weeks ago …
A marathon set of Joy Division and New Order classics by Manchester legend Peter Hook as the U.S. votes itself to hell is the only cure for the surrounding catastrophe. After a subtle start, “Ceremony” …
"Go!” This is Carla. “You can make it!” Eight. Friday night. Tapped out. Cupboard’s bare. Broke, broke, pelado. Except, heh-heh, just saw an ad that says free hot dogs today and tonight only, at the …
A former bouncer who launched his own security company and then parlayed his concert access into a gig as the tour manager for Guns ’N Roses, penetrated San Diego’s closed-shop concert business. “I think its …
“No, this is not the sort of thing that you’d expect to hear in the library.” Laurie Bailey is the arts, music, and recreation librarian at the Central Library in East Village. She’s talking about …
Named for Sally Ride, the first American woman in space as part of the space shuttle Challenger crew and member of UCSD’s faculty, Scripps Institution of Oceanography’s new research vessel, Sally Ride, will be open …
Jethro Tull the band may be on hiatus, or may be kaput, but Ian Anderson is keeping the name going strong. Anderson is back with his Thick as a Brick 2/Homo Eroticus band, but this …
The old downtown public library was notorious for hosting legions of homeless inebriates haunting the stacks. Now the city is looking for a vendor who can purvey the hard stuff to higher-dollar crowds. “From a …
Alice in Chains is one of the many bands to come out of the Seattle grunge scene of the early ’90s. Often overlooked by fans that flocked to Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Pearl Jam, I found …
As the specialty coffee business has gained in popularity, it's become an appealing choice for non-service industry professionals pursuing a second career. A couple such cases have led to new roasting shops in the county. …
Wow. Downtown. This scuzziest part of Broadway, around Fifth, is suddenly taking off. Guess the facelift started with the opening of the park at Horton Plaza, but now eateries are opening one after the other, …
Tasting rooms have become a dime a dozen in San Diego, but beer is not on the menu of one that opened on Pacific Highway in May. Bootstrap Kombucha offers free tasters and fills growlers …
If you're crossing the street at an intersection on University Avenue, watch out! Because 11 of the city's most dangerous intersections for pedestrians are on University in the five or so miles between Fourth Avenue …
Beds: 4 | Baths: 4 | Current Owner: Robert Wright | List Price: $5,900,000 The Harbor Club condominium complex, comprising two towers at the foot of Harbor Drive across from the convention center and blocks …
"It’s aggressive and energetic music,” says Wovenwar’s Phil Sgrosso of his new side band Poison Headache. “Something your parents would think is total crap, but that’s sort of the point.” The busy singer/guitarist/bassist has had …
Over 100 climate activists gathered downtown on Tuesday evening (September 13) as part of a national day of action aimed at convincing President Obama to put a stop to construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline. …
Clang, clang, clang In the summer you could get a fifty-cent pass for the whole week. ” She recalls passing her ticket out the window to a friend to squeeze two rides for the price …
For those among you who never had the pleasure, the Tedeschi Trucks Band is about as close as you will ever come to approximating a 1970s spectacle known as the Mad Dogs and Englishmen tour. …
Less than 24 hours after downtown's community planning group shot down plans for a 10,800-square-foot CVS store proposed for the Gaslamp Quarter, the citywide Planning Commission approved the same plan — by the same 2-1 …
Uh-oh. Last Chinese restaurant in Chinatown just bit the dust. Lucky Liu’s has closed. And before Unlucky Liu’s, Red Pearl came unstrung. Silver lining? Today, where Red Pearl used to be, I discover a brand-new …
While the Chargers spend money to propagandize for their stadium/convention center (convadium) proposal, some opposition groups are pointing out what a smelly deal Dean Spanos is trying to foist on San Diegans. Today (August 17), …
An animal-rights group is suing Seaport Village and the company that manages it for implementing strict guidelines to prevent free speech from occurring at the tourist attraction. The complaint also asks that a judge place …
A group of about 20 activists gathered outside city hall on Wednesday (July 20) to voice their support for Proposition 57, a measure advocated by governor Jerry Brown and denounced by mayor Kevin Faulconer. The …
When I first heard about a sandwich shop called Carnivore, my thought was it must be hipster. Its name sounds like the sort of provocative approach a de rigueur deli might take — daring you …
How San Diego Took Care of its Wobblies Jack Whyte was one of the last wobblies to be convicted: “If the people of the state are to blame for this persecution, then the people...are to …
Built in 1927 and historically designated in 1990, the California Theatre on Fourth Avenue has been owned by Sloan Capital since 2008. Sloan recently won non-historic designation for the attached Caliente sign but still has …
The long-awaited Ballpark Village development adjacent to Petco Park is another step closer to final approval. On July 1, South Carolina–based development firm Greystar filed a tentative map of the design with the City of …
While Bridgepoint Education, Inc., still has its name at the top of the building at 600 B Street, that sign is coming down soon. A Bridgepoint spokesperson did not respond to questions, but a source …
I give new barbecue joints the widest berth of all restaurant debuts. In my experience, really getting the production schedules dialed in takes a lot longer for barbecue, and the first few months tend to …
On June 23, the City of San Diego's Historic Resources Board met to decide the fate of three painted murals on downtown’s historic California Theatre at 1122 Fourth Avenue. Bruce Coons, executive director of Save …
Hmm... Which whiskey? The Glenfiddich 40-year-old costs $1049 per shot. A jigger of Benchmark costs $1. I hesitate. “Gimme the Gl…Glenfid…d’uh, no. I guess I’ll take the Benchmark,” I say. The $1 Benchmark is part …
Thousands of items of San Diego bibliophilic history are headed for the auction block this coming Saturday, June 11, at the old downtown library at 820 E St. "The Historic San Diego Central Library — …
“Ultimately [the police] caught me by my name being on the side of the car, not blurring out my license plate, and I didn’t expect the video to go that viral.” Blake Wilkey, 27, was …
The Piano Man, Billy Joel, played his only 2016 California show at Petco Park Saturday night, May 14. Joel started the show with “Miami 2017” and the sold out crowd of 42,000 sang and danced …
“Writing for a large ensemble in San Diego is just ridiculous,” says drummer/composer Nathan Hubbard, the winner of the 2014 San Diego Music Award for Best Jazz Recording. Hubbard is back in the news with …
Downtown bike shops are hearing more complaints and questions about bike thefts, particularly from so-called “safe rooms” and bike racks in secured parking garages. Employees at a few apartment buildings downtown agreed that thefts have …
In Berlin there aren’t a lot of good places to eat burritos, so people eat döner instead. Also known as döner kebab, the Turkish import has been around for generations, and Germans have adopted the …
The Neil Good Day Center for the homeless is planning to move from 299 17th Street, just north of Imperial Avenue, to 14th and Commercial streets, across from the main St. Vincent de Paul campus, …
If you are reading this on May 5, there is a good chance that the two main members of the Nortec Collective are flying over your head from Montreal. The Tijuana-based techno musicians are scheduled …
About 250 activists gathered downtown on Sunday (May 1, or May Day) to rally and march from City College to Chicano Park in support of workers' rights, higher wages, reduced immigration enforcement, and lower incarceration …
Enrique Limón is on a mission to save the Caliente mural on the west façade of the nearly 90-year-old, decades-abandoned, California Theatre (1122 Fourth Avenue). Limón started a petition on April 22 when he caught …
After learning the words to the songs on the EP I picked up when Stephan Hogan and his band played San Diego in February, I was eager to attend their return to town at downtown …
The downtown venue that hosted James Brown, Kings of Leon, Black Eyed Peas, X, Snoop Dogg, and TV on the Radio during its 17-year run, and which was slated to be refashioned into a state-of-the-art …
I am the captain of my ship. I stride my bridge deck. I scan the scuddy blue seaway ahead of me. Tallships bob everywhere below. That’s how it feels anyway. Star of India, HMS Surprise, …
If I were pushed to make a declaration of my favorite opera of all time I would admit, with some sense of shame, that it is Madama Butterfly. The shame comes in because Butterfly is …
“I’m doing performances in a trio with me on vocals, jazz drummer Nathan Hubbard, and jazz bassist Harley Magsino,” says Jack King, aka Parker Edison of hip-hop trio Parker & the Numberman. “We’ve definitely had …
Mary Smith sat here. So did a lot of her ladies of the night. So did the mayor of San Diego. They say he was a client. But that was the Gilded Age. It was …
Local talk show Tonight in San Diego kicks off its fourth season on Monday, April 11, in a new location, the Raw Space Theatre on First Avenue downtown. Organizers recently concluded a successful Kickstarter campaign, …