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The sloping landscape at the northern shore of San Diego
Bay was once home to a thriving tuna fishing industry and
the Italian-Americans who derived their livelihood from it.
As the tuna industry declined and a significant portion of
the neighborhood was disrupted by the construction of Interstate
5, Little Italy suffered decades of depreciation. When local
business owners and residents teamed up with the Centre City
Development Corporation in the early 1990s, things started
looking up. They envisioned revitalization of the commercial
district and preservation of the small scale and cultural
dynamic of the community.
Little Italy today represents some of the finest of San Diego
living: bay views, fine food, art and cultural festivities,
and affordable residences. Its lovely vistas now offer an
urban neighborhood with single-family homes, condominiums
and apartments. A recently revitalized India Street is alive
with restaurants, small cafes, galleries and specialty shops.
Our Lady of the Rosary Church and Washington Elementary School
remain important institutions of the area. Amici Park serves
both as a playground for the school and a park, including
a bocce ball court, for the community. Little Italy hosts
over half-a-dozen annual festivals in celebration of holidays,
music and art, including Festa, "Chalk La Strada,"
a Bocce Ball Tournament, ArtWalk, a jazz festival and Cinco
de Mayo, St. Patrick's Day, and Easter celebrations. The Little
Italy Association brings the story of Little Italy to its
visitors through public art displays. Five hundred parking
spaces, 33,500 square feet of retail, 1,630 residential units,
a County Waterfront Park and the India Street Revitalization
Project are among the developments in the pipeline for Little
Italy.
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