Mike Ciampa

Downtown San Diego Real Estate has during 2011 been showing that Developer sales drastically lowered their number of sales and that Resale's are coming up strong. With a total of 1,029 Downtown San Diego Condos and Downtown San Diego Lofts sold in 2011, Resale's shows 403 sales and Developer a number of 217 sales. This is totally the opposite if you compare to the year 2010 when Developer sales were dominating the Downtown San Diego market. As the graph is showing above, Resale's stands for 39% of what was sold during 2011 and Developer sales stands for 21%.

I love living in Downtown San Diego. It's convenient, you can walk just about everywhere, you have access to the bay and lots of outdoor activities, great restaraunts, shops, farmer's markets...it's hard to leave our downtown bubble. Plus, more often than not, getting in the car is the LAST thing I want to do. This lifestyle makes driving (for me) a burden at times. But, I am not going to lie. There are times when escaping the East Village is the most appealing thing out there. Sometimes I just want a change of scenery and San Diego sure does offer a lot of options in that department.

So when I read an article (again) about the beauty of the wildflowers to bloom in Anza-Berrego Desert I thought this just might be the perfect day trip. You know, the kind where you dust off your steering wheel (some of us downtown folk just don't drive a lot), take a nice drive, see nature at it's finest, enjoy the outdoors, eat some lunch then hop back in the car to head home. That kind of day trip. Sometimes it's just what you need to get out of the Downtown San Diego funk. This is not a dig on the city in which I live because I would feel the same if I was living in Coronado or Point Loma. Sometimes it's just nice to leave home for the day only to return feeling refreshed and appreciative.

Anza-Borrego is about a 2 hour drive from downtown and if you time it right, hiking the trails and seeing the gorgeous wildflowers in bloom will certainly be a breath of fresh air. Regardless of whether or not you feel the need to escape from home like I do, it's always good to know what adventure lies just outside of this beautiful city we live in. A visit to Anza-Borrego won't disappoint and either will returning home to Downtown San Diego.

Check out this video...

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMNhrKXoeXs[/youtube]

Smart Corner, a Downtown San Diego Loft complex located in the northern part of the East Village has really triggered Downtown San Diego Real Estate investors to act fast. As Smart Corner announced that they are selling studios starting to a low price of $98,000…their phone has been ringing off the hook.

There are currently a couple of studios for sale in the range of $98,000 to $129,000 as well as one bedrooms from the price of $179,000 to $285,000 and two bedrooms homes to the price from $259,000 to $490,000. All Smart Corner units have that urban loft style feel with exposed elements and cement ceilings and walls. The price for the unit will depend on what floor the unit is located as well as orientation in the building.

Many investors has already been previewing units and signed up to get pre qualified as Smart Corner will be holding an open house event on February 11th and 12th from 9am to 6pm. They are offering tours of model homes and refreshments on the 20th floor roof deck. You will be able to see homes on two different floors as some of the units are tenant occupied.

Smart Corner has applied for VA approval and they are expecting to be able to close VA loans in the spring of 2012 and they are also in the process of getting FHA approved. If you are interested in previewing units before the open house event feel free to contact us for an appointment at info@92101urbanliving.com or fill out your contact information here.

Have you heard the news?! The 32.5 million dollars that the library still needed has been funded. Isn't that amazing?! I could not be more excited since I live in the East Village just blocks away from this beauty. Downtown's Central Library has been boasted, criticized and questioned for awhile now so when I heard this interview on NPR with Mel Katz, Chair of the San Diego Library Foundation, a renewed sense of hope and anticipation came over me (and other Downtown San Diego residents, I'm sure).

Downtown San Diego's Central Library is scheduled to open in the summer of 2013-that's next year, folks! With this funding secured, by a private entity who has not yet been revealed (though it's safe to say their name will be all over that library), construction will be completed. With that being declared, Mel Katz focused on where the library is at now. Fascinating stuff, I tell ya. Here are some hightlights:

• Hard hat tours of the library are available (at Park and J in the East Village)
• Fundraising for capital, endowment and special programming will be put into place
• Naming opportunities are still available
• Technology such as an app that serves as a GPS of the library, tablets, and interactive panels are in the making
• 40,000 people a week are expected to visit this library
• A school will occupy the 6th and 7th floors with 500 students
• 50 different reading nooks
• 6 conference rooms
• 22 study rooms
• Consoles with Wii's and Playstations will be found in the library
• 1/3 of the first floor will be a children's library
• 2nd floor will be a Teen Center
• 57 schools are within 2 1/2 miles of the library, hence the focus on youth areas
• Construction is now working on the 9th floor, the top floor
• The dome will be next which is a 3 story glass reading room and will take 4 months to complete

What an amazing center this will be and the enthusiasm of Mel Katz is contagious. I highly recommend listening to his interview because if you have doubts about this library, he will change your mind.

The annual shamROCK that takes place in Downtown San Diego in the Gaslamp District is about to take place once again. This will be the 17th annual block party that will be celebrated on March 17th from 2pm all the way to midnight.

They say that this will be the greenest party so far as the celebration falls on the 17th and is the lucky number 17…the same as the birth of shamROCK. If you are in the mood for an Irish party…with food, drinks and music…this is the place to be.

For more information about the event visit shamROCK 2012 and to read 92101 Urban Living’s former blogs about past parties click on Coming up - St. Patrick’s Day Festival “ShamROCK”! In the Gaslamp District in Downtown San Diego! and Stay Green - St. Patricks Day in the Gaslamp District. Check out the video below for some action from last year's event!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gO7nRTuyouQ[/youtube]