North City is a neighborhood in
San Diego, California
San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
, bordered by
Solana Beach
Solana Beach (''Solana'', Spanish for "sunny side") is a beach city in San Diego County, California, on the South Coast. Its population was at 12,940 at the 2020 U.S. census, up from 12,867 at the 2010 census.
History
The area was first set ...
and
Rancho Santa Fe
Rancho Santa Fe is a census-designated place (CDP) in San Diego County, California, United States, within the San Diego metropolitan area. The population was 3,156 at the 2020 census. The CDP is primarily residential with a few shopping blocks, ...
to the north,
Del Mar Heights to the west, and
Carmel Valley to the south.
I-5 forms the western boundary.
The name is almost never used by local residents as the area is already included in either Rancho Santa Fe or Carmel Valley. The name is almost exclusively used by the
San Diego Police Department
The San Diego Police Department (SDPD) is the primary law enforcement agency of San Diego, California. Established on May 16, 1889, the department employs 1,731 officers and 601 civilian staff. It covers 343 square miles of service area with ...
for zoning.
History
Kumeyaay (Ipai) Village of Ahwel-Awa
Native American
Kumeyaay
The Kumeyaay, also known as 'Iipai-Tiipai or by the historical Spanish name Diegueño, is a tribe of Indigenous peoples of the Americas who live at the northern border of Baja California in Mexico and the southern border of California in the Uni ...
history within the area has been documented to 7,000 years ago, which was adjacent to a Kumeyaay village west of
El Camino Real near the
San Dieguito River
The San Dieguito River is a major river in Southern California, United States. Its headwaters rise on the southern slope of the Volcan Mountains in San Diego County, and the river flows generally southwest for ,U.S. Geological Survey. National ...
in North City at the time of European contact with the Spanish known as ''Ahwel-Awa'' or ''‘aqwilawa,''
meaning "twine house".
The
Portolá expedition
thumbnail, 250px, Point of San Francisco Bay Discovery
The Portolá expedition was a Spanish voyage of exploration in 1769–1770 that was the first recorded European exploration of the interior of the present-day California. It was led by Gas ...
in 1769, described it as "a large village... and many well built houses with grass roofs". The village was referred to by various names by the Spanish such as Sellegua or Jellegua, and was given Christian names under
Spanish rule such as ''San Jacome De la Marca, La Poza de Ozuna'', or ''San Dieguito'' (name for the region).
Ahwel-Awa was the ancestral home of the Kwitlp clan of the Ipai-Kumeyaay people who spoke the Ipai dialect, and were one of the first Kumeyaay clans to convert to Catholicism in 1770s under the leadership of Jamacuain "Benito" Culip, who was the kwaapay (leader) of the clan.
Pueblo San Dieguito proposal
Under Mexican administration, the Kumeyaay village was removed to be land granted to Mexican settlers. The village was previously planned to be converted into the San Dieguito pueblo as a village dedicated to the Kumeyaay by
Alta California
Alta California (, ), also known as Nueva California () among other names, was a province of New Spain formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but was made a separat ...
governor
Jose Figueroa
Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph.
Given name Mishnaic and Talmudic periods
*Jose ben Abin
*Jose ben Akabya
*Jose the Galilean
*Jose ben Halafta
*J ...
, but never materialized after his assassination. This resulted in the relocation of the Kwitlp clan inland towards what is now the
Mesa Grande Band of Diegueno Mission Indian reservation, under the Quilp surname.
After the Mexican–American War, the area has been largely used for agricultural and equestrian uses, which was a large producer of strawberries.
NCFUA Subarea-II
In the 1993, the City of San Diego designated the area as "NCFUA Subarea-II" as part of the larger North City Future Urbanizing Area plan which also included what is now
Pacific Highlands Ranch,
Torrey Highlands, and
Black Mountain Ranch. The area has remained under 'Future Urbanizing' status due to the lack of development potential.
Between the 2000s and 2010s, the strawberry farmlands were converted to preservation land with efforts for environmental restoration as part of
San Dieguito River Park
The San Dieguito River Park is a greenway in San Diego County, California, United States. The park, established in 1989, stretches for from the mouth of San Dieguito Lagoon (a lagoon between Solana Beach and Del Mar) to the Volcan Mountain Wi ...
. Homes were built south and east of El Camino Real, and churches such as St. Sarkis Armenian Church and Harvest Evangelical Church were built as well.
References
{{Neighborhoods of San Diego
Neighborhoods in San Diego