University Heights Historical Society

05/26/2026

Find out how University Heights got its name.

05/08/2026

Thanks to a recent decision made by the California State Historic Resources Commission (SHRC), it is now easier and less expensive for owners of bungalow courts in San Diego to nominate their property to the National Register of Historic Places.‍ ‍

Thanks to a decision made on May 7 by the California State Historic Resources Commission, it is now easier and less expensive for owners of bungalow courts in San Diego to nominate their property to the National Register of Historic Places .

03/30/2026

Election season is here in San Diego, which means many candidates are attending community forums, debates, neighborhood meetings, and open houses. These events are one of the best opportunities residents have to ask direct questions about the issues shaping our city’s future.

Asking thoughtful questions can help candidates explain where they truly stand on important topics like historic preservation, neighborhood planning, and quality of life.

San Diego is changing rapidly, and the decisions our elected leaders make today will shape our neighborhoods for generations. Asking informed questions helps ensure that candidates address the serious issues facing our communities.

If you attend a candidate forum or event this election season, meet-and-greet, town hall, or have the chance to speak with a candidate one-on-one, here are some questions you might consider asking:

1. Historic Preservation
San Diego continues to lose historic buildings to demolition. What specific policies will you support to protect historic resources while still addressing housing needs? How will you ensure historic places representing the diverse communities of San Diego are identified and protected before they are lost?

2. Adaptive Reuse
Many cities are converting older buildings into housing. Do you support stronger adaptive reuse policies in San Diego to encourage housing creation while preserving existing structures?

3. Mills Act Incentives
The Mills Act is one of the most successful preservation and housing affordability tools in California. Do you support maintaining, strengthening and expanding this program so homeowners of all incomes can preserve historic properties and help provide the affordability homeowners throughout San Diego need?

4. Demolition vs. Reuse/ Climate Action & Preservation
Demolishing buildings creates enormous construction waste and carbon emissions. Should San Diego prioritize reuse of existing buildings before allowing demolition? Will you have the City's Climate Plan add this crucial tool that is not currently included?
Reusing existing buildings is one of the most effective ways to reduce construction emissions. How will preservation and adaptive reuse factor into San Diego’s climate goals?

03/25/2026

Last month, we told you that since the City of San Diego moved forward with weakening historic preservation protections without proper environmental review, there would be consequences.

And as promised, SOHO has now filed a legal challenge in San Diego Superior Court.

03/16/2026

With the release of the comprehensive report by PlaceEconomics, The Urban Vitality Blueprint: A Data-Driven Analysis of Equity, Affordability, and Vitality in San Diego’s Historic Districts, San Diego now has the clearest, most comprehensive data ever produced on the real economic and social impac...

02/20/2026

It is with great sadness we share the passing of longtime University Heights advocate Ernestine Bonn, 96, on February 18 at Scripps Mercy Hospital.

As Treasurer for the University Heights Community Development Corporation, Ernie was instrumental in establishing the University Heights Historical Society in 1997. In conjunction with historian Alex Bevil, Ernie was responsible for historically designating much of what remains of the early history of University Heights including the Teachers Training Annex 1 on Normal Street, site of the Adams Avenue Trolley Carbarn (now Trolley Barn Park), former entrances on Adams Avenue to Mission Cliff Gardens and to the Bentley Ostrich Farm, former Mission Cliff Gardens cobblestone wall along Adams Avenue and the lily pond on Mission Cliff Drive, and the old trolley stop drinking fountain on Adams Avenue at Park Blvd.

Recognizing that the current University Heights library was too small, Ernie was an organizing member of the University Heights Library Task Force, which worked for many years to secure the historically designated Teacher's Training Annex 1 on Normal Street for our new library.

For Ernie’s outstanding leadership and dedication to historic preservation in University Heights, she was awarded a SOHO People in Preservation award three times, including SOHO’s highest recognition, Preservationist of the Year.

Ernie had a great sense of humor, was an avid reader, and was respected by many throughout San Diego for her dedication, persistence, and love of University Heights. She will be greatly missed, but her work will be appreciated for years to come.

02/16/2026

EDIT: PLEASE NOTE THE HEARING IS NOW SET FOR 2PM.

ACTION ALERT: REJECT PACKAGE A – City Council, February 24
Protect San Diego's Historic Resources

The City Council hearing on Package A is now set for February 24. SOHO thanks everyone who has already shown up, written comments, shared information, or simply stayed engaged. Your continued participation matters because the stakes of this proposal are clear.

Please calendar February 24 at 2:00 p.m. now. We do not yet have the item number or a confirmed time certain, but we will share those details as soon as they are available.

This is an important opportunity to demonstrate to the City Council what matters to you—and what you expect them to prioritize as well.

Showing up still matters. Voicing your opposition matters.

City Council may be inclined to treat the Preservation and Progress Package A as a foregone conclusion, particularly since staff has presented it that way—highlighting the hearings in which Package A received approval while omitting the full record, including the Historical Resources Board’s rejection and the Community Planning Committee’s unanimous rejection.

We are not asking for perfection. We are asking for participation.

You do not need to be an expert. You do not need to speak unless you wish to. Simply being in the room, adding your presence to the record, and standing with others who care sends a clear message: that this issue is not settled, and the community is paying attention to how councilmembers vote.

Historic places are not renewable resources. Once they are gone, they are gone forever. Package A weakens the systems that protect historic places making future losses easier, faster, and harder to stop.

Despite repeated claims to the contrary, historic preservation does not block housing. In fact, the rate of ADU development per square mile within historic districts is approximately double that of the rest of residentially zoned San Diego and the City’s own analysis confirms that historic resource reviews are reasonable and do not delay permit issuance.

Package A is designed to benefit development interests, not San Diegans who value fair process, expert review, and the long-term stewardship of our neighborhoods.

WHAT’S HAPPENING
City Council will vote on Package A on February 24, part of the Preservation and Progress initiative. Package A introduces de novo appeals, reduces historic protections citywide, and removes safeguards from identified historic areas such as the Ocean Beach Cottage Emerging Historical District.

THE BOTTOM LINE
Package A politicizes preservation decisions by allowing City Council to override qualified experts through de novo appeals. Package A weakens the systems that protect San Diegos historic places.

This proposal was developed without meaningful collaboration with the community and puts irreplaceable historic resources at risk.

Package A is designed to benefit development interests, not San Diegans who care about protecting San Diego’s historic places.

HOW YOU CAN HELP: https://myemail.constantcontact.com/Preservation-Action-Alert----City-Council--February-24.html?soid=1101889363559&aid=0IkjRpg-6E8



1. Attend City Council – February 24 2pm

Your presence matters. You do not need to speak. If you can, please cede your time to the organized presentations by SOHO and our preservation partners. If you wish to cede your time, which means you will need to be present, please email us. Reply to this email and we will add you to the list.

2. Submit a Written Comment (2–3 sentences are enough)

Even if you have submitted comments before, please submit one again. Written comments become part of the official public record.

Send to: [email protected]

Subject: Feb 24 City Council – I Oppose Package A

Ask City Council to:

Reject Package A
Say no to de novo
Protect the Ocean Beach Emerging Historical District by completing a historic survey and formal nomination
Send it back to be made better through real, transparent, and meaningful collaboration with the community


3. Speak (60 seconds) – Virtual or In Person

If you choose to speak:

· Keep it simple and personal

· Focus on what historic places mean to you or your neighborhood

· End with a clear ask: Reject Package A

4. Share This Action Alert

Forward this to one person who cares about San Diego’s neighborhoods, history, or accountability at City Hall.

WRITTEN COMMENT EXAMPLES
EXAMPLE 1

Package A will lessen protections for historic resources. I ask City Council to stand with the community and reject Package A. Once historic places are gone, they are gone forever.

EXAMPLE 2

Package A weakens historic preservation protections and shuts the community out of decisions that affect our neighborhoods. I urge City Council to stand with the community and reject Package A and send it back to be improved through real collaboration.

EXAMPLE 3

Package A weakens protections for historic resources and allows political override of expert decisions through de novo appeals. I ask City Council to stand with the community and reject Package A. This proposal will result in the permanent loss of historic resources, and it should be sent back to be made better with meaningful community input.

EXAMPLE 4

Historic preservation does not block housing, and the City’s own data confirms this. Package A politicizes preservation decisions and puts historic neighborhoods like Ocean Beach at risk. I urge City Council to reject it. This proposal will result in the permanent loss of historic resources, and it should be sent back to be made better with meaningful community input.

11/21/2025

Between 1987 and 2021 11,479,000 housing units built before 1970 disappeared. As to the current shortage, the numbers vary, with 6.5 million as a reasonable estimate by the experts.

Do the math!

Two important caveats:
1) not all were demolished. Some burned down, were hit by tornadoes, converted to non-residential use, etc., but most were demolished.
2) These are housing units, not houses. Example, a 1940's 30-unit apartment house that was torn down, was the loss of 30 units.

11/09/2025

https://timesofsandiego.com/arts/2025/11/07/flashback-nov-7-1885-the-railroad-that-put-san-diego-on-the-map/

On Nov. 7, 1885, the California Southern Railroad completed a crucial section of track that finally connected San Diego to the national rail network

11/07/2025

For more than five decades, SOHO has helped developers and communities find solutions that respect history while shaping the future. We have conscientiously built a strong reputation as a trusted, collaborative partner in San Diego’s growth. Our track record working with developers is well known a...