Category Archives: San Diego County

Highways, History, Roads, San Diego, San Diego County

City of San Diego – 1970

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The City of San Diego Clerk has been placing a large number of videos on YouTube over the past few months which are quite unique and eye-opening. In 1970, the City created videos of many of the roadways in San Diego. These are done in the same manner as Caltrans Photologs, which essentially takes a photo of the road every few feet or so, creating a fast motion video of the road. Roads such as Murphy Canyon Road and Kearny Villa Road no longer exist in the same manner as they did back then. Both have been greatly modified by I-15 and State 163. Some of the street names don’t match current names, however. Black Mountain Road, as shown in the video, is basically Del Mar Heights Road and Landsdale Dr, among others. Miramar Rd, in the video, covers current Eastgate Mall as well, as it was the old alignment of Miramar Rd through to UCSD.

These videos show this and more. Why not see it for yourself and be amazed! Try and count the number of spinning gas station signs too.

San Diego City Clerk YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn1v1JAjFEEvqMi-VHpee5w/videos

Advocacy, Caltrans, District 11, Highways, I-805, North Park, Road Signs, Roads, San Diego, San Diego County

Caltrans Sign Change

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NB I-805 at El Cajon Blvd

In June 2019, I sent a message to Caltrans requesting a change in the signage on I-805 northbound at El Cajon Blvd. The sign didn’t reflect the lane assignments and can be confusing to motorists not familiar with the interchange. In November, I got a response and they will not only change the sign but will move where it is placed. I thought that was pretty cool. Once again, it takes so little to make a positive change. I encourage others to do so as well.

My message:

CSR Ticket Number:757911
Date Submitted:2019-06-17 14:04:28
Date Completed:2019-11-12 00:00:00
California County:San Diego
State Highway Route:805
Nearest Town or City:San Diego
Nearest Cross Street:El Cajon Blvd
Mode of Transportation:Motorcycle
Direction of Travel:Northbound
Date & Time Situation Noticed:2019-06-17   12 noon – 1 pm
Type of Situation:Signs – Missing, Broken, Blocked or Down
Description of Situation:NB El Cajon Blvd exit sign is missing an EXIT ONLY tab and optional lane arrow. It can be confusing to motorists that don’t realize there are two possible lanes to use to exit at El Cajon Blvd when heading NB.
Geographic Location of Situation:On NB I-805 approaching El Cajon Blvd

Caltrans response:

Message from Customer Service Liaison: Our Traffic Operations Engineer reviewed this issue and provided the following response. You can expect to see a project in the near future. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. Traffic Safety & Operations (South Region) is recommending the existing overhead panel be upgraded and re-positioned to centered above the two lanes of the exit ramp and also, additional sign be installed at the northbound I-805 exit ramp to El Cajon Boulevard per California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (CA MUTCD), 2014 Edition. We will initiate a Minor B project to upgrade the existing overhead panel and forward a request to Operations Support to install “RIGHT LANE MUST EXIT SIGN” and 8-inch solid white line approaching the exit ramp.

City Heights, History, Maps, San Diego, San Diego County

City Heights – 1889

City Heights, an area of San Diego east of North Park in the central area of the city, is a very old and culturally diverse neighborhood. It was also known as the City of East San Diego before being incorporated into the City of San Diego and renamed City Heights in the mid 1910’s.

In this map, the eastern portion of the University Heights Motor Road, a railway that was built solely to show potential buyers the lands in City Heights, as it passes through the area. The railroad was torn up just a couple years later.

1889 Map of a portion of City Heights, San Diego, CA
Hillcrest, History, Maps, North Park, San Diego, San Diego County, University Heights

University Heights – 1888

San Diego has changed quite a bit since it was first laid out in the late 1700’s. As the city grew, new neighborhoods were planned farther out from the city center. One of these, University Heights, is still around today by the same name albeit covering a smaller area. The original plan, from 1888, was mostly built and is still quite recognizable today. One major item, a lake known as Mystic Lake, was never constructed. Today, the canyon remains undeveloped and is considered public open space. In addition to the lake,

The map also shows a small section of right-of-way for a railroad just east of Park Blvd. This railroad, the University Heights Motor Road, was built as a way to bring prospective buyers from downtown to East San Diego (later City Heights). It was dismantled not long after construction but traces still remain on maps and in Switzer Canyon.

The name, University Heights, stems from a planned university that was to be sited there. A small teacher’s college, which later became San Diego State University, was indeed located there. In the 1950’s, the structures were mostly torn down except one which remains today. The site is the headquarters for the San Diego Unified School District.

1888 Map of University Heights, San Diego, CA
Fossils, Geologic Study, Geology, San Diego, San Diego County, South Park

San Diego Fossils

I’ve been doing a bit of work lately on my geologic study of central San Diego and have found many fossil sites. So far, none of the fossils have been very complete. Mostly shell fragments in condensed layers. The oldest found so far have been from the Eocene Mission Valley Formation, which is between 40 and 48 mya.

Small shells within the Mission Valley Fm in Presidio Park.

In addition to the fossils found in Presidio Park, I have also found a few locations around Hillcrest and South Park. Some of these are just the side of the road, others you have to hike a bit in a canyon.

Fossil shells (mostly bivalves) within the San Diego Fm.

Underlying the southern half of the central San Diego Mesa is the San Diego Formation, which is late Pliocene to early Pleistocene in age, about 5 to 1.5 mya. It has many layers containing fossils, such as the one pictured above.

Once you get the “eye” for fossils, they seem like they pop up everywhere. It would seem that every time I go out on my mapping project lately, I find fossils. Geology can be a lot of fun and I encourage all interested to go out and explore their local area. You never know what you might find.