HORTON DISTRICT CONDOS

The Horton District is bounded by 4th, G, Front, and Broadway. This 15 block area is immediately west of the Gaslamp District and is the commercial center of Downtown. The district was named after Alonzo Horton who was instrumental in moving San Diego forward in the late 1800’s. Horton Plaza Park was named after Alonzo Horton and at the time, had the first water fountain in the United States to have electric light bulbs. The District is composed of Horton Plaza and surrounding buildings. Like the Gaslamp, Horton Plaza Square had fallen into hard times during the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s. The square was surrounded by bars and porn theaters. It was an experience to take the bus and get on or off at Horton Plaza Square. There were numerous interesting encounters with drunk and winos.

Around the same time the Gaslamp District was starting to improve, Mayor Pete Wilson began the crusade for a shopping mall called Horton Plaza. There was no confidence in the project and Ernest Hahn, the developer was forced to find financing from outside San Diego. In fact, Hahn had to infuse $15 million of his own money to move the project forward. There were lawsuits galore and everyone had a reason why the project wouldn’t work. Wilson and Hahn kept the vision and Horton Plaza gave birth to a new downtown. Horton Plaza was 900,000 square feet of shopping surrounded by neglected buildings south of Broadway. There was $140 million dollars invested in this project and it was the first time in San Diego that a mall was built for suburbanites to come back downtown. Horton Plaza was so ahead of its time that everyone, except Wilson and Hahn waited for the failure. Instead, these two visionaries saw the Downtown future. Horton Plaza is such a part of Downtown that no one can imagine it not being there. You had to be here to see how risky it originally was and how Horton Plaza was built in spite of soaring interest rates, shortage of capital, and abundance of doomsayers.

Today Horton Plaza is a terrific tourist draw. In fact, if you are unaware of the Downtown Districts, the Gaslamp and Horton Plaza meld seamlessly. Horton Plaza’s unique angles, vibrant jump out colors, and high quality stores not only draw visitors, but locals alike. You can shop, eat and go to the movies or theater all within one central location. The bums are gone, but the history is still there. The Meridian is a premier condo project in the Horton District