Normal Heights, sometimes referred to as “Abnormal” Heights, is a great old community in San Diego that is located west of University Heights, east of Kensington, south of Mission Valley and north of City Heights. It is a very diverse and fun neighborhood that has a great variety of businesses on its main street, Adams Avenue.
Normal Heights was formally organized and planned in 1906 by the University Heights Syndicate under the direction of D.C. Collier and named Normal Heights for the state Normal School in University Heights. A trolley line brought people and development to Normal Heights. The man responsible for the main business development of the Normal Heights portion of Adams Avenue was a carpenter named Bertram J. Carteri. Like all of the old communities of San Diego, Normal Heights has gone through many changes over the years. In the last 10 years, it has been revitalized into a vibrant residential area and business district.
The main street of Adams Avenue runs east and west and has many wonderful restaurants, coffee shops, unique book and antique stores, bars, specialty shops and many other businesses. Adams Avenue also acts as a dividing line, with the south side having more condos, apartment buildings and small bungalow houses, whereas the north side has more single family detached homes. In fact, recently the north side of Adams Avenue has been re-named “Adams North,” and it boasts many beautiful homes.
If you have not done so, you should explore Normal Heights. I recommend first driving down Adams Avenue to see what the business district has to offer. Some popular places in Normal Heights include the well-known DeMille’s restaurant for Italian food, El Zarape for Mexican food, Twiggs for coffee and desserts and The San Diego Cheesecake Company for amazing cheesecake, just to mention a few. But Normal Heights is also home to some great neighborhood dive bars like the Triple Crown Pub and Rosie O’Grady’s. Also Lestat’s Coffee House is the hipster hangout in this neighborhood and its adjoining performance space is where you can hear great local musicians many nights of the week. But in addition to checking out the commercial part of Normal Heights, I also recommend driving through the beautiful residential part – Adams North.
You can see much of this neighborhood and its beautiful homes by driving on Mountain View Drive, which is the main street that runs through Adams North. Mountain View Drive goes from the west side of Adams Avenue to the east side and is a kind of a “U” in design. The street has three parts to it. At the west side the street is called West Mountain View Drive. If you drive north on West Mountain View Drive, the street will eventually turn right into North Mountain View Drive. If you continue driving on North Mountain View Drive, it will eventually turn into East Mountain View Drive at which time you will be on the third part of the three part street. The length of this street is a great way to drive through Adams North and to see the gorgeous and diverse architecture of the homes there.
There are so many unique communities in San Diego, like Normal Heights, which have their own style and flavor. Normal Heights has the wonderful “walk-ability” that most people are looking for when it comes to buying a home or renting an apartment. It is a desirable location close to shopping, dining and transportation. You add the great San Diego weather and Normal Heights pretty much has it all.
Trent St. Louis is a licensed Real Estate Agent and a member of the National, California and San Diego Association of Realtors. You can reach Trent at SpecialAgentTrent@gmail.com or at his office in Hillcrest, 619-300-1621. The Metropolitan Group (CADRE#01273643).
