In This Issue  

• Calendar of Events
• April Details
• May Details
• June Details
• Downtown News of the Day
• Recurring Events
• Free Downtown Tours
• Masthead
• Downtown Editions Index

14 Thu Citizens Advisory Committee, North Embarcadero Port Master Plan revisions, Embarcadero Planning Center, www.portofsandiego.org, 6-8:30pm

16 Sat & 17 Sun Busker Festival Seaport Village, www.seaportvillage.com, noon-5pm

16 Sat Buskers After Dark Seaport Village, 18 & up only, www.seaportvillage.com, 6-10pm

16 Sat & 17 Sun free Passion Play, Balboa Theatre, www.sdfa.org / (858)-560-1870, Sat 7pm, Sun 4pm & 7pm

17 Sun Earth Fair Balboa Park, www.earthdayweb.org, 10am-5pm

17 Sun China Philharmonic Orchestra Symphony Hall, www.sandiegosymphony.org, 8pm

20 Wed Gaslamp Quarter Locals Lifestyle & Design Tour, start Gaslamp Museum, 410 Island Avenue, www.gaslamp.org, 5-8pm

21 Thu Museum of Contemporary Art free period, 1100 Kettner Blvd, (858)454-3541 / www.mcasd.org, 5-7pm

21 Thu Picture the Plaza Open House, 97 Horton Plaza, lcalvillo@marstonandmarston.com / 297-0322, 5:30-8:30pm

22 Fri Padres Salute Firefighters Petco Park, www.padres.com/promo (promo code burn) / Linda (858)-541-2277 x12 / lvanwickel@burninstitute.org

26 Thu Planned Parenthood Anniversary Dinner Hilton Bayfront, www.plannedparenthood.org/pacific-southwest, cocktails 5:30pm, dinner 6:30pm

28 Thu-01 May Sun Art Alive Museum Of Art Balboa Park, www.sdmart.org

29 Fri Critical Mass Bicycle Ride, start large fountain Balboa Park, www.sdcriticalmass.com, 7pm

30 Sat & 01 Sun Mission Federal Art Walk, Little Italy, www.missionfederalartwalk.org, 11am-6pm

03 Tue Little Italy Association BoD, Our Lady of the Rosary Parish Hall, 1654 State St, www.littleitalysd.com/events.asp, 8:30am-10am

03 Tue CCDC Lunch & Learn, Jimmy Parker and Brandy Shimabukuro, Executive Director and Marketing Manager of the GQA, DIC, Horton Plaza, www.ccdc.com, noon-1pm

03 Tue-12 Thu SANS computer security training and expo, Hyatt Grand downtown, www.sans.org *

07 Sat Spring Gala, Air & Space Museum, Balboa Park, Becky Conrad bconrad@sdasm.org / 234-8291x102, 5:30-10:30pm

08 Sun SDSU Mother’s Day Concert Organ Pavilion Balboa Park, http://music.sdsu.edu/newsite, 5pm

11 Wed Citizens Advisory Committee, North Embarcadero Port Master Plan revisions, Embarcadero Planning Center, www.portofsandiego.org, 6-8:30pm

13 Fri Kettner Nights, Kettner Blvd, Little Italy, www.littleitalysd.com/events.asp / 358-9512, 6-9pm *

16 Mon Horizons Downtown Book Club, 510 First Avenue, Heather Forward, hhumblef@aol.com / Pat Getzel pbgetzel@cox.net, 7:30pm

17 Tue Maritime Week Breakfast Marriott Hotel & Marina, www.portofsandiego.org, 8-9:30am

18 Wed Gaslamp Quarter Locals Lifestyle & Design Tour, start Gaslamp Museum, 410 Island Avenue, www.gaslamp.org, 5-8pm

18 Wed Citizens Advisory Committee, North Embarcadero Port Master Plan revisions, Embarcadero Planning Center, www.portofsandiego.org, 6-8:30pm

19 Thu Museum of Contemporary Art free period, 1100 Kettner Blvd, (858)454-3541 / www.mcasd.org, 5-7pm

20 Fri Walk San Diego bi-monthly luncheon, DIC Horton Plaza, www.walksandiego.org, noon-1pm

21 Sat Maritime Week public event Port Pavilion, Broadway Pier, www.portofsandiego.org, 10am-2pm

24 Tue Police Captain's Community Outreach Meeting, Central Division Headquarters, 2501 Imperial Avenue, www.sandiego.gov/police/neighborhood/ccm.shtml, 5:30pm

27 Fri-01 Sun Jan South Pacific Exhibit, Maritime Museum, www.sdmaritime.org

27 Fri Critical Mass Bicycle Ride, large fountain Balboa Park, www.sdcriticalmass.com, 7pm

01 Wed Citizens Advisory Committee, North Embarcadero Port Master Plan revisions, Embarcadero Planning Center, www.portofsandiego.org, 6-8:30pm

02 Thu Coffee w/CCDC, DIC, www.ccdc.com, 6pm

07 Tue Little Italy Association BoD, Our Lady of the Rosary Parish Hall, 1654 State St, www.littleitalysd.com/events.asp, 8:30am-10am

07 Tue CCDC Lunch & Learn, monthly speaker and Q&A, DIC, Horton Plaza, www.ccdc.com, noon-1pm

11 Sat 100 / 70 / 30 Kilometer bicycle ride, county administration building, http://www.shadowtour.com/Century_Rides/2011_Fiesta_Metric.htm, 6:30am

15 Wed Gaslamp Quarter Locals Lifestyle & Design Tour, start Gaslamp Museum, 410 Island Avenue, www.gaslamp.org, 5-8pm

15 Wed Citizens Advisory Committee, North Embarcadero Port Master Plan revisions, Embarcadero Planning Center, www.portofsandiego.org, 6-8:30pm

16 Thu Museum of Contemporary Art free period, 1100 Kettner Blvd, (858)454-3541 / www.mcasd.org, 5-7pm

20 Mon Horizons Downtown Book Club, 510 First Avenue, Heather Forward, hhumblef@aol.com / Pat Getzel pbgetzel@cox.net, 7:30pm

24 Fri Critical Mass Bicycle Ride, large fountain Balboa Park, www.sdcriticalmass.com, 7pm

All scheduled meetings are on Wednesdays except for Thursday 14 April and run from 6-8:30pm at the Embarcadero Planning Center (old Coral Reef restaurant) 585 Harbor Lane.   For further information www.portofsandiego.org / 686-7269.

The Symphony's Winter Pops will be presenting The Temptations on Friday and Saturday 15 & 16 April at 8pm at Copley Symphony Hall.   The conductor will be Marvin Hamlisch and the tickets range from $20-$85 to see this Motown Group.   For tickets or additional information 235-0804 / www.sandiegosymphony.com.

There are eight monthly free Speaking of Architecture lectures provided each year by Friends of San Diego Architecture.   The lecture for Saturday 16 April will be Architecture For the Interior Frontier: The Neuroscience of Design.   The presenter will be Neuroscientist and Architect Eve Edelstein.  She is president of Innovative Design Science and is a visiting scholar at UCSD and a research fellow at the Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture.  The lectures are held the third Saturday each month--except for June, July, August and December--at the New School of Architecture & Design (NSAD), 1249 F Street at 9:30am.    The lecture is free but a $5 donation is suggested.   For additional information www.friendsofsdarch.com.

The Annual Spring Busker Festival at Seaport Village will be held on Saturday 16 April and Sunday 17 April from noon to 5pm.   For the second year in a row there will also be Buskers After Dark—Saturday 16 April from 6 to 10pm—that is open to people 18 and older only.   For more information www.seaportvillage.com.

The First Assembly church will be presenting their annual live productions of the Passion Play at the Balboa Theatre.  There will be three performances all on Palm Sunday Weekend.   They will be on Saturday 16 April at 7pm and Sunday 17 April at 4pm and 7pm.   Tickets for all the performances are free and there will be open seating.  The Balboa Theatre is at the Southwest corner of Fourth Avenue and E Street.   There will be a live choir and orchestra.  Additional information is available www.sdfa.org / (858)560-1870.

It is suggested that you arrive early as parking in and around Balboa Park becomes very difficult to obtain that day.   Information at www.earthdayweb.org

La Jolla Music Society proudly presents the China Philharmonic Orchestra, one of Asia's leading symphonic ensembles, in their San Diego debut at Copley Symphony Hall on Sunday 17 April at 8pm.  Conductor Long Yu and lead violinist Renaud Capuçon and the Philharmonic will present a program of Berlioz, Tchaikovsky, Bruch's and Ravel.   Additional information www.sandiegosymphony.org.

On Thursday 21 April from 5:30-8:30pm CCDC will hold an open house to discuss the new Horton Plaza.   It will feature a public square where the Robinsons-May Company building is now located (above San Goody).   The open house will be held at 97 Horton Plaza at the corner of Fourth Avenue and Broadway.   For additional information lcalvillo@marstonandmarston.com / 297-0322.

On Friday 22 April the San Diego Padres will play host to the Philadelphia Phillies at Petco Park with the game scheduled to start at 7:05pm.   In pregame ceremonies set to begin at 6:40pm local firefighters will be honored.   Special discounted tickets are available for the game.    A portion of the special discounted ticket proceeds will benefit fire & burn prevention education and burn survivor support programs and services.   Tickets can be obtained at www.padres.com/promo (promo code burn) / Linda (858)-541-2277 x12 / lvanwickel@burninstitute.org.   Deadline for the purchase of promotion tickets is Friday 15 April.

Dr. Raul Ruiz, the son of farmworkers in the Coachella Valley and the first Latino to earn three graduate degrees from Harvard University, will address more than 1,200 people at the Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest 48th anniversary dinner Tuesday 26 April, cocktails 5:30pm, dinner 6:30pm, at the Bayfront Hilton.  He is also the senior associate dean for community engagement and partnership at the UC Riverside School of Medicine.   For additional information www.plannedparenthood.org/pacific-southwest.

Celebrating its 30th year, Art Alive is the Museum's preeminent fundraiser featuring floral arrangements created by more than 100 floral designers taking inspiration from the Museum's collection.   The Museum is transformed into a spectacle of art and flowers, creating a spring exhibition punctuated by special events.  It runs from Thursday 28 April to Sunday 1 May.   For further information www.sdmart.org.

For the twenty-seventh spring Art Walk will be conducted in downtown.   As it has for the last few years it will be confined to a small area of Little Italy with the artists in booths on the street instead of galleries all over downtown as it was in the early years.  About 300 artists are expected to participate this year.  The festival will be on Saturday 30 April and Sunday 1 May from 11am to 6pm.   For further information www.missionfederalartwalk.org.

This monthly event will be held on Tuesday 3 May from noon to 1pm at the Sheila R. Hardin Downtown Information Center (DIC).  It will feature Jimmy Parker and Brandy Shimabukuro, Executive Director and Marketing Manager of the Gaslamp Quarter Association (GQA).   They will discuss the association’s current status and upcoming innovations coming to the district.  A question and answer period will follow the presentation.   No reservations are required to attend these free monthly meetings at the DIC, located in Horton Plaza on Level One (above CVS/pharmacy).  Lunch is not provided but you are encouraged to bring your own.   Information at www.ccdc.com.

Cost of the gala is $225 until 31 March and $250 thereafter.   Proceeds will benefit the Museum's educational programs.  For information Becky Conrad bconrad@sdasm.org / 234-8291 x102.

The Mother's Day Concert is a gift to the community from the Kiwanis Club of Downtown San Diego.  The San Diego Kiwanis Club has spent over 90 years providing extensive community involvement programs for youths in the greater San Diego community.   For more information on the Concert in the Park, visit the School of Music and Dance Internet site, http://music.sdsu.edu/newsite.

The Discussion Leader will cover The Warmth Of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson.   The book is a history of the black migration in the US that carried millions of southerners northward or westward.  It lasted roughly from World War I until the 1970s.  The club will meet on Monday 16 May at 7:30pm in the South Tower Lounge of Horizons at 510 First Avenue.   It usually meets on the third Monday of each month.   For more information about the book club contact either Heather Forward, humblef@aol.com or Pat Getzel, pbgetzel@cox.net.

The Port of San Diego and its strategic partners celebrate Maritime Week with a breakfast and an informative panel discussion on how ports factor into our everyday lives.   The event will be held from 8 to 9:30am on Tuesday 17 May at the Marriott Hotel & Marina, 333 West Harbor Drive.   In attendance will be leaders from the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation, the US Navy and other representatives from the private and public sector as they discuss how the maritime industry produces thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in economic impact to the region each year.   In addition to the breakfast, the Port is planning a free public event to celebrate Maritime week.   The event will be held from 10am to 2pm on Saturday 21 May at the Port Pavilion on Broadway Pier, 1000 Harbor Drive.   More information of the events at www.portofsandiego.org.

There are eight monthly free Speaking of Architecture lectures provided each year by FSDA.   The lecture for Saturday 21 May will be Revitalizing a Community Through Arts and Entertainment.   The presenter will be Jay Turner and there will be a panel of members of the local arts and entertainment communities.   The monthly lectures are held the third Saturday each month--except for June, July, August and December--at the New School of Architecture & Design (NSAD), 1249 F Street from 9:30-11:30am.   This will be the last lecture in the current series with the new series starting on Saturday 17 September.   The lectures are free but a $3-5 donation is suggested.  For additional information www.friendsofsdarch.com.

On Saturday 21 May there will be a fundraiser gala for the Urban Discovery Academy.   The school is a new charter school that has been opened adjacent to Balboa Park at 2850 Sixth Avenue.  Additional information can be obtained at 788-4668 / urbansd.schoolwires.net.

In May the Maritime Museum of San Diego will launch an exhibit showcasing art associated with the three distinct visions of the beautiful South Pacific from voyages by James Cook, Herman Melville and Paul Gauguin.  The first-of-its kind exhibit for the museum, titled "Three Voyages to Paradise: Cook, Melville and Gauguin," will feature over 110 pieces, varying from original oil and watercolor paintings to wood carvings and sculpture.   The exhibit will include original paintings by 18th century artists John Webber and William Hodges, each of whom accompanied Cook into the Pacific, and many original works by Paul Gauguin, showcasing a newly rediscovered wood sculpture, "Nave Nave Faruru."   The exhibition, which is drawn from the extensive collections of The Kelton Foundation, runs from Friday 27 May through Sunday 1 January 2012.   Tickets for "Three Voyages to Paradise" will be $10 in addition to the cost of Maritime Museum admission.  Additional information www.sdmaritime.org.

On Saturday 11 June the third annual Fiesta Metric Century bicycle ride will be held.   It will start from the south parking lot of the county administration building at 1600 Pacific Highway.   Entrants can chose from three ride lengths; 100, 70 or 30 kilometers.   The field is limited to 1,000 entrants so early registration is recommended.   The event starts between 6:30 and 7:30am with the course closing at 1pm.   For further information http://www.shadowtour.com/Century_Rides/2011_Fiesta_Metric.htm.

The Harbor Drive pedestrian bridge at Park Boulevard and Harbor Drive was officially opened to pedestrians on Friday 18 March.   The bridge, a project of the city Redevelopment Agency, was built to provide safe passing over train

and trolley tracks for pedestrians between the waterfront near the Hilton Bayfront Hotel and East Village next to Petco Park.   The bridge, 550 feet in length, is one of the longest self-anchored pedestrian suspension bridges in the world.   The bridge was built through a public / private collaboration involving:

California Transportation Commission ($6 million)

CCDC has purchased two office buildings on Fifth Avenue in Downtown for a combined total of $2.4 million and will combine them with a previous land purchase for the development of a 170-unit affordable housing project.   The two purchased buildings are a 3,500-square-foot office building at 1434 Fifth Avenue, purchased for $1.1 million, and a 5,000-square-foot building at 1492 Fifth Avenue, purchased for $1.3 million.  CCDC plans to ground lease the entire site — totaling 32,000 square feet — to Wakeland Housing for the development of an affordable housing project.   Additional information www.ccdc.com.

Unexpectedly, in early March, the Postal Place located at 255 G Street, between Second and Third Avenues just east of Ralphs, closed.   This has placed a much greater load on the Postal Annex, 113 West G Street, corner of Front Street just west of Ralphs in the Renaissance condo development.   The owner, Ferol Henkels, has had to modify the shop to allow for the installation of additional mail boxes.   Many people who live in the East Village or the Gaslamp Quarter did not know that there was a Postal Annex just to the west of Ralphs on G Street.   Some of them found out when they were forced to look for another place to obtain a mail box or post a parcel or letter after the Postal Place closed.    The Postal Annex can be reached at 702-7522 / postalannex2009@pacbell.net and is open Monday to Friday from 9am-6pm and Saturday from 10am-2pm.   They are closed Sundays and most holidays.

Officials from UCSD and California Western School of Law have agreed to curtail exploratory talks about establishing a UCSD School of Law on the current campus of Cal Western at 225 Cedar Street.   The reason given was the state budget crisis.   UCSD Chancellor Marye Anne Fox thanked the exploratory committee members for their 15 months trying to set the stage for the merger.   The 27 member committee, formed in January 2010, consisted of faculty and administrators from both schools.   Chancellor Fox further said that the work done by the committee helped  to see the tremendous benefits of this idea for both institutions and our region.   She also stated that California Western’s strengths made the concept of an affiliation appealing, but the state’s changing fiscal picture makes this opportunity difficult to pursue now.    Given the expected benefits of this combination it is expected that the formal merger talks will again move forward at a time when budget constrains have been lifted.   The two institutions said they plan to continue current collaborations that include dual and joint degree programs, speaker series and the Community Law Project.   More information can be found at www.ucsd.edu / www.cwsl.edu.

The staff of the California Coastal Commission has recommended approval of Downtown’s North Embarcadero project, subject to eight special conditions, and the commission is set to hear the proposal at its meeting in Santa Barbara on 13-14 April.   The $30 million project involves a set of public infrastructure improvements for the area bordered by Market Street on the south, Laurel Street on the north, the railway right of way on the east and the bay edge of the land on the west.   The plan has been reworked since the Coastal Commission denied a coastal permit in April of last year after objections were raised by opponents concerned about the lack of adequate open space and other complaints.  The original plan was opposed by the Navy Broadway Complex Coalition, but the organization has since backed the new plan.   For further information www.portofsandiego.org.

The historic Wonder Bread Building—171 14th Street—is now part of the New School of Architecture and Design (NSAD).   Built in 1924, the 50,000-square-foot structure has been rebuilt for mixed use.   The building includes classrooms and labs for

the NSAD’s Bachelor of Science in Construction Management and Master of Landscape Architecture programs.   The NSAD—www.newschoolarch.edu—opened in 1980 and currently has more than 630 students in four buildings all of which are downtown.

The Little Italy Association Board of Directors’ Meetings are open to the public.  They discuss the Little Italy Association's general business, upcoming events and downtown issues.  This monthly meeting is usually held on the first Tuesday at Our Lady of the Rosary Parish Hall, 1654 State Street at 8:30am.   For more information Chris Gomez 233-3898 / www.littleitalysd.com/events.asp.

There will be more than 30 participating locations in and around the Gaslamp Quarter.  The suggested starting point for the tour is the corner of Fourth and Island Avenues in the pocket park at the William Heath Davis House (Gaslamp Museum), 410 Island Avenue, where you can pick up a map and register to win prizes.  For additional information www.gaslamp.org/locals-lifestyle-design-tour.

The Downtown Sound Bites Speaker Series is held on the first Tuesday of every month from noon-1pm at the Sheila Hardin Downtown Information Center (DIC) in Horton Plaza.  The DIC is located just above the CVS drug store between Victoria's Secret and Sam Goody's.  You are asked to bring your own lunch to this free event and then listen and learn from a variety of interesting speakers all of whom will approach issues that are important to downtown's future.  A question and answer period will follow each presentation. The event sponsor is CCDC and further information can be found at www.ccdc.com.

This bi-monthly event toggles between either the first Thursday evening (February, June & October) or the first Friday morning (April, August & December) each even numbered month.  It is held at the Sheila Hardin Downtown Information Center (DIC) in Horton Plaza.   It is a good chance to learn what is happening with the redevelopment agency arm of the City of San Diego.   It is held in all even numbered months.   For more information www.ccdc.com.

On the third Monday of each month the group usually meets in the Horizons' South Tower Lounge, 510 First Avenue, at 7:30pm to discus the current club book selection.   All are welcome to attend and help create a lively discussion.   For additional information or to find out what book is currently to be covered: Heather Forward hhumblef@aol.com / Pat Getzel pbgetzel@cox.net.

San Diego Critical Mass is a loosely affiliated group of over 700 bicycle riders that take over San Diego streets and public rights of way to conduct a group bike ride on the last Friday of every month.  The group meets at the large fountain in Balboa Park in front of the Ruben H. Fleet Theatre / Science Center and the National History Museum at 7pm and participants should be prepared for up to 20 miles of riding.  The ride may go in any direction from the fountain but usually goes through downtown.   Additional information at www.sdcriticalmass.com.

The Commander of the San Diego Police Department's (SDPD) Central Division, Captain Mark Jones, holds a bimonthly meeting with the public to address problems and provide information on what the division is doing to keep us safe.   The meeting is usually well attended and lasts about one and a half hours.   The meeting is always on the fourth Tuesday of each odd numbered month at 5:30pm at the SDPD's Central Division Headquarters, 2501 Imperial Avenue.   For additional information www.sandiego.gov/police/neighborhood/ccm.shtml.

Walk San Diego holds a bi-monthly luncheon at the Downtown Information Center (DIC) on the third Friday from noon to 1pm.   The luncheon is free but a donation of $7 is suggested.   The title of the presentation will be posted on their Internet site.   Reservations are requested.  Reservations to Cynthia Offenhauer coffenhauer@walksandiego.org.  More information www.walksandiego.org.

On the third Thursday each month the MCA, 1100 Kettner Blvd, will open its doors from 5-7pm to the public to allow free admission.  Visitors can browse anywhere in the museum on their own or join an organized tour that will begin at 5pm and 6pm.  For additional information (858)-454-3541 / www.mcasd.org.

All items in this publication are the opinion of the writer of the piece.   Any item without a named author is the responsibility of the editor.   Any submissions for inclusion in this publication should be submitted to the editor via email within the body of a message (not as an attachment).   All telephone numbers are in the 619 area code unless otherwise noted.   To subscribe or unsubscribe to this publication please email the editor, Stan Marder stan@gaslampquarter.org.  Publisher: San Diego Mesa Company (SDMC),   550 Front Street #2804, San Diego California 92101-7105.