San Diego California Events. Area focus - Tierrasanta

City: San Diego
Area Population: 30,187
Elevation: 397 feet above sea level
Distance from downtown SD: 14.3 miles northeast

Tierrasanta, Spanish for "holy land," is a community within the city of San Diego, California.

The Tierrasanta community, encompassing approximately 11 square miles, lies roughly northwest of the San Diego River, north of Friars Road, south of State Route 52, and east of Interstate 15.

The residential development of Tierrasanta began in 1960, when the federal government declared a portion of Camp Elliott, a Marine Corps Training Camp, as surplus. The City of San Diego adopted the Elliott Community Plan in 1962 to guide the initial acquisition of property for public uses, such as street rights-of-way. Much of the property was then privately developed from the 1970s through the 1990s based on the updated Elliott Community Plan, adopted in 1971. The military legacy of the community still exhibits a strong presence, such as the 2,321 unit Murphy Canyon Naval housing development, which accounts for approximately one-fifth of the total dwelling units in the planning area.

In 1976, the City adopted the boundaries for Mission Trails Regional Park, bisecting the Elliott planning area into two distinct sections. The park and the newly-developing section to the west were severed from the Elliott Community Plan, and a new planning area was formed with the adoption of the Tierrasanta Community Plan in 1982. The more rugged, remote section east of Mission Trails Regional Park is now known as the East Elliott planning area and remains undeveloped.

The inclusion of extensive areas of natural open space has played a considerable role in shaping the form of development within Tierrasanta. Mission Trails Regional Park comprises approximately half of the planning area, and the San Diego River roughly forms the southerly boundary of the community. Canyon systems meander throughout the community, defining the transitions between individual development areas and interconnecting to the larger Mission Trails Regional Park canyon systems. Now, at build-out, the vast majority of developed land in Tierrasanta is devoted to residential uses, with several small commercial centers scattered throughout the community and light industrial near the intersection of Interstate 15 and State Route 52.

Geography

Numerous green belts with walking paths run through the canyons. Tierrasanta is a thriving area of up-scale single family homes, condominiums, apartments, three shopping centers, a branch of the San Diego Public Library, and a research park. Also located in the community are several elementary and junior high schools rated in the top 10%, 20%, or 30% through Academic Performance Index (API) tests by the California Education Department, as well as Junípero Serra High School.

Tierrasanta is situated like an island, not directly bordered by any community. It is bounded on the north by freeway 52 and the sprawling southern fields of MCAS Miramar, on the east by 5800 acre Mission Trails Regional Park, which has many hiking and mountain biking trails, on the west by Interstate 15, and on the south by steep canyons overlooking the San Diego River and Mission Valley. Community activities focus on the Tierrasanta Recreation Center, which includes lighted ball fields, a large swimming pool, tennis courts, a gymnasium, and meeting rooms.

The elected Tierrasanta Community Council has responsibility for community planning and for advising the City of San Diego and other State and Federal government agencies.

Welcoming signs to the community refer to Tierrasanta as the "Island in the Hills," a reference to its clear boundaries surrounded by open public land. It is also commonly referred to by younger residents as "T-Town."

History

Tierrasanta was originally part of the Mission San Diego de Alcalá mission ranch, which was active during the late 1700s and 1800s. The U.S. military purchased the land in 1941 as Camp Elliott, a Marine Corps training facility. In 1961, the area that is now Tierrasanta and a portion of neighboring Mission Trails Regional Park was declared surplus and sold. In the following year, the Elliott Community Plan was issued to serve as a roadmap for development going forward. Tierrasanta was founded in 1971. The current Tierrasanta community plan was issued in 1982, and included both the currently developed area and much of what is now Mission Trails Regional Park. By 1982 approximately one-half of the private residential area had been developed, with the area called Tierrasanta Norte, in the northeastern part of town, being one of the locations still to be developed. Tierrasanta has been fully built out since the early 1990s, and by the year 2000 had reached a population of 30,187 (Zip code 92124). It was one of the first master planned communities in San Diego, and the southernmost of a series of planned San Diego residential communities started in the same time frame along the I-15 corridor.

On December 10, 1983, three young boys were playing in an open space at the end of a cul-de-sac, when they found what appeared to be a rusty piece of metal. Two of the boys were killed when they attempted to knock the top off of this 37-millimeter high-explosive shell. Since then, a complete sweep has removed all remaining military ordnance. Families living in Tierrasanta had not previously been notified of the danger. After this accident, the fire department made annual visits to local schools until the ordnance sweep was completed. The developer and the city settled a lawsuit with the victims' families for a substantial amount. Later, the story appeared on the ABC-TV news magazine 20/20 with the title Bombs in Their Backyard by correspondent Tom Jarriel.

In October of 2003, Tierrasanta, among other communities in San Diego, was affected by what was known as ‘Firestorm 2003.’ This was a conglomeration of the Cedar Fire and numerous other wildfires that convened on Southern California. The residents of Tierrasanta were forced to evacuate. Nearly a dozen homes were lost to the blaze, which was a small number compared to the many homes burned to the ground in nearby Scripps Ranch. A similar scare swept through Tierrasanta in the fall of 2007, though residents were not required to evacuate.

Bounded by Miramar Marine Corps Air Station to the north and west, SR-52 and Mast Boulevard to the south, and the city of Santee to the east, East Elliott is a portion of former Camp Elliott, purchased by the United States Government in 1941 for use as a Marine Corps training camp. In 1961, approximately half of Camp Elliott-including present day East Elliott, Tierrasanta, and a portion of Mission Trails Regional Park--was declared surplus and sold. The 1962 Elliott Community Plan applicable to this area was updated in 1971, and in 1982 a separate community plan for Tierrasanta was adopted.

In 1997, the Multiple Species Conservation Program identified the majority of East Elliott as Multiple Habitat Planning Area (MHPA), where preservation of the natural habitat would be pursued. The East Elliott Community Plan was amended at that time to designate the MHPA as open space. Areas outside of the MHPA include the 474 acre Sycamore Landfill; a 117 acre area bordering the city of Santee, which was designated for low density residential development; and an 8 acre area at SR-52 and Mast Boulevard, designated for office use. The community plan was amended in April 2002 to add aggregate processing as a permitted use at Sycamore Landfill, and a long range master plan is currently under review for the landfill.

East Elliott remains undeveloped, with the only uses being the Sycamore Landfill and a few telecommunication antennas. It is dominated by native vegetation, including sage scrub, chaparral, native grassland, and oak and sycamore woodland. It constitutes one of the largest and biologically most important remaining open space areas in San Diego with a number of endangered and threatened wildlife species.

Tierrasanta Recreation Center
11220 Clairemont Mesa Boulevard
San Diego, CA 92124
(858-573-1393) Map

The center was built in 1990 to accommodate the needs of this rapidly growing family community. Facilities: A gymnasium, meeting and activity rooms, a dance room, children's play area, picnic facilities, tennis courts and a swimming pool.

Library
4985 La Cuenta Drive, San Diego, CA 92124
(858-573-1384) Map

Post Office
6030 Santo Road Suite I, San Diego, CA 92124
(800-275-8777) Map

Fire
4949 La Cuenta Drive, San Diego, CA 92124
Map

Hancock Elementary School (K-6)
3303 Taussig Street, San Diego, CA 92124
(858-496-8310) Map - Website

Kumeyaay Elementary School (K-6)
6475 Antigua Boulevard, San Diego, CA 92124
(858-279-1022) Map - Website

Miller Elementary School (K-6)
4343 Shields Street, San Diego, CA 92124
(858-496-8319) Map - Website

Tierrasanta Elementary School (K-6)
5450 La Cuenta Drive, San Diego, CA 92124
(858-496-8255) Map - Website

Vista Grande Elementary School (K-6)
5606 Antigua Boulevard, San Diego, CA 92124
(858-496-8290) Map - Website

De Portola Middle School (4-8/7-8)
11010 Clairemont Mesa Boulevard, San Diego, CA 92124
(858-496-8080) Map - Website

Farb Middle School (4-8/7-8)
4880 La Cuenta Drive, San Diego, CA 92124
(858-496-8090) Map - Website

Junipero Serra Senior High School (9-12)
5156 Santo Road, San Diego, CA 92124
(858-496-8342) Map - Website

San Diego City Website
San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce
Tierrasanta Demographic Profile - Fact Sheet
Tierrasanta Demographic Profile - Map

Tierrasanta Weather - NOAA
Air Quality Forecast
Moon Phases & Astronomical Events
Recent Earthquakes

Tierrasanta Homes For Sale
Tierrasanta Condominiums For Sale
Tierrasanta Multi-Family Properties For Sale
Tierrasanta Rentals

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Camp Elliott-Tierrasanta
City of San Diego Community Profile - East Elliott
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City of San Diego - Mission Trails Regional Park
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Cowles Mountain History
East County Magazine
Kumeyaay Indians
Kumeyaay Lake Campground
Mission Trails Regional Park
Old Mission Dam History
San Diego County Business Directory - City of San Diego
San Diego Unified School District
Tierrasanta Community Council
Wikipedia - Cowles Mountain
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Wikipedia - Tierrasanta, San Diego, California

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