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News 8 covers the history of Barrio Logan and how it is today. We’ll visit Chicano Park again and check out the vibrant arts scene and small businesses.
SAN DIEGO COUNTY, California – When you think of Barrio Logan, the first thing that comes to mind is Chicano Park, where every mural tells the story of a struggle or success – and even getting the park here wasn’t easy. Many companies also struggle to stay afloat, but just as important is that they maintain their rich culture.
This rich culture is evident in the bold, bright murals. About 60 of them were created by the wall painter Victor Ochoa Orozco.
“If it wasn’t for Chicano Park, we would have taco bells and parking lots everywhere and it would go really easily,” he said.
Therefore, in April 1970, Victor was one of hundreds of demonstrators who fought to save the park.
“When I got here, there were mostly mothers and children making human chains around the bulldozers,” he recalls.
They tried to prevent the building of a CHP office.
“I pulled my sleeping bag out of my car,” said Victor. “I’ve been here for a couple of weeks.”
At that time he described himself as a Chicano hippie. Now, a well-known mural painter who has become something of a historian, Victor continues to fight for his community.
“One of the things about Chicano Park is that nothing has been without a fight,” he said.
He recalled when Interstate 5 and the bridge were being built, and said they cut Logan Heights off from the barrio.
“We had junkyards. They sold toxic containers across the street. All that shitty stuff. Big trucks, cars crunching next to people’s houses,” Victor said. “It was terrible on this side.”
The barrio extends south of the downtown convention center to Naval Base San Diego and encompasses everything west of I-5 to the water.
Though it is still somewhat industrial and fringed by poverty, it is now recognized as a place of expression through its arts district.
Aside from Chicano Park’s nearly 100 murals, you don’t have to go far to find creative designs, just head to Sew Loka on Logan Avenue.
“We do everything here,” says owner Claudia Biezunski-Rodriguez. “We mainly use recycled, reused, reclaimed materials.”
The focus is on sustainable fashion that makes a statement proudly of its culture.
“Culture, community, these things are really important here,” she said.
And just down the street, the first Latin-owned brewery in San Diego, where Border X’s CEO showcases the Mexican heritage through art and Latin-inspired beer.
“We believe Barrio has blessed us by giving us the historical perspective – the Chicano perspective,” said David Favela.
Some of the people who live here go two to three generations deep. Living in what was considered to be a poor part of the city, hard-working Mexican parents who earn money, who grapple with language barriers and discrimination. Many shop windows were boarded up for years.
“It was a grassroots rebirth of artist salespeople,” said David.
Now these artists shed light on the challenges facing migrant families by showing the beauty of resilience.
“We call this gene defection – a more person-based, humane way of developing our neighborhood,” said David. “That’s the first rule – it has to celebrate history.”
The Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe, unveiled by CBS 8 in 1986, hasn’t changed much in 35 years, but the cityscape behind it will look very different in 2021.
And there is no better place to celebrate history than Las Cuatro Milpas. It’s been strong since 1933 and you would rarely see this place without a long line.
“I used to live in the back,” said Nadia Estudillo. “I basically grew up on this property.”
Nadia’s great-grandparents opened the authentic restaurant, which is mostly run by women.
“This is one of Barrio Logan’s statement restaurants,” said Nadia. “The mayor comes all the time. Cops, lawyers; people you wouldn’t expect – high power in the city – they’re always here.”
“Just last weekend a guy from Alaska only came in for a dozen tortillas,” she added.
And the regulars appreciate the simple menu, the low prices and the untouched recipes.
From old to brand new on National Avenue – the neighborhood recently christened “Acre of Awesome” brings its own flavor to the neighborhood.
Kove Yerba Mate opened up during the pandemic and brought hard tea to the market. They ferment their tea at Thorn Brewing next door.
And have a decorated outdoor tasting room in Thorn’s loading zone.
“If you look around, everything is handcrafted by our friends and the community who are helping us make it happen,” said Alex Montelbano, CEO of Kove.
While much of what they do is new and unique, the owners of Kove know they are welcome here, but they have to face the past.
Over at the Mujeres Brew House, co-owner Carmen Favela could be called the queen of her roots.
“This is Pan de Muerto beer, so we use all the ingredients that the pastry contains,” she said.
The founder of San Diego’s first Latina-owned brewery, appropriately named, grew up here, Carmen Favela wouldn’t open her business anywhere else.
“Seeing young entrepreneurs open up to Logan and try to preserve the culture is absolutely beautiful, and part of that is historical,” she said.
Whether people are eating and drinking around town, here for the low-rider culture, or soaking up spectacular murals and soaking up the deep messages in them, they are sure to get a glimpse of what hard work and determination can do.
It is this courage that has transformed a somewhat shabby community that was once taken over by junkyards into a sacred place that captivates all the senses.
There’s Much Work Still to Do As mural painter Victor Ochoa Orozco said they’d like to expand Chicano Park all the way to the bay to further strengthen the community.
CELEBRATE THE SAN DIEGO SERIES
Celebrate San Diego was a 1986/1987 series about neighborhoods in San Diego County. CBS 8 anchor reporter Connie Healy and a team of photographers roamed the county, providing detailed profiles of several cities and towns in the area. They were history lessons focused on change and progress.
Many of the longtime residents she spoke to thought about what it was like to grow up in their city and what they thought of all the changes they had seen. You really get a feel for what the character and personality of the community were in each profile – and how diverse the county really is.
Thirty-five years later, we’re sending out a team of reporters to see how things have changed or stayed the same in each of the nearly 20 neighborhoods we studied in the mid-1980s.
Connie shares her memories of working on this fantastic series below:
“I love talking to people. People make the news, not news anchors. They simply tell how we live our lives. In the 1980s, Celebrate San Diego did just that. It painted a picture of everyday life very different from what we live today, and a city many of us would not even recognize.
Talking to people, listening to their stories is what reporters do every day. But these stories about life in San Diego 50 to 100 years ago were amazing. This city has come a long way in the past 30 years, but some of the people in these stories saw change at the speed of light. I encourage you to take some time to peek into our past, indulge in the present, and celebrate the wonderful city we all call home. “
MORE THROWBACKS FROM BARRIO LOGAN
MORE THEN & NOW
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=videoseries
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