From Anza-Borrego desert in the south to the redwood forests in the north (and all the beautiful coastline and deserts and mountains in between), California is filled with fantastic hiking trails. For every massively challenging mountain summit, there’s a gentle, beginner-friendly path through the w

San Diego is a haven for book lovers. How do we know? It’s full of charming, local bookstores whose shelves sag under the weight of literary treasures new and used. Stephen King nailed it when he said that “books are a uniquely portable magic.” So, whether you’re heading to the airport, your couch,

San Diego home prices fell for a second month in July as the number of homes for sale hit its highest point of the year.The median home price in San Diego County was $885,000, CoreLogic reported Wednesday, down $10,000 since May. The median, which combines sales for newly built homes, resale condos

Though the crush of July and August tourism is giving way to locals’ summer, we could all use some space when catching rays at our city’s beaches. We’ve compiled five of the best beaches in San Diego to beat the crowds and enjoy the sun and sand. From top surf spots to peaceful escapes, these are so

This is the year—I finally popped the question to my partner, and the most difficult part was finding the perfect location to go down on one knee. While finding the right person is undoubtedly the most important part of the engagement process, choosing the perfect location to propose comes in as a c

The biggest office landlord in the region has offloaded one of downtown San Diego’s most recognizable buildings at a bargain-basement price in a transaction that will have a ripple effect on property values around town.On Tuesday, Irvine Company sold the 34-story office tower at 750 B St. for $45.7

“How expensive?” tracks measurements of California’s totally unaffordable housing market.The pain: The relatively affordable Inland Empire is the nation’s No. 2 spot for homebuyers not using a mortgage.The source: My trusty spreadsheet reviewed a Redfin analysis of all-cash homebuying in 40 major ho

Once slated for redevelopment with hundreds of apartments, Mission Valley’s Hazard Center will remain as is under new ownership but get a facelift that promises to uplift its middling selection of storefronts and fill vacant office suites.Los Angeles-based BH Properties purchased the retail and offi

“Alex is my husband and Zac is our boyfriend,” says local Jess Parker, who calls his relationship orientation “polyfidelity,” a form of consensual non-monogamy. The 36-year-old met his husband 10 years ago. Twelve months ago, they added a third  to their relationship. Broadly, polyamory is the conse

Grassroots collectives, pop-ups, cottage kitchens, and other types of indie endeavors don’t usually get the mainstream recognition of splashy concepts tailor-made for Instagram or with enormous PR budgets. But their permeating influence and unbridled creativity arguably define local gastronomic econ

A sale of undeveloped land in La Jolla Shores this week for $35 million tied a record for the biggest purchase in the seaside neighborhood.At 4.5 acres, the property at 8303 La Jolla Shores Drive, is unique because it is only about 2,000 feet from the ocean and, unlike much of the shoreline, is most

Mark Hoddle lifts the top off a hanging trap and points down at about 20 wriggling, hefty, snout-nosed, black weevils. “They are charismatic-looking,” he says.His job is to destroy them.Hoddle is an entomologist at the University of California, Riverside. We are standing in the middle of the Sweetwa

The Perfect Order: Chicken Liver Pate | Summer Squash | Berkshire PorkSure, when starting any venture—business, family, cult—many would prefer a lovingly restored Victorian home, nuzzled between always-blooming jacarandas and a pint-sized lending library. We want our dream restaurant in a structure

Once heralded as a property that could link public transit to San Diego’s airport by way of an automated people mover, the Port of San Diego’s headquarters just opposite the tarmac now seems like a distant possibility.The change in direction, communicated subtly through various actions taken by the

San Diego home prices are still rising among the fastest in the nation but, for a second month, New York is top dog.The San Diego metropolitan area’s home price increased 8.7 percent annually in June, said the S&P Case-Shiller Indices report released Tuesday. New York topped the 20-city index with a

I’ve lived in San Diego for 16 years and still unashamedly love Old Town. What other place in San Diego has so many kitschy shops, ghosts (totally real!), restaurants, breweries, and approximately one thousand different kinds of margaritas? Sure, there are a few obvious tourist traps, but there’s a

Colorful collages line the hallways of Best Start Birth Center in San Diego, the squishy faces of hundreds of newborns carefully cut out and framed. A picture of Executive Director Karen Roslie’s son, born in 2003, hangs among the smiling, crying, and squinting babies.Thirty years ago, Roslie’s moth

A Utah-based developer wants to build 910 apartments and townhomes as part of a mixed-use project on 67 acres now occupied by a Moon Valley plant and tree nursery along Oceanside Boulevard, an area the city has designated a “smart growth” corridor.The site is beside Oceanside’s sprawling El Corazon

Life science real estate developer Alexandria Real Estate Equities is retooling its redevelopment plan for the shuttered Costa Verde Center just opposite Westfield UTC in light of the recently adopted community plan that allows for high-density housing on the 13.9-acre site.The developer has scrappe

Fall is almost here. Crack open the Uggs, get yourself a sugary pumpkin flavored coffee drink and plan your trip to Julian for one of their famous apple pies. September also means that the kids are back in school so mark your calendars, hire a babysitter, and check out these fun things to do this mo