SAN DIEGO — Travel Mag just released its top "up and coming" neighborhoods in the United States and North Park made the list.
A total of 16 neighborhoods were named.
What's opening, what's happening
Located north of Balboa Park, North Park is a popular area known for its breweries, shops, and hipster clientele.
It's long been a focal point in San Diego, but now national entities are taking notice too.
"We picked neighborhoods based on just the amount of activity and what was opening, what was happening, like how cool the neighborhood was getting,” said Tracy Kaler with Travel Mag.
Kaler and a team of editors spent weeks doing research on 25 neighborhoods, trying to narrow it down to the best ones.
Among the factors they considered - new businesses, a growing demand for housing, and a shift towards young professionals moving in.
“We looked at just the number of places that have opened in about five years or so like cocktail bars, eateries, coffee shops, breweries, etc," says Kaler.
Places mentioned in the article include acclaimed eateries Mabel's Gone Fishing and City Tacos, as well as a collection of murals and a used book store, Verbatim Books.
There, you'll find 50,000 books from all genres, and trinkets as unique as the decor.
Owner Justine Enitsuj told CBS 8 that what makes her store so special are the qualities that it shares with the neighborhood it’s in.
“There's so many books. So, you never know what you're gonna find here. It's something new every day and we kind of try to reflect that in everything else, the art, the music, the decorations. We challenge you to see something new about the world and you're gonna find that here for sure,” said Enitsuj.
People who live in North Park agree.
“We love it. We love went to ice cream fest, we've been to so many events here and everyone has been so welcoming since we moved here,” said one local.
Even tourists say North Park is a must-visit when in town.
“I love this book store. There's a lot of character, even the açaí place, there's a lot of good taco spot, the Mexican stores over here, the vintage shop, the ice cream store. I can keep going on and on. There's a lot of unique places you can check out in the area,” said one visitor from the Bay Area.
North Park is one of three California neighborhoods on the top 16 list - the only one in San Diego.
To see the complete list, click here.
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