Photo courtesy of UH Historical Society.
The University Heights Historical Society (UHHS) will offer a guided walking tour of selected bungalow courts in University Heights on Saturday, Nov. 14, at 11 a.m., starting in front of 4638-4648 North Ave. Tickets are $25 each and must be purchased in advance at: www.uhhs-uhcdc.org/online-store/p/walking-tour-bungalow-courts.
Bungalow courts represent one of San Diego’s most distinctive and historically significant housing types. Developed primarily between 1920 and 1949, these modest residential complexes emerged as a creative response to San Diego’s rapid population growth and shifting urban lifestyle. By arranging small, affordable homes around a shared central open space, these courts successfully balanced density with a strong, close-knit sense of community.
The upcoming tour offers the opportunity to learn more about just a few of the approximately 70 bungalow courts still standing in University Heights.
The tour will be led by Kristin Harms of UHHS and architectural historian Marlena Krcelich of South Environmental. Harms will provide an overview of the early history of University Heights along the way, and Krcelich will share insights about the architectural features of each bungalow court.
This celebratory tour follows a major milestone for local preservation. In May, the California State Historical Resources Commission unanimously approved the San Diego Bungalow Court Multiple Property Documentation package. This landmark designation significantly simplifies the nomination process, making it much easier and more affordable for local owners to nominate their bungalow courts to the National Register of Historic Places.
The multi-year preservation effort was led by UHHS and made possible through vital financial contributions from the North Park Historical Society, the Hillcrest History Guild, and the Ocean Beach Historical Society.
The successful nomination package was prepared by South Environmental, which is fittingly located in Pasadena, where Southern California’s very first bungalow court was built in the 1910s.