![\"This](\"https:\/\/sduptownnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/NP-Magazine-newweb.jpg\")
<\/a>(Courtesy of North Park Main Street)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
These days, North Park is beginning to rival Little Italy, the Gaslamp and East Village as a place to go to enjoy the good things in life. And at North Park Main Street \u2014 a private nonprofit organization charged with the revitalization of the North Park Business Improvement District (BID) \u2014 the team is determined to capitalize on all this positive momentum by launching a social media campaign under the hashtag #ExploreNorthPark.<\/p>\n
\u201cNorth Park is well-known and loved by the locals.\u00a0It\u2019s easy to see the businesses packed with bicyclists, families walking to dinner and bustling sidewalk cafes loaded with familiar faces,\u201d said Angela Landsberg, executive director of North Park Main Street.<\/p>\n
\u201cI started thinking that North Park was a gem that needed to be more exposed, so I applied for a grant to Economic Development & Tourism through the city of San Diego.\u00a0Our goal with this grant was to market North Park to visitors who come to San Diego and are staying in hotels but looking to explore an historic urban community.\u00a0We also wanted to appeal those who are looking for a weekend trip from the Southern California region.\u201d<\/p>\n
After winning the city grant, North Park Main Street set up a website (explorenorthpark.com) and created a full-color brochure listing restaurants, bars, brew pubs and boutiques within the BID area, which roughly covers University Avenue between Utah Street and 32nd Street, and 30th Street between Polk Avenue and Upas Street.<\/p>\n
The website has nine pages under the titles of Explore, Art, Eat, Drink, Shop & Boutiques, Events, Visit, History and News. Even North Park natives may learn something new on these pages.<\/p>\n
The pi\u00e8ce\u00a0de r\u00e9sistance, though, is a full-color, 128-page Explore North Park magazine that showcases everything that makes North Park such a popular destination.<\/p>\n
The magazine includes a welcome from District 3 Councilmember Todd Gloria, who writes: \u201cThe past two decades have seen tremendous investment and positive change in the historical neighborhood of North Park. Its unique offerings continue to develop and change and are worth exploration and celebration.\u201d<\/p>\n
Toni G. Atkins, Speaker of the California Assembly and a South Park resident, also has a message for those who pick up the magazine.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe incredible transformation and revitalization of North Park has been underway for nearly two decades now. The boom in independent boutiques and vibrant restaurants, nightspots, galleries and performance venues such as the North Park Theatre [now known as Observatory North Park] draw visitors from all over San Diego and provide a huge boost to the regional economy,\u201d Atkins writes.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a time when changes in demographics and land-use decisions had altered the fortunes of North Park. Businesses closed and some areas fell into disrepair. But people who love this community devoted themselves to reviving it, ushering in a renaissance that has infused the neighborhood with new energy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Atkins also pays tribute to the hipster neighborhood and its newfound reputation as the suds capital.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd North Park plays a major role in San Diego\u2019s love affair with craft breweries that Men\u2019s Journal magazine declared 30th Street \u2018clearly the nation\u2019s best beer boulevard.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Residents, tourists and businesses are invited to participate in the social media campaign, which extends to Facebook<\/a>, Gorjeo<\/a> y Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n The goal, Landsberg said, is simple: \u201cBring tourists to North Park.\u201d<\/p>\n Besides participating in social media efforts, North Park fans are also urged to keep visiting the website. \u201cIt is constantly being updated with new blogs, interviews with interesting North Park celebs, and up-to-date info on events in North Park,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Landsberg hopes the social media campaign continues to grow as awareness spreads.<\/p>\n \u201cWe encourage all North Park businesses to use the hashtag #ExploreNorthPark on their posts as well as share details on their events.\u00a0We are gathering a lot of new followers especially on Instagram,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u201cHotel concierges, travel agencies \u2014 yes they still exist \u2014 and some popular travel publications are also taking a look at what we are doing with Explore social media.\u201d<\/p>\n The avalanche of positive news stories about North Park in the national media over the past two years has impacted the community.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople who travel want to explore a city,\u201d Landsberg said, \u201cand while the beaches, Little Italy and Gaslamp are great places, it\u2019s always nice to have an alternative to the usual suspects.\u00a0A historic urban community with tons of great food, craft beer, distinct shops and a diverse population is a big draw for many, many people.\u00a0We want them to come to North Park!\u201d<\/p>\n \u2014Ken Williams es editor de Uptown News y Mission Valley News y puede ser contactado en <\/i>ken@sdcnn.com<\/i><\/span><\/a> o al 619-961-1952. S\u00edguelo en Twitter en <\/i>KenSanDiego<\/i><\/span><\/a>, cuenta de Instagram en <\/i>KenSD<\/i><\/span><\/a> o Facebook en <\/i>KenWilliamsSanDiego<\/i><\/span><\/a>.<\/i><\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Ken Williams | Editor As long as a decade ago, a running joke was that you might get \u201ccaught dead\u201d in North Park. The once-thriving retail hub, devastated by the building of the shopping malls in Mission Valley, had become so run-down and crime-ridden that businesses and people were moving out in droves.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":846,"featured_media":249181,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11555","_seopress_titles_title":"#ExploreNorthPark campaign targets tourists","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11547,11551,11555],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-249180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-news","category-uptown-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/846"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=249180"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249180\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/249181"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=249180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=249180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=249180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}