Celebrating San Diego: Part One - Monuments and Heroes

There has been recent new discourse regarding a local college requiring the placement of a statement on the class syllabus of land claims to local indigenous peoples that called this land home before it was “settled” many years ago. There has been push back from the faculty and things like this are becoming more common.

At a city administration meeting, the same group was given praise and acknowledgement that the city was built on their tribal land. Does this native tribe deserve the acknowledgement, sure they do, however, I believe there is a better way to do it that spans beyond the education system and moves into the larger realm of the built environment where people and visitors can be educated at all times.

This leads me to thoughts that I have had through the years about the way San Diego treats it’s heroes.

I will start with the statue of Alonzo Horton, The Godfather of San Diego who mapped and planned downtown’s location and street grid. Back then, people thought the man was a bit crazy for selecting his ideal location, but now he is praised for his vision. A beautiful bronze statue was created and placed on a street corner looking towards Horton Plaza, a large commercial development project which sits on the center of his planned downtown. The problem is that the street he is placed on is a strange curving side street which does not have the best visibility. Also, the statue is placed across the street next to the entrance to an underground parking garage.

I’ve always felt like they stirs placement was an afterthought. It was like we could not figure out where exactly to place it or maybe how much it should be celebrated. When you have a whole section of a major metropolitan city bearing your name, I think that requires a huge celebration. This statue should be placed on a large pedestal in the middle of the most prominent city circle. When you go to other countries their are statues in the middle of the street where traffic goes around them. Alonzo Horton could have been placed on a pedestal shaped like a ladder so we can oversee his vision of San Diego.

Pete Wilson, former San Diego mayor and governor of California has a bronze statue conveniently tucked away not even visible to passing traffic. Interestingly, the statue is about 75 yards away from the Alonzo Horton statue but Wilson is in a even more secluded location. When I first saw it I thought it was a temporary location. Then I saw the plaque in the ground with the picture of a light rail trolley. I learned that Wilson was the key figure which brought the new light rail transit system back to San Diego. Pete Wilson is a somewhat controversial figure due to some of his hard stances. Does that relegate one to the corner? Why even build a statue?

My thought is that this statue belongs in one of two places, both important rail hubs in Downtown. The choice is between the Imperial Rail Transit Station where three light rail lines converge, or at Santa Fe Depot, a historic rail station which has two light rail lines and two intercity commuter rail lines.

To make the choice we simply consider which area we’d it more. Santa Fe Depot is a monument in itself and is located in a great position in downtown. The Imperial Transfer Station needs some love.

People love statues and monuments. They increase land value and communities are sometimes built around them. Why do we tuck them away in the corner? Put them out there and let them have their glory. Get them in the sun and let them be seen. Cast away the fear that the birds will use them for a chair and their poop will collect on them. That’s just what happens since nature eventual gets to everything and everyone.

Pete Wilson, former San Diego mayor and governor of California… wait, didn’t I already write this!!! Well, if you start at the Pete Wilson trolley hero statue and walk 150 yards North, you will arrive at the Sofia Hotel entrance which has a bronze statue of… you guessed it, Pete Wilson. He must be a pretty important figure to have two bronze statues within a three minute walk.

It is almost an absurd thought and I am not sure how this came about and I don’t care to spend the time finding out. My assumption is that there wasn’t someone with knowledge of the San Diego street scape or someone with vision to consider the proper placement. It is crazy, but these little things, like monument placement, which contain intrinsic value, is so important to city development and a city mindset. These things speak volumes and might illustrate San Diego’s sometimes twisted thinking.

Wait, theirs more. Across the street from the Alonzo Horton statue is another bronze statue of Horton Plaza’s developer Earnest Hahn. In terms of historical significance, Mr. Hahn does not rise to the level of a Horton or Wilson, so his statue placement is appropriate, at ground level at its current location.

If we continue to consider these bronze statue placements we can arrive at the problems, placement location and hierarchy. Two of the statues are in the correct location, Mr. Hahn and Mr. Wilson at the hotel entrance (it is only appropriate due to another Wilson statue in such close proximity). The Light rail Wilson Statue and Horton statue should be moved to better locations and given a hierarchy.

Statue hierarchy is established by location and pedestal height. A Horton Statue on a pedestal should be at the highest level, his feet at your shoulders and head is clear view. This statue should be at the most important pedestrian location in downtown. He does not need to be looking directly at Horton Plaza, he can be placed on the important corridor of Fifth Avenue and pointed in that direction. When The street at Fifth Avenue is closed to vehicular traffic, which it eventually will be, the Horton Statue should mark the entry to the promenade. That is a location worthy of an important forefather, not stashed away on a side street surrounded by other figures.

Wait, there’s more. If we go to Balboa Park, we see this same instance of statue “accumulation”. In Balboa Park west, there are opposing street corners both with bronze statues. The first I’d of Kate Sessions, who is said to be the mother of Balboa Park. Her statue is off to the side on a expanded portion of a pedestrian walk. She is depicted with a basket of flowers and people place fresh flowers in her hand and around the statue.

I love that people place flowers on the statue and give it life. It is so beautiful. The issue I have is the hierarchy. Ms. Sessions deserves to be placed on a pedestal. Since the public is able to interact with the statue, the pedestal should be shorter so that her hand is in reach to place flowers. Leaving her at ground level says that she is at our level, but we built a bronze statue of her to preserve her legacy, which means that she is clearly above the level of the public and deserves prominence.

The second issue I have is the placement of the bronze statues… across the street! Why not give Ms. Sessions here place in the sun! Stairs don’t need friends, they don’t want them. Statues are emblems of importance to society and to accumulate them so closely spaced in one area, to me, diminishes their impact.

So who has a bronze statue across from Kate Sessions? You guessed it: Alonzo Horton and Ephraim Morse conducting a survey.

Sorry Ms. Sessions, but a group of men are across the street and they get a bench and a fountain. Everything about this placement and hierarchy sounds wrong.

We need to do a better job placing these monuments. Balboa Park is huge and the Horton/Morse statue could have been placed across the bridge or along the Paseo.

When we think about cities and amenities and landmarks in the built environment, a bronze statues says “this area is important.” A bronze statue on a pedestal says “this person is very important and this location is important.” Multiple bronze statues in the same area says “there are multiple statues in this area.”

I would surmise that one wonderfully crafted bronze statue placed at an appropriate level in a great location is more impactful that ten statues placed together on ground level in a poor location.

We have had some successes however. Tony Gwynn, Mr. Padre and one of the greatest batters of all time has a place in history taking a swing on a hill overlooking the baseball park. Everything about that statue is wonderful.

Trevor Hoffman, a Padre pitcher and Hall of Famer, has a statue center along a paseo into the ballpark.

Even though this statue is one to two hundred yards away from the Gywnn statue it is appropriate because it is at the ballpark and relevant to baseball.

Jerry Coleman, beloved Padre radio broadcaster, pilot, war hero, New York Yankee champion Hall of Fame great, has a statue, up on a pedestal, sort of pushed to the side and up against the wall. There is a reason for it however, because he was a man with such a rich story that he needed more than a statue; he has a whole wall dedicated to him. “Oh Doctor! You can hang a star in that baby!”

So now let’s return to the local indigenous people and their legacy here in San Diego. The Kumeyaay people come have a storied and beautiful culture and they walked these lands prior to the far traveling ships arrival. We honor them and through them we should find our collective connection to nature. But is their legacy bound to text on paper or a few pointed words before a meeting. Those things are easily forgotten and recycled.

It seems so natural to believe that they need a prominent place in San Diego. I believe that they should have a large bronze statue which shows the most important depiction of their culture and heritage. Is it a woman in traditional dress holding a child? Is it a brave warrior standing poised in front of his family? I don’t know, that is for the Kumeyaay people to decide.

An appropriate location in my mind is at the embarcadero at the foot of broadway centered on the street. It is the location where San Diegans go and the location where the ships arrive. A raised pedestal says “this is historical and the future generations look to us.” A larger bronze statue says “we are important and prominent in this land.” The location at the point where the sea meets the land where the traveling ships docks greets all travelers and residents alike: “welcome to our home, our lands, ours that we share with you, together.”