Neighborhoods of La Mesa: Northmont

This is a the sixth of the series on the neighborhoods of the area I primarily work, which includes La Mesa, San Carlos, El Cajon and Santee. This time I'm moving to the eastern side of La Mesa.

Northmont is bounded by Fletcher Parkway, Amaya Drive, and the El Cajon City Limits. Fletcher Hills, just north and east but inside El Cajon, is essentially similar, as is the Griffen Park/Murray Drive neighborhood on the other side of Amaya. It's a neighborhood of small hills with a medium number of trees for La Mesa. Most of the streets are fairly wide, and most of the properties have a decent view - with some being spectacular

Gregory street, looking west. That view goes all the way to the coast

The main commercial arteries serving the area are Amaya Drive and Fletcher Parkway, despite there being only limited access to the latter. The businesses tend to congregate in the three neighborhood malls, at Severin and Amaya, 125 and Fletcher Parkway (the former site of Family Fun Center), and Fletcher Parkway and Dallas.

The neighborhood mall at Severin and Amaya, with Mt. Helix in the background:

Physically, there are almost two separate neighborhoods here. Along Amaya and Severin, the homes were built in the 1940s and before, and are typically around 1000 to 1200 square feet, these were originally two or three bedroom, one bath houses that have largely been added onto where they now three bedrooms, and one and a half to two bath. A significant number of these were replaced with higher density housing - apartments and condominiums - in the sixties and seventies. Once you get away from Severin and Amaya, however, the higher density stuff disappears and the neighborhood is essentially 100 percent single family three and four bedroom detached homes built in tracts in the fifties and early sixties, with some additions to those models here and there, but most are fairly close to the original floor plan. The lots start at about 6000 square feet, and I know of individual lots that go over a third of an acre (roughly 14,500 square feet). Asking prices vary as of this writing from around $290,000 for some of the older and smaller ones, up to nearly $600,000 for the high end. People making San Diego Area Median Income may not be able to afford the best houses in the neighborhood without a hefty down payment, but they can buy something very livable.

Looking east across Severin from Manor Drive

The thing that stands out about the neighborhood is the hills and the views. Around every corner is another view:

Looking south, downhill on Henderson:

This is not a dense urban neighborhood. The streets are curvy, there aren't always sidewalks, and other than nosy agents, there just aren't a lot of people in the area who don't live here. It's a pretty quiet place to live for the most part, and you would definitely get the wrong impression if you only drove Severin, Amaya, and Fletcher Parkway.

City Limits, where Henderson (La Mesa) becomes Croyden (El Cajon)

By contrast, here's looking north to where Severin (La Mesa) becomes Garfield (El Cajon)

The neighborhood school is Northmont. The Middle School is Parkway Middle School (formerly Parkway Junior High), and the high school is Grossmont High School, the oldest high school in the Grossmont District. Here's the most recent account Grossmont Accountability Report Card

The front of Northmont Elementary:

The closest community college is Grossmont College, reachable in a couple of minutes via 125. the closest four year college is San Diego State University.

Norhtmont is a little more isolated that a lot of La Mesa. Nonethless, it does have good freeway and transportation access. It's two minutes up the hill to Interstate 8 via Severin, just across Fletcher Parkway to the newer CA 125 freeway running north south. You have your choice of two major supermarkets within a mile. You can get to Mission Valley in fifteen minutes, downtown in 20. The San Diego Trolley runs along Fletcher Parkway and Amaya in the area, and has a station on Amaya. Fletcher Parkway is also a bus route.

The Amaya Trolley Stop

Northmont Park (entrance):

Major shopping centers are found at Grossmont Center (Target, Wal-Mart, Macy's, Theaters and dining), which is within five minutes, and you can take the trolley or bicycle over. Parkway Plaza (Sears, Wal-Mart, Penneys, theaters) in El Cajon is roughly ten minutes, College Grove (Wal Mart, Sam's Club, Target) about the same.

If you'd like to talk more about Northmont or any other neighborhood of La Mesa, Contact me. I will be happy to discuss which neighborhoods might be right for you, or the marketing of your current property.