A proud National City resident and its vice mayor, Rosalie Zarate, said, “National City is one of the best kept secrets in San Diego County.”
I spent a recent morning at Ernie’s Coffee Shop on Plaza Boulevard speaking with Zarate and learned more about present-day National City.
Zarate is well qualified. She is one of those natives who was raised in the area and never left it. Her father had a farm in the vicinity of what is now Plaza Boulevard and Palm. He grew vegetables used for the immediate meal.
He also had other property in the vicinity that was leased out. On it was an apricot grove, a fruit that can readily grow in this area.
Zarate still lives on parts of the old homestead. She has built an apartment house on the property that she manages.
Over the years, she said, she raised six children and now boasts of 14 grandchildren. Zarate, as other National City residents, loves her city and is saddened by those who vilify it. “We are getting a bum deal from the press,” she said, alluding to stories in one of the local papers. A bleak picture of the city is painted when actually it is a nice place to live.
She reminded me of National City’s long and storied history. A part of the original Rancho de la Nacion it became a city in 1887, years before Chula Vista. In the beginning it was parceled out in residential size lots as opposed to Chula Vista’s square mile lots.
Hence we see no large sprawling estates as is found in other communities.
Zarate is proud of her City Council and the work it is doing. It is a working council with all members compatible with one another. At the present, they are anticipating work on the bayfront that will consist of the building of a marina.
I drove along the waterfront and was amazed at the mile after mile of nautical related businesses. Everything from ship repair yards to small industrial specialty shops line the boulevards.
Like many other public officials at the city level Zarate is concerned about the youth of the community. She relaizes that without the jobs in the areas the youth will suffer. It is for that reason that she is pushing the waterfront development and other endeavors that will manufacture employment.
She cites the practical and aesthetic development in the Mile of Cars area on National City Boulevard. She envisions this avenue continuing its improvement all the way north to the San Diego city border. She cited the new police facility and city offices that compare favorably with other cities.
Zarate also reminded me that National City borders San Diego in one of the lowest economic areas in the county. It is this region that has been the subject of ridicule and criticism.
It is unwarranted, she said, because there are city officials and residents of the area who are striving to turn things around.
Zarate cited the many positive images coming from National City. The recently completed Heritage Days drew tens of thousands of people from all over. The annual Maytime Parade is one of the oldest, sustaining parades in the county, and the most coveted.
