By Steve Price / CBS8 / August 11, 2025
The Garfield Shopping Center, located on the Northeast corner of Balboa and Clairemont Drive and a fixture in Clairemont for decades, may soon face closure to make way for a large housing development, leaving longtime businesses and loyal customers in limbo.
Sew Hut, a beloved store that has served the community for 45 years, is among the businesses potentially affected by the rumored changes.
“Devastated. I’ve been coming here for 30-something years, and I’m a newbie,” said customer Christie McGuire, reflecting the sentiment of many patrons.
The plans, which have been circulating on social media platforms like Nextdoor, suggest the entire shopping center could be demolished to make room for approximately 600 apartment units. This has sparked a heated debate among local residents.
“The rumor is, it’s going to be a big apartment building and it’s going to be pretty crowded on this corner,” said Patsy Kellogg, a Sew Hut customer. “When you think about the high school and how ever many units they’re going to put up here and the one lane road over there. It’s nuts!”
While many residents express concerns about increased traffic and the loss of local businesses, some support the potential development.
“If you want to reduce homelessness, build homes,” wrote one Nextdoor user. Another commented, “We need more housing and this is a far better solution than all those ADU’s on steroids in single family neighborhoods.”
CBS 8 reached out to Clairemont Rental Properties, which owns the center. While they stated that “nothing is imminent” and no businesses have been asked to leave, they did not deny that plans for a housing complex are in the works.
For now, businesses in the Garfield Shopping Center continue to operate as usual, though at least one owner admits to actively searching for a new location. The future remains uncertain for longtime establishments like Sew Hut, which Christie described as “one of the best places on Earth.”
I will support adding houses to strip malls ONLY if we do the following…
Ban ALL ADUS, jADUS, bonus ADUS,
REMOVE complete communities,
REQUIRE parking
80% units affordable
A freeze on all building of density in single family areas, and concentrate all new homes on commercial land or state land.
Now that’s density I’ll support!
What do you mean by, “I will support……?” You sound like an elected official. Are you elected or just chest thumping?
The surrounding infrastructure can not tolerate more vehicular traffic. Balboa Avenue is already fully extended into PB. Traffic from East Mission Bay Drive to Clairemont Drive is sometimes at a standstill. Michael Bartell’s family goes back decades in San Diego real estate. In his upper floor office are pictures of Clair Burgener, House member Bob Wilson, and many others. He also owns the strip mall across the street. What will become of the former Shell Gas Station adjacent. Also, Clairemont Drive has been reduced to one lane westbound to Mission Bay. ONE LANE? More cars? WTF? Do the San Diego traffic engineers know something we don’t?
You’re not supposed to have a car anymore according to the leaders. Reduce traffic lanes by 50% and add a car sized bike lane on both sides of the street.
Yea Mooney, you are right! Don’t you love your shiny Schwinn. So many residents love these beautiful, glorious bike lanes. They work great for pedaling three bags of groceries home and taking the family on beach outings. You just gotta love it, man! So cool! The hell with cars and lazy old people who walk with canes. Put them on a bike where they belong. If they are too weak to pedal, they can walk with their two wheeled steed. Man, this is so bitchin. The mayor is a fucking genius, man. He ought to run for Governor so the whole State can go bicycle and then we won’t need freeways,
Is it too late to stop this?