With a population of just about 50,000, National City sits on the South Bay of San Diego.
“It is culture, it is cuisine, and it is cars, all three of those are drivers of the fourth C, which is commerce,” Cheddy Matthews, executive board member for the National City Chamber of Commerce said.
However, the pandemic disrupted local businesses and tested the city’s economic resiliency.
“We’ve seen the great resignation that you’ve heard about, people want to stay home now, well what does that do? You have vacant buildings…so of course, the problems you see nationwide, are the same problems you see here,” Matthews said.
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It is culture, it is cuisine, and it is cars, all three of those are drivers of the fourth C, which is commerce,
Cheddy Matthews, executive board member for the National City Chamber of Commerce said.
The rebound has been a bumpy ride. Last year, its city manager stepped aside, and his replacement died two days after taking on the job, but National City is leaning on its strengths to move the city forward.
Greg Boeh is the owner of Pier 32 Marina. He’s watched and participated in the city’s economic growth in the last three decades.
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“In 1992, I was hired by the Port of San Diego to service a new customer they had who was Posha Services. Posha services bring one out of 10 automobiles into the United States,” Boeh said.
Next to Posha sat 20 acres of dirt that his company turned into Pier 32 Marina.
“When the marina was developed, it gave the city and the residents, a place to come, to sit on the beach, to view the water, a place to come down and have breakfast or have lunch,” Boeh said.
Matthews said the city is still seeking out more development. The city has invested in redeveloping 8th Street and Main. They’re also working with the Port of San Diego, Pier 32 Marina, and Posha on what they’re calling a Balance Plan, which will bring more hotels to the area with the hotel tax and expand recreational boating. The redevelopment will also extend to surrounding areas like Pepper Park.
“It’s just going to be a hub for people to come in to do things on the waterfront, so it’s going to be updated, upgraded, and I think it’s going to bring much more revenue in the area,” Matthews said.
