As a part of San Diego's 1970's push to redevelop Downtown, several blocks of existing structures were razed and $140 million allotted for Architect Jon Jerde's Horton Plaza Mall. Inspired by Italian hillside towns, quoting architecture styles from a handful of eras, Jerde dreamed of creating a vibrant social hub. His work was controversial in how it crossed private/retail business in hopes of enlivening public space, and in the case of Horton Plaza also resulted in the displacement of the houseless community that resided in the area before redevelopment. By the late 2000's businesses at Horton Plaza waned, and the structure began to resemble a ruin of an unfulfilled plan. I took these photographs on film in 2018-19, the last years before the structure was closed-off and slated once again for redevelopment. As retail vanished, and the muzak persisted on the mall speakers, the space was either used as a convenient shortcut, and for the curious, the loiterers, in some way it became more public than in its days of commerce.
