San Diego: Between Spray Paint and Airbnb
If you walk through San Diego on any given Wednesday at 10 in the morning, you'll encounter two realities that brush against each other without fully touching. On one side, a couple of tourists with professional cameras standing in front of a giant mural of an Afro-Caribbean woman. On the other, Doña Rosa sweeping the entrance of her house with a palm frond broom, while a neighbor yells from a window that he can't find a place to park his motorcycle anymore. San Diego, the oldest neighborhood in Cartagena outside the city walls, has been the stage for a silent battle for years: urban art that put it on the global map versus the gentrification that is erasing its original inhabitants. In May 2026, the question isn't whether San Diego is changing, but who gets to stay.
Comparative Table: San Diego Then and Now
To understand the neighborhood's pulse, it's worth comparing what San Diego was like 15 years ago and what it is today. Here are the starkest contrasts:
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- Housing: Before, tenement houses and entire families in a single room were common. Today, those same houses are rented as hostels or vacation apartments starting at $150 USD per night.
- Commerce: Before, there were corner stores, sewing workshops, and carpentry shops. Today, specialty coffee shops, pop-up galleries, and "boho-chic" clothing stores are opening.
- Urban Art: Before, graffiti were local tags by neighborhood youth. Today, they are murals commissioned by brands or the Mayor's Office, signed by international artists.
- Neighbors: Before, 90% of residents were lifelong Cartageneros. Today, according to data from the Community Action Board of San Diego (2024), 40% of homes are occupied by foreigners or Colombians from other cities.
- Noise: Before, it was the sound of children playing soccer and the arepa vendor. Today, it's the electronic music from rooftops and the hammers of renovations.
- Rent Price: A room in a shared house went from costing $200,000 COP per month in 2010 to over $1,200,000 COP in 2026, according to reports from the San Diego Neighborhood Association.
Visual Map: 3 Murals That Tell the Neighborhood's Story
Not every mural in San Diego is mere decoration. Some are political statements, others are living memory. Here are three that every visitor should know, marking the neighborhood's tensions.
1. "Grandma's Braid" – Calle de la Media Luna with Calle Larga
Author: The local collective "Pinta Cartagena" (2021).
Message: A portrait of an elderly woman braiding a young girl's hair. The background features patterns from Palenquero culture. This mural was painted over a wall that previously had a youth gang tag. Neighbors see it as an attempt to reclaim public space without erasing memory. "That wall used to be trouble, now it's pride," says Don Miguel, who has lived across the street since 1987.
2. "The Eviction" – Carrera 10 with Calle del Sargento Mayor
Author: Anonymous artist (the authorship was never claimed; it appeared in 2023).
Message: A human figure being pushed by a giant hand emerging from a glass building. Next to it, written in white spray paint: "Where will you live tomorrow?" The mural appeared one morning, and the Mayor's Office ordered it removed two weeks later, but neighbors protected it and managed to keep it. Today, it is a symbol of local resistance against displacement.
3. "Black Cartagena" – Calle del Porvenir, facing Parque de San Diego
Author: Argentine artist Jaz (2024), invited by an urban art festival funded by a beer brand.
Message: An Afro-descendant woman with a turban and a firm gaze, surrounded by tropical flowers. It is the most photographed mural in the neighborhood, but also the most controversial. While tourists love it, some neighbors criticize that a foreign artist painted an image of Cartagena's Black identity without consulting the community. "He came, painted, and left. We didn't even know about it," commented a neighborhood leader at a meeting in February 2025.
Voices from the Neighborhood: What the Residents and Newcomers Say
For this article, we spoke with three people who represent the different faces of San Diego. The interviews were conducted in April 2026.
Doña Marleny – Lifelong Resident (65 years old, living in San Diego since 1978)
"I raised my five children in this house. I used to know everyone on the block. Now I go out and see new faces every week. The kids who rent rooms by the day don't say hello. And the worst part is that my granddaughter had to move to Turbaco because she can't afford to live here anymore. That pretty mural on the corner doesn't pay my rent. Nobody asked me if I wanted my wall painted."
Carlos Andrés – New Business Owner (34 years old, opened a specialty coffee shop in 2024)
"I came because San Diego has soul. The murals are what made me fall in love with the neighborhood when I came on vacation from Bogotá. Yes, I know there are tensions, but I pay rent to a local owner, not a multinational. I hired two guys from the neighborhood to work with me. The coffee costs $8,000 COP, it's not expensive compared to other areas. I think urban art attracted investment, and that doesn't have to be bad if it's done with respect."
Ana Lucía – Activist from the "San Diego Resiste" Collective (28 years old)
"The problem isn't the art, it's who decides what gets painted and for whom. The murals that truly represent the neighborhood are the ones made by local youth, not those that come with brand sponsorship. Gentrification isn't stopped by a pretty mural; it's stopped by popular organization. We are fighting for social housing right here, not on the outskirts. Let the tourist come, see the murals, take the photo, but also know that next door there's a family fighting not to leave."
Hard Facts: The Cost of Being Cartagena's Coolest Neighborhood
It's not perception, it's numbers. According to a study by the University of Cartagena (Faculty of Economics, 2025), the price per square meter in San Diego went from $1.2 million COP in 2018 to $4.8 million COP in 2025. That's a 300% increase in seven years. In the same period, the resident population decreased by 18%, according to DANE.
Data from the San Diego Hostel and Hotel Association shows that in 2010 there were 12 registered tourist accommodations in the neighborhood. By 2026, the figure exceeds 80, including hostels, boutique hotels, and Airbnb apartments. Many of these operate in houses that were once family homes.
A curious fact few know: San Diego was declared an "Artistic Neighborhood" by the Mayor's Office in 2019, but the decree did not include any rent control measures or tenant protection. In other words, art was promoted without protecting the artists who lived there.
Debate: Does Urban Art Save or Displace?
There is no easy answer. On one hand, the murals gave San Diego a visual identity that put it on international travel guides. That brought tourism, and tourism brought money to some local businesses. On the other hand, that same popularity skyrocketed land prices and accelerated the replacement of neighbors with temporary visitors.
Urban art, when genuine, can be a tool of resistance. But when it's part of a "revitalization" plan that doesn't consult the community, it becomes the Trojan horse of gentrification. In San Diego, both cases coexist: there are murals born from anger and the need to tell the neighborhood's story, and there are others that are simply decoration for an audience that doesn't stay overnight.
What is clear is that San Diego doesn't need more murals if there are no policies guaranteeing that its original inhabitants can continue to live there. The true art would be a city that doesn't expel its own.
Final Verdict
If you come to San Diego as a tourist, don't just stop at the mural photo. Walk the streets at sunset, buy a juice at the corner store, talk to the neighbors. Ask them what the neighborhood was like before. If you're a local thinking of moving to the neighborhood, do it consciously: look for ways to support the old businesses, not just the new ones. And if you have the chance, join the initiatives of "San Diego Resiste" or the Community Action Board.
San Diego is not just a collection of painted walls. It's the people who inhabit them. And those people deserve to stay.
Share this article if you believe art and community can coexist. And tell us in the comments: what's your favorite mural in San Diego? Tag the artist if you know them.
Introduction to the Topic
San Diego is a neighborhood that has become a microcosm of the urban tensions facing Cartagena. In its streets, graffiti tells stories of resistance, identity, and popular culture, while gentrification manifests through new developments and businesses seeking to attract a different audience. This clash between the old and the new not only shapes the physical landscape but also the social dynamics of the place.
Graffiti, once seen as vandalism, is now recognized as a form of urban art that invites reflection on the history and struggles of the community. However, the arrival of gentrification raises questions about who truly benefits from these changes and at what cost. The transformation of San Diego is not just an aesthetic phenomenon; it is a process that reshapes the daily lives of its inhabitants.
Understanding this context is crucial to appreciating the complexity of the neighborhood and what it represents in the broader landscape of Cartagena. Here are some key points that illustrate this duality:
- Graffiti as cultural expression: The murals that adorn the walls of San Diego are testimonies to local history and community resistance. Each piece of art tells a unique story that reflects the struggles and hopes of its inhabitants.
- Gentrification and its effects: With the arrival of new businesses and real estate developments, many residents feel their home and culture are being threatened. This generates an important debate about the future of the neighborhood and the preservation of its identity.
- The role of the community: Local organizations and art collectives work to keep the essence of San Diego alive, promoting community participation and art as tools of resistance.
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Analysis by Option (Pros and Cons)
San Diego, in Cartagena, is a neighborhood that reflects the tension between urban art and gentrification. Below are some pros and cons that highlight the complexities of this place.
Pros
- Cultural richness: San Diego is a melting pot of cultures where graffiti art blends with colonial history. This fusion offers a unique experience for visitors seeking to understand the city's recent history.
- Vibrant artistic life: The neighborhood's walls are canvases of expression, showcasing the work of local artists who use graffiti as a form of communication and protest.
Cons
- Gentrification: The arrival of new developments and businesses has displaced some lifelong residents, altering the social fabric of the neighborhood. This creates a dilemma between economic development and the preservation of the local community.
- Commercialization of art: With the popularity of graffiti, some artists feel their work becomes commercial and loses its original essence, as it turns into a tourist attraction rather than an authentic voice of the community.
Understanding these dynamics is key to appreciating the duality of San Diego, a neighborhood that, although in transformation, remains a reflection of the creativity and resistance of its people.