Live in Santee, CA - Shop, Play, and Stay

Santee CA is definitely a place to live! To shop! To play!

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Santee CA is a beautiful area of San Diego county that sits only 18 miles from the Pacific Ocean. It has rolling hills and beautiful lakes.  You have the best of both worlds in the urban living it offers and the safety of the country.  The city government is dedicated to it's safe environment and steady growth for the future.

A Bit Of Santee CA History

George Cowles (kohls) began this whole area back in 1877 to develop his vineyards.  He also brought new trees such as the pomegranate and magnolia trees!  This area became known as Cowleston. We have a land mark still today named Cowles Mountain.  Mr. Cowle's died and and three years later his widow married Mr Milton Santee.  In 1893 through the direction of Mr. Cowle's widow the area was renamed Santee.  Since then the area has seen cattle ranches and at one time it was used as a military training ground in WWII. Mr. Santee lead the planning that brought huge growth to the town.  It wasn't until December of 1980 that Santee became an official city.  It now stands as the 11th largest of San Diego's 18 cities.  From the map above you can see the city has space to expand.

What's There To Do in Santee CA?

SHOPPING - For starters the city has more stores to shop in with a huge variety to choose from.  You can take care of all your errands within a couple block radius at the Santee Trolley Square.  Let's just name a FEW stores and restaurants that are in the area.  By no means is this exhaustive.

Bed Bath & Beyond, Barnes & Noble, Target, Justice, Home Depot, Chuze Fitness, 24hr Fitness, Costco, Costco gas station, Michaels', Walmart, Best Buy, Old Navy, TJ Maxx, Lowe's, Kohls, Phil's BBQ, Olive Garden, Mimis, Chilis, Subway, Starbucks(of course), McD's, etc.

RECREATION - Santee Lakes Regional Park is located on the West side of Santee CA at 9310 Fania Pkwy.  The area has 7 man made lakes with full RV hookup and tent sites, cabins and floating cabins, outdoor activities like horse shoes etc, Sprayground, pool & Jacuzzi,  fishing, and year round events like movies on the lake and Spring Eggstravaganza.  You will see corporate events, weddings, boat & bike rentals, volleyball courts, amphitheater, and more!  There is so much to do here that it very well might become a favorite daycation!  There is a small fee for parking.

Santee Drive-In Theater, one of San Diego's last. This outdoor theater has been here since the 60's and still offers double features on both it's screen.  The drive-in is open 365 days per year but check out their website for opening times at www.santeedriveintheatre.com.  For a very low price (cash only) you can enjoy an evening of entertainment especially when throwing in something from their snack bar but you can bring your own too(we like to support them by purchasing items from the snack bar when possible.).  There are restroom available as well as a portable jump starter for you vehicle in case the battery dies.  The movies are heard through the FM radio.  They do have some for rent if needed.  Bring your lawn chairs, sit in you car, or in the back of your truck.  It's a fun outing that will surely create fond memories. 

Santee Swap Meet is in the same place as the drive-in theatre.  Open on Saturdays (admission $1) and Sundays (admission $1.50) from 6:30am - 2pm.  It offers great bargains on antiques, collectibles, bikes, toys, produce, clothing, sporting equipment, electronics, and much more from the 100's of sellers there. The earlier you arrive the better bargains you'll find. Click here for a Santee Swap Meet printable flyer with coupons and information.

The Woodglen Vista Skate and BMX Park offers enthusiasts to have fun on it's 6800 sq ft facility.  They have activities and membership.  It's open 7 days per week.  All pads and helmet is required.  Call for hours and $ at (619) 258-4100 x 210.

Cowles Mountain - Located South West of Santee, this is a great place to hike!  The most popular starting spot to park and hike is at the corner of Navajo Rd & Golfcrest Dr.  From this point it is a 3 mile around trip hike (up and back).  There are nice restrooms at the bottom but no amenities are available on the hike.  At the top you will have a wonderful view of San Diego.  For more information on Cowles Mountain you can visit Cowles Mountain - My Blog.

Ride The Trolley from the Santee Trolley Square. http://www.sdcommute.com/

Can You See Yourself Living Here?

Santee is growing in leaps and bounds with it's city council that is committed to it's people's safety and well being and staying on the cutting edge of development.  Currently there are about 20,000 living units (homes, condos, rowhomes, townhomes manufactured home, apartments) in the city.  Santee is one of the few cities with space still to grow.  About 1/2 of the land is undeveloped with master plans in the works.  For example, Fanita Ranch is 2,600 acres that will be developed into high quality housing along with recreational additions.  Santee CA has a low crime rate.  Residences feel safe.

• Get community information for Santee CA including income by household, education levels of the residences, crime risk and other interesting statistics, shopping, restaurants, places of worship, attractions and recreation, and more.
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Where Would The Kids Go To School?

The Santee School District and the Grossmont Union High School District rank high for their schools.  They have earned local, state, and national awards.  Santee also is home to Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District which has Grossmont Community College and Cuyamaca Community College. Both are very popular with degrees in many fields.  Also these colleges are great for taking all the general education classes at a lower cost than universities.  Many programs are available!

Check out the local elementary, middle, and high schools in Santee CA.  This link gives you names, locations, ratings, teacher student ratio, and more.

What's The Weather Like?

The weather averages in Santee CA are comfortable with a semi-desert climate with winter months in the 70's and summer months reaching to the high 80's.  You won't find four seasons here...it's San Diego sunny most of the time!  Occasional rain storms throughout the year and jacket weather in the winter months but other than that it's a great place.

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Thank you for reading about Santee CA.  A great place to live, shop, and play.