National City market uses social media, delivery services to survive the pandemic

Family business improvises to keep its catering income coming in

Katia Pechenkina, Multimedia Journalist • June 23, 2021

Rodeo’s Meat Market and Catering stands out on Highland Avenue between an empty parking lot and a smog center. The business originally focused specifically on catering tacos and other Mexican cuisine.

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Restaurant owner taps his network for help to survive pandemic

Owner of Birrias, Chivos & Cheves struggled to keep the doors open

Susana Serrano, Multimedia Journalist • June 23, 2021

In a small shopping center where Highland Avenue connects with 24th street in National City, a Mexican restaurant called Birrias, Chivos & Cheves stands between a pizzeria and a nail salon.

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Family-owned advertising and marketing business finds ways to survive during the pandemic

Family Decals in National City transitioned to its garage to continue filling customer orders

Gabriel Schneider, Multimedia Journalist • June 23, 2021

Family Decals is located in National City inside a Price Breakers outlet located where Highland Avenue and Plaza Boulevard meet.

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Tortilleria struggles to keep up with declining sales during COVID-19 pandemic

Owner of El Grano de Oro tried to apply for government grants but was unsuccessful

Susana Serrano, Multimedia Journalist • June 23, 2021

The smell of freshly made corn tortillas was in the air of Tortilleria El Grano de Oro, a family-owned business on Seventh Street and Highland Avenue that has been open for 33 years.

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National City entrepreneur balances two different businesses during the pandemic

The owner of a flower shop and novelty gift store gets creative to keep customers coming back

Gabriel Schneider, Multimedia Journalist • June 23, 2021

In a corner lot on Highland Avenue and E 16th Street sits a circular-shaped flower store called Angel Petals, which shares a parking lot with Dream Crystals Gifts that sells many eclectic merchandise.

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GALLERY: A tour of Highland Avenue’s small businesses

The street is home to small, locally-owned restaurants, barbershops and markets

Vicky Pineda, Multimedia Journalist • June 23, 2021

Highland Avenue was once known for lowrider car cruising. Now it is National City’s downtown, a strip where small businesses reside.

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About The Highland Avenue Project

The multimedia project takes in-depth look at pandemic’s impact on National City’s family-owned small businesses

Katia Pechenkina, Vicky Pineda, Gabriel Schneider, and Susana Serrano • June 16, 2021

The coronavirus pandemic hit underserved communities in the United States the hardest and Latinx entrepreneurs had to adapt to new challenges to keep their businesses open. 

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City College alumna uses skills to tell stories during the pandemic

Shooting and editing video helped Bethany McKee to explore new projects

Kathy Archibald, Contributor • June 11, 2021

McKee uncovered skills during her time at City College in 2018 that have come in especially handy during the pandemic and a cross-country move.

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PODCAST: City Times Sound team reflects on remote production

Student leaders in the program discuss the difficulty of being online

Assad Khalilzadeh, Program Director • June 8, 2021

With San Diego City College still closed for in-person classes, the first news radio class since the start of the pandemic recently wrapped up remote production at the end of the spring 2020 semester.

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MAGAZINE: City College artists navigate the pandemic

City College artists continue to create during the pandemic

Rachel de la Torre, Multimedia Journalist • June 4, 2021

Due to COVID-19, artists all over the world have had to navigate creating, showing and selling their art to the public in new ways. San Diego City College is home to incredible artists of all kinds -- performers, painters, ceramicists, sculptors, multimedia artists and everything in between.

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MAGAZINE: 6th Annual Festival of New Plays goes digital

The 6th Annual Festival of New Plays was recorded by City Times Media for online streaming

Marlena Harvey, Managing Editor • June 3, 2021

Students and staff of San Diego City College spent weeks putting together eight plays, five of which were recorded by the City Times Media Team in the on-campus TV studio production.

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PODCAST: Looking back at the best of Sex and Sexuality podcast

The seven-episode podcast is available online

Vicky Pineda, CTM Operations Manager • June 3, 2021

Marlena Harvey, Managing Editor of the City Times has been speaking with counseling interns at San Diego City College, Tristan Hartley and Laurel Marks. 

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