Nir Polus is chief operation officer and Carolyn Lowrie is account executive at The Sliding Door, one of the newest businesses in The Art and Design District of San Diego. (photo/lambertphoto.com)

Downtown’s continued revitalization — hip housing, trendy bars and restaurants, loads of activities — has brought an influx of style-conscious 92101 residents who want their homes to reflect that spirit. But where can they turn in an area that is heavy on entertainment but light on furnishings?

Little Italy, naturalmente. Or, more specifically, its “sub-neighborhood”: The Art and Design District of San Diego. If thoughts of meandering Little Italy bring to mind pizza and pasta more than sofas and stemware, the art district’s acting president, Bill Stone, understands. “People say, ‘I had no idea Little Italy was like this,’ ” he says about those who happen upon Simply Italian, the India Street store he owns with wife Gayle. “But if you’re looking for something to make your environment unique that you won’t see in other places, this is really where to come.”

Originally called the Kettner Art and Design District but since renamed and known by its acronym, TADD, the art district was launched three years ago. The Stones were original members.

“As Little Italy matured, it attracted small, family-operated, boutique-style businesses with a slant toward design and art,” Stone recounts. “We didn’t want (the arts district) to be another Gaslamp or Seaport Village. The district is just a marketing identification that lets people know Little Italy has an art and design community.”

Misti See, co-owner of Mixture, a contemporary furnishings store on Kettner, was one of the first to see Little Italy’s potential when she and her partners opened in December 2003, but she acknowledges it has been a rough road.

“We had something really cool and different to offer, but most of San Diego didn’t even know we were down here,” she says about the crowds wining and dining along India Street, Little Italy’s main corridor. “So we got together as a district and said, ‘How do we get people two blocks down here from a packed Little Italy?’ ”

The answer was Kettner Nights, a district-wide event where TADD businesses extend their Friday hours to 9 p.m., boosted by free food and drinks and music to create a party type of atmosphere. Kettner Nights takes place every six to eight weeks, attracting as many as 2,500 visitors.

“It started with a goal for sales but ended up as great exposure,” says See. “People who can’t get here during the week by 6 can come after work that Friday and stay.”

As with any pioneering effort, TADD has had its share of businesses come and go. A drive around Little Italy, which is bounded by Ash to Laurel streets from south to north, and State Street to Kettner Boulevard from east to west, is a study in contrasts: seemingly abandoned buildings next to funky renovated warehouses next to auto repair garages. But Stone says this ebb and flow is to be expected.

“The Gaslamp took years for the leading businesses who came and went,” he says. “It takes time for roots to grow in any district. Solana (the Cedros Design District in Solana Beach) didn’t happen overnight either.”

See is so confident in Mixture’s exclusive collection — the store’s product line is unique to San Diego — that she looks forward to a little friendly rivalry in TADD.

“We invite our competitors to move right next to us,” she says. “The more support there is, the more successful we’ll all be.”

Just south of Mixture on Kettner is one of TADD’s newest businesses, The Sliding Door Co. Based in Los Angeles, Sliding Door offers contemporary door and wall systems. Its unique offerings work well with many Downtown homes’ layouts.

“It’s the same look for different applications,” says Nir Polus, chief operation officer. “Some people buy a loft Downtown because they enjoy openness but then they move in and start to look for privacy when people come to their house. This gives privacy without creating a barrier like drywall would.”

Using mostly frosted tempered glass and metal or wood frames, the doors suit modern or vintage homes. “It looks like it was built with the building,” says Carolyn Lowrie, account executive for Sliding Door, about the product’s versatility.

Lowrie was dispatched from the company’s L.A. offices to establish the San Diego branch. She says she looked at showroom space in other parts of town, but it was Little Italy where she knew the business could thrive.

“We wanted to be in a design-oriented community,” she says about TADD, where Sliding Door opened in February. “We have an up-and- coming product and need to be in an area where the shops surrounding us would be receptive. This is basically a one-stop area for design, architecture, and individuality.”

That merchandise distinctiveness, ironically, is the one similarity among TADD’s businesses. The Stones’ Simply Italian, for example, imports all of its chandeliers, glassware, furniture and other items direct from Italy.

“It is the only place in the U.S. you can get it and that’s true for many of the other (TADD) shops,” Stone says.

Carla Bassi and husband, Jim, have amore molto for Little Italy: they live there and own two businesses in the design district. (photo/lambertphoto.com)

In addition, says Che (pronounced “kay”) Bella’s Carla Bassi, Little Italy is a pleasant place to amble in search of a home treasure. “This neighborhood is so exquisite,” says the 35-year interior designer whose Fir Street flower shop is known for importing exotic stems from around the world. “It really is like being in an old Italian village. There’s a hominess. I love the energy.”

In fact, Bassi’s experience in Little Italy — she also lives there — has been so favorable that she opened a second Fir Street store, Che Bella Nido (“nido” is Italian for “nest”), to sell organic modern furnishings.

“We had talked about a second location but I didn’t want to commute,” she says. So when the nearby building opened up, she seized the opportunity. “It’s important for us to stay here (in TADD),” she says. “We are surrounded by fresh people with fresh ideas all the time. As an artist, you need that.”

Stone hopes that connective instinct will stretch to Downtowners looking to enhance their homes. “When you are part of a neighborhood,” he says, “then you want to support the businesses of your neighborhood because, after all, it is your community.”