94-548: Sylmar is a suburban neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley and is the northernmost neighborhood within the city of Los Angeles , California, United States. Historically known for its profusion of sylvan olive orchards, Sylmar can trace its past to the 18th century and the founding of the San Fernando Mission . In 1890, olive production was begun systematically. The Sylmar climate was also considered healthy, and so
188-630: A subtropical / hot-summer Mediterranean climate, with long, hot, dry summers, and short, warm winters, with chilly nights and sporadic rainfall. Due to its relatively inland location and other factors, summer days are typically hotter and winter nights typically colder than in the Los Angeles basin . More recently, statewide droughts in California have further strained the San Fernando Valley’s and Los Angeles County’s water security . The valley
282-471: A "wave of immigrants and working poor" had enveloped Sylmar, Pacoima, Arleta and Sun Valley , resulting in a housing shortage for lower-income people. The 2000 U.S. census counted 69,499 residents in the 12.46-square-mile Sylmar neighborhood—or 5,579 people per square mile, among the lowest population densities for the city. In 2008, the city estimated that the population had increased to 79,614. The City of Los Angeles Department of City Planning released that
376-525: A Los Angeles Police Department stop-in center, includes auditoriums, a lighted baseball diamond, lighted outdoor basketball courts, a children's play area, a community room, an indoor gymnasium without weights, picnic tables, an unlighted soccer field, and lighted tennis courts. The city also operates the Stetson Ranch Park., one of the city's two equestrian parks. Los Angeles County operates the 79-acre (32 ha) El Cariso Community Regional Park, which
470-703: A bill that would make it easier for the Valley to secede by removing the City Council veto. AB 62 was signed into law by Governor Pete Wilson . Meanwhile, a grassroots movement to split the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and create new San Fernando Valley-based school districts became the focal point of the desire to leave the city. Though the state rejected the idea of Valley-based districts, it remained an important rallying point for Hertzberg's mayoral campaign, which proved unsuccessful. By
564-425: A community building, a disc golf course, picnic areas, a picnic pavilion, and toilets. The Sylmar Hang Gliding Association operates their Sylmar Flight Park on Gridley Street near Simshaw Ave. Visitors can watch the activities most afternoons. In 1943 Sylmar volunteers, with cooperation from the city fire department, established their own branch station at 15097 Roxford Street, principally because Sylmar at that time
658-410: A community that still retained a largely rural atmosphere with corrals on large lots and horse trails that wound into the nearby San Gabriel Mountains. Tipped off by a Sylmar resident, dozens of investigators from at least five police departments and three federal agencies raided a warehouse at 12898 Bradley Street, on September 29, 1989, and seized some 21.4 tons of cocaine and $ 10 million in cash. It
752-537: A dedicated transitway route running the east–west length of the Valley connecting the North Hollywood B Line Station through the valley, then heads north through Canoga Park to the Chatsworth Metrolink station. An additional Metro Busway line is planned for the Valley operating from North Hollywood station: the North Hollywood to Pasadena Transit Corridor which will run to Pasadena with connections to
846-749: A full-scale light rail conversion is planned to be completed by 2050. The valley will get its first light rail line in seven decades by 2027, the East San Fernando Valley Light Rail Transit Project . Construction of the line is planned to begin in 2024 along Van Nuys Boulevard and San Fernando Road. The Valley is home to numerous companies, the most well known of which work in motion pictures, music recording, and television production. The former movie ranches were branches of original studios now consisting of CBS Studio Center, NBCUniversal , The Walt Disney Company (and its ABC television network), and Warner Bros. The valley
940-543: A land-use document that would preserve Sylmar's image as one of "houses, horses and orchards" and would roll back the then-existing projection from 90,000 residents by 1990 to 53,500. The population actually reached 53,392 in 1986. A proposal in 1980 to build an 80-unit low-income housing project near Sylmar High School at 13080-90 Dronfield Avenue was rejected by the Los Angeles City Housing Commission after eight thousand signatures were gathered against
1034-414: A man who pointed a high-powered spotlight at a police helicopter monitoring one of them on San Fernando Road near Roxford Street. In 1993 it was reported that drag racing had been going on since the early 1970s, drawing hundreds of youths, and that the most popular "speed strip" was San Fernando Road near Balboa Boulevard. There had been four deaths within the previous two years. In one, a teenager speeding to
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#17328456544971128-519: A museum best known for its collection of classic automobiles. The Nethercutt museum also houses collections of mechanical musical instruments, including orchestrions, player pianos and music boxes, antique furniture, and a historical locomotive and train car. Los Angeles Public Library operates the Sylmar Branch Library on the corner of Polk Street and Glenoaks Boulevard. The City of Los Angeles Sylmar Recreation Center, which also functions as
1222-534: A new light rail line, the East San Fernando Valley Light Rail Transit Project that will run north–south on Van Nuys Boulevard from the G Line Van Nuys station to the Sylmar/San Fernando Metrolink station, however will be built in two phases. The first between Van Nuys and Pacoima , and the second from Pacoima to Sylmar/San Fernando station. Pre construction began in 2022, and is expected to be completed between 2028 and 2030. The G Line busway uses
1316-473: A place centered around equestrian activities. Today, the dramatic influx of residents has serious consequences for a community that has too little housing stock, too few employment opportunities, overburdened public facilities and decaying public infrastructure. The median yearly household income in 2008 dollars was $ 65,783, considered average for the city. Sylmar is home to the Nethercutt Collection ,
1410-452: A sanitarium was established, the first in a series of hospitals in the neighborhood. There are fourteen public and eight private schools within Sylmar. In 1874, the settlement was named Morningside. In 1893, the name changed to "Sylmar", a fusion of two Latin words for "forest" and "sea" in reference to the large number of olive trees that once covered the area. In 2018, the northwest portion of
1504-732: A single building owner. Many intentional communities incorporate multifamily residences, such as in cohousing projects. Housing units in multifamily housing have greater per capita value than single family homes. Multifamily housing has beneficial fiscal externalities, as their presence reduces property tax rates in the community. Before the Industrial Revolution , such examples were rare, existing only in historical urban centers . In Ancient Rome , these were called insulae , skyscrapers in Shibam , malice houses in Madrid , and casbah in
1598-440: A threat to the horse-owning community. Practically every corner on Foothill Boulevard had been purchased for development, and a 109-room hotel was planned at Roxford Street, a block from the hospital. "We are bound to be concerned any time you start bringing sick people, mentally ill people, indigent people into our community," said one community activist. "We welcome the hospital, but that doesn't mean we are going to sit back and let
1692-418: Is a classification of housing where multiple separate housing units for residential inhabitants are contained within one building or several buildings within one complex. Units can be next to each other (side-by-side units), or stacked on top of each other (top and bottom units). Common forms include apartment building and condominium , where typically the units are owned individually rather than leased from
1786-723: Is an unincorporated area housing the Universal Studios filming lot and theme park. Mulholland Drive , which runs along the ridgeline of the Santa Monica Mountains, marks the boundary between the valley and the communities of Hollywood and the Los Angeles Westside . The San Fernando Valley has connection to other regions: The Santa Clarita Valley via Newhall Pass , the Westside via Sepulveda Pass , Hollywood via Cahuenga Pass , Simi Valley via Santa Susana Pass , and
1880-630: Is located in Sylmar. The hospital was first opened as a sanatorium. San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley , known locally as the Valley , is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California . Situated northwards of the Los Angeles Basin , it comprises a large portion of Los Angeles , the incorporated cities of Burbank , Calabasas , Glendale , Hidden Hills and San Fernando , plus several unincorporated areas. The valley
1974-645: Is located within Los Angeles City Council District 7 represented by Monica Rodriguez . Eleven percent of Sylmar residents aged 25 and older had earned a four-year degree by 2000, one of the lowest percentages for the city and the county. Schools within the Sylmar boundaries are: Sylmar is serviced by the Mission Community Police Station of the Los Angeles Police Department . Olive View–UCLA Medical Center
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#17328456544972068-564: Is represented by three members of the State Senate : Henry Stern (D), and Anthony Portantino (D). The valley falls into five congressional districts: the 25th , 28th , 29th , 30th , and 33rd , represented respectively by Mike Garcia (R), Adam Schiff (D), Tony Cárdenas (D), Brad Sherman (D), and Ted Lieu (D). The valley is represented in the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors , by two supervisorial districts, with
2162-459: Is the first heavy rail subway in the valley, extended from its prior terminus in 2000. With transfers, it connects the Valley to the entire Metro regional light rail and subway network . The B Line's two Valley subway stations provide access to national travel through Bob Hope Airport and Amtrak and regional travel through Metrolink , Metro Rapid , Metro Local , and the Metro G Line . Metro approved
2256-780: Is the home of Warner Bros. Studios , Walt Disney Studios , and the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park. The valley of San Fernando is an area of 260 square miles (670 km ), bounded by the San Gabriel Mountains in the northeast, the Verdugo Mountains in the east, the Santa Monica Mountains and Chalk Hills in the south, the Simi Hills in the west, and the Santa Susana Mountains in
2350-686: The A Line . Metro is also studying a route through the Sepulveda Pass , the Sepulveda Transit Corridor , including heavy rail and monorail alternatives. Metrolink commuter rail has two Valley lines, the Antelope Valley Line and Ventura County Line , which connect the Valley and beyond to downtown Los Angeles and south, becoming one line at the Downtown Burbank station . Metrolink always had one Burbank Airport station on
2444-551: The Crescenta Valley via Interstate 210 . The valley's natural habitat is a " temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome " of grassland , oak savanna , and chaparral shrub types of plant community habitats , along with lush riparian plants along the river, creeks, and springs. In this Mediterranean climate , post-1790s European agriculture for the mission's support consisted of grapes , figs , olives , and general garden crops. The San Fernando Valley has
2538-767: The Hansen Dam Recreation Center in Lake View Terrace. It flows south along the Verdugo Mountains through the eastern communities of the valley to join the Los Angeles River in Studio City . Other notable tributaries of the river include Dayton Creek, Caballero Creek, Bull Creek , Pacoima Wash , and Verdugo Wash . The elevation of the floor of the valley varies from about 600 ft (180 m) to 1,200 ft (370 m) above sea level . Most of
2632-605: The Los Angeles Community College District . The only state university in the San Fernando Valley is California State University Northridge in Northridge. In 1994 there were 180,000 PK-12 students attending Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) campuses in the Valley. During the same year, about 45,000 PK-12 students, or one in five of all such students, attended the over 200 private schools in
2726-623: The San Fernando Boulevard from the Sylmar olive grove and packing plant. A later advertisement stated the name of the subdivision as "Sylmar Acres," with "city lots" selling for $ 450 to $ 550. The property of the Sylmar Packing Corporation, with frontage of more than 4.5 miles on Foothill Boulevard , was offered for sale in October 1938. At that time it was planted in olives, lemons, oranges and figs. A 40-acre (16 ha) section
2820-513: The Van Nuys Airport . The Van Nuys–Airport FlyAway Terminal provides nonstop scheduled shuttle service to LAX and back to the valley, with parking. Most of the utilities in the valley are served by public municipal governments, primarily the cities of Los Angeles , and Burbank , while there are only two private-owned utilities for gas and electricity in the valley as well. Southern California Edison has their overhead power lines going through
2914-495: The 2021 population was 80,155. In 1980, Sylmar was predominantly white, the ethnic breakdown being 58% white and 36% Latino. Twenty years later, in 2000, the neighborhood was considered "moderately diverse" ethnically within Los Angeles, with a relatively high percentage of Latinos. The breakdown in 2000 was Latinos , 69.8%; whites , 20.7%; blacks , 4.1%; Asians , 3.4%, and others, 2.0%. Mexico (71.7%) and El Salvador (8.4%) were
Sylmar, Los Angeles - Misplaced Pages Continue
3008-514: The Farming and Milling Company for $ 2,500,000. Henry E. Huntington extended his Pacific Electric Railway (Red Cars) through the Valley to Owensmouth (now Canoga Park). The Suburban Home Company laid out plans for roads and the towns of Van Nuys, Reseda (Marian), and Canoga Park (Owensmouth). The rural areas were annexed into the city of Los Angeles in 1915. Laurel Canyon and Lankershim in 1923, Sunland in 1926, La Tuna Canyon in 1926, and
3102-696: The HBO series Pornucopia , at one time, nearly 90 percent of all legally distributed pornographic films made in the United States were either filmed in or produced by studios based in the San Fernando Valley. The pornography industry began to decline by the mid-2000s, owing, for the most part, to the growing amount of free content on the Internet, which undercut consumers' willingness to pay. In 2007 industry insiders estimated that revenue for most adult production and distribution companies had declined 30 percent to 50 percent and
3196-505: The Los Angeles Basin during the summer months and cooler during the winter months. The average high temperature in summer is 95 °F (35 °C), dropping down to 68 °F (20 °C). In winter, the average high is 66 °F (19 °C) and average low is 40 °F (4 °C). The population of the Sylmar area was roughly 3,500 in 1940, 10,000 in 1950, 31,000 in 1962, 40,000 in 1972, 41,922 in 1980 and 53,392 in 1986. By 2000,
3290-715: The San Fernando Valley are served by three unified school districts; The Northwest and East Regions of the Los Angeles Unified School District , the Glendale Unified School District and the Burbank Unified School District . There are four community colleges in the valley; Los Angeles Valley College in Valley Glen, Los Angeles Mission College in Sylmar, and Los Angeles Pierce College in Woodland Hills. All except Glendale College are served by
3384-461: The San Fernando Valley by annexing the former Rancho El Escorpión for Canoga Park- West Hills in 1959, and the huge historic Porter Ranch at the foot of the Santa Susana Mountains for the new planned developments in Porter Ranch in 1965. The additions expanded the Los Angeles portion of San Fernando Valley from the original 169 square miles (438 km ) to 224 square miles (580 km ). In
3478-446: The San Fernando Valley is within the jurisdiction of the City of Los Angeles , although a few other incorporated cities are located within the valley as well: Burbank is in the southeastern corner of the valley, and San Fernando , which is completely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles, is near the northern end of the valley. Universal City , an enclave in the southern part of the valley,
3572-645: The San Fernando Valley. The Treaty of Cahuenga , ending the Mexican–American War fighting in Alta California , was signed in 1847 by Californios and Americans at Campo de Cahuenga , the Verdugo Family adobe at the entrance to the Cahuenga Pass in the southeast San Fernando Valley ( North Hollywood ). The 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the entire war. The Valley officially became part of
3666-542: The San Fernando Valley. Some of the former rights-of-way of the Pacific Electric Railway , which first accelerated population growth in the Valley, have been repurposed for busways and light rail lines. The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority operates two Metro B Line subway stations in the Valley, which are located at Universal City and North Hollywood, which connect it directly to Hollywood and Downtown Los Angeles . The Metro B Line
3760-643: The Santa Monica Calabasas foothills, the Simi Hills' Hidden Hills , Santa Susana Field Laboratory , and Santa Susana Pass Park lands. The river flows eastward along the southern regions of the Valley. One of the river's two unpaved sections can be found at the Sepulveda Basin . A seasonal river, the Tujunga Wash , drains much of the western facing San Gabriel Mountains and passes into and then through
3854-524: The State of California on September 9, 1850, when the California Statehood Act was approved by the federal government. In 1874, dry wheat farming was introduced by J. B. Lankershim and Isaac Van Nuys , which became very productive for their San Fernando Homestead Association that owned the southern half of the valley. In 1876, they sent the first wheat shipment from both San Pedro Harbor and from
Sylmar, Los Angeles - Misplaced Pages Continue
3948-426: The Sylmar area led the northeast Valley communities (which includes Sunland-Tujunga , Lake View Terrace and Pacoima ) in residential burglaries and thefts from motor vehicles. Sylmar gently slopes upward as a geological alluvial plain and alluvial fan from an elevation of slightly more than 1,100 feet (340 m) above sea level near San Fernando Road to slightly more than 1,700 feet (520 m) above sea level at
4042-525: The Taft Realty Company of Hollywood purchased 300 acres (120 ha) from Ben F. Porter and divided them into tracts containing 1–15 acres (0.40–6.07 ha) each, which it planned to make into a townsite called Sylmar. Part of the acreage contained orange and lemon trees, and the rest had been used by the Ryan Wholesale and Produce Company for garden and truck farming . The land lay directly across
4136-423: The United States to Europe. Through the late-19th-century court decision Los Angeles v. Pomeroy , Los Angeles had won the rights to all surface flow water atop an aquifer beneath the valley, without it being within the city limits. San Fernando Valley farmers offered to buy the surplus aqueduct water, but the federal legislation that enabled the construction of the aqueduct prohibited Los Angeles from selling
4230-519: The Valley, including the village of Pasheeknga . The first Spanish land grant in the San Fernando Valley (or El Valle de Santa Catalina de Bononia de los Encinos ) was called "Rancho Encino" (present-day Mission Hills on the Camino Viejo before Newhall Pass ), in the northern part of the San Fernando Valley. Juan Francisco Reyes built an adobe dwelling beside a Tongva village or rancheria at natural springs known as Achooykomenga , but
4324-542: The Valley. The Los Angeles city section of the valley is divided into seven city council districts: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 12. Of the 95 neighborhood councils in the city, 34 are in the valley. The valley is represented in the California State Legislature by five members of the State Assembly : Jesse Gabriel (D), Luz Rivas (D), James Ramos (D), Pilar Schiavo (D), and Laura Friedman (D). The valley
4418-706: The Van Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles, was located at the Budweiser brewery. It was torn down in the late 1970s. The San Fernando Valley is home to numerous neighborhood city parks, recreation areas and large Regional Open Space preserves . Many preserves are maintained as public parkland by the National Park Service's Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area , the California State Parks , and local county and municipal parks districts. Public schools in
4512-535: The Ventura County Line, but a second Burbank Airport station was built in 2017 on the Antelope Valley Line. Amtrak 's Pacific Surfliner long-distance rail line has stops at Burbank Airport station , Van Nuys, and Chatsworth Station , before proceeding on to Ventura County , Santa Barbara , and Northern California or Union Station and San Diego . The California High-Speed Rail Authority
4606-507: The city of Burbank and through the Los Angeles city neighborhoods of Sylmar, Mission Hills, Arleta, North Hollywood, Studio City, Woodland Hills, Granada Hills, Porter Ranch, and Chatsworth as well. Internet, cable television, and cellular phone service in the valley are by large private companies. The valley is served by the following utility companies: Electricity Natural gas Water Multifamily residential Multifamily residential , also known as multidwelling unit ( MDU ),
4700-464: The county operates the 96.5-acre (39.1 ha) Veterans Memorial Park in an area adjacent to and outside of the Los Angeles City limits. The site of the park was the site of a veterans hospital that was built in the 1920s and closed in 1971 due to an earthquake that killed many veterans and employees at the hospital. The park, which was dedicated in 1979, has barbecue braziers, group camping areas,
4794-486: The crest of Hubbard Street. The overall range of elevation in Sylmar is approximately 600 feet (180 m). The slopes steepen into the San Gabriel Mountains on the north side of Sylmar resulting in steep residential streets with homes built on man-made terraces. Sylmar touches the unincorporated Tujunga Canyons on the north, Lopez and Kagel canyons on the east, San Fernando on the southeast, Mission Hills on
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#17328456544974888-491: The district called "Rancho Cascades". Sylmar has been nicknamed "The Top of Los Angeles," because it is the northernmost neighborhood in Los Angeles. The foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains were transformed in the late 1890s by the Los Angeles Olive Growers Association. In 1894, up to 1,700 acres of land were planted with olives trees, and by 1906, the property had become the largest olive grove in
4982-467: The earthquake, 9,000 homes and businesses were still without electricity; 20,000 were without gas; and more than 48,500 had little or no water. About 12,500 structures were moderately to severely damaged, which left thousands of people temporarily homeless. Of the 66,546 buildings inspected, 6 percent were severely damaged (red tagged) and 17 percent were moderately damaged (yellow tagged). In addition, damage to several major freeways serving Los Angeles choked
5076-473: The epicenter of the 1994 event. The 1971 earthquake caused 58 fatalities and about 2,000 injuries. At the time, the 1971 San Fernando earthquake was the most destructive event to affect greater Los Angeles since the magnitude-6.3 Long Beach earthquake of 1933. The Valley attempted to secede in the 1970s, but the state passed a law barring city formation without the approval of the City Council. In 1997, Assemblymen Bob Hertzberg and Tom McClintock helped pass
5170-427: The incorporated city of Tujunga in an eight-year process lasting from 1927 to 1935. These annexations more than doubled the area of the city. Two valley cities incorporated independently from Los Angeles: Burbank and San Fernando in 1911. Universal City remains an unincorporated enclave that is home to Universal Studios and became home to Universal CityWalk later in the century. Other unincorporated areas in
5264-401: The influx of people change our life style." By 2006 Sylmar's open spaces were being rapidly subdivided. Resident Bart Reed noted that Sylmar was the last place in Los Angeles "where a builder can find a single-family home on half an acre. They can tear them down and build 52 homes" in their place. Longtime residents were concerned that the expansion would threaten their equestrian lifestyle in
5358-577: The land was soon taken from him so that a mission could be built there. Mission San Fernando Rey de España was established in 1797 as the 17th of the 21 missions. The land trade granted Juan Francisco Reyes the similarly named Rancho Los Encinos , also beside springs ( Los Encinos State Historic Park in present-day Encino ). Later the Mexican land grants of Rancho El Escorpión ( West Hills ), Rancho Providencia and Rancho Cahuenga ( Burbank ), and Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando (rest of valley) covered
5452-426: The last few days. There is no gas, no heat. Telephones are still out. Housewives must travel out of the community to find grocery stores that are still open. On top of that, Sylmar feels that it has been forgotten ... Four months after the 1971 earthquake, a methane gas explosion in a water tunnel being drilled beneath Sylmar killed 17 workers and is the worst tunneling disaster in California history. It resulted in
5546-516: The late 1970s, there was a proposed east-west freeway labeled SR 64 that would have cut through the center of the valley from Calabasas in the western end of the valley to the SR-170 and I-5 freeway interchange in Sun Valley, Los Angeles in the eastern end of the valley, but local opposition gained traction and the proposed freeway was never approved or built. In the 1980s, a distinctive valley youth culture
5640-441: The late 1990s, the San Fernando Valley had become more urban and more ethnically diverse with rising poverty and crime. In 2002, the valley tried to secede from the city of Los Angeles and become its own incorporated city to escape Los Angeles' perceived poverty, crime, gang activity, urban decay , and poorly maintained infrastructure. In 2002, the San Fernando Valley portion of Los Angeles again seriously campaigned to secede from
5734-587: The loss of 489 residences in or near Sylmar, the "worst loss of homes due to fire" in Los Angeles's history. In 2016 the Marek Fire destroyed 41 homes. The plan of the Olive Growers association in 1898 was to divide the area into 40-acre (16 ha) blocks bounded by "broad drives," and within them 5-acre (2.0 ha) blocks would be laid out, "each one of which is upon a street." About a hundred trees would be planted on each acre. Half of these lands were placed on
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#17328456544975828-419: The market in 1897-98 at $ 350 an acre (0.4 ha), with a minimum purchase of five acres. The terms were $ 350 in cash and $ 350 a year until paid for. The Olive Growers group would take care of the groves and, "When the premises are turned over to the purchaser at the end of four years, it is an established, profit-yielding property, without incumbrance." There is no record as to the results of this plan. In 1922
5922-531: The monikers Porn Valley, Silicone Valley (in contrast to Silicon Valley , nickname for the Santa Clara Valley), and San Pornando Valley. The leading trade paper for the industry, AVN magazine, is based in the Northwest Valley, as were a majority of U.S. adult video and magazine distributors. The Paul Thomas Anderson film, Boogie Nights explores these aspects of the valley. According to
6016-423: The most common places of birth for the 36.7% of the residents who were born abroad, an average figure for Los Angeles. Mexican (57.8%) and German (3.2%) were the most common ancestries. In 2000 the median age for residents was 28, considered young for city and county neighborhoods. In 2000, renters occupied 29.2% of the housing stock, and house- or apartment-owners held 70.8%. The average household size of 3.6 people
6110-406: The most popular cruising spots in the San Fernando Valley — La Rinda Plaza at Laurel Canyon Boulevard and Workman Street — to be a public nuisance and ordered its owners to install overhead lighting, post security guards and install gates that could be closed at night. Illegal street racing or high-speed figure 8's are frequently heard by residents near the Sylmar Public Library. In 1991,
6204-471: The name chosen as a reference for its location in North Hollywood and as a play off New York City's arts-centered SoHo District. According to the San Fernando Guide , the change helped develop a "primarily lower to middle-class suburb into … a collection of art and a home for the artists who ply their trade in the galleries, theaters and dance studios in this small annex." According to the Lake Balboa Neighborhood Council, from 2002 through November 2007 there
6298-427: The next increment of development converted land use, with postwar suburbanization leaving only a few enclaves, such as the "open-air museum" groves at the Orcutt Ranch Park and CSUN campus . In 1909, the Suburban Homes Company, a syndicate led by H. J. Whitley , general manager of the board of control, along with Harry Chandler , Harrison Gray Otis , M. H. Sherman, and Otto F. Brant purchased 48,000 acres of
6392-521: The northwest. The northern Sierra Pelona Mountains , northwestern Topatopa Mountains , southern Santa Ana Mountains , and Downtown Los Angeles skyscrapers can be seen from higher neighborhoods, passes, roads and parks in the San Fernando Valley. The Los Angeles River begins at the confluence of Calabasas Creek ( Arroyo Calabasas ) and Bell Creek ( Escorpión Creek ), between Canoga Park High School and Owensmouth Avenue (just north of Vanowen Street) in Canoga Park . These creeks' headwaters are in
6486-409: The number of new films made had fallen sharply. A 2019 article stated that "the porn industry in Budapest is as big as what remains of the industry in California". The San Fernando Valley has a convention center located in the city of Burbank, east of the Burbank Airport, at the Marriott Hotel. Universal Studios Hollywood is in unincorporated Universal City. Busch Gardens , an amusement park in
6580-427: The plan and protesters filled a hearing in the high school auditorium. In 1984 Sylmar was still largely rural, but there was an area of industrial development in its southeastern portion. In 1986, when its population was given 53,392, it still had some of the last large tracts of undeveloped land in the city, and the opening of the Foothill Freeway had placed it within a 45-minute drive of Downtown Los Angeles . Despite
6674-460: The population increase and a rise in the number of people living in condos and apartments, it was still one of the least-crowded areas of the city. Between 1980 and 1990 it was the fastest-growing area in the San Fernando Valley : Its population increased by 30.7% during those ten years in which the Valley itself grew by only 12.2%. Reopening of the Olive View Medical Center in 1986 was seen as an impetus to population and business growth, as well as
6768-468: The rest of the city and become its own new independent and incorporated city. The movement gained some momentum, but measure F did not receive the necessary votes to pass. Since that unsuccessful secession attempt, a new Van Nuys municipal building was built in 2003; the Metro Orange Line opened in October 2005; and 35 new public schools had opened up by 2012. The NoHo Arts District was established and
6862-550: The site rear-ended a car carrying a family of four, killing a mother and injuring her husband and two children. In 1997 Kenneth Acosta, 21, of Sylmar was charged with involuntary manslaughter after a drag race on the 118 Freeway resulted in an accident that caused the deaths of three people, all of them former members of the Sylmar High School band. He was granted probation and required to spend 250 hours talking to others about his crime. In 1994, city officials declared one of
6956-557: The slowest of all San Fernando Valley communities to develop its multiple dwelling areas, with permits issued for only 35 units in 1961 and 70 units in 1962. Sylmar's major growth came after the 1963 completion of the interchange between the Golden State Freeway and San Diego Freeway and the 1981 completion of the Foothill Freeway and 118 Freeway, which made the community easier to reach. In 1971 city planners presented
7050-491: The south, and Granada Hills on the southwest and west. The Valley shares the Los Angeles Basin's dry, sunny weather, with only 17 inches (430 mm) annual precipitation on average. Snow in the San Fernando Valley is extremely rare, though the neighboring Angeles National Forest is capped with snow every winter. Although Sylmar is only 20 miles (32 km) from the Pacific Ocean, the Valley can be considerably hotter than
7144-504: The state adopting the toughest mining and tunnelling regulations in the United States. A memorial for the victims was erected in 2013. Cal/OSHA . 23 years later Sylmar was hit again by the 1994 Northridge earthquake . It caused fires that burned over 70 homes. In 2000, two pilots were killed when two light airplanes collided over the Newhall Pass and landed in or near Cascades Golf Club in Sylmar. The Sayre Fire in 2008 resulted in
7238-460: The traffic system in the days following the earthquake. Major freeway damage occurred as far away as 25 miles (40 km) from the epicenter. Collapses and other severe damage forced closure of portions of 11 major roads to downtown Los Angeles. This was the second time in 23 years that the San Fernando Valley had been affected by a strong earthquake. On February 9, 1971, at 6:01 am a magnitude-6.5 event struck about 20 miles (32 km) northeast of
7332-417: The valley include Bell Canyon and Kagel Canyon . The advent of three new industries in the early 20th century—motion pictures, automobiles, and aircraft—also spurred urbanization and population growth. World War II production and the subsequent postwar boom accelerated this growth so that between 1945 and 1960, the valley's population had quintupled. Los Angeles continued to consolidate its territories in
7426-583: The valley, mainly in the Los Angeles neighborhoods of North Hollywood, Panorama City, and Woodland Hills. These projects started with the first few in Woodland Hills and the NoHo West project in North Hollywood began groundbreaking and construction on April 6, 2017. LA Metro is planning to upgrade the Metro G Line by 2024 with at-grade crossing gates and two bridges crossing both Sepulveda and Van Nuys Boulevards, and
7520-523: The water outside of the city limits. This induced several independent towns surrounding Los Angeles to vote on and approve annexation to the city so that they could connect to the municipal water system. These rural areas became part of Los Angeles in 1915. The aqueduct water shifted farming in the area from dry crops, such as wheat, to irrigated crops, such as corn, beans, squash, and cotton; orchards of apricots , persimmons , and walnuts ; and major citrus groves of oranges and lemons. They continued until
7614-892: The western portion represented by Sheila Kuehl (D) and the eastern portion by Kathryn Barger (R). Residents are also represented by the neighborhood councils of Los Angeles These communities are also included in the Crescenta Valley . Major freeways cross the Valley, including Interstate 405 (San Diego Freeway), U.S. Route 101 (Ventura Freeway/Hollywood Freeway), State Route 118 (Ronald Reagan Freeway), State Route 170 (Hollywood Freeway), Interstate 210 (Foothill Freeway), and Interstate 5 (Golden State Freeway). Notable streets include Sepulveda Boulevard , Ventura Boulevard , Laurel Canyon Boulevard , San Fernando Road , Victory Boulevard , Reseda Boulevard , Riverside Drive , Mulholland Drive , and State Route 27 (Topanga Canyon Boulevard). Subway , dedicated transitway , and express and local buses, provided by many agencies, serve
7708-651: The world. During the picking season in the early 1900s, 300 Japanese were employed and housed in a village of tents. In 1927, the packing plant employed some five hundred workers during its busiest season. The 1971 San Fernando earthquake caused widespread injury and damage. The New York Times described two weeks later: The community looks like a battlefield. Dozens of houses are twisted beyond repair. Families camp out in tents or trailers on front lawns, afraid to return even to those houses not condemned ... All homes have been without water for drinking, cooking and flushing toilets, although some service has been restored in
7802-653: Was a center of "the crossroads of cultures and languages, including the Tongva , Fernandeño , and Chumash ." The Tongva, later known as the Gabrieleño Mission Indians after colonization, the Tataviam to the north, and Chumash to the west, had lived and thrived in the valley and its arroyos for over 8,000 years. They had numerous settlements , and trading and hunting camps, before the Spanish arrived in 1769 to settle in
7896-512: Was a debate about the official recognition of Lake Balboa as a community by the City of Los Angeles. New community names were not sanctioned by the city until January 2006, when the city adopted a formal community-naming process (City of Los Angeles Council File Number 02 -0196). On November 2, 2007, the City Council of Los Angeles approved a motion renaming a larger portion of Van Nuys to Lake Balboa. By 2017, numerous urban development projects began in
7990-494: Was considered high for Los Angeles. The percentage of married women (55.5%) was among the county's highest. There were 3,607 veterans, or 7.7% of the population, average for the city of Los Angeles and the county. A study by four graduate students from the University of Southern California in 2005 stated that: Sylmar in the 1970s and 1980s was a rural, predominantly white, non-Hispanic community, whose residents focused on creating
8084-513: Was dedicated to the twelve fallen firefighters and survivors, members of the El Cariso Hotshots, an interagency hotshot crew in the Loop Fire in 1966. The park has a lighted ball diamond, a basketball court, tennis courts, children's play areas, a community building, horseshoe pits, an indoor kitchen, picnic areas for large groups, picnic tables and shelters, and a swimming pool. In addition
8178-448: Was met with disapproval by residents at a community meeting. The city's master plan for the area called for much of the agricultural land to be converted to suburban uses, plus zoning that would permit more apartments. There would also be expansion of industrial districts and more shopping centers. The plan proposed that the 4,500 acres then zoned for agriculture be reduced to 2,000, or 17% of the area. City officials said that Sylmar had been
8272-563: Was planning two stations in the Valley, one in Burbank and the other in Sylmar , but the proposed Sylmar high-speed rail station was canceled owing to local opposition from the city of San Fernando. As of now, there's only one planned station in the valley, located in Burbank with an initial section of the railroad possibly opening in 2029. The Valley's two major airports are Hollywood Burbank Airport and
8366-440: Was previously known for advances in aerospace technology and nuclear research by companies such as Lockheed , Rocketdyne and its Santa Susana Field Laboratory , Atomics International , Litton Industries , Marquardt , and TRW's predecessor Thompson Ramo Wooldridge . The valley became the pioneering region for producing adult films in the 1970s and grew to become home to a multibillion-dollar pornography industry , earning
8460-514: Was recognized in the media, particularly in the 1982 Frank Zappa / Moon Zappa song "Valley Girl" and the 1983 film Valley Girl . These helped fix the socio-economic stereotype of the " Valley girl " into the public consciousness, including a distinct Valley accent. The 1994 Northridge earthquake struck on January 17 and measured 6.7 on the Moment magnitude scale . It produced the largest ground motions ever recorded in an urban environment and
8554-634: Was separated from other stations by railroad tracks. Today, the Los Angeles Fire Department operates Fire Station 91 in Sylmar. The Los Angeles Police Department operates the Mission Community Police Station in Mission Hills, serving Sylmar. Sylmar is located within California's 43rd State Assembly district represented by Democrat Luz Rivas and California's 20th State Senate district represented by Democrat Caroline Menjivar . Sylmar
8648-526: Was the first earthquake that had its hypocenter located directly under a U.S. city since the Long Beach earthquake of 1933 . It caused the greatest damage in the United States since the 1906 San Francisco earthquake . Although given the name Northridge, the epicenter was located in the community of Reseda , between Arminta and Ingomar streets, just west of Reseda Boulevard. The death toll was 57, and more than 1,500 people were seriously injured. A few days after
8742-448: Was the largest confiscation of the drug in history, estimated at $ 6.9 billion, enough for 1.38 billion doses. Three men were convicted on drug charges in 1990. Carlos Tapia Ponce, the warehouse manager, was given a life term, and in 2016 he died in prison at the age of 94. Other culprits were convicted later. Illegal street drag races and automobile cruising still troubles areas in Sylmar and adjacent San Fernando. In 1988, officers arrested
8836-448: Was to be set aside for a new townsite called Olive View and the rest subdivided into 5- and 10-acre (2- and 4-ha) farm lots, with many streets already paved and public utilities installed. In the same month, manufacturer and landowner John R. Stetson announced his 200-acre (81 ha) property adjoining the Sylmar ranch would also be divided and offered for sale. A May 1962 proposal by the city Planning Department for an increase in density
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