Granada Hills, Los Angeles, California

Granada Hills is a suburban neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles. The community has a sports program and a range of city recreation centers. The neighborhood has fourteen public and ten private schools.

History

The community began as dairy farm and orchard known as the Sunshine Ranch which grew apricots, oranges, walnuts and beans. Vestiges of former citrus groves can still be seen in orange, lemon or grapefruit trees in many residential yards. In 1916, the San Fernando Valley's first oil well was drilled in what is now Granada Hills. The oil well was located at the northern tip of Zelzah Avenue. Granada Hills was founded in 1926 as "Granada;" the "Hills" portion of the name was added 15 years later.

Geography and climate

Granada Hills is located at the foothills of the Santa Susana Mountains, north of North Hills, Northridge, west of Mission Hills and Sylmar, and east of the Porter Ranch neighborhoods of Los Angeles. The Ronald Reagan Freeway (State Route 118) runs through its southern area. Van Norman Reservoir, the southern terminus of the Los Angeles Aqueduct, is located in Granada Hills.

Demographics

The 2000 U.S. census counted 50,535 residents in the 15.11-square-mile neighborhood—or 3,344 people per square mile. In 2008, the city estimated that the population had increased to 53,998, a density of 3,574 people per square mile. In 2000 the median age for residents was 37.
"Granada Hills", Mapping L.A., ''Los Angeles Times''

The neighborhood is ethnically diverse and includes Non-Hispanic Whites, whites, 55.5%; Latinos, 20.6%; Asians, 16.3%; blacks, 3.4%; and others, 4.2%. Korea (16.0%) and Mexico (13.8%) were the most common places of birth for 29.2% of the residents who were born abroad.

The median yearly household income in 2008 was $83,911. Renters occupied 26.4% of the housing stock. The average household size of 2.9 people was considered average for Los Angeles. The percentages of married men (60.4%) and women (58.5%) were among the county's highest. There were 4,032 veterans, or 10.5% of the population, a high proportion compared to the rest of the city.

Arts and culture

Architecture

Granada Hills is composed mostly of Mid-century modern architecture. Of note is the "Balboa Highlands" tract built by iconic developer Joseph Eichler as well as the Knollwood Country Club area and Knollwood Grove tract. Many of these homes, which are North of Rinaldi/West of Balboa, have been featured in movies, commercials, magazine pictorials and appear in books about Eichler or mid-century architecture.

Historical landmarks

White Oak Avenue, between San Fernando Mission and San Jose Street was declared a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument on August 3, 1966, for the 101 Deodar Cedar trees that line the street. The trees are native to the Himalayas and appreciated for their size, beauty and timber. White Oak Avenue trees were used as the back-drop in the flying bicycle scenes in the 1982 film '' E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial''.

Sports

Granada Hills Charter High School's stadium, the John Elway Stadium (named after the quarterback, an alumnus), is home to the Los Angeles Rampage women's soccer team and formerly home to the San Fernando Valley Quakes.

In 1963, the Granada Hills Little League

HOME


Content is Copyleft
Website design, code, and AI is Copyrighted (c) 2014-2017 by Stephen Payne


Consider donating to Wikimedia



As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases