Lake View Terrace, Los Angeles, California
Encyclopedia
Lake View Terrace is a suburb
district in the north east quadrant of the San Fernando Valley
region of the City of Los Angeles, California
.
Surrounding areas include the Angeles National Forest
, Little Tujunga Canyon, Big Tujunga Canyon, Hansen Dam, Kagel Canyon, and a portion of the Verdugo Mountains
. The community lies adjacent to the communities of San Fernando
, Shadow Hills
, Sunland, Sun Valley
, and Pacoima
. The area shares the 91342 ZIP code
with Sylmar
. Lake View Terrace is accessed by the Foothill Freeway (Interstate 210
). Major thoroughfares include Foothill Boulevard, Van Nuys Boulevard
, Osborne Street, and Wheatland Avenue.
The community is middle-class and ethnically mixed, including Latinos, African-Americans, Whites and Asians.
The area hosts a large equestrian
community, and is one of the few remaining residential areas in the City of Los Angeles that has private homes zoned for horsekeeping.
Lake View Terrace gained international notoriety as the location of the beating of Rodney King
by officers of the Los Angeles Police Department
in 1991. Lake View Terrace is also the setting of much of the 2008 film Lakeview Terrace
, starring Samuel L. Jackson, although the area used for the neighborhood was actually filmed in Walnut, California
.
Mexican land grant community. Settlers in Rancho Tujunga sold firewood to residents of El Pueblo, a settlement that was in what is now Los Angeles
. In the 1800s Homer and Marie Hansen established a horse ranch in the area. In 1939 the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers seized the horse ranch's land via eminent domain
to build a dam due to occurrences of flooding in the northeast and southeast portions of the San Fernando Valley
. The Hansen Dam
was built in 1940. Alyson Pitarre of the Los Angeles Times
said "legend has it that" the name of Lake View Terrace originated from Holiday Lake, a 150 acres (60.7 ha) lake that was once behind the dam and a popular vacation area in the 1950s; the lake since dried. The Rodney King incident occurred in Lake View Terrace in 1991; Pitarre said that Lake View Terrace "gained notoriety" because of the incident.
s "Mapping L.A." project supplied these Lake View Terrace neighborhood statistics: population: 11,803; median household income: $67,985.
Lake View Terrace was a white upper middle class neighborhood until the 1971 Sylmar earthquake.
said that Lake View Terrace "is a quiet equestrian community with two distinct faces: town and country." She described the densely populated western side as an "urban" area "characterized by high-density housing and the occasional school." Pitarre said that the eastern side has "a rural feel, with homes zoned for horse-keeping and agriculture." Residents of western Lake View Terrace moved to preserve what Pitarre calls "their semirural lifestyle." The residents, led by the Tujunga Watershed Council, fought many battles to preserve the atmosphere of Lake View Terrace. In November 2003 the residents persuaded the Regional Water Quality Control Board to order the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to remove construction debris from lakes in the Hansen Dam
area. Houses in northeast Lake View Terrace are newer and more expensive. Fenton Grove, which was one of the few new neighborhoods in Lake View Terrace in 2005, is located on Fenton Avenue and has views of the San Gabriel Mountains
described by Pitarre as "scenic." More established neighborhoods are located to the east. Omari Mark, a real estate agent, described Lake View Terrace as "a hidden area" that many people do not know about in a 2005 Los Angeles Times article. Mark said that houses in Lake View Terrace were less expensive than those in Sylmar
and Tujunga because those two neighborhoods were more well known.
said that Lake View Terrace "maintains a laid-back, rural image." Carol Ford, who was the president of the Valley Horse Owners Association in 2005, said "If you don't like the smell of livestock, you shouldn't move here."
Los Angeles Fire Department
Station 24 Sunland/Shadow Hills, located in Sunland, serves Lake View Terrace. The Los Angeles Police Department
Foothill Community Police Station in Pacoima
serves Lake View Terrace.
serves the community. Two elementary schools, Brainard Avenue Elementary School and Fenton Elementary School, are in the community. In 2005 residents were zoned to Olive Vista Middle School and Sylmar High School
.
PUC Schools
, a charter school operator, operates the Community Charter Middle School, the Lakeview Charter Academy, and the Community Charter Early College High School. The PUC Schools Lakeview Charter High School is in San Fernando
.
; the current campus in Lake View Terrace opened in 2003.
said that Lake View Terrace "is a hub for outdoor recreation." The community has equestrian trails, two golf courses, hills, lakes, three parks, and two recreation centers. The Los Angeles Equestrian Center is located in Lake View Terrace.
The Lake View Terrace Recreation Center in Lake View Terrace includes barbecue pits, lighted outdoor basketball courts, a children's play area, a community room with a capacity of 90 persons, an indoor gymnasium without weights, picnic tables, and lighted tennis courts. Several recreational facilities in the Hansen Dam
area, including the Hansen Dam Park/Recreation Area and the Hansen Dam Swim Lake Aquatic Center/Pool are in Lake View Terrace. The Hansen Dam Recreation Area, which also acts as a Los Angeles Police Department
stop-in center, includes barbecue pits, an unlighted baseball diamond, a children's play area, picnic tables, and an unlighted soccer (football) field. The Hansen Dam Aquatic Center, a 40 acres (16.2 ha) recreational facility on the northwest side of the Hansen Dam Recreation Area, includes a 9 acres (3.6 ha) recreation lake used for fishing, pedal boat rental, and public boating. The center also includes a 1.5 acre (0.607029 ha) swimming lake, 50 public restrooms, 25 showers, 20 dressing rooms, and several picnic areas. Users of the park may also jog, picnic, and take boating classes. During each weekend over the summer, the aquatic center received up to 2,000 visitors.
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
district in the north east quadrant of the San Fernando Valley
San Fernando Valley
The San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area of southern California, United States, defined by the dramatic mountains of the Transverse Ranges circling it...
region of the City of Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
.
Surrounding areas include the Angeles National Forest
Angeles National Forest
The Angeles National Forest of the U.S. National Forest Service is located in the San Gabriel Mountains of Los Angeles County, southern California. It was established on July 1, 1908, incorporating the first San Bernardino National Forest and parts of the former Santa Barbara and San Gabriel...
, Little Tujunga Canyon, Big Tujunga Canyon, Hansen Dam, Kagel Canyon, and a portion of the Verdugo Mountains
Verdugo Mountains
The Verdugo Mountains are a small, rugged mountain range of the Transverse Ranges system, located just south of the western San Gabriel Mountains in Los Angeles County, Southern California...
. The community lies adjacent to the communities of San Fernando
San Fernando, California
San Fernando is a city located in the San Fernando Valley, in northwestern region of Los Angeles, California, United States. The population was 23,645 at the 2010 census, up from 23,564 at the 2000 census.-History:...
, Shadow Hills
Shadow Hills, Los Angeles, California
-History:Shadow Hills is located in the southern portion of the community of Sunland and extreme northeast portion of Sun Valley, California east of Glenoaks Boulevard.The City of Los Angeles first annexed Sunland in June 1926...
, Sunland, Sun Valley
Sun Valley, Los Angeles, California
Sun Valley is a district in the San Fernando Valley region of the city of Los Angeles, California, about 15 miles away from Downtown Los Angeles....
, and Pacoima
Pacoima, Los Angeles, California
Pacoima is a district in the San Fernando Valley region of the city of Los Angeles, California.It is bordered by the Los Angeles districts of Mission Hills on the west, Arleta on the south, Sun Valley on the southeast, Lake View Terrace on the northeast, and by the city of San Fernando on the north...
. The area shares the 91342 ZIP code
ZIP Code
ZIP codes are a system of postal codes used by the United States Postal Service since 1963. The term ZIP, an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan, is properly written in capital letters and was chosen to suggest that the mail travels more efficiently, and therefore more quickly, when senders use the...
with Sylmar
Sylmar, Los Angeles, California
Sylmar is a district in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles, California. The northernmost neighborhood in the city, Sylmar is located east of Interstate 5 and north of the city of San Fernando...
. Lake View Terrace is accessed by the Foothill Freeway (Interstate 210
Interstate 210 (California)
Interstate 210 and State Route 210 together form a contiguous highway, called the Foothill Freeway, in the Greater Los Angeles area of the U.S. state of California. The western portion of the route is an auxiliary Interstate Highway, while the eastern portion is a state highway...
). Major thoroughfares include Foothill Boulevard, Van Nuys Boulevard
Van Nuys Boulevard
Van Nuys Boulevard is a major north-south arterial road that runs through the central San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles County, California. The boulevard was notable for its cruising lifestyle that was prevalent in the 1960s and '70s, which was depicted in the 1979 film Van Nuys Blvd..-The...
, Osborne Street, and Wheatland Avenue.
The community is middle-class and ethnically mixed, including Latinos, African-Americans, Whites and Asians.
The area hosts a large equestrian
Equestrianism
Equestrianism more often known as riding, horseback riding or horse riding refers to the skill of riding, driving, or vaulting with horses...
community, and is one of the few remaining residential areas in the City of Los Angeles that has private homes zoned for horsekeeping.
Lake View Terrace gained international notoriety as the location of the beating of Rodney King
Rodney King
Rodney Glen King is an American best known for his involvement in a police brutality case involving the Los Angeles Police Department on March 3, 1991...
by officers of the Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
in 1991. Lake View Terrace is also the setting of much of the 2008 film Lakeview Terrace
Lakeview Terrace
Lakeview Terrace is a 2008 American thriller film directed by Neil LaBute, co-produced by Will Smith, written by David Loughery and Howard Korder, and starring Samuel L. Jackson, Patrick Wilson and Kerry Washington. Jackson plays a racist LAPD sergeant who terrorizes his new next-door neighbors...
, starring Samuel L. Jackson, although the area used for the neighborhood was actually filmed in Walnut, California
Walnut, California
Walnut is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 29,172 at the 2010 census and its current mayor is Tom King, a former Detective from the Los Angeles Police Department....
.
History
Lake View Terrace was a part of the Rancho TujungaRancho Tujunga
Rancho Tujunga was a Mexican land grant in present day Los Angeles County, California given in 1840 by Mexican governor Juan Alvarado to Francisco Lopez and Pedro Lopez. The rancho lands included the present day Los Angeles communities of Lake View Terrace, Sunland, Tujunga.-History:The Mexican...
Mexican land grant community. Settlers in Rancho Tujunga sold firewood to residents of El Pueblo, a settlement that was in what is now Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. In the 1800s Homer and Marie Hansen established a horse ranch in the area. In 1939 the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers seized the horse ranch's land via eminent domain
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
to build a dam due to occurrences of flooding in the northeast and southeast portions of the San Fernando Valley
San Fernando Valley
The San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area of southern California, United States, defined by the dramatic mountains of the Transverse Ranges circling it...
. The Hansen Dam
Hansen Dam
Hansen Dam is a dam in Lake View Terrace, Los Angeles, California. It was built in 1940 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles District...
was built in 1940. Alyson Pitarre of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
said "legend has it that" the name of Lake View Terrace originated from Holiday Lake, a 150 acres (60.7 ha) lake that was once behind the dam and a popular vacation area in the 1950s; the lake since dried. The Rodney King incident occurred in Lake View Terrace in 1991; Pitarre said that Lake View Terrace "gained notoriety" because of the incident.
Demographics
In 2009, the Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
s "Mapping L.A." project supplied these Lake View Terrace neighborhood statistics: population: 11,803; median household income: $67,985.
Lake View Terrace was a white upper middle class neighborhood until the 1971 Sylmar earthquake.
Cityscape
Alyson Pitarre of the Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
said that Lake View Terrace "is a quiet equestrian community with two distinct faces: town and country." She described the densely populated western side as an "urban" area "characterized by high-density housing and the occasional school." Pitarre said that the eastern side has "a rural feel, with homes zoned for horse-keeping and agriculture." Residents of western Lake View Terrace moved to preserve what Pitarre calls "their semirural lifestyle." The residents, led by the Tujunga Watershed Council, fought many battles to preserve the atmosphere of Lake View Terrace. In November 2003 the residents persuaded the Regional Water Quality Control Board to order the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to remove construction debris from lakes in the Hansen Dam
Hansen Dam
Hansen Dam is a dam in Lake View Terrace, Los Angeles, California. It was built in 1940 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles District...
area. Houses in northeast Lake View Terrace are newer and more expensive. Fenton Grove, which was one of the few new neighborhoods in Lake View Terrace in 2005, is located on Fenton Avenue and has views of the San Gabriel Mountains
San Gabriel Mountains
The San Gabriel Mountains Range is located in northern Los Angeles County and western San Bernardino County, California, United States. The mountain range lies between the Los Angeles Basin and the Mojave Desert, with Interstate 5 to the west and Interstate 15 to the east...
described by Pitarre as "scenic." More established neighborhoods are located to the east. Omari Mark, a real estate agent, described Lake View Terrace as "a hidden area" that many people do not know about in a 2005 Los Angeles Times article. Mark said that houses in Lake View Terrace were less expensive than those in Sylmar
Sylmar, Los Angeles, California
Sylmar is a district in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles, California. The northernmost neighborhood in the city, Sylmar is located east of Interstate 5 and north of the city of San Fernando...
and Tujunga because those two neighborhoods were more well known.
Culture
Alyson Pitarre of the Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
said that Lake View Terrace "maintains a laid-back, rural image." Carol Ford, who was the president of the Valley Horse Owners Association in 2005, said "If you don't like the smell of livestock, you shouldn't move here."
Government and infrastructure
Los Angeles Fire Department
The Los Angeles Fire Department is the agency that provides fire protection and emergency medical services for the city of Los Angeles....
Station 24 Sunland/Shadow Hills, located in Sunland, serves Lake View Terrace. The Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
Foothill Community Police Station in Pacoima
Pacoima, Los Angeles, California
Pacoima is a district in the San Fernando Valley region of the city of Los Angeles, California.It is bordered by the Los Angeles districts of Mission Hills on the west, Arleta on the south, Sun Valley on the southeast, Lake View Terrace on the northeast, and by the city of San Fernando on the north...
serves Lake View Terrace.
Public schools
The Los Angeles Unified School DistrictLos Angeles Unified School District
Los Angeles Unified School District is the largest public school system in California. It is the 2nd largest public school district in the United States. Only the New York City Department of Education has a larger student population...
serves the community. Two elementary schools, Brainard Avenue Elementary School and Fenton Elementary School, are in the community. In 2005 residents were zoned to Olive Vista Middle School and Sylmar High School
Sylmar High School
Sylmar High School is a public school in the northeast San Fernando Valley in the Sylmar district of Los Angeles, California. Established in the 1950s, it is part of the Los Angeles Unified School District, District 2, and serves more than 3,600 students in grades 9-12. The school mascot is the...
.
PUC Schools
PUC Schools
PUC Schools is a charter school operator in Greater Los Angeles. It has its headquarters in Burbank. The charter school systems operates schools in northeast Los Angeles and the northeast San Fernando Valley.-Schools:High schools:...
, a charter school operator, operates the Community Charter Middle School, the Lakeview Charter Academy, and the Community Charter Early College High School. The PUC Schools Lakeview Charter High School is in San Fernando
San Fernando, California
San Fernando is a city located in the San Fernando Valley, in northwestern region of Los Angeles, California, United States. The population was 23,645 at the 2010 census, up from 23,564 at the 2000 census.-History:...
.
Private schools
Delphi Academy of Los Angeles, a Delphi Academy school, is in Lake View Terrace. The school was originally in La Cañada FlintridgeLa Cañada Flintridge, California
La Cañada Flintridge is a small and affluent city in Los Angeles County, California, United States whose population at the 2010 census was 20,246, down from 20,318 at the 2000 census. According to Forbes, as of 2010, La Cañada Flintridge ranks as the 143rd most expensive U.S...
; the current campus in Lake View Terrace opened in 2003.
Parks and recreation
Alyson Pitarre of the Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
said that Lake View Terrace "is a hub for outdoor recreation." The community has equestrian trails, two golf courses, hills, lakes, three parks, and two recreation centers. The Los Angeles Equestrian Center is located in Lake View Terrace.
The Lake View Terrace Recreation Center in Lake View Terrace includes barbecue pits, lighted outdoor basketball courts, a children's play area, a community room with a capacity of 90 persons, an indoor gymnasium without weights, picnic tables, and lighted tennis courts. Several recreational facilities in the Hansen Dam
Hansen Dam
Hansen Dam is a dam in Lake View Terrace, Los Angeles, California. It was built in 1940 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles District...
area, including the Hansen Dam Park/Recreation Area and the Hansen Dam Swim Lake Aquatic Center/Pool are in Lake View Terrace. The Hansen Dam Recreation Area, which also acts as a Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
stop-in center, includes barbecue pits, an unlighted baseball diamond, a children's play area, picnic tables, and an unlighted soccer (football) field. The Hansen Dam Aquatic Center, a 40 acres (16.2 ha) recreational facility on the northwest side of the Hansen Dam Recreation Area, includes a 9 acres (3.6 ha) recreation lake used for fishing, pedal boat rental, and public boating. The center also includes a 1.5 acre (0.607029 ha) swimming lake, 50 public restrooms, 25 showers, 20 dressing rooms, and several picnic areas. Users of the park may also jog, picnic, and take boating classes. During each weekend over the summer, the aquatic center received up to 2,000 visitors.
External links
- The Foothills Forum
- Los Angeles Times, Real Estate section, Neighborly Advice column: "
[ Lake View Terrace:Where country living sidles up to the city" (12 June 2005)] - Lake View Terrace Improvement Association