Valencia, Santa Clarita, California

Valencia, Santa Clarita, California
Neighborhood of Santa Clarita
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Valencia, Santa Clarita, California Position in Los Angeles and Orange Counties.
Coordinates:
Country	United States of America
State	California
County	Los Angeles
City	Santa Clarita
Elevation	1,017 ft (310 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	32,605
Time zone	Pacific (PST) (UTC-8)
• Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP Code	91354, 91355, 91385
Area code(s)	661
GNIS feature ID	2583151
U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Valencia, Santa Clarita, California

A typical stretch of Newhall Ranch Road. The bridge carries a paseo over the roadway.

Valencia is an affluent neighborhood of Santa Clarita in Los Angeles County, California. It is located in the northwestern corner of the Santa Clarita Valley, generally west of Interstate 5, although Six Flags Magic Mountain, outside the city limits, is generally considered part of Valencia. Most of Valencia is part of a planned community; it was one of the four unincorporated communities (along with Saugus, Newhall, and Canyon Country) that merged to create the city of Santa Clarita, California, in 1987. Valencia is home to the Six Flags Magic Mountain theme park and the adjacent Six Flags Hurricane Harbor water park.

History

In 1769, the Spanish Portola expedition, first Europeans to see inland areas of California, came up and over the pass from the San Fernando Valley and camped near the river on August 8–9. They found a large native village there and witnessed a wedding celebration. Fray Juan Crespi, a Franciscan missionary travelling with the expedition, named the river Santa Clara and noted in his diary that the place would be a good location for a mission. On the return trip, however, the party found a less strenuous trail through Conejo Valley. Later travelers also preferred that route, and Mission San Fernando Rey de España was established down in the valley.

The master planned portion of Valencia was first planned in the 1960s by the Newhall Land and Farming Company. Development began in 1967, continues to the present day, and is nearing completion. Valencia is notable for its landscaped boulevards connecting a mix of apartment buildings, single-family detached homes, shopping centers, office parks and industrial warehouses. Major schools in Valencia include California Institute of the Arts, College of the Canyons, West Ranch High School, and Valencia High School.

Community

Valencia's residential areas are separated into villages, each with its own lifestyle (see List of Valencia, California residential villages). Almost all of Valencia's villages are close to schools, shopping, etc. In many of the villages, homeowner associations oversee the quality and upkeep of housing developments ranging in size from a few dozen homes to over a thousand. Many villages also have a Neighborhood Watch program in force.

Valencia also has a system of paved pathways over or under the streets and boulevards. The pathways are called paseos. They connect the entire community, making it possible to travel throughout nearly all of Valencia on foot or by bicycle without crossing a street at grade level. The paseo network is connected to the Santa Clara River Trail which runs east along the Santa Clara River to Canyon Country. Landowners in the Valencia area pay special taxes to maintain landscaping and the paseo system.

As of 2015, the estimated population of the 91355 ZIP code was 32,605 and the estimated median household income was $89,596; the estimated population of the 91354 ZIP code was 28,722 and the estimated median household income was $111,098. ZIP code 91385 is a Post Office box ZIP and has no population or median income.

In 2006, Santa Clarita was ranked as one of the top 100 places to live by Money magazine.

Notable people

• Annett Davis, beach volleyball player
• Taylor Lautner, actor
• Naya Rivera, actress
• Michael Trevino, actor
• Shane Vereen, professional football player
• Tamara Witmer, model

See also

• Greater Los Angeles portal