Monday, April 03, 2006

Community Names - all 178!*

As of June 2005, there are 178 different community name signs (the official Blue Signs posted by the City). Many are derivatives of the original, though (check out the variations on Toluca Lake and Carthay Circle). There are community designations like Museum Row, Mariachi Plaza, and Tarzana Safari Walk aren’t really communities, but they still have the official blue community signs.

One I can't seem to figure out: Happy Valley. It's not in the San Fernando Valley, that's for sure. Where is it?

Angeles Mesa
Angelino Heights
Arleta
Arlington Heights
Arlington Park
Arroyo View Estates*
Artist District
Arts District
Athens on the Hill
Atwater
Atwater Village
Baldwin Hills
Baldwin Hills Estates
Baldwin Village
Baldwin Vista
Bel Air
Beverlywood
Boyle Heights
Brentwood
Brentwood Glen
Brentwood Village
Broadway Square
Broadway Theater District
Brookside
Cahuenga Pass
Cameo Plaza
Canoga Park
Canterbury Knolls
Carthay Circle
Carthay Square
Carthay Village
Central City
Century City
Century Cove
Century Palms
Chatsworth
Chesterfield Square
Cheviot Hills
Chinatown
Civic Center
Country Club Park
Crenshaw District
Crenshaw Manor
Crestview
Cypress Park
Del Rey
Downtown Industrial District
Eagle Rock
Echo Park
El Sereno
Elysian Valley
Encino
Fairfax Village
Fashion District
Franklin Hills
Furniture & Decorative Arts District
Gallery Row
Garvanza
Glassell Park
Granada Hills
Green Meadows
Griffith Park
Hancock Park
Happy Valley
Harbor City
Harbor Gateway
Hermon
Highland Park
Historic Core District
Historic Filipinotown
Historic Downtown
Hollywood
Hollywood Heights
Hyde Park
Jefferson Park
Jewelry District
King Estates
Koreatown
La Cienega Ctr
La Fayette Park Square
La Tuna Canyon”
Lake Balboa
Lake View Terrace
Larchmont Village
Leimert Park
Lincoln Heights
Little Armenia
Little Ethiopia
Little Tokyo
Los Feliz
Los Feliz Village
Magnolia Square
Manchester Square
Mariachi Plaza
Marina Peninsula
Mar Vista
Melrose Hill
Mid - City
Miracle Mile
Miracle Mile District
Mission Hills
Montecito Heights
Monterey Hills
Morningside Circle
Mount Angelus
Mt. Washington
Museum Row on the Miracle Mile
Noho Arts District
North Hills
North Hollywood
Northridge
North University Park
North Village Westwood
Old Bank District
Pacific Palisades
Pacoima
Palms
Panorama City
Park Mile
Parkside Manor
Pico – Union
Playa Del Rey
Rancho Park
Reseda
Rose Hills
San Pedro
Shadow Hills
Sherman Oaks
Sherman Village
Silver Lake
Solano Canyon
South Carthay
South Los Angeles
South Park
Studio City
St. Andrews Square
Sunland
Sun Valley
Sylmar
Tarzana
Tarzana Safari Walk
Thai Town
Toluca Lake
Toluca Terrace
Toluca Woods
Toy District
Tujunga
Twin Plaza District
University Expo Park West
University Hills
Valley Glen
Valley Village
Van Nuys
Venice
Vermont Knolls
Vermont Vista
Village Green
Virgil Village
Watts
West Adams
Westchester
Westdale
Western Heights
Westwood
Westwood Village
West Hills
West Lake
West Los Angeles
West Park Terrace
West Toluca Lake
Westside Village
Wilmington
Wilshire Center
Wilshire District
Wilshire Park
Wilshire Park Mile
Windsor Square
Windsor Village
Winnetka
Woodland Hills

*approved by City Council in February, 2007, making the number acutally 180 community names.

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

Can't we easily double this number by adding signs for all the adjacent places, e.g., "Hancock Park Adjacent"?

Fishouttawater said...

yeah! great list. Glad it is being shared. It always makes me appreciate the diversity of LA, and want to explore even more, when I read about all the areas I DON'T know about. One thing though: I would argue (with the city) that the proper spelling is "Angeleno" and not "Angelino" Heights. Thoughts on that one?

LA City Nerd said...

Actually, the community in question, Angelino Heights is spelled that way (with an "i"), but a true Angeleno - a person of Los Angeles - would be spelled with an "e," as you point out.

Your issue could be pushed, though I don't know how our friends in Echo Park would feel about that!

Anonymous said...

Happy Valley is a little north of Lincoln Heights and south of Debs Regional Park. It doesn't seem terribly happy at first, but then you notice lots of astrojumps, streamers, and people drinking beer in the yards of their turn of the century houses (most of which are the unfortunate victims of stucco) and then you think, well maybe this is a happy place. If you would like to visit this valley of happiness, yahoomaps the zip code 90031 and it will show up.

Thanks for this list, citynerd! You are awesome.

Anonymous said...

happy valley...
the happy valley that has the community designation is not the one north of lincoln heights. it's a small quasi-valley between the san fernando and santa clarita valleys.

Anonymous said...

What about the Hollywood Dell?

Holly drive, just east of Cahuenga, north of fRanklin... through the tunnel.

There are signs as well.

LA City Nerd said...

Hollywood Dell - there is a Neighborhood Assn. there, but no official action of the City to deem it a "blue-signed" community. Send me a location, if you've got it, of the blue sign, and I'll see why and how it's there without an official record of it. Thanks!

Robert90033 said...

Does anyone know the borders or boundaries of these communities? Do the recent neighborhood councils that have srpouted over the years reflect these same borders/boundaries?

LA City Nerd said...

Sadly, the boundaries are often in dispute. Even sadder, the Neighborhood Councils don't always stick to the generally accepted/posted boundaries, often times using "Greater" before their name: Greater Toluca Lake NC.

Robert90033 said...

You are very correct LA City Nerd about boundary/border disputes when it comes to the various communities listed. And as for the Neighborhood Councils they often times reflect boundaries that don't often gel with the traditional borders/bounadries of the communities they purport to represent. Can anyone here list or name a community or two not listed or that does not have a blue sign?

Anonymous said...

eventhough the boundaries are somewhat disputed, is there anyone who has put together some sort of greater los angeles map with the greater locations of these communities?

Anonymous said...

These are okay, except when they're stupid. Glendale is the real Little Armenia, with more Armenians than anywhere outside of Armenia. Too many of these designations don't denote a real community, just a handful of people with their councilman's office on speed-dial.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the list! I have been looking for it a long time. It's not quite as perfect as I thought it would be. There's three Westwood-related ones, but no Holmby Hills? What about Porter Ranch? It's pretty much been separated from Chatsworth. And if Mariachi Plaza can get a sign, why can't Warner Center? :-)

LA City Nerd said...

Good points, joydawg. The three communities you mention (Holby Hills, Warner Center, & Porter Ranch) are all known by the City, but the City Council has never designated them officially. Warner Center is part of Woodland Hills AND Canoga Park (though truly associated with Woodland Hills). Porter Ranch is actually part of both Northridge AND Chatsworth; it's got it's own Neighborhood Council who is actually trying to achieve that official designation. As for Holby Hills, no signs were ever posted for some reason, but we know that's where the Playboy Mansion is.

Anonymous said...

anybody heard of Toonerville? adjacent to Atwater Village to the north?

Robert90033 said...

Is this list complete? The reason I ask is, there is a city sign that reads: "Downtown Center", on 5th Street in downtown L.A., between Figueroa and Flower Streets. Right next to the Brooks Brothers store. The sign is light blue with white letters and has the official city seal. Yet it is not listed here on the 178 official blue signs. Are there more community signs out there that are not listed?

Anonymous said...

happy valley is a quiet neighborhood surrounded by green hills and tight knit families.it also has a lot of great history.it's located btween lincoln hts.on lincoln park ave. and mercury st.just b4 rose hill and el sereno....i was born and raised there all my life....

Zach Behrens said...

I thought Frog Town had an official blue sign?

Anonymous said...

Pico Heights is missing (ZIP 90006). There used to be a blue community name sign on Vermont between Pico and Olympic when I lived there in the late 1970s.

Anonymous said...

Sorry, I just re-read the original text. Doh.

"There are community designations like Museum Row, Mariachi Plaza, and Tarzana Safari Walk aren’t really communities, but they still have the official blue community signs."

Gabrielle P said...

Beechwood Canyon should be on that list.

Anonymous said...

Hillside Village (a little known LA neighborhood) is missing from the lis--even though there are a few blue signs marking this neighborhood east of Lincoln Heights. One is near the corner of Valley and Soto and another is on Eastern near Valley.

Anonymous said...

Boy we are getting more and more names that aren't on the list. I just saw West Los Angeles Civic center today.

Hmm, tagging my signs is not enough yet you gave me credit for Chinatown. I still have more signs that wasn't posted, I guess I have to figure out the map function....

Anonymous said...

This is a great list, although I challenge bloggers to elaborate and include places in the greater Los Angeles area. The LA Times notes today that "Cambodia Town is now on the map"... what else is on the map? I want to know!!

Rob Wilson said...

what about south robertson? it's in the thomas guide and there's such things as the SoRo festival and website and a wikipedia page, but still no love? where's our sign?
-rob

Anonymous said...

The sign for "Ladera" is on La Cienega Bl just north of Centinela Av.

The sign for "Rancho Cascades" is right off the 210 westbound exit at Yarnell St.

The sign for "Sawtelle Japantown" is on Sawtelle Bl north of Olympic Bl.

The sign for "Pacific Palisades" is on northbound Temescal Canyon just past PCH

The sign for "Sherman Village" is on La Maida St just east of Coldwater Canyon Av

The sign for "Reseda Ranch" is on Tampa Av just north of Saticoy St