Bradbury--A Quiet, Private Haven for the Horsey Set

The wealthy community of Bradbury, hidden in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, is often described as a city that has more horses than people.

Many of the 900 residents live here because they can afford spacious lots and homes that cannot be seen from the private roads that meander through the area.

“People are friendly, but they have a live-and-let-live attitude. When you have two acres, you don’t run next door for coffee,” said Jeff Alkana, who has lived in Bradbury for 14 years.

The 2-square-mile city, 23 miles from downtown Los Angeles, has three miles of public streets and 10 miles of gated private roads that are supposed to limit access to residents and their guests.

That sense of security is one reason Bradbury stands out in the San Gabriel Valley’s urban sprawl and has been the subject of many newspaper and magazine articles.

But about 10 years ago, city officials and residents decided to become more closed-mouthed about their community. Each time an article appeared, they said, it drew attention to the city and the number of burglaries increased.

The attention reached an all-time high Wednesday after auto racer-promoter Mickey Thompson and his wife, Trudy, were shot to death outside their home on Woodlyn Lane. The killings were the first in the city’s 30-year history.

In this security-minded city, the Thompsons’ home is relatively accessible. It is one of three houses on the eastern end of Woodlyn Lane just outside an adjacent gated community. But like many homes in the area, the Thompsons’ house has its own gates and is surrounded by 5-foot-high walls.

Until Wednesday, aside from an occasional political squabble, the only excitement in Bradbury had been brush fires or floods that residents are willing to chance in exchange for the quality of life. Most of the 14 residents who lost their homes in a 1980 fire chose to rebuild rather than move.

The median household income in Bradbury is $56,000 and, while many residents are retired, others are actively involved in thoroughbred racing. Owners, trainers and jockeys keep horses on their property.

The city has no businesses, not even a news rack, and the only sales tax comes from the occasional sale of a horse. Bradbury contracts with the county for all services, including police, fire and street maintenance. Children who do not attend private schools go to public schools in neighboring Duarte.

The main entrance to the city is the intersection of Royal Oaks Drive and Winston Avenue. The only public building in town is the City Hall, a converted caretaker’s cottage on Winston Avenue.

City Manager Dolly Vollaire and her two assistants, the only city employees, field a variety of unusual questions. Although she handles such routine matters as building permits, Vollaire also serves as a sounding board for residents who drop by to complain about such problems as horse flies.

On the day Vollaire was appointed to the post in 1973, she said: “This morning, my first three telephone calls were about manure, sheep and bees.” Little has changed since then.