Woodland Hills : Tree-Lined Residential Streets Mix With Corporate High-Rises

The community of Woodland Hills has grown from a bucolic enclave of hillside cottages and flatland farms to one of the region’s thriving business centers. Once home to high-profile refugees from Hollywood’s bustle, such as Bob Hope, Mae West and Frank Sinatra, Woodland Hills has become almost a mini-city unto itself. Its tree-lined streets still attract residents such as Police Chief Willie Williams.

History

- Early days: Much of what is now Woodland Hills was amassed during the second half of the 1800s by Miguel Leonis, a Basque who married the daughter of an Indian landowner and who ruled the land with an iron fist until his death in 1889. In the early 1920s, real estate developer Victor Girard subdivided 2,800 acres of hillside into nearly 7,000 lots, built a country club, planted thousands of eucalyptus, sycamore, fir pine and pepper trees and named the community after himself. The remote settlement of Girard dwindled to a population of 75 families during the Depression year of 1931, but rebounded later in the decade. In 1941, a chamber of commerce was formed and residents adopted the name of Woodland Hills. By 1950, the community had about 4,500 residents.

- Warner Center: During the 1930s and 1940s, motion picture mogul Harry Warner bought up about 1,200 acres of what is now Warner Center, where he built a home on a knoll, raised thoroughbred racehorses and planned to developed the land. By the time Warner died in 1958, a shopping center and several subdivisions had been built. Since then, the area has become a major commercial, industrial and residential area, with two shopping malls and the high-rise towers of such well-known companies as Blue Cross, Litton Industries, Rocketdyne, Kaiser Permanente and 20th Century Industries.

- Landmarks: The Motion Picure and Television Fund on Mulholland Drive north of Old Topanga Canyon Road, is home to many entertainment industry retirees. Los Angeles Pierce College, at Winnetka Avenue and Victory Boulevard, started in 1947 as an agriculture school but has become a full academic community college. Leonis Adobe and Plummer House, on Calabasas Road west of Mulholland Drive, is kept meticulously as an historically accurate museum. Pacific Lodge Boys Home, on Serrania Avenue south of Ventura Boulevard, has housed and nurtured wayward boys for 60 years.

Community Issues

- Development: Rapid growth in the West San Fernando Valley during the past few decades prompted Woodland Hills residents to arm themselves with a knowledge of city laws and state environmental rules in an attempt to influence the shape of development. The most famous battle was over a proposed office tower and condominium project on Warner Ridge, between Warner Center and Pierce College. Endorsed by then-City Councilwoman Joy Picus in the mid-1980s, the planned development raised the ire of the Woodland Hills Homeowners Organization, which filed a series of lawsuits in an attempt to block it. Picus became a vehement critic of Warner Ridge, but was voted out of office in 1993 anyway. Plans for the project collapsed three months ago due to financial problems.

- Neighborhood concerns: Homeowner skirmishes are waged on a smaller scale, too. Residents of the mostly white, affluent community have beaten back plans for an adult school and day care center at the closed Charles Evans Hughes Junior High School and complained to their elected officials about day laborers looking for work on several street corners. Crime fears have spawned a network of highly organized neighborhood watch groups. Residents of Woodland Hills and neighboring West Hills have also been some of the most vocal opponents of the city’s ban on trapping coyotes.

Community Profile

Based on 1990 U.S. census figures; includes Canoga Park and Winnetka.

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Statistics

Population: 153,467

Median age: 34.4

Number of households: 56,786

People per household: 2.7

Owner-occupied housing units: 62%

Population below poverty level: 6.8

Population over 25 with four or more years of colege education: 31%

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Income

Average household income is slightly higher than the Los Angeles city average:

Canoga Park-Woodland Hills-Winnetka: $47,338

Citywide average: $45,701

Northeast Valley: $44,444

Southeast Valley: $48,182

Northwest Valley: $56,427

Southwest Valley: $61,722

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Ethnicity

White: 72%

Latino: 17%

Asian: 8%

African American: 2%

Other: 1%

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“We have wonderful weather. We’re near the beaches. To me, it’s the epitome of what a community should be.”

--Los Angeles City Councilwoman Laura Chick, whose district includes Woodland Hills.

Sources: The History of Woodland Hills and Girard; The San Fernando Valley Then and Now; Research by Kurt Pitzer / For The Times