La Tuna Canyon Portrait

Break out the birthday cake and candle--La Tuna Canyon is turning one this month. Residents of the rural enclave have long wanted to break away from the more densely populated and industrial Sun Valley, saying they had always referred to their home as La Tuna Canyon and just wanted to make it official.

So after petitions were signed by a majority of residents, Los Angeles City Councilman Joel Wachs ordered the name change.

Sandwiched between chaparral-covered foothills, La Tuna Canyon has many horses, few sidewalks, some llamas and peacocks, and, in the hills, plenty of coyotes, foxes and deer. One newer neighborhood has a wide bridle path that runs in front of the houses. Signs advertising horse boarding and the sale of guinea pigs and rabbits are visible from La Tuna Canyon Road, the community’s main thoroughfare that stretches from Sunland Boulevard to the Foothill Freeway.

Although La Tuna Canyon is home to only a handful of businesses, it does include Village Christian Schools--a secluded 30-acre campus with 1,950 elementary and high school students, giving it one of the largest enrollments of any Christian school in the country outside the Roman Catholic education system.

The 1,015-acre La Tuna Canyon Park, owned by the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, further enhances the rural atmosphere cherished by residents.

Breaking Away:

Vickie Chemleski was told she would never be able to do it. But that didn’t stop her from starting a petition drive in 1994 to officially change the name of her community. The move was opposed by some neighbors who claimed the secession was an easy way for La Tuna Canyon residents to disassociate themselves from blue-collar Sun Valley.

“It wasn’t a move to disenfranchise ourselves from Sun Valley. The last thing I want to do is disenfranchise myself from the community I serve,” said Sun Valley postmaster Jon Eshbach, who has lived in La Tuna Canyon for a decade and helped gather signatures. “La Tuna Canyon is unique as it’s one of the few areas left in the city of L.A. that allows horses.”

The name change was overwhelmingly supported by local residents and last August, the city officially renamed the community La Tuna Canyon.

Area Highlights:

Theodore Payne Foundation:

Want a hard-to-find native plant? Try the Theodore Payne Foundation. Tucked away on a narrow dirt road, the nonprofit organization runs the county’s only retail native plant nursery. There’s an annual open house each April and a major plant sale in October at the Tuxford Street grounds. The foundation also operates a wildflower hot line, 768-3533, which gives up-to-date recorded information on Southern California wildflower viewing during the blooming season and gardening tips during the off-season.

Ahead With Horses:

More than 100,000 children, including those suffering from autism, cerebral palsy and Down’s syndrome, have attended Liz Helms’ Ahead With Horses program since 1968. The children learn to perform gymnastic moves while riding a moving horse, giving them a unique chance to master balance and coordination. Ronald and Nancy Reagan were so impressed by their visit four years ago that they donated two horses to the program.

Local Issues:

Dangers of La Tuna Canyon Road:

In the past two decades, five people have lost their lives in accidents on a curvy stretch of La Tuna Canyon Road near Elben Avenue. The section of road is prone to flooding during rainstorms, causing vehicles to hydroplane, even when driven at normal speeds. As a result, the city has paid out nearly $2 million in damage claims to settle three wrongful-death lawsuits. Some work has been done and other repairs are planned, according to city officials. A new traffic signal is now being installed at Wildwood Avenue, only the second one on the road.

Community leaders have suggested that the roadway be posted as off limits to large trucks, which frequently use the route as a shortcut to the Foothill Freeway, and that a sidewalk be built on the south side from Wheatland Avenue to Vinedale Elementary School.

Hillside protection:

Protection of the hills is critical to the residents of La Tuna Canyon, who want to maintain the area’s rustic surroundings. Development proposed on local hillsides with more than an average 15% slope is subject to the 15% Slope Plan Amendment proposed by Councilman Joel Wachs and approved by the Los Angeles City Council. This limits density to one lot for every 5 to 25 acres, depending on the steepness of the slope.

Sources: Los Angeles City Councilman Joel Wachs’ office and staff reports; Researched by STEPHANIE STASSEL / Los Angeles Times.

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Community Profile for La Tuna Canyon

(Census data include parts of Tujunga)

Population: 3,540

Median age: 34.6

Number of households: 1,116

Persons per household: 3.2

Owner-occupied housing units: 61%

Population below poverty level: 12.5%

Population over 18 with bachelor’s degree or higher: 12.8%

Income

Average household income is slightly below the citywide average.

La Tuna Canyon

$42,639

Citywide average

$45,701

Northeast Valley

$44,444

Southeast Valley

$48,182

Northwest Valley

$56,427

Southwest Valley

$61,722

Ethnicity:

62%-White

6%-Black

26%-Latino

5%-Asian

1%-Other

*

Source: 1990 Census, Equifax, Claritas