National Geographic magazine once called this piece...

By CECILIA RASMUSSEN

Dec. 6, 1996 12 AM PT

National Geographic magazine once called this piece of pristine suburbia “one of the three most beautiful spots in the world.” Although that may have been true in the 1920s, when that was written, La Habra Heights is known today as the homeland of the fabled Hass avocado and as a horse lover’s paradise where jerry-built stables stand alongside mansions and Arabian mares graze beside German sports cars.

Even though the profile of a galloping horse adorns the city’s crest, the city’s first settlers, the avocado farmers, hated horses because their hooves spread root rot.

In 1919, in La Habra Heights’ abundant hills, a visionary farmer named Edwin Hart believed his 3,500 acres could be transformed into rich avocado-producing ranches. He began planting trees, then trumpeted his real estate plans in a brochure characterizing La Habra Heights as the “second Beverly Hills.”

That same year, postman Rudolph Hass planted, on his 1 1/2-acre farm, what would become the Hass Mother Tree. Today, the West Road site is marked by a plaque noting Hass’ role in the region’s agriculture. The classic avocado is almost black, with a thick, rough skin; its flesh is creamy, with a high oil content and a nutty taste.

A 1930 survey showed 1,292 acres of avocado orchards, 282 acres of citrus orchards and 43 miscellaneously planted acres. There was also room for 95 homes, a mix of weekend cottages and large Spanish-style houses for show business personalities and oil barons.

For four decades, the La Habra Heights Improvement Assn., the voice of the people and a shadow government fighting for the rural lifestyle since 1937, has fielded complaints and channeled them to the appropriate county departments.

Every time Whittier or La Habra tried to annex the hills, the association staged rummage sales and set up a telephone news network called the Avocado Telegraph, and managed to slap away the encroaching hand.

The city was finally incorporated in 1978. One councilman declared that locals liked the place the way it was, sans sidewalks and street lamps, and that every pothole should be left intact.

Two years thereafter, residents forged a general plan built around a one-acre-minimum zoning concept. Then about 100 of them chartered buses and traveled to the county Board of Supervisors’ meeting room to see that the plan was adopted.

In 1993, voters rejected a developer’s plans for a private country club and golf course and million-dollar homes in remote Powder Canyon, part of Edwin Hart’s original ranch. Instead, the 540 acres have become part of a 30-mile wildlife corridor linking the onetime oil fields in neighboring Whittier to the Cleveland National Forest.

Privacy is prized here, and is the reason most residents put up with septic tanks, long commutes and the notorious roads--of the 41 miles of streets that wind through the city, many have only two narrow lanes.

* Beauty Contest: The other two sites that ranked with La Habra Heights for National Geographic magazine’s natural beauty crown in the 1920s were in Africa and Italy.

By The Numbers

CITY BUSINESS

Incorporated: December 4, 1978

Square miles: 6

Number of city parks: 1

City employees: 14 fulltime

1996-97 operating budget: 3 million (capital & restricted funds excluded)

ETHNIC MAKEUP

Latino: 11%

White: 82%

Asian: 7%

Black: 1%