SANTA CLARITA VALLEY NEIGHBORHOODS 

Following its slogan, “A Great Place to Live, Work and Play,” Valencia has become one of the most premier master planned areas in Southern California. Newhall Land has developed Valencia in accordance with a master plan created by legendary planner Victor Gruen in 1965.

Rather than focusing on residential development, the community’s master plan includes every aspect of life — work, recreation (including golf courses), shopping, medical care, etc. Two colleges are located in Valencia; Cal Arts, a world-renowned arts college, and College of the Canyons, a junior college which partners with other universities to enable students to earn their bachelor’s degrees.  The newly opened Vital Express Center is a performing arts facility, located on the campus of College of the Canyons and offers a state of the art sound system.

Beautiful residential neighborhoods offering single-family residences, condominiums and town homes, are companioned with all the ingredients for an outstanding quality of life - excellent schools at every grade level, churches and places of worship, neighborhood recreation centers, local and regional parks, childcare centers and convenient shopping.

Valencia’s pedestrian-friendly paseo system stretches over 28 miles of pathways connecting neighborhoods to one another and to most of the area’s parks, schools, and shopping centers.  This renowned paseo system offers residents a virtually traffic-free alternative to streets and is excellent for walking, biking and jogging. Summit Park is an 80 acres nature park with trails through oak studded terrain. The Town Center Mall is also located in Valencia and offers a wide array of shopping, restaurants and movie theatres, which includes an indoor mall and outdoor promenade shops. Sundays, you can enjoy the Farmers Market, on the campus of College of the Canyons and purchase fresh fruits, vegetable, flowers, fresh baked bread, crepes, and all varieties of treats.

One of the newer upscale communities in Santa Clarita, Stevenson Ranch, is set in the foothills of the Santa Susanna Mountains and lies west of the I-5 freeway. Stevenson Ranch consists of 4,000 acres of rolling hills offering a variety of homes, from condominiums and town homes, to upscale homes. A planned community, it was approved by the county in 1987. The Valencia Marketplace and Stevenson Ranch Shopping Center are new additions to the community as well as chain restaurants and hotel facilities.

Stevenson Ranch offers two elementary schools, Pico Canyon Elementary, and Stevenson Ranch Elementary, one of the many Santa Clarita schools having earned the designation as a California Distinguished school.  This area backs up to the historic, oil-mining town of Mentryville, founded in 1875. The mountains that surround the homes create a very attractive community.

The newest upscale community in the Santa Clarita Valley, Westridge is nestled among rolling hills and is located west of the I-5 Freeway. An 800 acre, 1500 home community, it boasts a Tournament Players Club championship golf course with clubhouse and a 152 acre oak preserve.  As with all Valencia communities, it offers walking paths and provides connections to the Valencia paseo system.

There are townhouses, gated communities and custom estate homes, many offering breathtaking views of the golf course and city lights. A neighborhood shopping center has been built and Westridge offers easy freeway access. Westridge is in the process of building its own neighborhood schools, which are expected to be excellent, as are the other schools in the Santa Clarita Valley.

Castaic has become a popular residential community. The most northerly community of the valley, Castaic is located along the I-5 corridor and is best known for its recreational sites in the vicinity of Castaic Lake, part of the California Water project. Castaic Lake offers a variety of outdoor/recreational activities including camping, fishing, boating and wind surfing.

Recently, the Valencia Commerce Center was established, strategically placed where the Interstate 5 Freeway and Highway 126 intersect; the 1.2 million-square-foot Commerce Center is home to the corporate headquarters of Remo, Inc., ITT, UltraViolet Devices Inc. and a 1,800 employee postal center. With easy access to the 5 Freeway, and homes of all sizes, including many newer homes, Castaic has grown by leaps and bounds and a new shopping center has just been built.

The area started as a collection of rural homes nestled into canyons and smaller communities – Mint Canyon, Tick Canyon, Iron Canyon, Sand Canyon, Whites Canyon, Vasquez Canyon, Soledad Canyon, Honby, Pinetree, Forrest Park, Sulphur Springs, and Solemint Junction.

Laced with equestrian ranches and large estate homes, Canyon Country is a place to call home with houses to meet all price ranges, from small condominiums to custom ranch estates with horse facilities.  Residents have access to shopping, entertainment, the Saugus Metrolink train depot and a new library, which opened in late 2001.

Well known as an equestrian community, the beautiful and rural Sand Canyon area of Canyon Country is home to the new championship golf course Robinson Ranch designed by the famed Jim Robinson and son, golf architect/landscape team. Sand Canyon is well known as an equestrian community with ranches and also upscale tract and custom homes, including an exclusive gated community.

A small community, which was originally a Southern Pacific railroad stop, Saugus is now home to the new City Central Park, where you can enjoy summer concerts in the park and many sports activities. It also boasts a large Metrolink Station for commuters.

Saugus caters to family living with most of its development built off its main thoroughfare, Bouquet Canyon Road, which extends through picturesque hills all the way to the Antelope Valley. Saugus is a great place to live with nationally acclaimed schools, and both older and newer homes including condominiums and larger estate style homes.

On Sundays you can browse the famous Saugus Swap meet, where you can purchase both antiques and all kinds of new merchandise bargains.  Saugus offers excellent schools.

Founded in 1876, Newhall is the oldest and most historic area in Santa Clarita. It was originally an oil, mining and farming community, which has grown to include family homes, senior housing complexes and the Master's College. The earliest Western movies were filmed here and it is where William S. Hart, of the early movie fame, lived.

Upon Mr. Hart’s death, he bequeathed his home and the surrounding property to the county. Newhall is presently involved in a redevelopment project to return the area to its original significant historical background and encourage new business to invest in the area; Old Downtown Newhall is emerging as a new thriving venue of shops, live theater, and restaurants.

On Thursdays, you can partake in the Farmers Market, offering all varieties of fresh produce, flowers and homemade burritos. Within Newhall, there is a community called Happy Valley, which is more rural than most of Santa Clarita and offers some custom homes.  There are also estate homes in Newhall, in addition to condominiums and townhouses. Newhall is also home to a second Metrolink station. As in most of Santa Clarita, the schools are very desirable.

Action and Agua Dulce are located north/east of Santa Clarita between the Antelope Valley Freeway (14) and Sierra Highway.  Agua Dulce means "Sweet Water". Named by Captain Pedro Fages in 1772, this community features the well-known Vasquez Rocks County Park. It is rural and accesses the major 14 Freeway to Antelope Valley and Santa Clarita communities.

Large lots attract ranch homes, equestrian amenities and fabulous views of outstanding geological formations for residents and the filming genre. This area is popular for homebuyers who want some space around them and for equestrian lovers. It is also home to Le Chene, a French restaurant offering gourmet cuisine.

VAL VERDE

Val Verde was developed in a rural mode on land owned by Sydney P. Dones, following the short-lived "Gold Rush" era of the mid 1800's. Once a rural resort and farming area, Val Verde is now home to 800+ residents who prefer the quiet of its verdant hills, single market shopping facility, large park with Olympic size pool and the health services of the Samuel Dixon Medical Center. Val Verde is located just north of State Route 126 and west of Interstate 5 and is close to Castaic.  Val Verde offers some of the more affordably priced single-family homes.