West L.A.
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West Los Angeles is an area within the city of
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, California, United States. The residential and commercial neighborhood is divided by the Interstate 405 freeway, and each side is sometimes treated as a distinct neighborhood, mapped differently by different sources. Each lies within the larger Westside region of Los Angeles County.


Geography


West Los Angeles Community Plan

The West Los Angeles Community Plan area recognized by the city of Los Angeles is generally bounded by
Centinela Avenue Centinela Avenue is a 10.2 mile (16.4 km) major street in the Westside (Los Angeles County), Westside region of Los Angeles County, California. Geography Centinela Avenue is a major thoroughfare in Culver City, California, Culver City, In ...
on the west;
Wilshire Boulevard Wilshire Boulevard ( wɪɫ.ʃɚ is a prominent boulevard in the Los Angeles area of Southern California, extending from Ocean Avenue (Santa Monica), Ocean Avenue in the city of Santa Monica, California, Santa Monica east to Grand Avenue (Lo ...
and
Santa Monica Boulevard Santa Monica Boulevard is a major west–east thoroughfare in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It runs from Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica near the Pacific Ocean to Sunset Boulevard at Sunset Junction in Los Angeles. It passes t ...
on the north; National Boulevard,
Pico Boulevard Pico Boulevard is a major Los Angeles street that runs from the Pacific Ocean at Appian Way in Santa Monica to Central Avenue in downtown Los Angeles, California, United States. It is named after Pío Pico, the last Mexican governor of Alta C ...
, and Exposition Boulevard on the south; and Durango Avenue, Robertson Boulevard, and Canfield Avenue on the east. Among the neighborhoods included within it are Sawtelle,
Rancho Park Rancho Park is a residential neighborhood in the Los Angeles Westside, Westside of the city of Los Angeles, California with mostly single family homes and tree lined streets. The community is nestled between West Los Angeles and Cheviot Hills, L ...
,
Beverlywood Beverlywood is a neighborhood in the Westside of the city of Los Angeles, California. History Beverlywood was developed in 1940 by Walter H. Leimert, who also developed Leimert Park. The neighborhood consists of 1,354 single family homes, and ...
,
Cheviot Hills The Cheviot Hills (), or sometimes The Cheviots, are a range of uplands straddling the Anglo-Scottish border between Northumberland and the Scottish Borders. The English section is within the Northumberland National Park. The range includes ...
,
Castle Heights Castle Heights is a small residential neighborhood in northwest Geneva, New York. It is known for its architecturally diverse homes and plots of land larger than those in other neighborhoods in the city. Formerly referred to as "Maxwell Highland ...
, and
Century City Century City is a 176-acre (71.2 ha) neighborhood and business district in Los Angeles, California, United States. Located on the Westside to the south of Santa Monica Boulevard around 10 miles (16 km) west of downtown Los Angeles, Cent ...
. The Community Plan area itself is part of the larger West Los Angeles Area Plan Commission area (i.e., the Westside region).


Automobile Club of Southern California

The
Automobile Club of Southern California The Automobile Club of Southern California is the Southern California affiliate of the American Automobile Association (AAA) federation of motor clubs. The Auto Club was founded on December 13, 1900, in Los Angeles as one of the nation's first mo ...
does not mark boundaries on its map, but centers the neighborhood of West Los Angeles proper as south of Santa Monica Boulevard, west of Interstate 405, north of Olympic Boulevard and east of Barrington Avenue.Automobile Club of Southern California, map, Los Angeles Central and Western Area, copyright 2002-2013 The borders of the official West Los Angeles Neighborhood Council correspond closely to this definition. Specifically, its district stretches from the 405 freeway in the east to Centinela Avenue in the west and Wilshire Boulevard in the north and the 10 freeway in the south. This is roughly the same area labeled as "Sawtelle" in the
Mapping L.A. Mapping L.A. was a 2009 project of the ''Los Angeles Times''. It identified 158 cities and Unincorporated area, unincorporated areas within Los Angeles County, California. It also drew boundary lines for 114 neighborhoods within the Los Angeles, C ...
website of the ''Los Angeles Times''.


The Los Angeles Times

In 2003, a ''Los Angeles Times'' correspondent noted:
The meaning of the term West Los Angeles varies widely. Some use it to describe the entire Westside including
Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
,
Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...
and stretching east to Western Avenue. More precisely, though, it is the portion of incorporated Los Angeles between the Santa Monica city limits on the west,
Wilshire Boulevard Wilshire Boulevard ( wɪɫ.ʃɚ is a prominent boulevard in the Los Angeles area of Southern California, extending from Ocean Avenue (Santa Monica), Ocean Avenue in the city of Santa Monica, California, Santa Monica east to Grand Avenue (Lo ...
on the north,
Century City Century City is a 176-acre (71.2 ha) neighborhood and business district in Los Angeles, California, United States. Located on the Westside to the south of Santa Monica Boulevard around 10 miles (16 km) west of downtown Los Angeles, Cent ...
to the east and extending just beyond National Boulevard on the south. Sections of West L.A. run the gamut from stylish
Cheviot Hills The Cheviot Hills (), or sometimes The Cheviots, are a range of uplands straddling the Anglo-Scottish border between Northumberland and the Scottish Borders. The English section is within the Northumberland National Park. The range includes ...
to a cluster of generic homes east of Bundy Drive.
That report on the meaning of West Los Angeles also included
Rancho Park Rancho Park is a residential neighborhood in the Los Angeles Westside, Westside of the city of Los Angeles, California with mostly single family homes and tree lined streets. The community is nestled between West Los Angeles and Cheviot Hills, L ...
, located at Pico and Beverly Glen, and the Westdale Trousdale area near National Boulevard and Barrington Avenue.


City of Los Angeles

The 2004 ''City of Los Angeles & Communities'' map by the Los Angeles Almanac shows West Los Angeles as a neighborhood south of Santa Monica Boulevard and north of Culver City. West Los Angeles is book-ended with Mid-City, Mid-City West and
Mid-Wilshire Mid-Wilshire is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. It is known for the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Petersen Automotive Museum, and the Miracle Mile shopping district. Geography City of Los Angeles bo ...
on the east and Sawtelle on the west. Century City, Rancho Park, and Cheviot Hills are shown (without boundaries) as sub-neighborhoods in West Los Angeles. Together, the areas east and west of Sepulveda Boulevard/I-405 comprise a large portion of the official West Los Angeles Community Plan area.


Frommer's Guide

The
Frommer's Frommer's () is a travel guide book series created by Arthur Frommer in 1957. Frommer's has since expanded to include more than 350 guidebooks in 14 series, as well as other media including an eponymous radio show and a website. In 2017, the com ...
Guide described West Los Angeles as "a label that generally applies to everything that isn't one of the other Westside neighborhoods." It lies "south of
Santa Monica Boulevard Santa Monica Boulevard is a major west–east thoroughfare in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It runs from Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica near the Pacific Ocean to Sunset Boulevard at Sunset Junction in Los Angeles. It passes t ...
, north of
Venice Boulevard Venice Boulevard is a major east–west thoroughfare in Los Angeles, running from the ocean in the Venice district into downtown Los Angeles. It was originally known as West 16th Street under the Los Angeles numbered street system. A segment o ...
, east of
Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
and
Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...
, and west and south of
Century City Century City is a 176-acre (71.2 ha) neighborhood and business district in Los Angeles, California, United States. Located on the Westside to the south of Santa Monica Boulevard around 10 miles (16 km) west of downtown Los Angeles, Cent ...
.


Mapping L.A.

In 2009, the ''Los Angeles Times'' Mapping L.A. project defined West Los Angeles as south of
Santa Monica Boulevard Santa Monica Boulevard is a major west–east thoroughfare in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It runs from Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica near the Pacific Ocean to Sunset Boulevard at Sunset Junction in Los Angeles. It passes t ...
, west of Beverly Glen Boulevard, north of
Pico Boulevard Pico Boulevard is a major Los Angeles street that runs from the Pacific Ocean at Appian Way in Santa Monica to Central Avenue in downtown Los Angeles, California, United States. It is named after Pío Pico, the last Mexican governor of Alta C ...
and east of
Sepulveda Boulevard Sepulveda Boulevard is a major street and transportation corridor in the City of Los Angeles and several other cities in western Los Angeles County, California. The street parallels Interstate 405 for much of its route. Portions of Sepulveda ...
.
Mapping L.A.
Profiling the neighborhood in 2018, the ''Times'' described it as follows:
Nowadays, West L.A. is a marooned rump of the once-mighty West Los Angeles of old, which stretched from Century City to the Santa Monica city limits, and which has atomized over the years into a handful of disparate neighborhoods. ... Many people assume West Los Angeles refers to all that lies between the sea and Robertson Boulevard (or wherever their own arbitrary border of
central Los Angeles Central Los Angeles is the historical urban region of the city of Los Angeles, containing downtown Los Angeles, and several nearby regions in southwest Los Angeles County, California. Geographic designation by The City of Los Angeles The Los Ang ...
lies). But it is its own place, not just a
toponym Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''wikt:toponym, toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage, and types. ''Toponym'' is the general term for ...
to be used interchangeably with " the Westside."


Demographics

For the area west of the 405 freeway, ''Mapping L.A.'' gives the population of the 2.69-square-mile "Sawtelle" neighborhood as 35,844 according to the 2000 U.S. census, with a rise to 38,698 in 2008 as estimated by the Los Angeles Department of City Planning. Its density of 13,319 people per square mile, about was average for the city of Los Angeles but among the highest densities for the county. The percentage of Asian people is high for the county and the area is highly diverse compared to both City of Los Angeles and County of Los Angeles averages. Mexico (29.0%) and Iran (13.8%) are the most common foreign places of birth. Notably, 49.8% of residents 25 and older have a four-year degree, which is high for the city of Los Angeles and high for the county. The percentages of never married males and never married females are among the county's highest. For the area east of the 405 freeway, ''Mapping L.A.'' gives the population of the 1.05-square-mile neighborhood as 12,659 according to the 2000 U.S. census, with a rise to 13,582 in 2008 as estimated by the Los Angeles Department of City Planning. Its density of 12,061 people was about average for the city of Los Angeles. 76.7% of residents were
non-Hispanic white Non-Hispanic Whites, also referred to as White Anglo Americans or Non-Latino Whites, are White Americans who are classified by the United States census as "White" and not of Hispanic or Latino origin. According to annual estimates from the Unit ...
, 11.4% were
Asian-American Asian Americans are Americans with ancestry from the continent of Asia (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of those immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for ...
; 5.3% were Hispanic or Latino of any race; 2.3% were
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
and 4.1% identified themselves with other or
mixed race The term multiracial people refers to people who are mixed with two or more races and the term multi-ethnic people refers to people who are of more than one ethnicities. A variety of terms have been used both historically and presently for mul ...
categories. The median household income in east ''Mapping L.A.'' area was $86,403 in 2008 dollars, which was considered high for both the city and the county. The percentage of households earning $125,000 and up was high for the county. Median age of residents was 38, old compared with other locality in the city and the county. The average household size was 1.9, low for both the city and the county. 51% of residents rented their living quarters, and 49% owned them. The percentage of widowed men and women was among the county's highest. Iranian and Russian were the most common ancestries. The east ''Mapping L.A.'' area was highly educated, with 60.4% of residents 25 and older holding a four-year degree, a higher ratio than found in the rest of the city or the county.


Homeless population

In 2022, there were 412 homeless individuals in West Los Angeles.


Enclaves

Neighborhoods include: *
Beverlywood Beverlywood is a neighborhood in the Westside of the city of Los Angeles, California. History Beverlywood was developed in 1940 by Walter H. Leimert, who also developed Leimert Park. The neighborhood consists of 1,354 single family homes, and ...
*
Castle Heights Castle Heights is a small residential neighborhood in northwest Geneva, New York. It is known for its architecturally diverse homes and plots of land larger than those in other neighborhoods in the city. Formerly referred to as "Maxwell Highland ...
*
Century City Century City is a 176-acre (71.2 ha) neighborhood and business district in Los Angeles, California, United States. Located on the Westside to the south of Santa Monica Boulevard around 10 miles (16 km) west of downtown Los Angeles, Cent ...
*
Cheviot Hills The Cheviot Hills (), or sometimes The Cheviots, are a range of uplands straddling the Anglo-Scottish border between Northumberland and the Scottish Borders. The English section is within the Northumberland National Park. The range includes ...
* Crestview * Faircrest Heights * La Cienega Heights * Reynier Village *
Pico-Robertson South Robertson is an area on the Westside of Los Angeles that is served by the South Robertson neighborhood council. It contains the following city neighborhoods: Beverlywood, Castle Heights, Cheviot Hills, Crestview, La Cienega Heights ...
*
Carthay Square Carthay is a half-square-mile neighborhood in Central Los Angeles, California. It contains Carthay Circle, Carthay Square and South Carthay.Little Ethiopia Little Ethiopia may refer to: * Little Ethiopia, Los Angeles Little Ethiopia is a neighborhood in the Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles. It is known for its collection of Ethiopian cuisine, Ethiopian restaurants, coffee shops, ...
* Picfair Village *
South Carthay South Carthay is a neighborhood in Central Los Angeles, California. Located south of Carthay Circle,''The Thomas Guide,'' 2008, page 633 South Carthay was developed in the 1930s by Spyros George Ponty. Geography The neighborhood is bounded by ...
* Westwood * Wilshire Vista *
Rancho Park Rancho Park is a residential neighborhood in the Los Angeles Westside, Westside of the city of Los Angeles, California with mostly single family homes and tree lined streets. The community is nestled between West Los Angeles and Cheviot Hills, L ...


Government and infrastructure

The
Los Angeles County Department of Health Services Health Services Los Angeles County, officially the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, operates the public hospitals and clinics in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County and is the United States' second largest municip ...
SPA 5 West Area Health Office serves West Los Angeles.


Emergency services

Los Angeles Police Department The City of Los Angeles Police Department, commonly referred to as Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), is the primary law enforcement agency of Los Angeles, California, United States. With 8,832 officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the th ...
operates the West Los Angeles Community Police Station at 1663 Butler Avenue.
Los Angeles Fire Department The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD or LA City Fire) provides firefighting services and technical rescue services, hazardous materials services, and emergency medical services to the residents of the city of Los Angeles, California, United ...
Station 59 at 11505 W. Olympic Boulevard serves the area.


Education


Primary and secondary schools


Public schools

West Los Angeles is part of the
Los Angeles Unified School District Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is a State school, public school district in Los Angeles County, California, United States of America. It is the largest public school system in California in terms of number of students and the List ...
. Neighborhood elementary schools ar
Brockton Avenue
Canfield Elementary School, Castle Heights Elementary School, Charnock Road Elementary School, Cheviot Hills Continuation School, Clover Avenue Elementary School, Crescent Heights Boulevard Elementary School, Nora Sterry Elementary School, Overland Elementary School, Shenandoah Street Elementary School an
Warner Avenue
Middle schools ar
Emerson
Palms, and Webster. High schools are
Hamilton High School Hamilton High School may refer to: United States Alabama * Hamilton High School (Alabama) in Hamilton Arizona * Hamilton High School (Chandler, Arizona) in Chandler Arkansas * Lake Hamilton High School in Pearcy California * Hamilton High Sc ...
,
Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies The Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies is a public university preparatory secondary school located on 18th Street between La Cienega Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue in the Faircrest Heights district of Los Angeles, California, on the former ...
,
University High School University High School may refer to: Australia * University High School, Melbourne, Victoria Canada * University Hill Secondary School, Vancouver, British Columbia United States Arizona * University High School (Tolleson) * University High Sc ...
and Indian Springs Continuation, both on the same site.


Private schools

YULA High School, Yeshivat Ohr Chanoch Boys High School, Vista School, Temple Issiah Preschool and Kindergarten
Saint Sebastian School
St.
Mary Magdalen Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to crucifixion of Jesus, his cr ...
Elementary School, Rabbi Jacob Pressman Academy, Lycee Francais de Los Angeles, Bais Chaya Mushka
Chabad Chabad, also known as Lubavitch, Habad and Chabad-Lubavitch (; ; ), is a dynasty in Hasidic Judaism. Belonging to the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) branch of Orthodox Judaism, it is one of the world's best-known Hasidic movements, as well as one of ...
, West Los Angeles Baptist School and First Lutheran School of Venice are nearby private schools. Pacific States University in the
Harvard Heights Harvard Heights is a neighborhood in Central Los Angeles, California. It lies within a municipally designated Los Angeles Historic Preservation Overlay Zone, historic preservation overlay zone designed to protect its architecturally significant s ...
area is a graduate and undergraduate college.


Public libraries

The
Los Angeles Public Library The Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) is a public library system in Los Angeles, California, operating separate from the Los Angeles County Public Library system. The system holds more than six million volumes, and with around 19 million resid ...
operates the West Los Angeles Regional Library.


Parks and recreation

The Stoner Recreation Center is situated in the area. The center includes a waterpark, barbecue pits, a lighted baseball diamond, lighted outdoor basketball courts, a children's play area, a lighted football field, an indoor gymnasium without weights and a capacity of 300 people, picnic tables, a lighted soccer field, lighted tennis courts, and lighted volleyball courts. The Annual Cherry Blossom Festival, co-sponsored by the West Los Angeles Japanese American Community Center, is held at the park. Other parks and recreations in the area are Cheviot Hills Park, Rancho Park Golf Course and Reynier Park. Sawtelle Boulevard has become one of the most prominent food streets in the city and the entire 90025 ZIP code, encompassing both sides of the 405 freeway, is undergoing more teardowns of old residences than anywhere other in the city.


Media

Fox Broadcasting Company Fox Broadcasting Company, LLC (commonly known as Fox; stylized in all caps) is an Television in the United States, American commercial broadcasting, commercial broadcast television broadcaster, television network serving as the flagship proper ...
maintains studio operations on South Bundy Drive for local stations
KTTV KTTV (channel 11) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast of the United States, West Coast flagship (broadcasting), flagship station of the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox network. It is owned a ...
and
KCOP-TV KCOP-TV (channel 13), branded Fox 11 Plus, is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship station of MyNetworkTV. It is owned and operated by Fox Television Stations alongside Fox outlet K ...
, as well as national
Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The name originates from Fox Broadcasting Company in the United States, which in turn derives its name from Fox Fi ...
programming. West Los Angeles is also home to The Village recording studio, which has been used for musical projects including albums, motion picture and television soundtracks, and radio programming.


Notable people

*
Nikki Reed Nikki Reed is an American former actress and entrepreneur best known for her role as Rosalie Hale in ''The Twilight Saga (film series), The Twilight Saga'' (2008–12). Reed rose to prominence when she co-wrote and starred in the psychological ...
, actress *
David Avadon David Avadon (December 11, 1948 – August 22, 2009), formerly "David Hutchins," was an American illusionist who billed himself as the country's "premier exhibition pickpocket." He lectured and wrote a book on pickpocketing and performed his ...
, illusionist * Pat Doyle, baseball coach *
Juliet Landau Juliet Rose Landau (born March 30, 1965) is an American actress, director, producer, and ballerina best known for her role as Drusilla on ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' and its spinoff show ''Angel'', the latter appearance earning her a Sat ...
, actress *
Geoff Schwartz Geoffrey Isaiah Schwartz (born July 11, 1986) is an American former professional football player who was an offensive guard in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the seventh round of the 2008 NFL draf ...
, NFL football player * Mitchell Schwartz, NFL football player *
Pat Smear Georg Albert Ruthenberg (born August 5, 1959), better known by his stage name Pat Smear, is an American musician. He was the lead guitarist and co-founder of Los Angeles–based punk band The Germs and a rhythm guitarist for grunge band Nirvana ...
, guitarist for the
Foo Fighters The Foo Fighters are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Initially founded as a one-man project by former Nirvana (band), Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, the band comprises vocalist/guitarist Grohl, bassist Nate Mendel, gu ...
, Germs, and
Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...
.


References

{{Authority control Neighborhoods in Los Angeles Westside (Los Angeles County)