Reseda Blvd. Shopping District at Gresham St.
Northridge is a community in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles, California, United States.
The 1994 Northridge Earthquake is named for the community based on early estimates of the location of the quake's epicenter; however further refinements showed it to be technically in neighboring Reseda. The area was also heavily damaged in the 1971 Sylmar earthquake.
In 1994, the Northridge Little League Baseball team won the United States Little League Championship game, but lost the World Series game to the international team from Coquivacoa-Maracaibo, Venezuela.
The U.S. Metric Association is based in Northridge.
Location and geography
Northridge is 17 square miles (44 km2) in area and is approximately 807 feet (246 m) above sea level. Located within the San Fernando Valley, adjacent neighborhoods with Northridge include Granada Hills, Chatsworth, North Hills, Reseda, Porter Ranch, and Winnetka. Major streets in the area include Roscoe Boulevard, Devonshire Street, Nordhoff Street, Corbin Avenue, Tampa Avenue, and Reseda Boulevard. The Ronald Reagan Freeway (State Route 118) runs along the northern edge of Northridge, and provides access to the rest of the Los Angeles area freeway system. The area code is 818 and zip codes are 91324 through 91330.
History
The community was founded in 1910 as Zelzah station, a Southern Pacific depot town at the Colonel Henry Hubbard & "Bud" Wright Hawk Ranch north of Los Angeles.
Shortly after the Los Angeles City Aqueduct opened in 1913, Henry Hubbard became a member of Aqueduct Board. The following year Zelzah Grammar School opened and citizens formally voted for annexation to the City of Los Angeles and Owens River water rights in 1915. William Mulholland, engineer of the mammoth project, lived nearby and maintained one of many large rancho tracts remaining from the Spanish, Mexican and Californio land grant days.
Zelzah Acres became the name of one of those early housing tracts carved from the former enormous Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando lands joining nearby towns of Chatsworth Park, Lankershim, Owensmouth, San Fernando and Van Nuys. The post office and train depot were renamed North Los Angeles in 1929 and finally Northridge in 1938.
Demographics
As of the 2000 census, and according to the Los Angeles Almanac there were 68,469 people and 24,172 households residing in Northridge. The racial makeup of the neighborhood was 62.45% White, 14.89% Asian, 0.16% Pacific Islander, 5.14% African American, 0.47% Native American, 11.48% from other races, and 5.41% from two or more races. 24.77% of the population were Hispanic of any race.
Median household income in 2000 was $60,108.
In 2009, the Los Angeles Times's "Mapping L.A." project supplied these Northridge neighborhood statistics: population: 57,561; median household income: $67,906.[1]
Points of interest
Faith Bible Church, built in 1917
Government and infrastructure
Local government
Northridge Hospital Medical Center
Los Angeles Fire Department Station 70 (Northridge) and Station 103 (Northridge/CSUN) serve the community.
Los Angeles Police Department operates two police stations that serve Northridge [1]:
- Devonshire Community Police Station serves residents north of Roscoe Boulevard [2].
- West Valley Community Police Station serves residents south of Roscoe Boulevard [3].
County, state, and federal representation
The United States Postal Service Northridge Post Office is located at 9534 Reseda Boulevard.[2]
Education
Children attend public schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District,
Public middle schools include Alfred B. Nobel Middle School, Patrick Henry Middle School, Oliver Wendell Holmes International Middle School, Northridge Middle School, and William Mulholland Middle School.
Public high schools serving Northridge include James Monroe High in North Hills, Birmingham High in Van Nuys, Reseda High and Grover Cleveland High in Reseda, John F. Kennedy High in Granada Hills, various LAUSD magnet schools, and Granada Hills High School, a charter school.
Los Angeles Valley College, Pierce College, and Los Angeles Mission College are part of the nine campus Los Angeles Community College District.
West Valley Occupational Center provides learning opportunities and employment training to adults and in-and out-of-school youth.
California State University, Northridge, part of the CSU system, offers bachelors and masters degrees in a number of disciplines.
The area is also served by several private and parochial schools, including Chatsworth Hills Academy, L.A. Baptist, Our Lady of Lourdes, and Chaminade.
Famous residents
- David Draiman, lead singer of the band Disturbed (moved to Chicago in 2006)
- Patty Andrews, The Andrews Sisters
- Jack Cassel, pitcher for the Houston Astros
- Matt Cassel, quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs
- Lori Beth Denberg, actress, (cheerleader in Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story & cast member in All That)
- Jarron Collins, Utah Jazz Center (went to school at Sierra Canyon in Chatsworth)
- Jason Collins, Memphis Grizzlies Center (went to school at Sierra Canyon in Chatsworth)
- Jenilee Harrison, actress on Three's Company
- Josh Klinghoffer, musician
- Alphonse Mouzon, jazz musician, Composer
- Nancy Cartwright, voice of Bart Simpson
- Jeffrey Osborne, musician
- John H. Meier, former business adviser to Howard Hughes, involved with Watergate[3]
- Alvy Moore, actor Green Acres
- Vicki Peterson, rock band The Bangles
- Debbi Peterson, rock band The Bangles
- Richard Pryor, the comedian lived here during his infamous burn injury as a result of freebasing cocaine
- Brian Vranesh, professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour
- Arianne Zucker, actress Days of Our Lives
- Jackie Earle Haley, actor Bad News Bears, Watchmen
- Cynthia Esser, entrepreneur, technician to the stars Pink Cheeks Skin Care Salon
- Cortney Lofton, musician, sculpture, building contractor Lofton Contracting Inc.
See also
References
External links
Coordinates: 34°13′42″N 118°32′09″W / 34.22833°N 118.53583°W / 34.22833; -118.53583
