Friday, December 05, 2008

Valencia is a planned community located in Los Angeles County, California in the northwestern corner of the Santa Clarita Valley, adjacent to Interstate 5. In 1987, it was one of the four unincorporated communities (along with Saugus, Newhall, and Canyon Country) that merged to create the city of Santa Clarita, California. Santa Clarita is ranked as one of the top 100 places to live by Money.^[1]

Valencia was first planned in the 1960s by the Newhall Land and Farming Company. Development began in the 1960s and continues to the present day. Valencia is notable for its well-landscaped boulevards connecting a balanced mix of apartment buildings, single-family detached homes, shopping centers, office parks and industrial warehouses.

Valencia also has an extensive system of paved pathways with grade separations over and under the boulevards. The pathways are called paseos. These paseos connect the entire community together making it possible to travel around Valencia without having to cross streets at grade. The paseo network is connected to the Santa Clara River Trail which runs east along the Santa Clara River to Canyon Country. Landowners in the Valencia area pay special taxes to maintain landscaping and the paseo system.

Valencia's residential areas are separated into villages. Each village is different from each other, in the ways of lifestyle (see List of Valencia, California's Residential Villages). Almost all of Valencia's villages are close to schools, shopping, etc. In many of the villages, homeowner's associations oversee the quality and upkeep of housing developments ranging in size from a few dozen homes to over a thousand. Many villages also have a Neighborhood Watch program in force.

Valencia is home to the Six Flags Magic Mountain theme park and the adjacent Hurricane Harbor water park. It is also the birthplace of major league baseball player Jon Garland, who used to play for the Chicago White Sox and now plays for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Actress Ashley Tisdale (High School Musical) attended Valencia High School in the class of 2003. Another actress Jessica D. Stone (Stanley (2001 TV series)) was born in Valencia. Valencia was also a filming place for the Power Rangers series for eight seasons, from 1993 to 2001. Other productions past & present include "Melrose Place","The Riches","Weeds","NCIS", and "CSI".

Major schools in Valencia and its surrounding areas include:

• California Institute of the Arts
• College of the Canyons
• Canyon High School
• Golden Valley High School
• Wm. S. Hart High School
• Saugus High School
• Valencia High School
• West Ranch High School

In Popular Culture

• Valencia was destroyed by a nuclear bomb in the sixth season of the Fox TV series, 24 .
• The set for the gas station explosion in the movie Christine was constructed and filmed on a vacant lot in Valencia.
• The set of the CBS hit series NCIS - Naval Criminal Investigative Service - is located in Valencia
• Weeds was filmed in Valencia and the neighboring community of Stevenson Ranch,CA
• Valencia was featured in a scene in the movie Ocean's thirteen where Brad Pitt was supposed to be executing a vault heist.