Mar Vista is a residential and commercial neighborhood on the Westside of Los Angeles, California. It is the home of Venice High School, two private schools, a branch public library and a city park.
Geography
Description
According to the Mapping L.A. project of the Los Angeles Times, Mar Vista is adjoined on the northeast by Palms, on the east, southeast and south by Culver City, on the west by Venice and on the northwest by Santa Monica.
Mar Vista's street and other boundaries are: the San Diego Freeway to the Culver City boundary at Venice Boulevard on the northeast, the Culver City line on the southeast, Walgrove Avenue on the southwest and the Santa Monica city boundary on the northwest. The northern apex of the Mar Vista neighborhood is at the San Diego Freeway and National Boulevard and the southern is at Washington Boulevard and Tivoli Avenue. The Zip Code for Mar Vista California is 90066.
Compass
Relation of Mar Vista to nearby places, not necessarily contiguous:
Population
The 2000 U.S. census counted 35,492 residents in the 2.9-square-mile Mar Vista neighborhoodâ€"an average of 12,259 people per square mile, about the norm for Los Angeles; in 2008, the city estimated that the population had increased to 37,447. The median age for residents was 35, considered the average for Los Angeles; the percentage of residents aged 19 through 34 was among the county's highest.
The neighborhood was highly diverse ethnically, but the percentage of Asian people was high for the county. The breakdown was whites, 51.3%; Latinos, 29.1%; Asians, 12.8%, blacks, 3.5%; and others, 3.4%. Mexico (36%) and Korea (6%) were the most common places of birth for the 33.5% of the residents who were born abroadâ€"considered an average figure for Los Angeles.
The median yearly household income in 2008 dollars was $62,611, an average figure for Los Angeles. The average household size of 2.3 people was low for both the city and the county. Renters occupied 60.6% of the housing stock and house- or apartment owners held 39.4%.
The percentages of never-married men (40.8%), divorced men (8.4%) and divorced women (12.5%) were among the county's highest. The percentages of veterans who served during World War II or the Korean War were among the county's highest.
Notable residents
- Jimmy Fallon - host of Tonight show
- Belita Moreno- Actress, played Benita Lopez on the George Lopez show.
- John Frusciante- musician who is most notable for being the guitarist of The Red Hot Chili Peppers, and who also produced several solo albums, and also collaborated with other artists.
- Kevin Tenglin - writer (The Gunfighter)
Infrastructure
Health
The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services SPA 5 West Area Health Office serves Mar Vista.
Parks and recreation
The Mar Vista Recreation Center has an auditorium, barbecue pits, an unlighted baseball diamond, lighted indoor basketball courts, lighted outdoor basketball courts, a children's play area, an indoor gymnasium without weights, an outdoor roller hockey rink, an outdoor AstroTurf soccer field, picnic tables, a lighted tennis court, an outdoor pool and a lighted volleyball court.
Emergency services
The Los Angeles Fire Department operates Station 62, which serves a portion of Venice as well.
Los Angeles Police Department operates the Pacific Division Police Station, serving the neighborhood.
Community Council
The Mar Vista Community Council is the city-sanctioned neighborhood council for Mar Vista and other small neighborhoods (referred to as "zones") including Hilltop, Westdale, North Westdale, and others.
Education
Schools
Forty-two percent of Mar Vista residents aged 25 and older had earned a four-year degree by 2000, a high figure for both the city and the county. The percentages of residents of that age with a bachelor's degree or a master's degree were also considered high for the county.
The schools within Mar Vista are as follows:
- Windward School, private high school, 11350 Palms Boulevard. Accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, Windward was founded by writer/teacher Shirley Windward in 1971. The school enrolls 540 students in grades 7 through 12
- Mar Vista Elementary School, LAUSD, 3330 Granville Avenue
- Walgrove Avenue Elementary School, LAUSD, 1630 Walgrove Avenue
- Beethoven Street Elementary School, LAUSD, 3711 Beethoven Street
- Mark Twain Middle School, LAUSD, 2224 Walgrove Avenue
- James J. McBride Special Education Center, LAUSD, 3960 Centinela Avenue
- Venice Senior High School, LAUSD, 13000 Venice Boulevard, established in 1910 (then called "Venice Union Polytechnic High School") when classes were held in an old lagoon bathhouse two blocks from the beach. It moved to a new neo-romanesque structure at its present location a decade later.
- Venice Community Adult School, LAUSD, 13000 Venice Boulevard
- Phoenix Continuation School, LAUSD, 12971 Zanja Street
- Grand View Boulevard Elementary School, LAUSD,
- Summit View / Westside, private, 12101 Washington Boulevard
- Wildwood School, private K-12, 12201 Washington Boulevard. At the elementary school, Wildwood incorporates multi-age primary classes. For kindergarten and first grade, students learn together in "Pods". There are four pods, and each pod contains children mixed together in small class size. The reasoning behind this is that the older children can influence and lead the younger children, starting at a very young age.
As of 2014 the Wiseburn School District allows parents in Mar Vista to send their children to Wiseburn schools on inter-district transfers.
Library
Los Angeles Public Library operates the Mar Vista Branch.
References
External links
- Mapping L.A. - Mar Vista
