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Half the population of Los Angeles lives in the San Fernando Valley. There are somewhere around 1.5 million residents of all walks of life who call the Valley home. For some reason, those who don’t live in the Valley (but live in LA) are often critical of the Valley (and honestly Valley folks rarely critique the West Side). But I’m tired of the harassment from popular culture and others about life of the Valley. So this post represents my defense of the Valley and response to the haters on the other side. Go 818!
- Traffic: Sure, the freeways of LA don’t discriminate based on region. It’s the surface streets that always bothered me when living on the West Side. When in the Valley, you don’t have to avoid driving on any surface during peak hours because traffic (again, apart from the freeways) is rarely an issue.
- Malibu: For most of us in the Valley, Malibu is considered the “Valley Beach.” It’s easy to get to and it’s a beautiful beach. There are miles and miles of sandy beaches, with plenty of parking and without the crowds (unlike the West Side beaches like Santa Monica).
- Nights: So no one would argue that there are some pretty hot summer days out here, but nothing beats a beautiful summer night in the Valley.
- Straight Streets: The streets are straight. For all my friends on the Westside is Jefferson Blvd a North-South street or an East-West street?
- Parking: There is plenty of it (both streets and in lots) and it’s often free. I wouldn’t be surprised if I spent half of my time in the car looking for parking when I lived on the West Side.
- Public Transportation: I can jump on the Orange Line and criss-cross the Valley and then also hook up with the Red Line to get downtown. And if the Metro is not for me, the Bus system does a pretty good job covering the Valley.
- The Fly-Away: I am done driving to LAX airport and paying to park near the airport.
- Diversity: A local geography professor at CSU Northridge drafted a map to show a diversity breakdown in Los Angeles. The Valley had more sections higher on the diversity index than any other section of Los Angeles.
- Middle Eastern Food: The ‘Falafel King’ restaurants all over the West Side are no substitute for authentic Middle Eastern Food found only in the Valley.
- Affordable: Gas is cheaper, rent is cheaper, and houses are cheaper. And with so many grocery stores, competition only drives food prices down.
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Eddy,
I love & respect your love for & defense of the valley, even if I am a valley-hater (though not from a west-sde, but rather an east-side bias.)
I support your praise of the Valley. I think all the other areas of the Los Angeles basin should team up against the West Side. If Orange County complains (legitimately) that the news never reports on that area, the other parts of Los Angeles probably can make similar beefs of the West Side. Here’s the question, though: why does your valley get to be called “The Valley?” Why not the San Gabriel Valley? Is it like San Francisco’s smarmy self-designation as “The City?”
I would join that coalition against the 310. Why are we called “The Valley?” I’m not sure of the historical reasons, but for most people outside of “The Valley” it’s not much of a compliment. The folks in Bubank were offended when the LA Times decided to issue the residents the “Valley” edition of the newspaper.
So if you want to lead a movement for the SG Valley to adopt the term “The Valley” and rescue my San Fernando Valley from the negative associations once and for all… then please, be my guest!