Local Communities

Westchester
Playa Vista
Santa Monica
Westwood
Playa del Rey
Mar Vista
Pacific Palisades
Venice
Marina del Rey
Culver City
West Los Angeles
Manhattan Beach

Westchester

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Westchester Park

Westchester is a beachside bedroom community, which blossomed during the post WWII aerospace industry and is flourishing even more today as people discover its convenience and comfortable living.

The community revolves around the important landmark, Los Angeles International Airport, known as LAX, the third busiest airport in the world and it is freeway close to all the important business and cultural centers of Greater Los Angeles.

Lax Airport

Loyola Marymount University

The prestigious Loyola Marymount University is located on 100 acres in the Westchester bluff area. The bluff area is also where many new homes are being developed with wonderful views.

Nature buffs can enjoy the serenity and open vistas of the freshwater marsh, a protected wildlife habitat within the community, unique for the symbiotic relationship and placement within an otherwise urban landscape. The marsh is responsible for filtering and removing pollutants from storm water before it flows into the Santa Monica Bay.

Bluff Views

Along with easy-access shopping for every occasion and need, The Promenade at the Howard Hughes Center offers residents and visitors a choice of 30 specialty restaurants and shops, an IMAX theater and other entertainment facilities as well as new office buildings. World-class hotels in the area provide hospitality to millions of visitors each year and entrepreneurs of all types cater to the needs and desires of a diverse and vibrant population. Contact Us for prices and availability!

Westchester/LAX Marina del Rey Chamber of Commerce

Playa Vista

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Playa Vista is the first new community to be established on the Westside of Los Angeles in more than 50 years. The community balances residential, commercial and retail space, creating a place to live, work and play.

Situated about a mile from the beach, Playa Vista is nestled below the bluffs of Westchester, adjacent to the newly restored Ballona Freshwater Marsh and within easy reach of Santa Monica, Venice, Century City and LAX.

This vibrant new community balances critically needed homes near the beach, office space, neighborhood shopping, parks and habitat protection on Los Angeles' Westside.

At Playa Vista, you will find a community that includes homes built for today's lifestyles by many of the nation's leading builders.

This diverse collection of residences includes detached single-family homes, town homes, condominiums and charming lofts—all with state-of-the-art amenities.

Playa Vista is more than a new place to live. It is a new community that has the charm and spirit of a small town woven into the heart of the big city. And it offers residents all of the conveniences of the digital world with a down-home lifestyle where you don't have to drive to take a nice walk, and where you don't need a town meeting to get to know your neighbors.

Santa Monica

Santa Monica blends the charm and appeal of a beach resort with sophistication of an urban center in a stimulating, dynamic atmosphere for living and business. Located at the crossroads of the Pacific Coast Highway and Interstate 10, Santa Monica offers convenient access to major freeways and is eight miles north of Los Angeles International Airport.

Within the city’s 8.3 square miles are high profile corporate headquarters, a large hi-tech entertainment district, beautiful beaches, luxury hotels, nearly 400 restaurants for every taste & budget & hundreds of retail shops, art galleries & boutiques. Known for its healthy lifestyle, this environment and pedestrian-friendly city also boasts one of the most respected public transportation systems in the nation, making the entire city easily accessible and convenient, even without a vehicle. One such central pedestrian zone is the Third Street Promenade, which is lined with shops, restaurants and movie theaters and features a fabulous weekly Farmer’s Market.

Santa Monica 7.jpg Montana Avenue is another popular local destination offering block after block of restaurants, boutiques, art galleries, coffee houses and unique retail stores.

With a mild, consistent Mediterranean type climate (year-round average, 68 degrees) and centered on three miles of wide, white sand, the world famous beaches and bike trails of Santa Monica offer year round unlimited outdoor activities to residents and visitors.

Here are additional links for your enjoyment:

Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce	Downtown Santa Monica & 3rd St. Promenade
Pacific Park	Main Street
Montana Avenue	Santa Monica Pier
Farmer's Market	Santa Monica Place
Bergamot Station	Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area

Westwood

Westwood and Westwood Village are located in West Los Angeles, bounded by Beverly Hills (on the east), Century City (on the southeast), Brentwood (on the west) & Bel-Air (on the north). It is a charming college town and village, within walking distance from the immense UCLA (University of California at Los Angeles) campus. The residential neighborhood in the surrounding gentling rolling hills is home to many university professors and staff, entertainment industry professionals, and upscale working families, individuals and couples.

In a city famed for the need to drive to get anywhere, Westwood Village was notably one of the first pedestrian shopping areas in Los Angeles, where people could take a stroll, get a bite to eat in one of many restaurants, see a movie or simply go shopping. It offers a multitude of boutiques, restaurants and theaters and Mediterranean revival architecture, full of character. Exploring the unexpected nooks and crannies and patios located throughout its winding thoroughfares is an adventure of its own.

Culture, social interaction and “village life” inside the big city are unique characteristics that make Westwood a wonderful place to live and work.

Playa del Rey

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Playa del Rey

Playa del Rey, “The Last Stop Before the Pacific,” is surrounded by wetlands and the Pacific Ocean, as well as some of the best beaches in the area.

To the north is Marina del Rey, Venice, and Santa Monica. To the south is Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach, Redondo Beach, Palos Verdes, and Torrance.

Within the community, you can walk just about everywhere -- across the pedestrian bridge connecting Playa del Rey to sister town, Marina Del Rey, with its immense manmade recreational harbor, or to the beach, restaurants, café’s and retail stores.

Watch the boats coming and going, bike or walk on the bike path along the water. Whether your preference is rollerblading, jogging, sunbathing or people watching, this is a great place to be. And the temperature is always a smog-less 10-15 degrees cooler than in the city. The community offers condos, townh9ouses, single family homes, bluff homes with views and smaller residential income properties.

The Inn at Playa del Rey

Mar Vista/Palms

Mar Vista is a peaceful commuter town located between Santa Monica and Venice. It has many broad tree lined streets, and the majority of the homes were built in the 1940's and 50's.

A great many of the Mar Vista homes have been remodeled, but even the original ones retain their Spanish charm, and have very convenient floor plans. The highest elevation is on top of Mar Vista hill, and these streets afford a distant but beautiful view of Santa Monica Bay.

Most residents work on the west side, but it is a convenient commute to almost anywhere in L.A. as well as a five-minute drive to the beach.

Sea breezes contribute to its temperate climate, usually in the 70's. Home to professionals, families and couples of all ages, it also boasts a thriving artist community.

Mar Vista is a great area for first time buyers or for people who have relocated from elsewhere in the United States and want to get into the southern California real estate market.

Pacific Palisades

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Pacific Palisades is a haven of nature, tranquility and civility away from the city madness – even though it is only a few short miles north of Santa Monica. The Pacific Ocean and Will Rogers State Beach are its southern boundaries and to the north, are the untamed and alluring Santa Monica Mountains.

There are federal buildings and foreign consulates, parks, public and private country clubs and golf courses, major shopping malls and more…

Sports and nature fans find plenty to do on the more than three miles of Pacific Ocean coastline.

Westchester/LAX Marina del Rey Chamber of Commerce

Venice

Venice has had a long and colorful journey since Abbot Kinney purchased “worthless” sand dune and marshland acreage south of Santa Monica and dreamed of building a Venice-of-America, with the appearance and social, cultural heritage of Venice, Italy. People termed his development “Kinney’s Folly,” but quickly ate their words when crowds flocked to his seven canals, complete with Italian gondolas and gondoliers, the ornate Byzantine and Renaissance hotels along Windward Avenue and other attractions – and the people have not stopped coming since.

Venice 6.jpg Celebrations of every kind, questionable and shock value entertainment, rocky politics and infighting led to a decline in the area earlier in the 1900’s.

Some of the Venice canals were filled in and were paved over at that time. But thankfully, the municipal money ran out for the “improvements” and five canals still exist today – now highly prized and picturesque real estate. Charming restored, re-modeled and showcase homes line their borders.

Much of the creative charge, the rebellion against tidy municipal mores – and the fun – is still an important element of the character of the area today, but it is also a place where a family, couple or individual living there can feel safe and comfortable.

The Venice art community, long a part of the demographic profile, includes some of the finest international stars today, drawn by the famously free spirit and open attitudes of the community. Stupendous murals, galleries, studios, advertising and media agencies and the famous annual Venice Art Walk bring residents and visitors a taste of this creativity. The eclectic architecture, often built or designed around lofts, condos and townhouses, commercial spaces, storefronts and beachfront homes, is also often highly individual and imaginative.

Venice is also well known for great restaurants and cafes, for the non-ending flow and show of humanity along the famous beach Boardwalk and for the many community services and participants. With its 32,000 residents and a very diverse and eclectic demographic, Venice is a welcoming community of great character and great heart.

Here are some Venice links that might be of interest:

Venice Historical Society	Jeff Stanton's UCLA Site
Betsy's Venice Mural Page	The Electric Lodge
Westland Venice Artist's Page	Westland Rip Cronk Page
Carnavale!	Pat Hartman's "Virtual Venice"
Arnold Springer's Venice History Site	Poster by Silk Screen MasterEarl Newman
The Venice Forum	Social & Public Art Resource Center
Venice Community Trust	Venice Art Collective

Marina Del Rey

Marina Del Rey is a popular destination for business travelers, boaters, water sports enthusiasts, tourists – and it is a great place to live for people
of all ages.

For those who love the ocean, Marina del Rey has 6,000 residential boat slips, 1,900 guest boat docks, public fishing docks, Admiralty Park, view piers and the lovely, winding ocean front promenade.

For those who love dining, the area has the highest density of restaurant seating in a one square mile area, outside New York City, offering choices for every palate and budget.

This relaxed but elegant community has something special for everyone.

Culver City

Culver City is located at the intersection of the 405 (San Diego) and 10 (Santa Monica) freeways, and is 15 minutes north of the Los Angeles International Airport, 15 minutes east of the Marina del Rey and the Pacific Ocean, 15 minutes south of Beverly Hills and 20 minutes west of Downtown Los Angeles; short distance to the beach.

A city of approximately 40,000 people, it is home to Sony Pictures Studios, “The Heart of Screenland,” and is a hub for the hard-working professionals and artists of the entertainment and creative industries.

The Helm Bakery art complex and the Hayden Tract design center are found there, along with many outdoor cafes, unique shops and galleries opening onto tree-lined walking boulevards. Handsome landmark buildings house other cutting-edge media facilities and creative arts workshops.

Culver City boasts a City Hall of imposing architectural beauty, new state-of-the-art movie theatres, and the nationally renowned Center Theatre Group's Kirk Douglas Theatre.

The city has a growing and dynamic Downtown area, with many scheduled events, theater and a weekly Farmer’s Market. With easy access to all parts of the city and every convenience – shopping, schools, restaurants, medical facilities, recreation and community services, Culver City offers a comfortable, urban lifestyle for families, couples and individuals.

Learn more about Downtown Culver City

West Los Angeles

West Los Angeles is bordered by the cities of Beverly Hills, Culver City and Santa Monica, Los Angeles County and the Pacific Ocean. It is the hub for a thriving, dynamic and diverse residential population exceeding 228,000. West Los Angeles also includes Bel-Air and Century City.

West Los Angeles 5.jpg The community boasts all the traditional community conveniences of, shopping, theaters, restaurants, schools, churches, synagogues and services of the highest quality.

Some unique features are the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Museum of Tolerance, the Skirball Jewish Center, 20th Century Fox Studios, the Armand Hammer Museum of Art and Cultural Center (at UCLA) and Westwood Village – sites that attract local residents and visitors from all over the world.

There are federal buildings and foreign consulates, parks, public and private country clubs and golf courses, major shopping malls and more…

Sports and nature fans find plenty to do on the more than three miles of Pacific Ocean coastline.

Westchester/LAX Marina del Rey Chamber of Commerce

Local Communities

Jane St. John & Carli Vandervort

DRE #00998927 & 01000737