Bel Air, Los Angeles Explained

Bel Air
Pushpin Map:United States Los Angeles Western
Pushpin Label Position:right
Pushpin Map Caption:Location within West Los Angeles
Pushpin Mapsize:250
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:United States
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Name1:California
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Los Angeles
Subdivision Name3: Los Angeles
Timezone:Pacific

Bel Air (or Bel-Air) is a residential neighborhood on the Los Angeles Westside, in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains in the U.S. state of California.

Together with Beverly Hills and Holmby Hills, Bel Air forms the Platinum Triangle of Los Angeles neighborhoods.[1] Along with Beverly Hills and the Los Angeles community of Brentwood, Bel Air is also part of a high-priced area on the Westside known as the "three Bs."[2] [3] [4]

History

The community was founded in 1923 by Alphonzo Bell. Bell owned farm property in Santa Fe Springs, California, where oil was discovered. He bought a large ranch with a home on what is now Bel Air Road. He subdivided and developed the property with large residential lots, with work on the master plan led by the landscape architect Mark Daniels.[5] He also built the Bel-Air Bay Club in Pacific Palisades and the Bel-Air Country Club. His wife chose Italian names for the streets. She also founded the Bel-Air Garden Club in 1931.[6]

Fires

On November 6, 1961, a fire ignited and devastated the community of Bel Air, destroying 484 homes in the area. On December 6, 2017, a fire started by a homeless encampment burned in the same area, destroying six homes.

Geography

Bel Air is situated about 12miles west of Downtown Los Angeles,[7] set entirely within the Santa Monica Mountains. It lies across Sunset Boulevard from the northern edge of the main campus of the University of California, Los Angeles. At the heart of the community sits the Bel-Air Country Club and the Hotel Bel-Air.

Climate

This region experiences warm and dry summers. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Bel Air has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps.[8]

Demographics

The 2000 U.S. census counted 7,691 residents in the 6.37sqmi Bel Air neighborhood; with it has among the lowest population densities for the city and the county. In 2008, the city estimated that the population had increased to 8,253.

In 2000, the median age for residents was 46, which was high for city and county neighborhoods. The percentages of residents aged 50 and older was among the county's highest.[9]

The median yearly household income in 2008 was $207,938, the highest figure for any neighborhood or city in Los Angeles County. Renters occupied 14.5% of the housing stock, and house- or apartment-owners held 85.5%. The average household size of 2.4 people was considered typical for Los Angeles.[9]

The 4.1% of families headed by single parents was considered low for city and county neighborhoods. The percentages of married people in Bel Air were among the county's highest—66.0% for men and 65.7% for women. There were 808 veterans, or 12.9% of the population.[9] [10]

The neighborhood was considered "not especially diverse" ethnically[11] within Los Angeles, with a relatively high percentage of white people. The breakdown was whites, 83.0%; Asians, 8.2%; Latinos, 4.6%; African Americans, 0.9%; and others, 3.2%. Iran (26.1%) and South Africa (8.2%) were the most common places of birth for the 24.1% of the residents who were born abroad—which was an average percentage for Los Angeles as a whole.[9]

Neighborhoods

Of several entrances, there are two main ones: (1) the East Gate at Beverly Glen and Sunset Boulevards and (2) the West Gate at Bellagio Way and Sunset Boulevard, opposite an entrance to UCLA. Bel Air is generally subdivided into three distinct neighborhoods: East Gate Old Bel Air, West Gate Bel Air, and Upper Bel Air.

Bel Air Estates, the original subdivision of the Bel Air community, is generally bounded by Nimes Road to the north, Sunset Boulevard to the south, Beverly Glen Boulevard to the east and both sides of Bel Air Road to the west.[12]

Attractions

The Hannah Carter Japanese Garden is located in Bel Air. It was inspired by the gardens of Kyoto. Many structures in the garden—the main gate, garden house, bridges, and shrine—were built in Japan and reassembled on site. Antique stone carvings, water basins and lanterns, as well as the five-tiered pagoda, and key symbolic rocks are also from Japan.[13]

Government and infrastructure

The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services SPA 5 West Area Health Office serves Bel Air.[14]

It lies within the 5th city council district, represented by Katy Young Yaroslavsky. It is located in the 90077 (Bel Air Estates & Beverly Glen) ZIP code, which is part of the city of Los Angeles. Stone Canyon Reservoir lies in the northeastern part of Bel Air. Established in 1994, it serves around 500,000 people. The Bel Air Association has been operational since 1942, dedicated to preserving the aesthetic appearance of the residential community. The Bel Air Association is located at the entrance of the East Gate of Bel Air at 100 Bel Air Road.[15]

Emergency services

Fire services

Los Angeles Fire Department Station 71 is in the area.[16]

Police services

The Los Angeles Police Department operates the West Los Angeles Community Police Station at 1663 Butler Avenue, 90025, serving the neighborhood.[17]

Education

Almost two-thirds (66.1%) of Bel Air residents aged 25 and older had earned a four-year degree by 2000, a high percentage for the city and the county. The percentages of residents in that age range with a bachelor's degree or greater were high for the county.[9] The community is within the Los Angeles Unified School District. The area is within Board District 4.[18] As of 2009, Steve Zimmer represented the district.[19]

Schools

The schools within Bel Air are as follows:[20]

Public

Roscomare Road and Warner Avenue Elementary School in Westwood are the zoned elementary schools serving Bel Air.[21] [24] Bel Air is within the attendance boundaries of Emerson Middle School in Westwood and University High School, West Los Angeles.

In April 1983, an advisory committee of the LAUSD recommended closing eight LAUSD schools, including Bellagio Road School. The committee did not target Fairburn Avenue School in Westwood, as a way of allowing it to preserve its ethnic balance, and so it can take children from Bellagio Road in case it closed.[25] In August 1983, the board publicly considered closing Bellagio, which had 240 students at the time.[26] The school's enrollment had been decreasing. In May 1983 the board voted to keep the school open. In February 1984, after the composition of the board had changed, the board voted to close the Bellagio Road School.[27]

Bel Air previously housed the Bellagio Road Newcomer School, a 3rd–8th grade school for newly arrived immigrants. In 2002, it had 390 students from Armenia, China, El Salvador, Guatemala, Korea, Russia, and other countries.[28] This program was housed in the former Bellagio Road school.[29]

Private

University

Bel Air is home to the American Jewish University.[33] Additionally, Bel Air borders the University of California, Los Angeles on the south.

In popular culture

Television shows and films have been filmed in Bel Air, or are said to take place in the community. Exterior shots for the Beverly Hillbillies were shot in and around 750 Bel Air Road,[34] built by Lynn Atkinson (and later sold to hotelier Arnold Kirkeby after Atkinson's wife refused to move into a house she thought too ostentatious).Several scenes in the film "Get Hard" (2015) were set in Bel Air.Exterior scenes from films such as Get Shorty (1995) have also been filmed in the area. Several episodes of the television show The Rockford Files were filmed in Bel Air.[35]

The television sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, starring actor and rapper Will Smith, was set in the neighborhood, although the exterior shots used were filmed in nearby Brentwood.[36]

The Bel Air house featured in the film Strangers When We Meet (1960) was built and completed during filming, and still stands today as a private residence.[37]

The Bel Air Film Festival, first held in 2008,[38] is an annual international film festival held in Bel Air and the Los Angeles area.

Bel Air is also represented in music, such as in the song "Bel Air" by Lana Del Rey.

The Chevrolet Bel Air was a full-size car produced by Chevrolet for the 1950–1975 model years.

Notable people

See also

Notes and References

  1. News: Annette . Haddad . No housing slump for super-rich – sales and prices have never been better in the Platinum Triangle . . July 7, 2007.
  2. Book: Mehdi . Bozorgmehr . Claudia . Der-Martirosian . Georges . Sabagh . Middle Easterners: A New Kind of Immigrant . Roger . Waldinger . Mehdi . Bozorgmehr . Ethnic Los Angeles . . December 5, 1996 . 978-1-61044-547-4 . https://books.google.com/books?id=zwwXAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA347 . 347 . ...in Beverly Hills, Bel Air, and Brentwood, known in local parlance as 'the three Bs.'.
  3. News: Melton . Mary . The Stars of Star Maps . . August 25, 1996 . Each map tends to cover the 'three Bs': Brentwood, Bel-Air and Beverly Hills. A few toss in a Malibu sidebar..
  4. News: Myers . David W. . A Sad Westside Story : Home Prices Have Declined as Much as 50% Since the 1980s . Los Angeles Times . May 28, 1993 . July 4, 2014 . But, as Meyer's case suggests, nowhere have those losses been as dramatic as the high-priced area on the Westside known as the 'three Bs' – Brentwood, Bel-Air and Beverly Hills..
  5. Web site: Thompson . Daniella . Mark Daniels excelled in developing and marketing scenic beauty . Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association . April 18, 2007.
  6. Web site: History of Bel-Air . Bel-Air Association . November 14, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140223140013/https://sites.google.com/site/belaironline/history-of-bel-air . February 23, 2014.
  7. Web site: Driving Directions from Los Angeles, CA to Bel Air, CA . Mapquest.com . January 14, 2013.
  8. Web site: Climate Summary for Bel Air, California . Weatherbase.com . September 12, 2017.
  9. Web site: Bel-Air. Mapping L.A.. Los Angeles Times. October 31, 2015.
  10. Web site: Veterans Ranking . Mapping L.A.. Los Angeles Times. October 31, 2015.
  11. Web site: Diversity. Mapping L.A.. Los Angeles Times. The diversity index measures the probability that any two residents, chosen at random, would be of different ethnicities. If all residents are of the same ethnic group it's zero. If half are from one group and half from another it's .50." . October 31, 2015.
  12. http://www.preservation.lacity.org/files/Bel%20Air%20-Beverly%20Crest%20Districts.pdf SurveyLA: Bel Air - Beverly Crest Report Historic Districts, Planning Districts and Multi-Property Resources – 12/05/13
  13. News: UCLA and Hannah Carter heirs settle suit over Japanese garden in Bel-Air . Martha . Groves . Los Angeles Times. September 30, 2015 . April 17, 2016.
  14. Web site: About Us . . March 18, 2010.
  15. Web site: About us . Bel~Air Association . https://web.archive.org/web/20100409113136/http://sites.google.com/site/belaironline/Home/about-us . April 9, 2010.
  16. Web site: Fire Station 71 . . October 31, 2015.
  17. Web site: West LA Community Police Station . Los Angeles Police Department . October 31, 2015.
  18. Web site: Board District 4 Map . . November 24, 2008.
  19. Web site: Board Members . Los Angeles Unified School District . September 16, 2009 . May 2, 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090502164012/http://laschoolboard.org/ . dead .
  20. Web site: Bel-Air Schools . Mapping L.A. . Los Angeles Times . October 31, 2015.
  21. News: Savage . David G. . Many Minority Students Back in Their Old Schools . https://web.archive.org/web/20121104172233/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/663790622.html?dids=663790622:663790622&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Apr+11,+1982&author=&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&desc=Many+Minority+Students+Back+in+Their+Old+Schools&pqatl=google . dead . November 4, 2012 . . April 11, 1982 . March 23, 2010 . ...a bright and talkative black girl, rode a school bus from her home west of down-town Los Angeles to Roscomare Road Elementary School in the hills of Bel Air..
  22. Web site: Guzman . Stephanie . A Look Into L.A. Unified: Community Magnet . Neon Tommy (Annenberg Digital News) . University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism . August 15, 2010 . January 15, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120506002546/http://www.neontommy.com/news/2010/08/look-la-unified-community-magnet . May 6, 2012 . dead .
  23. Web site: Community School Proposed Relocation to Bellagio Road School Community Meeting . Community Magnet School . July 8, 2002 . January 15, 2012.
  24. News: Lesel . Helene . A Part of the City, Yet Apart from it Too . . March 6, 2005 . March 23, 2010.
  25. News: Faris . Gerald . Closing of 8 Schools Recommended, One Near Airport . https://web.archive.org/web/20121105184218/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/667529832.html?dids=667529832:667529832&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Apr+17%2C+1983&author=&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&desc=Closing+of+8+Schools+Recommended%2C+One+Near+Airport&pqatl=google . dead . November 5, 2012 . Los Angeles Times . April 17, 1983 . January 16, 2012.
  26. News: Pool . Bob . Board to Consider Closing 4 More Valley Schools . https://web.archive.org/web/20121105184245/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/668614182.html?dids=668614182:668614182&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Aug+07%2C+1983&author=&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&desc=Board+to+Consider+Closing+4+More+Valley+Schools&pqatl=google . dead . November 5, 2012 . August 7, 1983 . Los Angeles Times . January 16, 2012.
  27. News: Savage . David G. . L.A. Board to Close 5 More Schools . https://web.archive.org/web/20121105184232/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/671185632.html?dids=671185632:671185632&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Feb+07%2C+1984&author=&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&desc=L.A.+Board+to+Close+5+More+Schools&pqatl=google . dead . November 5, 2012 . Los Angeles Times . February 7, 1984 . January 16, 2012.
  28. News: Helfand . Duke . Erika . Hayasaki . $459 Million in Cuts Are Considered for Fiscally Strapped L.A. Schools . Los Angeles Times . April 26, 2002 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121012004637/http://articles.latimes.com/2002/apr/26/local/me-lausd26/2 . dead . October 12, 2012 . 2 . January 16, 2012.
  29. News: Shuster . Beth . Pilot Program Urged For 8 Elementary Schools . . May 13, 1988 . January 16, 2012.
  30. Web site: The John Thomas Dye School . Bel Air Association . January 10, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20081030095718/http://www.belaironline.org/SubPageContent.asp?ID=54 . October 30, 2008 . dead .
  31. News: Where Bright Minds Can Shine . Elaine . Woo . Los Angeles Times . November 22, 2000.
  32. News: Culture Shock Many Object to the Growing Sprawl of Institutions Atop Sepulveda Pass . Jon D. . Markman . Los Angeles Times . May 21, 1995 . October 19, 2013.
  33. News: Two Jewish educational institutes are merging . Los Angeles Times . March 22, 2007.
  34. Web site: Real Estate: TV Show Buildings At A Glance . TV Acres . January 14, 2013 . https://archive.today/20120604183029/http://www.tvacres.com/locations.htm . June 4, 2012 . dead .
  35. Web site: Display of estate used in several episodes. Google Maps.
  36. Web site: Fresh Prince House – For Real This Time!. Iamnotastalker.com. May 22, 2008. January 14, 2013.
  37. Web site: The Wood Prince of Bel Air: Building the 'Strangers When We Meet' House . 2020-06-05. Forest History Society. June 4, 2020 .
  38. Bel Air gets a fest. Variety. Michael. Jones. October 21, 2008 . July 23, 2010.
  39. Web site: Jennifer Aniston buys big digs in Bel Air . Real Estalker . January 24, 2012 . April 4, 2014.
  40. Web site: Homes of the Western Stars (A-B) . Charles Starrett – One Fan's Journey . January 2, 2016 . Bob . Siler. May 25, 2011 .
  41. News: Professor as Entrepreneur: UCLA's Belldegrun on to Next Biopharma Enterprise. Los Angeles Business Journal. 2018.
  42. News: Jay-Z and Beyoncé put down roots in L.A. with $88-million splash. Neal J.. Leitereg. Lauren. Beale. Jack. Flemming. August 26, 2017. Los Angeles Times.
  43. Web site: Former home of Wilt Chamberlain is up for sale . Berg Properties . March 9, 2007 . May 23, 2014 . May 31, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230531042240/https://www.bergproperties.com/blog/former-home-of-wilt-chamberlain-is-up-for-sale/ . dead .
  44. Web site: Broken Promise - Los Angeles Magazine. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20160405083142/http://www.lamag.com/longform/broken-promise/. 2016-04-05.
  45. Web site: 'Are you building a Taj Mahal?' :Clint Eastwood goes badass on construction workers near Bel Air home. April 26, 2014. Realty Today.
  46. Web site: 846 Stradella Rd, Los Angeles, CA - 7 beds/5 baths. Redfin.
  47. News: Spindler. Amy M.. 1997-05-13. In Los Angeles, a Modern Muse. en-US. The New York Times. 2022-01-30. 0362-4331.
  48. News: O'Rourke. Meghan. 2012-10-25. The Unlikely Reformer. en-US. The Wall Street Journal. 2022-01-30. 0099-9660.
  49. News: John Gilbert, film actor, dies of heart attack . . January 9, 1936 . 13 . Google News . January 6, 2016.
  50. News: May 28, 1931 . Mrs. Sloan Orcutt Goes To Coronado For Rest . . Los Angeles, CA . 12 . Newspapers.com.
  51. News: September 29, 1934 . Gen. Harries Dies; Headed D.C. Guard . . Washington, D.C. . 2 . Newspapers.com.
  52. Web site: Local Inspiration for Movie Classics: Hitchcock had Link to Santa Cruz . Santa Cruz Public Libraries . March 4, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070905101712/http://www.santacruzpl.org/history/films/hitch.shtml . September 5, 2007.
  53. Web site: McClain . James . 2019-10-28 . YouTubers Ethan & Hila Klein Buy $9 Million Bel Air Mansion . 2022-07-02 . DIRT . en-US.
  54. Web site: Actress Sondra Locke, Embittered Ex of Clint Eastwood, Dies at 74. The Hollywood Reporter. December 13, 2018 . December 14, 2018.
  55. Joni Mitchell Defends Herself . Cameron . Crowe . Cameron Crowe . July 26, 1979 . . September 12, 2017.
  56. Web site: Manure-filled package sent to Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin sends bomb squad to Bel Air. ABC 7. 2017. 2019-10-25.
  57. News: Heffernan . Virginia . Leonard Nimoy, Spock of 'Star Trek', Dies at 83 . February 27, 2015 . . October 31, 2015.
  58. Web site: Chris Paul Just Bought Avril Lavigne's $8.5 Million Mansion In Bel Air . Leah . Goldman . January 20, 2012 . . April 13, 2014.
  59. News: Sanchez . Rene . Presidential library, Bel Air streets become centers for grieving . . June 6, 2004 . 13A . January 16, 2012 .
  60. News: Downtown's Quiet Bel Air Buyer. Los Angeles Downtown News. 2013. 2019-10-25.
  61. Mayer . Rus . TV Mogul Darren Star's Art-Filled Bel Air Home . March 2012 . Architectural Digest.
  62. Sydney Sweeney secures a new Bel Air fixer upper for $9.3 million. Vogue (Australia). July 27, 2023. July 26, 2024.
  63. News: An Intimate Portrait of Elizabeth Taylor as Seen Through Her Home. https://web.archive.org/web/20200329204732/https://slate.com/culture/2016/01/inside-elizabeth-taylors-bel-air-home-700-nimes-road.html. dead. 29 March 2020. 25 January 2016. David Rosenberg. Slate. 23 March 2020.
  64. Web site: Brenoff . Ann . Liz Taylor's Bel-Air Home Hits Market at $8.6 Million . AOL Real Estate . May 20, 2011 . January 14, 2013.
  65. Web site: A grant for China education. 2022-01-30. Daily Bruin.
  66. News: The Weeknd Buys $70 Million Mansion in One of L.A.’s Biggest Deals of the Year. The Wall Street Journal. August 21, 2021. July 26, 2024.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Bel Air, Los Angeles".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.