Mt. Washington, Los Angeles, California

Mt. Washington is a neighborhood located in the hills of northeastern Los Angeles, California.

Geography

The boundaries of Mt. Washington are roughly defined by Division Street on the west, El Paso Drive and Avenue 50 on the northeast, Marmion Way on the southeast, and Isabel street on the southwest. [http://www.asnc.us/Elections-2007/StreetFinder_map.pdf Arroyo Seco Neighborhood Council Map] Adjacent neighborhoods include Glassell Park to the northwest, Eagle Rock to the north, Highland Park to the northeast, Montecito Heights to the southeast, across the Arroyo Seco, and Cypress Park to the southwest. Mt. Washington contains views of the San Gabriel Valley and Los Angeles Basin to the Pacific Ocean on clear days.

Mt. Washington is split between Los Angeles City Council districts 1 and 14 [http://www.lacity.org/council/cd14/cd14map.pdf LA Council District 14 Map] and is part of California's 31st congressional district. The neighborhood lies mostly within ZIP code 90065, with an eastern portion in 90042, and the area code is 323.

Transportation

Owing to its hilly geography, Mt. Washington lacks major arterial streets. However, nearby transportation options allow easy access to Downtown Los Angeles, Pasadena, and other areas of Los Angeles. Several major thoroughfares run through adjacent neighborhoods, including Figueroa Street, San Fernando Road, York Boulevard, and Eagle Rock Boulevard. The area is also served by several freeways: the Pasadena Freeway, Glendale Freeway, and Golden State Freeway. The Metro Gold Line serves southeastern parts of the neighborhood with a station near the Southwest Museum.

History

Mt. Washington was founded in 1909 as a subdivision laid out by real estate developer Robert Marsh. Marsh built the Mt. Washington Hotel at the summit of Mt. Washington, and the Los Angeles and Mount Washington Railway Company was soon established as a funicular railway up the hill as an alternative to constructing roads up the area's steep hillsides. The railway operated until January 1919. [http://www.cable-car-guy.com/html/cclafun.html#mtw Mount Washington Railway]

As Los Angeles grew outward from its core, Mt. Washington was eventually absorbed into the city proper. Like most of the Eastside, the district became unfashionable to whites as Mid-Wilshire and the West Side flowered in the 1930s, and especially after the construction of the Arroyo Seco Parkway.Fact|date=May 2008 After World War II, it became a hot destination for middle-class Mexican Americans, who are the area's dominant population to this day.Fact|date=May 2008

In the 1950s and 1960s Modernist homes, similar to those found in the Hollywood Hills or Brentwood were built in the district.Fact|date=May 2008 The district is generally considered the most affluent area of the East Side, and also contains the region's largest concentration of non-Latino whites.Fact|date=May 2008 During the 1980s the population was heavily gay and lesbian, but many took advantage of the rapid increase in prices to sell at the end of that decade. Also, during the 70's and 80's, the "Hill" attracted a bohemian element.Fact|date=May 2008 Today, the population is mainly professional class with some involved in the arts.Fact|date=May 2008 In recent years, many homebuyers have become attracted to the area as a relatively affordable alternative to the Westside. [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/25/business/yourmoney/25natreal.html New York Times article, retrieved 20 May 2008]

Demographics

Mt. Washington is split among several U.S. Census tracts that include portions of other districts, making an exact population difficult to determine. As of 2000, ethnic/racial breakdown is roughly 30% non-Hispanic White, 53% Hispanic or Latino of any race, 4% African-American, 11% Asian or Pacific Islander, and 2% of two or more races.Fact|date=May 2008 Moreover, median household income was estimated at roughly $50,000 and $21,000 per capita income. Home prices range from about $500,000 to around $1,500,000.Fact|date=May 2008

Landmarks

*Southwest Museum
*World Headquarters of the Self-Realization Fellowship
*Eldred Street, between Avenue 50 and Cross Avenue on the side of Mt. Washington, with a slope of 33% grade, is one of the three steepest streets in Los Angeles [ [http://www.walkinginla.com/2004/Feb15/EldredSt.html "Getting the Slant on L.A.'s Steepest Street"] ] and one of the steepest streets in the world (Baldwin Street, Dunedin, New Zealand is 35%) .

Notable residents

*Antonio Villaraigosa, mayor of Los Angeles (2005-) and former speaker of the California State Assembly
*Daddy Kev, acclaimed music producer and engineer
*BJ Gallagher, author of the international best-seller, A Peacock in the Land of Penguins, and 12 other books
*Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times columnist
*Jay Oliver, Noted Jazz Musician
*Jack Smith, author and Los Angeles Times columnist
*Guy Hendrix Dyas, film production designer whose credits include "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull", "", "Superman Returns", and "X2"
*Derek McCants, film editor
*Gloria Molina, Los Angeles County Supervisor
*Ed Reyes, Los Angeles City Councilman for council district 1
*Dorothy Gaspar, World renowned master glove maker/designer
*Wendel Eckford, Noted historian, professor of U.S. & African-American history
*Edmund B. McCormick, architect noted for pueblo-style eco-homes
*Mike Galaxy, Los Angeles Music Promoter and Indy Hits founder
*Edmund F. Raspa III, architect, father, debonair 70s man of style
*Tribal Tats., international recording artists
*Matthew Roxx, Rock Musician (Axehammer), (Dreams of Damnation)
*Macha Suzuki, emerging Los Angeles artist

References

External links

* [http://www.asnc.us/ Arroyo Seco Neighborhood Council, serving Mt. Washington]
* [http://www.mtwashington.org/ Mt. Washington Association]
* [http://www.bob-taylor.com/mtwash.htm Bob Taylor Properties - history of Mt. Washington]
* [http://www.erha.org/washington.htm History of the Mt. Washington hotel and funicular]