Canyon Country, CA: 1997-2007 (Los Angeles, Soledad: crime, mobile home, neighborhoods)

[Forrman]

I've been living in Canyon Country, CA since 1997 and the town has seen tremendous development in that time. The economy has prospered from the growth of retail businesses, but this has come at the expense of major traffic problems, crowding -- especially in the schools -- and way too many houses being carved out of the surrounding canyons. It would be safe to say that about half the people who live here now lived in another part of Los Angeles county 10 years ago. About 60 percent of the homeowners are middle-upper income whites. Among them, most are conservative, Republican, Evangelical Christians who drive gas guzzling SUVs, BMWs, or worse...Hummers. Around 30 percent of the people here are Hispanic, most of whom are Catholic, conservatives, who either don't vote or vote Republican (I discover this when I go to vote right before the polls close). Most of the people who have good paying jobs have to drive over the hill and work closer to downtown L.A. There are only two ways over the hill and traffic is often a nightmare. If you're lucky, you have a job close to the Mterolink train stop and you use this instead of having to drive (Friday afternoons before 3-day weekends are really a nightmare!). Four to five thousand homes in Canyon Country are mobile homes and they are increasingly attracting low-life white-trash meth-heads and recent immigrant from Latin America. This is really bringing down the quality of life in the community. The town is listed as being below-average in the crime index, but the crime problem is growing rapidly. Within the last three years I have seen significant increases in gang activity. About 2/3 of the gangsters consist of rival Mexicans, and about 1/3 are skinhead whites, who call themselves "Bros." So if you are thinking about moving to Canyon Country, ask yourself first whether you can deal with heavy traffic, increased crowding and crime, and an overwhelming majority of Evangelical Pro-War George W. Bush supporters.

[LALady]

wow. Canyon country has really changed! I remember when folks first started moving out there.

[Winston Smith]

Sounds awful all the way around. Then on top of it all the summer heat, what, 900 degrees?

[LALady]

Originally Posted by cre8

Sounds awful all the way around. Then on top of it all the summer heat, what, 900 degrees?

LOL... , Not 900 degrees but it's hot!

[Charles]

Originally Posted by LALady

wow. Canyon country has really changed! I remember when folks first started moving out there.

Back in the early/mid 1970s we would go explore old abandoned gold mine shafts all over the place out there. I remember Saugus Speedway. Anyone remember the Volcano Bar on Soledad Canyon Road?

[cynwldkat]

Saugus Speedway was big with us!! Major!! The changes out in Cyn Country are huge!!! No place is as it use to be years ago. Just some have improved and others have not!! It's about 50/50 for Cyn Country!!! With the growth comes crime, pollution, and traffic. That's just growth I guess.

[Sorcerer68]

I always thought it looked a lot like Las Vegas, from your description the similarities run deeper than I thought.

[LALady]

Originally Posted by Charles

Back in the early/mid 1970s we would go explore old abandoned gold mine shafts all over the place out there. I remember Saugus Speedway. Anyone remember the Volcano Bar on Soledad Canyon Road?

Didn't go to Canyon country enough to know the local hangouts but recall visiting folks there in the early 1980s. I recall clean, brand new housing tracts, almost no businesses, no people on the street.

[Forrman]

Forrman is right about a lot of things that have happened in C.C. over the years. The town sort of reminds me of another town nearby, called Sun Valley. Sun Valley used to be a nice, clean area, with a bunch of horse stables and open land. But now it's taken over by the poor immigrants, turning the neighborhoods into ghettos, and much of the open space is now occupied by dumps and industrial zones. Could this be Canyon Country's fate by the year 2040?

[LALady]

Originally Posted by Forrman

Forrman is right about a lot of things that have happened in C.C. over the years. The town sort of reminds me of another town nearby, called Sun Valley. Sun Valley used to be a nice, clean area, with a bunch of horse stables and open land. But now it's taken over by the poor immigrants, turning the neighborhoods into ghettos, and much of the open space is now occupied by dumps and industrial zones. Could this be Canyon Country's fate by the year 2040?

Gosh, you are right. Sun Valley has undergone tremendous change. It's an industrial nightmare. Dusty and drab. Isn't that the area where that intersection floods every time in rains?