Where are the safe areas in Santa Clarita/Newhall? (Los Angeles: middle-class, section 8)

[pears]

I have a family friend moving to the Santa Clarita Valley because of a job change. They have small children. What are the safe neighborhoods? What are the places to avoid? I know that everyone says to avoid Newhall and Canyon Country, and driving through them I completely see why. I keep on hearing about the influx of gang bangers and section 8 from the San Fernando Valley, where are they mainly settling? Are they just in Newhall and Canyon Country? Valencia seems decent, what do other people think?

[Cheektowaga_Chester]

What be his budget is?

Here's a look at school performance. Looks like school performance is a little better towards the west side.

[genjy]

The whole Santa Clarita area is generally pretty safe, IMO.

Valencia is the nicest and safest.

Valencia is close to the freeway, too--many sections of Santa Clarita would require 10s of minutes of driving just to get to the freeway.

[Pacifico]

I concur with Valencia. In addition, Stevenson Ranch in the immediate area. However, the commute into LA via the 5 South is a doozy.

[FutureCaliforniaEscapee]

Valencia is the trendiest. But whatever "class" the city is supposed to have is thrown off by the Hooter's type restaurant they have smack-dab in the middle of the mall grounds, among other things. There is even a restaurant there named Forever Geisha. Why not a restaurant called "Forever Prostitute?" It means the same thing. Just disgusting, and very surreal, considering the family-friendly atmosphere this city tries to promote.

Newhall is too gritty, except for the wealthy area -- it does have one. Therefore, my vote is for Saugus or Canyon Country. Saugus has a kind of upper-middle-class blue-collar feel to it, much less wannabe overall than Valencia. Canyon Country is undoubtedly a bit dodgy but nothing that is going to keep you up at night fearing for your life, there are just some eccentrics and hobo-looking people running around. But you can probably find very good homes there. I think they both have more character than Valencia but Santa Clarita is a bit strange all over.

[sprint100]

Originally Posted by FutureCaliforniaEscapee

Valencia is the trendiest. But whatever "class" the city is supposed to have is thrown off by the Hooter's type restaurant they have smack-dab in the middle of the mall grounds, among other things. There is even a restaurant there named Forever Geisha. Why not a restaurant called "Forever Prostitute?" It means the same thing. Just disgusting, and very surreal, considering the family-friendly atmosphere this city tries to promote.

Newhall is too gritty, except for the wealthy area -- it does have one. Therefore, my vote is for Saugus or Canyon Country. Saugus has a kind of upper-middle-class blue-collar feel to it, much less wannabe overall than Valencia. Canyon Country is undoubtedly a bit dodgy but nothing that is going to keep you up at night fearing for your life, there are just some eccentrics and hobo-looking people running around. But you can probably find very good homes there. I think they both have more character than Valencia but Santa Clarita is a bit strange all over.

I agree totally with the above post since I have lived in Valencia and Canyon Country. To me Valencia isn't worth the extra money you pay just for living in Valencia. CC can be spotty as well as other areas. When I lived in CC I stayed in the Fair Oaks community.

[7stringguitarguy]

My Aunt lives in canyon country.. She moved there about two years ago around sierra ave. Over the last two years though i have seen the neighborhood become more unsafe more and seedy . There are a few homeless people around the neighborhood now.Its not totally bad but its kind of creepy at night. I visited my aunt yesterday and she said the cops shot some dude with spear attacking some cars , I was in restaurant and waitress told me that a month ago there was another incident where someone was shot dead a few block down. but the house prices have still gone up value.

[kmo20]

I've lived in the SC Valley (Valencia) for 10 years. You'd have to try really hard to find any unsafe areas anywhere in the valley. Like others have said, maybe a few neighborhoods in Newhall or Canyon country, but you'd never have reason to go there because they are residential areas or housing projects. All of Valencia is completely safe, as is Stevenson Ranch.

[pears]

Originally Posted by 7stringguitarguy

My Aunt lives in canyon country.. She moved there about two years ago around sierra ave. Over the last two years though i have seen the neighborhood become more unsafe more and seedy . There are a few homeless people around the neighborhood now.Its not totally bad but its kind of creepy at night. I visited my aunt yesterday and she said the cops shot some dude with spear attacking some cars , I was in restaurant and waitress told me that a month ago there was another incident where someone was shot dead a few block down. but the house prices have still gone up value.

This is what I'm afraid of. I keep on hearing that Newhall and Canyon Country are getting more and more unsafe. It seems like the good people are moving out of those areas before it goes completely bad. Do you think the same thing will happen to the other parts of SC as well?

I am just hearing that the quality of life is continually going down.

[kttam186290]

Here's the scoop on the Santa Clarita Valley and all six of it's neighborhoods (Valencia, Castaic, Stevenson Ranch, Newhall, Saugus, Canyon Country):

VALENCIA

- Planned community
- Very safe
- Good schools
- Mix of old and new neighborhoods. "Old" means built in the 1980s.
- Most neighborhoods are HOA
- Above-average income for Los Angeles County
- Very pedestrian friendly with "paseos" all over the area
- Valencia Town Center is the main shopping area for the region
- Home to lots of white-collar professionals who work in L.A. or the San Fernando Valley
- The "Valencia Summit" is the cream of the crop as far as neighborhoods go!
- Cal Arts and College of the Canyons main campus are here.
- Mostly Caucasian with a small number of Asians
- lots of Law Enforcement officers reside here
- Very little to no crime.

CASTAIC

- More rural, further north on I-5 at the junction of State Route 126
- partially in the city of Santa Clarita and partially unincorporated
- a "truck stop town" feel to it
- decent-to-well performing schools
- home of a minimum security county inmate holding facility
- home of Castaic Lake State Recreation Area
- Mostly a blue collar to lower middle-class feel
- A mixture of Caucasian, Asian and Hispanic

SAUGUS

- Older than Valencia
- Pretty decent housing stock
- Decent to good public schools
- Located in the foothills of the Sierra Pelona mountain range
- Many ranch-style homes in the northern end
- Solidly middle-class
- Lots of churches
- Quite a few law enforcement officers reside here, but fewer than Stevenson Ranch and Valencia.
- Very little crime
- Predominantly Caucasian with a small Asian minority
- The western side of Saugus off of Copper Hill is now being marketed as "Valenica - West Hills", which is not really accurate, IMHO.

STEVENSON RANCH

- Unincorporated part of the Santa Clarita Valley
- Excellent schools
- Very new tract homes, most with HOA and Mello Roos (unfortunately).
- Lots of younger families
- Very white collar
- Sometimes jokingly referred to as "Stepford Ranch" by people down the hill on Lyons Avenue in Newhall because of its yuppie/straight-laced feel.
- Home to quite a few law enforcement officers.
- Includes the luxurious "Westridge" community and award-winning golf courses.
- Large Mormon/LDS population
- predominantly Caucasian with a strong Asian community

NEWHALL

- Older, historical part of the Santa Clarita Valley.
- Home to Metrolink station with service to Downtown LA
- Older, quaint neighborhoods south of Lyons and west of Newhall Ave
- Home to "Peachland Estates", one of the Santa Clarita Valley's wealthier, older neighborhoods.
- Approximately half of the population is Hispanic and half is non-Hispanic white.
- Hispanic neighborhoods border Newhall Ave on both sides of the railroad track.
- The Placerita Canyon neighborhood is home to Disney's "Melody Ranch" and some very nice ranch homes.

CANYON COUNTRY

- The Santa Clarita Valley's "red-headed step child", because of how the rest of the valley looks at it.
- The older parts of this area close to Soledad Canyon Rd are generally more blue-collar, working class
- School are good-to-excellent
- Home to mostly blue collar non-Hispanic Whites and Hispanics with a very small Asian minority. Almost all of the Santa Clarita Valley's tiny black population lives here.
- Newer developments along State Route 14 in an area called "Fair Oaks Ranch" built for middle-to-upper income commuters to LA. Canyon Country's "less-posh" answer to Stevenson Ranch.
- Nice stately ranch and estate homes in the Sand Canyon area of Canyon Country.
- Canyon Country, to me, is the "hidden gem" of Santa Clarita.