View source for San Fernando Valley

{{Short description|Valley in California, US}}
{{About||the incorporated city in the San Fernando Valley|San Fernando, California|the film|San Fernando Valley (film)}}
{{Use American English|date = December 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2019}}
{{infobox valley
| name               = San Fernando Valley
| native_name        = {{native name|es|El Valle de Santa Catalina de Bononia de los Encinos}}
| photo              = San Fernando Valley vista.jpg
| photo_caption      = The San Fernando Valley looking northeast; from the top of [[Topanga State Park|Topanga Overlook Park]] above [[Woodland Hills, Los Angeles|Woodland Hills]] in the foreground
| map_image          = Wpdms shdrlfi020l san fernando valley.jpg
| map_caption        = San Fernando Valley
| location           = [[California]]
| coordinates        = {{Coord|34.25|-118.45|region:US-CA_type:adm2nd_source:dewiki|display=inline,title}}
| area               = {{convert|260|sqmi|km2|sigfig=2}}
| towns              = [[Los Angeles]], [[Burbank, California|Burbank]], [[Glendale, California|Glendale]], [[Calabasas, California|Calabasas]], [[Hidden Hills, California|Hidden Hills]], [[San Fernando, California|San Fernando]]
| boundaries         = [[Santa Susana Mountains]] (northwest), [[Simi Hills]] (west), [[Santa Monica Mountains]] and [[Chalk Hills]] (south), [[Verdugo Mountains]] (east), [[San Gabriel Mountains]] (northeast)
}}
The '''San Fernando Valley''',<ref name="San Fernando Valley">{{Cite web|title=San Fernando Valley|url=http://maps.latimes.com/neighborhoods/region/san-fernando-valley/|access-date=2021-05-20|website=Mapping L.A.}}</ref> known locally as the '''Valley''',<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=pd43AQAAMAAJ&q=%22as+the+valley%22 Los Angeles Dam and Reservoir Project, San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles County, California: Draft Environmental Impact Statement] U.S. Federal Disaster Assistance Administration, Region Nine, 1975, p. 14. "The San Fernando Valley (<u>commonly referred to as the Valley</u>) is generally bounded on the north by the Santa Susana and San Gabriel Mountains, on the west by the Simi Hills, on the south and southwest by the Santa Monica Mountains, on the southeast by the Los Angeles River channel as it traverses the southern boundary of Burbank, and on the east by the Verdugo Mountains."</ref>{{r|WSJ_2018.03.29}} is an urbanized valley in [[Los Angeles County|Los Angeles County, California]]. Situated to the north of the [[Los Angeles Basin]], it comprises a large portion of [[Los Angeles]], the [[Municipal corporation|incorporated cities]] of [[Burbank, California|Burbank]], [[Calabasas, California|Calabasas]], [[Glendale, California|Glendale]], [[Hidden Hills, California|Hidden Hills]] and [[San Fernando, California|San Fernando]], plus several unincorporated areas.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last=Wimberley|first=Laura|title=LibGuides: Los Angeles & the San Fernando Valley: San Fernando Valley|url=https://libguides.csun.edu/la-san-fernando-valley/sfv|access-date=2022-01-14|website=libguides.csun.edu}}</ref> The valley is the home of [[Warner Bros. Studios Burbank|Warner Bros. Studios]], [[Walt Disney Studios (Burbank)|Walt Disney Studios]], and the [[Universal Studios Hollywood]] theme park.

==Geography==
[[File:San Fernando vs Livermore map.jpg|thumb|San Fernando vs Livermore valleys water comparison map by [[William Mulholland]], 1912]]
The valley of San Fernando is an area of {{convert|260|sqmi|km2|sigfig=2}},<ref>{{cite encyclopedia| title=San Fernando Valley| encyclopedia=Britannica Online Encyclopedia| url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/521119/San-Fernando-Valley| access-date=2009-08-31}}</ref> bounded by the [[San Gabriel Mountains]] in the northeast, the [[Verdugo Mountains]] in the east, the [[Santa Monica Mountains]] and [[Chalk Hills]] in the south, the [[Simi Hills]] in the west, and the [[Santa Susana Mountains]] in the northwest. The northern [[Sierra Pelona Mountains]], northwestern [[Topatopa Mountains]], southern [[Santa Ana Mountains]], and [[Downtown Los Angeles]] skyscrapers can be seen from higher neighborhoods, passes, roads and parks in the San Fernando Valley.

The [[Los Angeles River]] begins at the confluence of [[Arroyo Calabasas|Calabasas Creek (''Arroyo Calabasas'')]] and [[Bell Creek (Southern California)|Bell Creek]] (''Escorpión Creek''), between [[Canoga Park High School]] and Owensmouth Avenue (just north of Vanowen Street) in [[Canoga Park, Los Angeles|Canoga Park]]. These creeks' [[river source|headwaters]] are in the Santa Monica [[Calabasas, California|Calabasas]] foothills, the Simi Hills' [[Hidden Hills, California|Hidden Hills]], [[Santa Susana Field Laboratory]], and [[Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park|Santa Susana Pass Park]] lands. The river flows eastward along the southern regions of the Valley. One of the river's two unpaved sections can be found at the [[Sepulveda Basin]].  A seasonal river, the [[Tujunga Wash]], drains much of the western facing San Gabriel Mountains and passes into and then through the [[Hansen Dam]] Recreation Center in Lake View Terrace. It flows south along the Verdugo Mountains through the eastern communities of the valley to join the Los Angeles River in [[Studio City, Los Angeles|Studio City]]. Other notable tributaries of the river include Dayton Creek, Caballero Creek, [[Bull Creek (Los Angeles County)|Bull Creek]], [[Pacoima Wash]], and [[Verdugo Wash]]. The elevation of the floor of the valley varies from about {{convert|600|ft|m|abbr=on}} to {{convert|1200|ft|m|abbr=on}} above [[sea level]].

Most of the San Fernando Valley is within the jurisdiction of the [[City of Los Angeles]],<ref name="WSJ_2018.03.29">{{cite news |last1=McLaughlin |first1=Katy |title=Living in 'the Valley' Is, Like, Cool Now |newspaper=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |date=March 29, 2018 |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/living-in-the-valley-is-like-cool-now-1522332000 |access-date=September 15, 2018 |quote=The majority of the San Fernando Valley lies within the city of Los Angeles, but <u>locals nonetheless tend to refer to it as 'the Valley'</u> and to the rest of Los Angeles as 'the city'.}}</ref> although a few other incorporated cities are located within the valley as well: [[Burbank, California|Burbank]] is in the southeastern corner of the valley, and [[San Fernando, California|San Fernando]], which is completely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles, is near the northern end of the valley. [[Universal City, California|Universal City]], an enclave in the southern part of the valley, is an unincorporated area housing the [[Universal Studios Lot|Universal Studios]] filming lot and theme park. [[Mulholland Drive]], which runs along the ridgeline of the Santa Monica Mountains, marks the boundary between the valley and the communities of [[Hollywood, Los Angeles|Hollywood]] and the [[Westside (Los Angeles County)|Los Angeles Westside]].
The San Fernando Valley has connections to other regions: the [[Santa Clarita Valley]] via [[Newhall Pass]], the [[Westside (Los Angeles County)|Westside]] via [[Sepulveda Pass]], [[Hollywood, Los Angeles|Hollywood]] via [[Cahuenga Pass]], Simi Valley via [[Santa Susana Pass]], and the [[Crescenta Valley]] via [[Interstate 210 and State Route 210 (California)|Interstate 210]].

===Habitat===
The valley's natural habitat is a "[[temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands]] [[biome]]" of [[grassland]], [[California oak woodland|oak savanna]], and [[Chaparral|chaparral shrub]]  types of [[plant community]] [[habitat]]s, along with lush [[riparian zone|riparian plants]] along the river, creeks, and springs. In this [[Mediterranean climate]], post-1790s European agriculture for the mission's support consisted of [[grape]]s, [[common fig|fig]]s, [[olive]]s, and general garden crops.<ref name="IndustryHolmes1917">{{cite book| author=L. C. Holmes| title=Soil survey of the San Fernando Valley area, California| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Iy3AAAAIAAJ| access-date=8 August 2012| year=1917| publisher=Government Printing Office| page=12}}</ref>

===Climate===
The San Fernando Valley has a [[subtropical climate|subtropical]]/[[hot-summer Mediterranean]] climate, with long, hot, dry summers, and short, mild winters, with chilly nights and sporadic rainfall. Due to its relatively inland location and other factors, summer days are typically hotter and winter nights typically colder than in the [[Los Angeles basin]]. More recently, statewide [[droughts in California]] have further strained the San Fernando Valley’s and Los Angeles County’s [[water security]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-03-01/california-drought-will-continue-after-dry-winter |title= California drought continues after state has its driest January and February on record|website=Los Angeles Times|author-first1=Hayley|author-last1=Smith|date= March 2022|access-date=May 20, 2022}}</ref>
{{Weather box
| location                = [[Burbank, California]] (at Burbank Valley Pump)
| width                   = 50%
| single line             = Y 
| Jan high F              = 67.5
| Feb high F              = 68.7
| Mar high F              = 70.4
| Apr high F              = 73.7
| May high F              = 76.6
| Jun high F              = 81.4
| Jul high F              = 88.3
| Aug high F              = 89.0
| Sep high F              = 87.2
| Oct high F              = 80.9
| Nov high F              = 73.7
| Dec high F              = 67.9
| Jan record high F       = 92
| Feb record high F       = 92
| Mar record high F       = 98
| Apr record high F       = 105
| May record high F       = 107
| Jun record high F       = 111
| Jul record high F       = 114
| Aug record high F       = 111
| Sep record high F       = 114
| Oct record high F       = 108
| Nov record high F       = 102
| Dec record high F       = 95
| year record high F      = 114
| year high F             = 77.1
| Jan low F               = 41.7
| Feb low F               = 43.5
| Mar low F               = 45.7
| Apr low F               = 48.9
| May low F               = 53.5
| Jun low F               = 57.3
| Jul low F               = 61.2
| Aug low F               = 61.4
| Sep low F               = 59.2	
| Oct low F               = 53.3
| Nov low F               = 46.0
| Dec low F               = 41.6
| Jan record low F        = 22
| Feb record low F        = 27
| Mar record low F        = 23
| Apr record low F        = 32
| May record low F        = 39
| Jun record low F        = 43
| Jul record low F        = 45
| Aug record low F        = 46
| Sep record low F        = 43
| Oct record low F        = 33
| Nov record low F        = 29
| Dec record low F        = 22
| year record low F       = 22
| year low F              = 51.1
| precipitation colour    = green
| Jan precipitation inch  = 3.35
| Feb precipitation inch  = 3.84
| Mar precipitation inch  = 2.84
| Apr precipitation inch  = 1.17
| May precipitation inch  = 0.27
| Jun precipitation inch  = 0.07
| Jul precipitation inch  = 0.01
| Aug precipitation inch  = 0.10
| Sep precipitation inch  = 0.20
| Oct precipitation inch  = 0.60
| Nov precipitation inch  = 1.51	
| Dec precipitation inch  = 2.34
| year precipitation inch = 16.29
| source 1                = <ref>{{cite web |url=https://wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/cliMAIN.pl?ca1194 |title=Burbank Valley Pump, California (041194) |publisher=Western Regional Climate Center |access-date=9 July 2021 }}</ref>
| date                    = April 2021
}}

{{Weather box
| location                = [[Woodland Hills, Los Angeles]]
| width                   = 50%
| single line             = Y 
| Jan high F              = 67
| Feb high F              = 69
| Mar high F              = 71
| Apr high F              = 77
| May high F              = 80
| Jun high F              = 87
| Jul high F              = 93
| Aug high F              = 95
| Sep high F              = 90
| Oct high F              = 83
| Nov high F              = 73
| Dec high F              = 67
| Jan record high F       = 93
| Feb record high F       = 94
| Mar record high F       = 101
| Apr record high F       = 105
| May record high F       = 113
| Jun record high F       = 113
| Jul record high F       = 119
| Aug record high F       = 116
| Sep record high F       = 121
| Oct record high F       = 110
| Nov record high F       = 101
| Dec record high F       = 96
| year record high F      = 121
| year high F             = 79
| Jan low F               = 41
| Feb low F               = 42
| Mar low F               = 43
| Apr low F               = 45
| May low F               = 49
| Jun low F               = 53
| Jul low F               = 56
| Aug low F               = 57
| Sep low F               = 55	
| Oct low F               = 50
| Nov low F               = 43
| Dec low F               = 39
| Jan record low F        = 19
| Feb record low F        = 18
| Mar record low F        = 26
| Apr record low F        = 30
| May record low F        = 33
| Jun record low F        = 36
| Jul record low F        = 42
| Aug record low F        = 42
| Sep record low F        = 38
| Oct record low F        = 27
| Nov record low F        = 23
| Dec record low F        = 20
| year record low F       = 18
| year low F              = 48
| precipitation colour    = green
| Jan precipitation inch  = 4.27
| Feb precipitation inch  = 4.26
| Mar precipitation inch  = 3.63
| Apr precipitation inch  = 0.85
| May precipitation inch  = 0.30
| Jun precipitation inch  = 0.06
| Jul precipitation inch  = 0.02
| Aug precipitation inch  = 0.16
| Sep precipitation inch  = 0.26
| Oct precipitation inch  = 0.60
| Nov precipitation inch  = 1.47	
| Dec precipitation inch  = 2.32
| year precipitation inch = 18.20
| source 1                = <ref>{{cite web|url=https://plantmaps.com/91365|title=Zipcode 91365|website=www.plantmaps.com|access-date=April 20, 2021}}</ref>
| date                    = April 2021
}}

==History==
{{Main|History of the San Fernando Valley}}
[[File:Mission San Fernando Postcard, circa 1900.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.35|Mission San Fernando: in a circa 1900 postcard]]

===Pre-California statehood===
The valley was a center of "the crossroads of cultures and languages, including the [[Tongva]], [[Fernandeno|Fernandeño]], and [[Chumash people|Chumash]]."<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/projects/la-me-tongva-map/|title=Mapping the Tongva villages of L.A.'s past|last1=Greene|first1=Sean|last2=Curwen|first2=Thomas|date=9 May 2019|newspaper=LA Times|access-date=19 June 2019}}</ref> The Tongva, later known as the [[Gabrieleño]] [[Mission Indians]] after colonization, the [[Tataviam people|Tataviam]] to the north, and Chumash to the west, had lived and thrived in the valley and its arroyos for over 8,000 years.<ref name=prehistoric>{{cite web| title=Prehistoric milling site found in California| url=https://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/discoveries/2006-03-03-prehistoric-mill_x.htm| work=[[USA Today]]| date=March 4, 2006| access-date=August 8, 2012}}</ref> They had [[:Category:Former Native American populated places in California|numerous settlements]], and trading and hunting camps, before the [[Spanish colonization of the Americas|Spanish]] arrived in 1769 to settle in the Valley, including the village of [[Pasheeknga]].<ref name="Klein2003">{{cite book |author=Jake Klein |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=04NDcqx9fNYC |title=Then & Now: San Fernando Valley |date=1 June 2003 |publisher=Gibbs Smith |isbn=978-1-58685-229-0 |page=5 |access-date=8 August 2012}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Johnson |first=John R. |date=1997 |title=The Indians of Mission San Fernando |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41172612 |journal=Southern California Quarterly |volume=79 |issue=3 |pages=249–290 |doi=10.2307/41172612 |jstor=41172612 |issn=0038-3929|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
[[File:Eulogio_de_Celis.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Californio]] ranchero [[Eulogio F. de Celis]] once owned most of the San Fernando Valley.]]
The first [[Ranchos of California#Spanish era|Spanish land grant]] in the San Fernando Valley (or ''El Valle de Santa Catalina de Bononia de los Encinos''<ref name="Crosby2009">{{cite book| author=Michael Crosby| title=Encino| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YTfgQM9pOcAC&pg=PA7| access-date=8 August 2012| date=3 June 2009| publisher=Arcadia Publishing| isbn=978-0-7385-6991-8| page=7}}</ref>) was called "Rancho Encino" (present-day [[Mission Hills, Los Angeles|Mission Hills]] on the ''Camino Viejo'' before [[Newhall Pass]]), in the northern part of the San Fernando Valley. [[Juan Francisco Reyes (soldier)|Juan Francisco Reyes]] built an [[adobe]] dwelling beside a [[:Category:Tongva settlements|Tongva village]] or [[rancheria]] at [[Spring (hydrology)|natural springs]] known as [[Achooykomenga]], but the land was soon taken from him so that a [[Spanish missions in California|mission]] could be built there.<ref name="California">{{cite book| author=Historic Spots in California| title=Historic Spots in California: The Southern Counties| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EXGaAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA59| access-date=8 August 2012| publisher=Stanford University Press| isbn=978-0-8047-1614-7| page=59}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Johnson |first=John R. |url=https://www.parks.ca.gov/pages/21299/files/sspshp%20ethnohistory-complete.pdf |title=Ethnohistoric Overview for the Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park Cultural Resources Inventory Project |publisher=Southern Service Center, State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation |year=2006 |pages=}}</ref> [[Mission San Fernando Rey de España]] was established in 1797 as the 17th of the 21 missions.<ref name="VI">{{cite book|author1=California Mission Series |author2=Vol VI | title=California Mission Series, Vol VI: Mission San Miguel, Mission San Fernando Rey, Mission San Luis Rey| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xXSaAAAAIAAJ&pg=PT40| access-date=8 August 2012| publisher=Stanford University Press| isbn=978-0-8047-1875-2| page=40}}</ref> The land trade granted Juan Francisco Reyes the similarly named [[Rancho Los Encinos]], also beside springs ([[Los Encinos State Historic Park]] in present-day [[Encino, Los Angeles|Encino]]). Later the [[Ranchos of California#Mexican era|Mexican land grant]]s of [[Rancho El Escorpión]] ([[West Hills, Los Angeles|West Hills]]), [[Rancho Providencia]] and [[Rancho Cahuenga]] ([[Burbank, California|Burbank]]), and [[Rancho Ex-Mission San Fernando]] (rest of valley) covered the San Fernando Valley.{{citation needed|date= November 2014}}

The [[Treaty of Cahuenga]], ending the [[Mexican–American War]] fighting in [[Alta California]], was signed in 1847 by [[Californio]]s and Americans at [[Campo de Cahuenga]], the Verdugo Family adobe at the entrance to the [[Cahuenga Pass]] in the southeast San Fernando Valley ([[North Hollywood, Los Angeles|North Hollywood]]). The 1848 [[Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo]] ended the entire war.

===California statehood and beyond===
The Valley officially became part of the State of California on September 9, 1850, when the [[California Statehood Act]] was approved by the federal government.
In 1874, [[Dryland farming|dry wheat farming]] was introduced by [[James Boon Lankershim|J. B. Lankershim]] and [[Isaac Newton Van Nuys|Isaac Van Nuys]], which became very productive for their San Fernando Homestead Association that owned the southern half of the valley.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Morrison |first=Patt |date=2021-02-02 |title=More than a big, flat suburb: Why the San Fernando Valley is so important to California history |url=https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-02-02/san-fernando-valley-important-place-in-california-patt-morrison |access-date=2022-11-02 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> In 1876, they sent the first wheat shipment from both [[San Pedro, Los Angeles|San Pedro]] Harbor and from the United States to Europe.<ref name="MayersMassaro1976">{{cite book| author1=Jackson Mayers| author2=Nick Massaro| title=The San Fernando Valley| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UAcSAQAAIAAJ| access-date=6 May 2013| year=1976| publisher=John D. McIntyre| page=67}}</ref>

===20th century===
====Aqueduct====
{{main|Los Angeles Aqueduct}}
{{see also|California Water Wars}}
[[File:LA Aqueduct Opening2.jpg|thumb|Crowds gather to see the first water reaching the valley via the new aqueduct.]]

Through the late-19th-century court decision ''Los Angeles'' v. ''Pomeroy'', Los Angeles had won the rights to all surface flow water atop an [[aquifer]] beneath the valley, without it being within the city limits.<ref name="Thomas1970">{{cite book| author=Harold Edgar Thomas| title=Water Laws and Concepts| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=93LZAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA10| access-date=6 May 2013| year=1970| publisher=U.S. Geological Survey|page=10}}</ref> San Fernando Valley farmers offered to buy the surplus aqueduct{{clarify|What "aqueduct"?  When?  None has been introduced yet.|date=February 2019}} water, but the federal legislation that enabled the construction of the aqueduct prohibited Los Angeles from selling the water outside of the city limits.<ref>Bearchell, Charles, and Larry D. Fried, ''The San Fernando Valley Then and Now'', Windsor Publications, 1988, {{ISBN|0-89781-285-9}}</ref> This induced several independent towns{{which|date=September 2018}} surrounding Los Angeles to vote on and approve annexation to the city so that they could connect to the municipal water system. These rural areas became part of Los Angeles in 1915.<ref name="Rivers in the Desert">{{Cite book
|last=Davis 
|first=Margaret Leslie
|title=Rivers in the Desert
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7lvRnuwxmUoC&pg=PA92
|year=1993
|isbn=1-58586-137-5
|page=92|publisher=Open Road Integrated Media, Incorporated
}}</ref>
The aqueduct water shifted farming in the area from dry crops, such as wheat, to irrigated crops, such as corn, beans, squash, and cotton; orchards of [[apricot]]s, [[persimmon]]s, and [[walnut]]s; and major citrus groves of oranges and lemons.<ref name=fiction/><ref>{{Cite web |last=Grigoryants |first=Olga |date=2023-11-27 |title=San Fernando's Valley's last commercial orange grove is set to lose 1,100 trees |url=https://www.dailynews.com/2023/11/27/san-fernandos-valleys-last-commercial-orange-grove-is-set-to-lose-1100-trees/ |access-date=2023-11-27 |website=Daily News |language=en-US}}</ref> They continued until the next increment of development converted land use, with postwar [[urban sprawl|suburbanization]] leaving only a few enclaves, such as the "open-air museum" groves at the [[Orcutt Ranch Horticulture Center|Orcutt Ranch Park]] and [[California State University, Northridge#Locations of interest|CSUN campus]].

====Developments====

In 1909, the Suburban Homes Company, a syndicate led by [[Hobart Johnstone Whitley|H.&nbsp;J. Whitley]], general manager of the board of control, along with [[Harry Chandler]], [[Harrison Gray Otis (publisher)|Harrison Gray Otis]], M. H. Sherman, and Otto F. Brant purchased 48,000 acres of the Farming and Milling Company for $2,500,000.<ref>Mulholland, Catherine. ''The Owensmouth Baby - The Making of the San Fernando Valley'' Santa Susana Press, California, 1987; p. 18–20.</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Robinson |first1=W. W. |date=1956 |title=The Rancho Story of San Fernando Valley |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41169034 |journal=The Historical Society of Southern California Quarterly |volume=38 |issue=3 |pages=225–234 |doi=10.2307/41169034 |jstor=41169034 |access-date=12 February 2025|url-access=subscription }}</ref> [[Henry E. Huntington]] extended his [[Pacific Electric Railway]] (Red Cars) through the Valley to [[Owensmouth]] (now Canoga Park). The Suburban Home Company laid out plans for roads and the towns of Van Nuys, Reseda (Marian), and Canoga Park (Owensmouth). The rural areas were annexed into the city of Los Angeles in 1915.<ref name=fiction>{{cite book| author=George L. Henderson| title=California and the Fictions of Capital| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WmGfzj-X5qIC&pg=PA199| access-date=8 August 2012| date=1 February 2003| publisher=Temple University Press| isbn=978-1-59213-198-3| page=199}}</ref><ref name="Raftery1992">{{cite book| author=Judith R. Raftery| title=Land of Fair Promise: Politics and Reform in Los Angeles Schools 1885 – 1941| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KzasAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA112| access-date=7 May 2013| year=1992| publisher=Stanford University Press| isbn=978-0-8047-1930-8| page=112}}</ref> [[Laurel Canyon, Los Angeles|Laurel Canyon]] and [[North Hollywood, Los Angeles|Lankershim]] in 1923,<ref name="Wanamaker2011">{{cite book| author=Marc Wanamaker| title=San Fernando Valley| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KAcw3k3OU-sC&pg=PA45| access-date=7 May 2013| date=27 June 2011| publisher=Arcadia Publishing| isbn=978-0-7385-7157-7}}</ref>{{rp|45}} [[Sunland-Tujunga, Los Angeles|Sunland]] in 1926,<ref name="Wanamaker2011"/>{{rp|29}} [[Sun Valley, Los Angeles|La Tuna Canyon]] in 1926, and the incorporated city of [[Sunland-Tujunga, Los Angeles|Tujunga]] in an eight-year process lasting from 1927 to 1935.<ref name="CrouchDinerman1963">{{cite book| author1=Winston Winford Crouch| author2=Beatrice Dinerman| title=Southern California Metropolis: A Study of Government for a Metropolitan Area| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Jc34Vn17oQsC&pg=PA156| access-date=7 May 2013| year=1963| publisher=University of California Press| page=156| id=GGKEY:DB4Q1TGU95T}}</ref> These annexations more than doubled the area of the city.

Two valley cities incorporated independently from Los Angeles: [[Burbank, California|Burbank]] and [[San Fernando, California|San Fernando]] in 1911. [[Universal City, California|Universal City]] remains an unincorporated enclave that is home to [[Universal Studios, Inc.|Universal Studios]] and became home to [[Universal CityWalk]] later in the century. Other unincorporated areas in the valley include [[Bell Canyon, California|Bell Canyon]] and [[Kagel Canyon, California|Kagel Canyon]].

The advent of three new industries in the early 20th century—motion pictures, automobiles, and aircraft—also spurred urbanization and population growth. [[World War II]] production and the subsequent postwar boom accelerated this growth so that between 1945 and 1960, the valley's population had quintupled.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kotkin |first1=Joel |last2=Ozuna |first2=Erika |title=The Changing Face of the San Fernando Valley |url=http://publicpolicy.pepperdine.edu/davenport-institute/content/reports/changing-face.pdf |website=Pepperdine University |access-date=21 January 2015}}</ref> Los Angeles continued to consolidate its territories in the San Fernando Valley by annexing the former [[Rancho El Escorpión]] for Canoga Park-[[West Hills, Los Angeles|West Hills]] in 1959, and the huge historic Porter Ranch at the foot of the [[Santa Susana Mountains]] for the new planned developments in [[Porter Ranch, Los Angeles|Porter Ranch]] in 1965.{{Citation needed|date=October 2014}} The additions expanded the Los Angeles portion of San Fernando Valley from the original {{convert|169|sqmi|km2|0}} to {{convert|224|sqmi|km2|0}}.

In the late 1970s, there was a proposed east-west freeway labeled SR 64 that would have cut through the center of the valley from Calabasas in the western end of the valley to the SR-170 and I-5 freeway interchange in Sun Valley, Los Angeles in the eastern end of the valley, but local opposition gained traction and the proposed freeway was never approved or built.

====Pop culture====
In the 1980s, a distinctive valley youth culture was recognized in the media, particularly in the 1982 [[Frank Zappa]] / [[Moon Zappa]] song [[Valley Girl (song)|"Valley Girl"]] and the 1983 film ''[[Valley Girl (1983 film)|Valley Girl]]''.<ref name="WSJ_2018.03.29" />  These helped fix the socio-economic stereotype of the "[[Valley girl]]" into the public consciousness, including a distinct Valley accent.<ref>{{cite news |last=Demarest |first=Michael |title=Living: How Toe-dully Max Is Their Valley |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,925750,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101015060736/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,925750,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 15, 2010 |newspaper=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |date=September 27, 1982 |access-date=September 15, 2018}}</ref><ref name="wildflower7">{{cite book |last1=Barrymore |first1=Drew |author-link=Drew Barrymore |title=Wildflower |date=2015 |publisher=Dutton |location=New York |isbn=9781101983799 |oclc=904421431 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/wildflower0000barr/page/2 2; 7] |quote=As if I had been lobotomized, we packed our things and moved into our new home, indeed in Sherman Oaks, in 1983. It's why I still talk like a valley girl. That cadence snuck into my life at that spongelike age of eight and never left. |url=https://archive.org/details/wildflower0000barr/page/2 }}</ref>

====Northridge earthquake====
{{Main|1994 Northridge earthquake}}
The 1994 [[Northridge, Los Angeles|Northridge]] earthquake struck on January 17 and measured 6.7 on the [[Moment magnitude scale]]. It produced the largest ground motions ever recorded in an urban environment and was the first earthquake that had its hypocenter located directly under a U.S. city since the [[1933 Long Beach earthquake|Long Beach earthquake of 1933]].<ref name=northridge1994>{{cite web|title=Significant Earthquakes and Faults, Northridge Earthquake |website=Southern California Earthquake Data Center |url=http://www.data.scec.org/significant/northridge1994.html |access-date=October 6, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006115519/http://www.data.scec.org/significant/northridge1994.html |archive-date=2014-10-06 |url-status=dead}}</ref> It caused the greatest damage in the United States since the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=Wald |first=David J. |author-link=David J. Wald |display-authors=etal |title=The Slip History of the 1994 Northridge, California, Earthquake Determined from Strong Ground Motion, Teleseismic, GPS, and Leveling Data |url=http://pasadena.wr.usgs.gov/office/wald/Northridge/bull.html |url-status=dead |journal=Bulletin of the Seismic Society of America |volume=86 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120709090640/http://pasadena.wr.usgs.gov/office/wald/Northridge/bull.html |archive-date=July 9, 2012 |access-date=August 8, 2012}}</ref> Although given the name Northridge, the epicenter was located in the community of [[Reseda, Los Angeles|Reseda]], between Arminta and Ingomar streets, just west of Reseda Boulevard.<ref name=northridge1994/> The death toll was 57, and more than 1,500 people were seriously injured. A few days after the earthquake, 9,000 homes and businesses were still without electricity; 20,000 were without gas; and more than 48,500 had little or no water. About 12,500 structures were moderately to severely damaged, which left thousands of people temporarily homeless. Of the 66,546 buildings inspected, 6 percent were severely damaged (red tagged) and 17 percent were moderately damaged (yellow tagged). In addition, damage to several major freeways serving Los Angeles choked the traffic system in the days following the earthquake. Major freeway damage occurred as far away as {{convert|25|mi}} from the epicenter. Collapses and other severe damage forced closure of portions of 11 major roads to downtown Los Angeles.<ref>{{cite web| title=The January 17, 1994 Northridge, CA Earthquake| date=March 1994| publisher=EQE| url=http://www.lafire.com/famous_fires/1994-0117_NorthridgeEarthquake/quake/01_EQE_exsummary.htm| access-date=August 8, 2012}}</ref>

This was the second time in 23 years that the San Fernando Valley had been affected by a strong earthquake. On February 9, 1971, at 6:01 a.m., a magnitude 6.5 event struck about {{convert|20|mi}} northeast of the epicenter of the 1994 event in the area of Sylmar. The 1971 earthquake caused 58 fatalities and about 2,000 injuries. At the time, the [[1971 San Fernando earthquake]] was the most destructive event to affect greater Los Angeles since the magnitude-6.3 Long Beach earthquake of 1933.<ref>{{cite web| title=San Fernando Earthquake| website=Southern California Earthquake Data Center| url=http://www.data.scec.org/significant/sanfernando1971.html| access-date=October 14, 2013| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407061651/http://www.data.scec.org/significant/sanfernando1971.html| archive-date=April 7, 2014}}</ref>

===Independence movement===
The Valley attempted to secede in the 1970s, but the state passed a law barring city formation without the approval of the City Council. In 1997, Assemblymen [[Robert Hertzberg|Bob Hertzberg]] and [[Tom McClintock]] helped pass a bill that would make it easier for the Valley to secede by removing the City Council veto. AB 62 was signed into law by Governor [[Pete Wilson]]. Meanwhile, a grassroots movement to split the [[Los Angeles Unified School District]] (LAUSD) and create new San Fernando Valley–based school districts became the focal point of the desire to leave the city. Though the state rejected the idea of Valley-based districts, it remained an important rallying point for Hertzberg's mayoral campaign, which proved unsuccessful.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/05/29/us/los-angeles-long-fragmented-faces-threat-of-secession-by-the-sanfernando-valley.html |title=Los Angeles, Long Fragmented, Faces Threat of Secession by the San Fernando Valley |newspaper=[[The New York Times]]  |first=B. Drummond Jr. |last=Ayres |date=May 29, 1996 |access-date=1 October 2016}}</ref>

===21st century===
By the late 1990s, the San Fernando Valley had become more urban and more ethnically diverse with rising poverty and crime. In 2002, the valley again tried to [[secession|secede]] from the city of Los Angeles and become its own independent, incorporated city to escape Los Angeles' perceived poverty, crime, gang activity, [[urban decay]], and poorly maintained infrastructure. The movement gained some momentum, but Measure F did not receive the necessary votes to pass.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.dailynews.com/20121104/secession-drive-changed-san-fernando-valley-los-angeles|title=Secession drive changed San Fernando Valley, Los Angeles|author=Orlov, Rick|date=November 3, 2012|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Daily News]]|access-date=January 6, 2025|archive-date=December 25, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141225225853/http://www.dailynews.com/20121104/secession-drive-changed-san-fernando-valley-los-angeles|url-status=live}}</ref> Since that unsuccessful secession attempt, a new Van Nuys municipal building was built in 2003; the Metro Orange Line opened in October 2005; and 35 new public schools had opened up by 2012.

The NoHo Arts District was established and the name chosen as a reference for its location in North Hollywood and as a play off New York City's arts-centered [[SoHo]] District. According to the ''San Fernando Guide'', the change helped develop a "primarily lower to middle-class suburb into … a collection of art and a home for the artists who ply their trade in the galleries, theaters and dance studios in this small annex."<ref>{{cite web| title=San Fernando Valley Neighborhoods| url=http://sanfernandoguide.com/neighborhoods/noho-arts-district| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101028041949/http://sanfernandoguide.com/neighborhoods/noho-arts-district/| url-status=usurped| archive-date=October 28, 2010| work=San Fernando Valley Guide| access-date=June 20, 2013}}</ref>

According to the Lake Balboa Neighborhood Council, from 2002 through November 2007 there was a debate about the official recognition of [[Lake Balboa, Los Angeles|Lake Balboa]] as a community by the City of Los Angeles. New community names were not sanctioned by the city until January 2006, when the city adopted a formal community-naming process (City of Los Angeles Council File Number 02 -0196). On November 2, 2007, the City Council of Los Angeles approved a motion renaming a larger portion of Van Nuys to Lake Balboa.<ref>{{cite web| title=Lake Balboa Neighborhood Council Newsletter| url=http://lakebalboanc.org/newsletters/LBNCAprilNumber2.pdf| website=Lakebalboanc.org| access-date=June 21, 2013| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812030704/http://lakebalboanc.org/newsletters/LBNCAprilNumber2.pdf| archive-date=August 12, 2014| url-status=dead}}</ref>

By 2017, numerous urban development projects began in the valley, mainly in the Los Angeles neighborhoods of North Hollywood, Panorama City, and Woodland Hills. These projects started with the first few in Woodland Hills and the NoHo West project in North Hollywood began groundbreaking and construction on April 6, 2017.{{citation needed|date=December 2019}}

LA Metro is planning to upgrade the Metro G Line by 2024 with at-grade crossing gates and two bridges crossing both Sepulveda and Van Nuys boulevards, and a full-scale light rail conversion is planned to be completed by 2050.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.dailynews.com/2018/07/16/las-metro-says-improvements-are-in-the-works-for-the-orange-line-with-light-rail-in-mind/ | title=LA's Metro says improvements are in the works for the Orange Line, with light rail in mind | website=[[Los Angeles Daily News]] | date=July 16, 2018 }}</ref> The valley will get its first light rail line in seven decades by 2027, the [[East San Fernando Valley Light Rail Transit Project]]. Construction of the line is planned to begin in 2024 along Van Nuys Boulevard and San Fernando Road.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.dailynews.com/2022/05/27/east-san-fernando-valley-rail-line-project-gets-909-million-boost-from-feds/ | title=East San Fernando Valley rail line project gets $909 million boost from Feds | website=[[Los Angeles Daily News]] | date=May 27, 2022 }}</ref>

==Economy==
{{more citations needed section|date=July 2014}}
The Valley is home to numerous companies, the most well known of which work in motion pictures, music recording, and television production. The former [[movie ranch]]es were branches of original studios now consisting of [[CBS]] Studio Center, [[NBCUniversal]], [[The Walt Disney Company]] (and its [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] television network), and [[Warner Bros.]]

The valley was previously known for advances in [[aerospace]] technology and [[nuclear research]] by companies such as [[Lockheed Corporation|Lockheed]], [[Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne|Rocketdyne]] and its [[Santa Susana Field Laboratory]], [[Atomics International]], [[Litton Industries]], [[Marquardt Corporation|Marquardt]], and TRW's predecessor [[TRW Inc.|Thompson Ramo Wooldridge]].

===Pornography industry ===
The valley became the pioneering region for producing adult films in the 1970s and grew to become home to a multibillion-dollar [[Pornography in the United States|pornography industry]], earning the monikers Porn Valley,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2207658/|title=Louis Theroux: Twilight of the Porn Stars|date=10 June 2012|access-date=13 October 2017|website=IMDb.com}}</ref><ref name="SheumakerWajda2008">{{cite book| first1=Helen |last1=Sheumaker| first2=Shirley Teresa |last2=Wajda| title=Material Culture in America: Understanding Everyday Life| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JjVlAzj9qDQC&pg=PA406| access-date=8 August 2012| year=2008| publisher=ABC-CLIO| isbn=978-1-57607-647-7| page=406}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Robinson|first=Melia|date=September 29, 2017|title=How LA's 'Porn Valley' became the adult entertainment capital of the world|work=Business Insider |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/history-of-porn-valley-hugh-hefner-2017-9|access-date=2021-11-20}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=2015-01-12|title=Porn industry still at home in San Fernando Valley despite condom laws, Web, piracy |work=Daily News |url=https://www.dailynews.com/social-affairs/20150112/porn-industry-still-at-home-in-san-fernando-valley-despite-condom-laws-web-piracy|access-date=2021-11-20}}</ref> [[Breast implant#Silicone gel implants|Silicone Valley]] (in contrast to [[Silicon Valley]], nickname for the Santa Clara Valley),<ref name=epicenter>{{cite book|title= Epicenter: San Francisco Bay Area Art Now |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E1DWC54P-MoC |pages=234|isbn=0811835413|publisher=Chronicle Books |year=2002|last1=Johnstone |first1=Mark |last2=Holzman |first2=Leslie Aboud|quote= [...] the San Fernando Valley, also known as The Valley [...] Although San Fernando Valley in this context is snidely referred to as Silicone Valley and the Valley of Sin [...]}}</ref><ref>{{citation|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0F0EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA142|title=Los Angeles Magazine |pages=142 |date=December 1998 |last1=Gardetta |first1=Dave}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2010/oct/13/us-porn-actor-hiv-positive|title=US porn industry thrown into crisis after actor tests positive for HIV|date=13 October 2010 |first1=Ed |last1=Pilkington|work=[[The Guardian]]|quote=The San Fernando valley has become the focal point of the porn industry since the 1970s. It has been dubbed the San Pornando valley and Silicone Valley, a play on the prevalence on artificially enhanced breasts.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=International Handbook of Globalization and World Cities|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Xx6f66uShzQC&pg=PA301 |publisher=Edward Elgar Publishing |last1=Derudder |first1=Ben |year=2012 |pages=301 |isbn=9781781001011 |quote=[...] the acknowledged centre of porn has, since the 1970s, been San Fernando (or Silicone Valley, as it is sometimes dubbed), which currently accounts for around two thirds of listed adult entertainment production studios [...]}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Global Sex|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XC0QDlW3YFAC&pg=PA117|publisher=University of Chicago Press|last1=Altman |first1=Dennis|year=2010 |pages=117|isbn=9780226016047|quote=Most of the U.S. pornography industry is centered in Los Angeles's San Fernando Valley north of Hollywood, so much so that one area is known locally as Silicone Valley.}}</ref> and San Pornando Valley.<ref name="Lasica2005">{{cite book |first1=J. D. |last1=Lasica |title=Darknet: Hollywood's war against the digital generation |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X5ADAQAAIAAJ |access-date=8 August 2012 |date=18 April 2005 |publisher=Wiley |isbn=978-0-471-68334-6 |page=157}}</ref><ref name="CBS News">{{cite news|last=Chan|first=Sue|title=San Fernando's Open Secret|newspaper=CBS News |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/san-fernandos-open-secret/ |access-date=29 January 2014}}</ref> The leading trade paper for the industry, [[AVN (magazine)|''AVN'']] magazine, is based in the Northwest Valley, as were a majority of U.S. adult video and magazine distributors. The Paul Thomas Anderson film ''[[Boogie Nights]]'' explores these aspects of the valley. According to the HBO series ''[[Pornucopia]]'', at one time, nearly 90 percent of all legally distributed pornographic films made in the United States were either filmed in or produced by studios based in the San Fernando Valley. The pornography industry began to decline by the mid-2000s, owing, for the most part, to the growing amount of free content on the Internet, which undercut consumers' willingness to pay. In 2007 industry insiders estimated that revenue for most adult production and distribution companies had declined 30 percent to 50 percent and the number of new films made had fallen sharply.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-aug-10-fi-ct-porn10-story.html| title=Tough times in the porn industry| access-date=August 8, 2012| date=August 10, 2009| first1=Ben |last1=Fritz| work=Los Angeles Times}}</ref> A 2019 article stated that "the porn industry in [[Budapest]] is as big as what remains of the industry in California".<ref>{{cite web |last1=Van Alboom |first1=Ben |title=The Fall of San Fernando Valley: How Silicon Valley F*$%ed Over Silicone Valley |url=https://medium.com/strictly-personal/the-fall-of-san-fernando-valley-part-i-how-silicon-valley-f-ed-over-silicone-valley-a64b8a60d072 |access-date=5 August 2022 |date=2019-07-03}}</ref>

==Arts and culture==
{{Wide image|San Fernando Valley panorama.jpg|1200px|Panorama of San Fernando Valley from Universal Studios}}

* ''The [[Great Wall of Los Angeles]]'' – A {{convert|2,754|ft||adj=mid|-long}} mural designed by [[Judy Baca]] and painted on the sides of the Tujunga Wash, depicting the history of California.
* The [[Mission San Fernando Rey de España]] is a [[Spanish missions in California|Spanish mission]] in the Mission Hills district of Los Angeles. The mission was founded on September 8, 1797, and was the seventeenth of the twenty-one Spanish missions established in Alta California. Named for Saint Ferdinand, the mission is the namesake of the city of San Fernando and the San Fernando Valley.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://californiamissionsfoundation.org/mission-san-fernando/ |title=History of Mission San Fernando Rey de España |publisher=California Missions Foundation |access-date=July 9, 2021 }}</ref>

===Museums===
* The [[Nethercutt Collection]] – Museum in Sylmar best known for its collection of classic automobiles, also has collections of mechanical musical instruments and antique furniture.
*[[Valley Relics Museum]] &ndash; Museum in Van Nuys dedicated to the history and pop culture of the San Fernando Valley. It was once located in [[Chatsworth, California]]. 
* Gordon R. Howard Museum complex in [[Burbank, California]]. 
*[[Autry Museum of the American West]] – near Burbank in Griffith Park.
*[[Los Angeles Live Steamers Railroad Museum]] - near Burbank in Griffith Park
*[[Travel Town Museum]] – near Burbank in Griffith Park.
*[[Walt Disney's Carolwood Barn]] - near Burbank in Griffith Park
*[[Discovery Cube Orange County|Discovery Cube Los Angeles]] - Children's museum in [[Hansen Dam]].
*The Museum of the San Fernando Valley in [[Northridge, Los Angeles|Northridge]].

===Convention center===
The San Fernando Valley has a convention center located in the city of Burbank, east of the Burbank Airport, at the Marriott Hotel.

===Performing arts venues===
* The [[Starlight Bowl (Burbank, California)|Starlight Bowl]] – Amphitheater built in 1950, located in Burbank
* The Soraya and Younes Nazarian Center – Located on the [[CSUN]] campus, features a 1,700-seat concert hall

===Amusement parks===
[[Universal Studios Hollywood]] is in unincorporated Universal City. [[Busch Gardens]], an amusement park in the Van Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles, was located at the Budweiser brewery. It was torn down in the late 1970s.

==Parks and recreation==
The San Fernando Valley is home to numerous neighborhood city parks, recreation areas and large Regional [[Nature reserve|Open Space preserves]]. Many preserves are maintained as public parkland by the National Park Service's [[Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area]], the [[List of California state parks|California State Parks]], and local county and municipal parks districts.

===Small garden parks and missions===
{{div col|colwidth=27em}}
* [[The Japanese Garden]]
* The gardens at Adobes
* The [[Orcutt Ranch Horticulture Center]]
* The [[Leonis Adobe]]
* The [[Lopez Adobe]]
* The [[Rómulo Pico Adobe|Andrés Pico adobe]]
* [[Los Encinos State Historic Park]]
* [[Mission San Fernando]]
{{div col end}}

===Recreation areas===
{{div col|colwidth=27em}}
* [[Griffith Park]], located at the southeastern end of the Valley
* [[Sepulveda Dam]] recreation area
* [[Hansen Dam#Hansen Dam Recreation Center|Hansen Dam recreation area]]
* [[Los Angeles River]], with parks of various sizes along the part of the river located in the valley
{{div col end}}

===Mountain open-space parks===
[[File:Victory Gateway at Upper Los Virgenes.JPG|thumb|right|upright=1.35|Victory Trailhead to the [[Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve]], [[West Hills, Los Angeles|West Hills]]]]
{{div col|colwidth=27em}}
* [[Backbone Trail]] System
* [[Bell Canyon Park]]
* Brand Park
* Chatsworth Park South
* Deervale-Stone Canyon Park
* Deukmejian Wilderness Park
* [[El Escorpión Park]]
* [[Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail]]
* La Tuna Park
* Laurel Canyon Park
* [[Marvin Braude Mulholland Gateway Park]]
* [[O'Melveny Park]] above Granada Hills
* [[Rocky Peak|Rocky Peak Park]]
* [[Sage Ranch Park]] (located in [[Simi Valley]])
* San Vicente Mountain Park, above Encino
* [[Santa Susana Pass State Historic Park]]
* [[Topanga State Park]]
* [[Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve]]
* Verdugo Mountains Open Space Preserve
* Wilacre Park
* Wildwood Canyon Park, above Burbank
* Wilson Canyon Park, above Sylmar 
{{div col end}}

==Education==
Public schools in the San Fernando Valley are served by three unified school districts; The Northwest and East Regions of the [[Los Angeles Unified School District]], the [[Glendale Unified School District]] and the [[Burbank Unified School District]]. There are four community colleges in the valley; [[Los Angeles Valley College]] in Valley Glen, [[Los Angeles Mission College]] in Sylmar, and [[Los Angeles Pierce College]] in Woodland Hills. All except Glendale College are served by the [[Los Angeles Community College District]]. The only state university in the San Fernando Valley is [[California State University Northridge]] in Northridge.

In 1994, there were 180,000 PK-12 students attending [[Los Angeles Unified School District]] (LAUSD) campuses in the Valley. During the same year, about 45,000 PK-12 students, or one in five of all such students, attended the over 200 private schools in the Valley.<ref>"[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-11-30-me-3217-story.html Choosing A Campus : A Guide To the Largest Private Schools in the Valley]." ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''. November 30, 1994. Valley Briefing. Retrieved on March 23, 2014.</ref>

==Government==
[[File:Location map San Fernando Valley.png|thumb|upright=2|Map of the San Fernando Valley]]

===Representation===
The Los Angeles city section of the valley is divided into seven city council districts: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 12. Of the 95 neighborhood councils in the city, 34 are in the valley. The valley is represented in the [[California State Legislature]] by five members of the [[California State Assembly|State Assembly]]: [[Jesse Gabriel]] (D), [[Luz Rivas]] (D), [[James Ramos]] (D), [[Pilar Schiavo]] (D), and [[Laura Friedman]] (D). The valley is represented by three members of the [[California State Senate|State Senate]]: [[Henry Stern (California politician)|Henry Stern]] (D), and [[Anthony Portantino]] (D). The valley falls into five congressional districts: the [[California's 25th congressional district|25th]], [[California's 28th congressional district|28th]], [[California's 29th congressional district|29th]], [[California's 30th congressional district|30th]], and [[California's 33rd congressional district|33rd]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/map|title=Members of Congress & Congressional District Maps - GovTrack.us|website=GovTrack.us}}</ref> represented respectively by [[Mike Garcia (politician)|Mike Garcia]] (R), [[Adam Schiff]] (D), [[Tony Cárdenas]] (D), [[Brad Sherman]] (D), and [[Ted Lieu]] (D). The valley is represented in the [[Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors]], by two supervisorial districts, with the western portion represented by [[Sheila Kuehl]] (D) and the eastern portion by [[Kathryn Barger]] (R). Residents are also represented by the [[neighborhood councils of Los Angeles]]

===Incorporated cities (independent)===
Source:<ref name=":0" />
{{div col|colwidth=15em}}
* [[Burbank, California|Burbank]]
* [[Calabasas, California|Calabasas]]
* [[Glendale, California|Glendale]]
* [[Hidden Hills, California|Hidden Hills]]
* [[Los Angeles]]
* [[San Fernando, California|San Fernando]]
{{div col end}}

===Unincorporated communities===
{{div col|colwidth=15em}}
* [[Universal City, California|Universal City]]
* West Chatsworth
{{div col end}}

===City of Los Angeles neighborhoods of the San Fernando Valley===
Source:<ref>{{Cite web|title=City Boundary |url=https://geohub.lacity.org/datasets/09f503229d37414a8e67a7b6ceb9ec43_7?geometry=-120.390,33.621,-116.434,34.418 |access-date=2021-05-20|website=geohub.lacity.org}}</ref>
{{div col|colwidth=15em}}
* [[Arleta, Los Angeles|Arleta]]
* [[Canoga Park, Los Angeles|Canoga Park]]
* [[Chatsworth, Los Angeles|Chatsworth]]
* [[Encino, Los Angeles|Encino]]
* [[Granada Hills, Los Angeles|Granada Hills]]
* [[Lake Balboa, Los Angeles|Lake Balboa]]
* [[Lake View Terrace, Los Angeles|Lake View Terrace]]
* [[Mission Hills, Los Angeles|Mission Hills]]
* [[NoHo Arts District, Los Angeles|NoHo Arts District]]
* [[North Hills, Los Angeles|North Hills]]
* [[North Hollywood, Los Angeles|North Hollywood]]
* [[Northridge, Los Angeles|Northridge]]
* [[Pacoima, Los Angeles|Pacoima]]
* [[Panorama City, Los Angeles|Panorama City]]
* [[Porter Ranch, Los Angeles|Porter Ranch]]
* [[Reseda, Los Angeles|Reseda]]
* [[Shadow Hills, Los Angeles|Shadow Hills]]<sup>'''+'''</sup>
* [[Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles|Sherman Oaks]]
* [[Northridge, Los Angeles|Sherwood Forest]]
* [[Studio City, Los Angeles|Studio City]]
* [[Sun Valley, Los Angeles|Sun Valley]]
* [[Sunland-Tujunga, Los Angeles|Sunland-Tujunga]]<sup>'''+'''</sup>
* [[Sylmar, Los Angeles|Sylmar]]
* [[Tarzana, Los Angeles|Tarzana]]
* [[Toluca Lake, Los Angeles|Toluca Lake]]
* Toluca Terrace
* Toluca Woods
* [[Valley Glen, Los Angeles|Valley Glen]]
* [[Valley Village, Los Angeles|Valley Village]]
* [[Van Nuys]]
* [[Warner Center, Los Angeles|Warner Center]]
* [[West Hills, Los Angeles|West Hills]]
* [[Winnetka, Los Angeles|Winnetka]]
* [[Woodland Hills, Los Angeles|Woodland Hills]]
{{div col end}}

<sup>'''+'''</sup> These communities are also included in the [[Crescenta Valley]].''

==Infrastructure==
===Transportation===
[[File:SFValley.jpg|right|thumb|[[Victory Boulevard (Los Angeles)|Victory Boulevard]] in Van Nuys, lined with low-rise commercial establishments, is typical of the broad, straight boulevards in the San Fernando Valley. Photo, 2002.]]

====Freeways====
Major [[freeway]]s cross the Valley, including [[Interstate 405 (California)|Interstate 405]] (San Diego Freeway), [[U.S. Route 101 in California|U.S. Route 101]] (Ventura Freeway/Hollywood Freeway), [[California State Route 118|State Route 118]] (Ronald Reagan Freeway), [[California State Route 170|State Route 170]] (Hollywood Freeway), [[California State Route 134|State Route 134]] (Ventura Freeway), [[Interstate 210 (California)|Interstate 210]] (Foothill Freeway), and [[Interstate 5 in California|Interstate 5]] (Golden State Freeway). Notable streets include [[Sepulveda Boulevard]], [[Ventura Boulevard]], [[Laurel Canyon Boulevard]], [[San Fernando Road]], [[Victory Boulevard (Los Angeles)|Victory Boulevard]], [[Reseda Boulevard]], [[Riverside Drive (Los Angeles)|Riverside Drive]], [[Mulholland Drive]], and [[California State Route 27|State Route 27]] (Topanga Canyon Boulevard).

====Rapid transit====
[[Rapid transit|Subway]], [[bus rapid transit|dedicated transitway]], and express and local buses, provided by many agencies, serve the San Fernando Valley. Some of the former [[Right-of-way (transportation)|rights-of-way]] of the [[Pacific Electric Railway]], which first accelerated population growth in the Valley,<ref name="Gumprecht2001">{{cite book| author=Blake Gumprecht| title=The Los Angeles River: Its Life, Death, and Possible Rebirth| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2ftBJpp7aIoC&pg=PA118| access-date=9 August 2012| date=1 March 2001| publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press| isbn=978-0-8018-6642-5| page=118}}</ref> have been repurposed for busways and light rail lines.

The [[Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority]] operates two [[B Line (Los Angeles Metro)|Metro B Line]] subway stations in the Valley, which are located at [[Universal City, California|Universal City]] and North Hollywood, which connect it directly to [[Hollywood, Los Angeles|Hollywood]] and [[Downtown Los Angeles]]. The Metro B Line is the first heavy rail subway in the valley, extended from its prior terminus in 2000. With transfers, it connects the Valley to the entire [[Los Angeles Metro Rail|Metro regional light rail and subway network]]. The B Line's two Valley subway stations provide access to national travel through [[Bob Hope Airport]] and [[Amtrak]] and regional travel through [[Metrolink (California)|Metrolink]], [[Metro Rapid]], [[Metro Local]], and the [[G Line (Los Angeles Metro)|Metro G Line]]. Metro approved a new light rail line, the [[East San Fernando Valley Light Rail Transit Project]] that will run north–south on Van Nuys Boulevard from the G Line Van Nuys station to the [[Sylmar/San Fernando station|Sylmar/San Fernando Metrolink]] station, however will be built in two phases. The first between [[Van Nuys]] and [[Pacoima, Los Angeles|Pacoima]], and the second from Pacoima to Sylmar/San Fernando station. Pre construction began in 2022, and is expected to be completed between 2028 and 2030.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Metro |first=L. A. |date=2022-12-02 |title=Groundbreaking held for advance utility work on East San Fernando Valley light rail project |url=https://thesource.metro.net/2022/12/02/groundbreaking-held-for-advance-utility-work-on-east-san-fernando-valley-light-rail-project/ |access-date=2022-12-24 |website=The Source |language=en-US}}</ref>

The G Line busway uses a dedicated transitway route running the east–west length of the Valley connecting the [[North Hollywood (Los Angeles Metro station)|North Hollywood B Line Station]] through the valley, then heads north through [[Canoga Park, Los Angeles|Canoga Park]] to the [[Chatsworth station|Chatsworth]] [[Metrolink (California)|Metrolink]] station.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.metro.net/projects/orangeline/| title=Orangeline Extension| publisher=metro.net| access-date=August 9, 2012}}</ref>

An additional Metro Busway line is planned for the Valley operating from North Hollywood station: the [[North Hollywood to Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit Project]] which will run to Pasadena with connections to the [[A Line (Los Angeles Metro)|A Line]]. Metro is also studying a route through the [[Sepulveda Pass]], the [[Sepulveda Transit Corridor]], including heavy rail and [[monorail]] alternatives.

====Rail and air====
[[Metrolink (California)|Metrolink]] [[commuter rail]] has two Valley lines, the [[Antelope Valley Line]] and [[Ventura County Line]], which connect the Valley and beyond to downtown Los Angeles and south, becoming one line at the [[Downtown Burbank station]]. Metrolink always had one [[Burbank Airport–South station|Burbank Airport station]] on the Ventura County Line, but [[Burbank Airport–North station|a second Burbank Airport station]] was built in 2017 on the Antelope Valley Line.

[[Amtrak]]'s ''[[Pacific Surfliner]]'' long-distance rail line has stops at [[Burbank Airport–South station|Burbank Airport station]], Van Nuys, and [[Chatsworth Station]], before proceeding on to [[Ventura County, California|Ventura County]], [[Santa Barbara, California|Santa Barbara]], and [[Northern California]] or [[Union Station (Los Angeles)|Union Station]] and [[San Diego]].

The [[California High-Speed Rail Authority]] was planning two stations in the Valley, one in [[Burbank, California|Burbank]] and the other in [[Sylmar, Los Angeles|Sylmar]], but the proposed Sylmar high-speed rail station was canceled owing to local opposition from the city of San Fernando. As of now, there's only one planned station in the valley, located in Burbank with an initial section of the railroad possibly opening in 2029.

The Valley's two major airports are [[Hollywood Burbank Airport]] and the [[Van Nuys Airport]]. The Van Nuys–Airport FlyAway Terminal provides nonstop scheduled shuttle service to LAX and back to the valley, with parking.

===Utilities===
Most of the utilities in the valley are served by public municipal governments, primarily the cities of [[Los Angeles]], and [[Burbank, California|Burbank]], while there are only two private-owned utilities for gas and electricity in the valley as well. [[Southern California Edison]] has their overhead power lines going through the city of Burbank and through the Los Angeles city neighborhoods of Sylmar, Mission Hills, Arleta, North Hollywood, Studio City, Woodland Hills, Granada Hills, Porter Ranch, and Chatsworth as well. Internet, cable television, and cellular phone service in the valley are by large private companies.

The valley is served by the following utility companies:

'''Electricity'''

* [[Los Angeles Department of Water and Power]] (serves the entire [[Los Angeles]] city section of the valley, which is two thirds of the land area, and is also the largest electric utility in the San Fernando Valley)
* Burbank Water and Power
* [[Southern California Edison]] (serves the cities of San Fernando, Calabasas, and Hidden Hills)<ref>{{cite web
| title =SCE Service Territory Cities
| url =http://www.edison.com/files/SCETerritory.pdf
| access-date =April 6, 2014
| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20131102040140/http://www.edison.com/files/SCETerritory.pdf
| archive-date =November 2, 2013
| url-status =dead
}}</ref>

'''Natural gas'''

* [[Southern California Gas Company]]

'''Water'''

* [[Los Angeles Department of Water and Power]] (serves the entire [[Los Angeles]] city section of the valley, which is two thirds of the land area)
* Burbank Water and Power
* City of San Fernando
* [[Metropolitan Water District of Southern California|Metropolitan Water District]]

'''Internet and cable television'''

* [[AT&T]]
* [[Frontier Communications]]
* [[Charter Communications]] (Spectrum)

'''Sanitation'''

* City of Los Angeles
* City of San Fernando (''Republic Services, Inc.'')
* City of Burbank

===Healthcare===
{{unreferenced section|date=August 2014}}
There are two Kaiser Permanente hospitals serving the San Fernando Valley, one in [[Panorama City, Los Angeles|Panorama City]] and one in [[Woodland Hills, Los Angeles|Woodland Hills]]. Also, there are three Providence hospitals, in Burbank, [[Providence Tarzana Medical Center]] in Tarzana, and Mission Hills. Besides Kaiser Permanente and Providence hospitals, most of the valley is served by non-profit hospitals such as: [[Valley Presbyterian Hospital]] in Van Nuys, [[Northridge Hospital Medical Center]] in Northridge, [[Olive View – UCLA Medical Center]] in Sylmar, [[Encino Hospital Medical Center]] in Encino,  and [[Sherman Oaks Hospital]] in Sherman Oaks.

===Religious services===
There are numerous Catholic churches in the San Fernando valley. The valley is home to the second-largest Jewish population in LA County. For the Muslims in Islam living in the San Fernando valley, there are seven mosques in the valley.

=== Municipal services ===
The Los Angeles satellite administrative center for the valley, The Civic Center Van Nuys, is in [[Van Nuys, Los Angeles|Van Nuys]]. The area in and around the Van Nuys branch of Los Angeles City Hall is home to a police station, limited and unlimited jurisdiction superior courts and Los Angeles city and county administrative offices.

Branches of the [[Los Angeles Public Library]] and independent city's libraries service the residents.

===Emergency services===

[[Los Angeles Police Department]]; [[Los Angeles Fire Department]];  [[Burbank Police Department (California)|Burbank Police Department]]; [[Burbank Fire Department]]; and the San Fernando Police Department are independent city emergency departments in the valley. [[Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department]] only serves unincorporated Universal City; the cities of Calabasas, Agoura Hills, & Hidden Hills; and also serves the three [[Los Angeles Community College District]] campuses in the San Fernando valley. The California State University system also has its own police force within the [[California State University, Northridge]] campus. [[Los Angeles County Fire Department]] only serves unincorporated areas, including Universal City; and the cities of Calabasas & Hidden Hills.

==Demographics==
[[File:San Fernando Mission 010a.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|right|[[Mission San Fernando Rey de España]] gardens]]

As of 2023 the population of the San Fernando Valley was 1,815,801, of which 42 percent were [[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic or Latino]], 39 percent were [[Non-Hispanic Whites|non-Hispanic white]], 11 percent were [[Asian American|Asian]], 4 percent were [[African American]]s, 4 percent were [[Multiracial_Americans|two or more races]] and 1 percent other.<ref>{{cite web |title=San Fernado Valley CCD |url=https://censusreporter.org/profiles/06000US0603792785-san-fernando-valley-ccd-los-angeles-county-ca/ |website=censusreporter |access-date=January 30, 2024}}</ref> The largest city located entirely in the valley is [[Burbank, California|Burbank]], with over 107,000 residents. The most populous districts of Los Angeles in the Valley are [[Van Nuys]] and [[Pacoima, Los Angeles|Pacoima]], which like the city of [[Burbank, California|Burbank]] have more than 100,000 residents each. Despite the San Fernando Valley's reputation for sprawling, low-density development, the valley communities of [[Panorama City, Los Angeles|Panorama City]], North Hollywood, Van Nuys, [[Reseda, Los Angeles|Reseda]], [[Canoga Park, Los Angeles|Canoga Park]], and [[Northridge, Los Angeles|Northridge]], all in Los Angeles, have numerous apartment complexes and contain some of the densest census tracts in Los Angeles.

The San Fernando Valley has a significant population below the poverty level. About 30 percent of Valley households in 2009 earned less than $35,000 a year, including 10 percent who made less than $15,000 a year.<ref>{{cite news| title=Record numbers of poor in nation – with more in San Fernando Valley seeking assistance| url= http://www.dailynews.com/20110914/record-numbers-of-poor-in-nation-with-more-in-san-fernando-valley-seeking-assistance| newspaper=[[Los Angeles Daily News]] | access-date=December 18, 2013}}</ref>
The Pacoima district, once considered the hub of suburban blight and of having the highest poverty rate, is no longer such. Other San Fernando Valley neighborhoods such as North Hollywood, Panorama City, and Arleta now have poverty rates which are higher.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://zipatlas.com/us/ca/city-comparison/population-below-poverty-level.6.htm|title=Percentage of Population Below Poverty Level in California by City|first=ZipAtlas.com Development|last=Team|website=Zipatlas.com|access-date=13 October 2017}}</ref>
 
In general, the areas with lower poverty rates have become fewer and more scattered, while many of the now affluent communities have become compartmented, having their own private, planned and gated communities. Many of these tend to be on or near the borders of the Valley in the foothill regions.

According to [[Mapping L.A.]], [[Mexican Americans|Mexican]] and [[Salvadoran Americans|Salvadoran]] were the most common ancestries in San Fernando Valley in 2000. [[Mexico]] and [[El Salvador]] were the most common foreign places of birth.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://maps.latimes.com/neighborhoods/neighborhood/san-fernando/index.html|title=San Fernando Profile - Mapping L.A. - Los Angeles Times|website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|California|Greater Los Angeles|Los Angeles}}

'''Places'''
* [[California State University Northridge Botanic Garden|CSUN Botanic Garden]], southeastern section ("quadrant") of the [[California State University, Northridge]] campus
* [[Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)|Forest Lawn Memorial Park]], one of the six [[Forest Lawn Memorial-Parks & Mortuaries|Forest Lawn]] cemeteries, located in the [[Hollywood Hills]]
* [[The Los Angeles Zoo]] and Botanical Gardens
* [[Nestor Studios]], valley ranch
* [[Providencia Ranch]], Oak Crest

'''Information'''
* [[:Category:Geography of Los Angeles County, California|Geography of Los Angeles County]]
* [[List of Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments in the San Fernando Valley]]
* [[Los Angeles Times suburban sections|''Los Angeles Times'' suburban sections]]
* [[Outline of the history of Los Angeles]]
* [[Southern California]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book|last=Barraclough|first=Laura|title=Making the San Fernando Valley: Rural Landscapes, Urban Development, and White Privilege | publisher=University of Georgia Press | year=2011 |isbn=978-6-612892-12-7}}
* {{cite book|last=Cooper|first=Martin|title=North of Mulholland: Essays from the San Fernando Valley Business Journal  |year=2010 | isbn=978-1-449082-13-0}}
* {{cite book|last=Cooper|first=Martin|title=Read All About It: The Valley Times: 1946-1970 |publisher=Photo Friends of the Los Angeles Public Library|year=2015 | isbn=978-1-512229-89-9}}
* {{cite book| author=Coscia, David| title=Pacific Electric and the Growth of the San Fernando Valley | publisher=Shade Tree Books | year= 2011 | isbn =978-1-57864-735-4}}
* {{cite book | author=Klein, Jake | title=Then and Now: San Fernando Valley| publisher=Gibbs Smith | year=2003 | isbn=1-58685-229-9}}
* {{cite book | author=Mayers, Jackson | title=The San Fernando Valley| publisher=John D. McIntyre, Walnut, CA | year=1976}}
* {{cite book | author=Roderick, Kevin | title=The San Fernando Valley: America's Suburb| publisher=Los Angeles Times Books | year=2001 | isbn=978-1-883792-55-8}}
* {{cite book | author=Wanamaker, Marc | title=San Fernando Valley| publisher=Arcadia Publishing | year=2011 | isbn= 978-0-738571-57-7}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|San Fernando Valley}}
* {{wikivoyage-inline|San Fernando Valley}}
* [https://www.americassuburb.com/ San Fernando Valley website]
* [http://digital-library.csun.edu/SFV/ CSUN Digital Library: San Fernando Valley online Archives] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181208220622/http://digital-library.csun.edu/SFV/ |date=December 8, 2018 }}: vintage photos-maps-histories.
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20140503024932/http://library.csun.edu/Guides/GovPubs-SFValley CSUN: San Fernando Valley Statistics website]
* [http://www.csun.edu/sfverc CSUN San Fernando Valley Economic Research Center website]
* [https://jeshizaemon.medium.com/bike-travel-in-the-san-fernando-valley-99b173b1a671 Bike Travel in the San Fernando Valley] and [https://jeshizaemon.medium.com/biking-in-the-sfv-shortcuts-26d697f6a484 Biking in the SFV — Shortcuts]

{{Geographic location
|Center    =  San Fernando Valley 
|North     = [[Santa Susana Mountains]] & ''[[California State Route 118|CA 118]]'' – [[Tejon Pass]] – [[Santa Clarita, California|Santa Clarita]]
|Northeast = [[San Gabriel Mountains]] & ''[[Interstate 210 (California)|I-210]]''
|East      =   [[Verdugo Mountains]]  & ''[[Interstate 5|I-5]]''
|Southeast = [[Griffith Park]]
|South     = [[Santa Monica Mountains]] <br /> ''[[Ventura Freeway]]''
|Southwest = [[Santa Monica Mountains]]
|West      = [[Simi Hills]]
|Northwest = [[Simi Valley, California|Simi Valley]] & [[Santa Susana Pass]] & [[Rocky Peak]]
}}
{{San Fernando Valley}}
{{Los Angeles}}
{{Greater Los Angeles Area}}
{{California}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:San Fernando Valley| ]]
[[Category:Valleys of Los Angeles County, California]]
[[Category:Geography of the San Fernando Valley| ]]
[[Category:Los Angeles County, California, regions]]
[[Category:Separatism in the United States]]
[[Category:Valleys of California]]