Santa Clarita is the fourth largest city located in Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 151,088. It is located about 35 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles, and occupies most of the Santa Clarita Valley. The FBI rates it as the sixth safest city in the United States with at least 100,000 inhabitants. (Nearby Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks, in Ventura County, traditionally alternate between the first and second spots on the list.)
Santa Clarita was incorporated in 1987 as the union of several previously existing communities, including Saugus, Valencia, Canyon Country, Newhall, and portions of Castaic. Its principal boundaries are the Golden State and Antelope Valley freeways; their merger in Newhall Pass at the city's southernmost point gives Santa Clarita its distinctive triangular appearance on the map. Unlike many other hybrid cities' districts, communities in Santa Clarita retain a considerable degree of autonomy, to the extent that some of them--Valencia, most notably--are often mistaken for completely separate cities.
Santa Clarita's most notable attractions are the Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park and the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts); both are located in Valencia.
As the city is hemmed in by mountains on all sides (the Tehachapis on the north, the San Gabriels on the east, and the Santa Susanas on the south and west) and is primarily reliant on the automobile for transportation, it suffers from chronic smog. It is also prone to wildfires, as demonstrated by the destruction of large areas of the city and the unincorporated areas around it during blazes in 2003 and 2004.
Web Sites and Links
• Castaic Lake Water Agency
Santa Clarita Valley water supplier provides contact number, conservation tips, and schedule of upcoming meetings.
• City of Santa ClaritaOfficial city site: local community, government, business, and tourism resources.
• Friends of MentryvilleAbout the history and preservation of California's first oil town.
• MySantaClarita.comCommunity searchable business listings, classifieds, movie times, local weather, and coupons.
• Santa Clarita Valley Special Needs Support SiteCommunity calendar and events in the Santa Clarita Valley for Families with Special Needs and providers of service for those needs.
• Santa Clarita Valley MallListing business with a web site in the Santa Clarita Valley, with movie times, and classifieds.
• Stop TMCDedicated to preventing the Southdown/Transit Mixed mine from opening in the Santa Clarita Valley.
• Storage Center of ValenciaIndoor secured storage center and climate controlled wine cellar.
• W6JWAbout the Santa Clarita Amateur Radio Club. Includes information on meetings, activities, membership, radio frequency and a newsletter.
