Elysian Valley, Los Angeles, California
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Elysian Valley is a small community of the City of Los Angeles, CA. It is at times considered to be part of the Elysian Park or Silver Lake district. It is commonly known to locals as Frogtown, which eliminates any confusion.
[edit] Geography
Given its relatively small size and its isolation, it was often included as either part of the City's administrative division of Elysian Park, or as a part of the Silver lake neighborhood, especially on the north end of the community. This made it hard to determine its exact population characteristics and borders. However, by the year 2000, Elysian Valley was approved by the city if Los Angeles, to be recognized as its own neighborhood, which included its own neighborhood council( Elysian Valley Riverside neighboorhood Council). What does distinguish it from its larger neighbors is the colloquial name of Frogtown, based on historic events directly caused by its proximity to the river, when the frog/toad population exploded and literally covered the streets and lawns of the neighborhood. Accounts span a period from the early 60's into the 70's when this occurred. The frogs left, the name stuck. It is a name unique to that specific geographic district and the local population has grown to embrace it.
Roughly, Elysian Valley borders Silver lake proper on the west, Elysian Park on the southwest, and south, and the Los Angeles River on the east. Its boundaries are at times considered Fletcher Drive on the northwest, Riverside Drive on the west, where the 5-freeway crosses Riverside Dr. on the south, and the Los Angeles river on the east.
The area is well connected to Los Angeles freeways, with the 5 and 110 Freeways having entry and exits on Riverside Drive, and connections to the 101, 10, and 2 Freeways not far off.
Elysian Valley is divided between the ZIP codes of 90039 and 90031. The areas in the latter zipcode are at times unfairly categorized by real estate property value systems together with less quality housing found in Lincoln Heights and other areas that also use the 90031 zip code, although these areas are amply separated from Elysian Valley by the land formation itself, and the use of its territory. This zip code categorization also gives attributes to Elysian Valley that are not found in Elysian Valley such as a higher rate of working class residents or a lower income per capita.
While exact data is unavailable, Elysian Valley is mainly composed of Asian, non-Hispanic White, and Hispanic or Latino residents. And the income per capita was estimated in 2000 near $20,000 putting it in the same category as Canoga Park, Atwater Village, or Temple City, California or Covina, California.
[edit] The Community
The community is primarily residential and composed of mostly single-family homes with most businesses that serve it being located in northern Silver Lake.
Given its relative isolation with only a few streets feeding traffic into it from other nearby areas, and Riverside Dr. at the edge of the neighborhood being the only throughfaire, Elysian Valley has a very sub-urban look and feel, even though its relatively very close to Silver lake proper, and Downtown LA.
In recent years, as homes have slowly gone on sale, there has been a continuing influx of middle-class families attracted to the area's tranquility, access to nearby parks and venues, as well as its residential feel, as a more affortable alterantive to the higher priced homes of Silver lake proper, or the northern Hollywood area.
