San Diego California Events. Area focus - Carmel Valley

City: San Diego
Area Population: 28,187
Elevation: 210 feet above sea level
Distance from downtown SD: 22.2 miles north

Carmel Valley is a newer, master-planned community that has matured into a place where people can live, work and play. Families with children are attracted by the large houses and award winning schools. Area amenities and easy access to much of San Diego County make the commercial center of Carmel Valley ideal for corporate offices, hotels, shopping and restaurants.

Recreational options include many neighborhood parks, a community recreation center, athletic clubs, golf and the nearby beaches at Torrey Pines and Del Mar. An early experimenter in smart growth, Carmel Valley includes open space areas and an extensive trail system.

The earliest known inhabitants of Carmel Valley were the La Jolla and subsequent Ipai peoples, who left cultural artifacts along the banks of Carmel Creek. During the Rancho period, the area was known as Cordero, after a Spanish "leather jacket" soldier. Following the California Gold Rush, miners drifted south and established homesteads here. McGonigle Canyon was named after an early settler. An old adobe Butterfield pony express and stagecoach stop sat next to a spring along old El Camino Real until the
late 1970s. Later, the area was largely used for horse farms and agriculture, focusing on drought tolerant crops such as lima beans, which were grown on the property that later became The Grand Del Mar golf course.

Around 1905 the Carmelite Sisters of Mercy established a dairy farm and monastery in the area. The site, on the south side of Carmel Creek, was connected by a bridge to the St. William of York Church, whose cemetery includes the graves of some of the nuns and priests. Among other things, the nuns raised pigs, and even now local animal-keeping provisions say, "except for swine." Carmel Mountain, the last undeveloped coastal mesa in Southern California, takes its name from these nuns.

While the area has long been known to local residents as Carmel Valley, the master plan commissioned in 1974, adopted the name "North City West." This plan, inspired by Kevin Lynch, attempted to reduce sprawl by confining development to the mesa tops, leaving the canyons untouched. Planned development centered around an urban core surrounded by decreasing residential densities, where higher density residential areas were traded for increased community open space.

Carmel Creek, now largely marked by SR-56 and the CVREP corridor, was intended to meander freely to the sea, allowing water to return to the ground and providing residents with natural open space and recreational opportunities. The first houses in the planned community were built in 1983 and the local Planning Board brought back the name "Carmel Valley" in the early 1990s.

Local Carmel Valley government advising boards consist of the Carmel Valley Community Planning Board which advises the City on development and land use, and the Carmel Valley Recreation Council which provides community input on parks and recreation. City facilities include a fire station, and library. A police station is being constructed along El Camino Real.

More information

Carmel Valley is a community in the north-western corner of San Diego, California, USA. The community is composed of commercial offices, residential units, hotels, and retail stores and restaurants. This is not to be confused with Carmel Valley (Carmel Valley Village), California , which is a Northern California community outlying Carmel-by-the-Sea known for wine making.

Geography

Carmel Valley is bordered to the north by the North City Future Urbanizing Area (NCFUA) and Pacific Highlands Ranch; to the south by Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve and Torrey Hills; to the east by Pacific Highlands Ranch and Del Mar Mesa; and to the west by Interstate 5 and Torrey Pines.

While many people in the area are now referring to the entire 92130 zip code as “Carmel Valley″, the actual boundaries of the community remain unchanged from the original community plan. The remainder of the 92130 zip code is filled by the surrounding communities of Del Mar Mesa, Pacific Highlands Ranch and Torrey Hills.

History

Carmel Valley is one of the newer neighborhoods of the City of San Diego, California. It is a master planned community that was formed by the City of San Diego on February 1, 1975, but construction did not start until 1983. The name Carmel Valley comes from the Carmelite Sisters of Mercy, who established a dairy farm and monastery in the area around 1905. Although the area was known locally by the name Carmel Valley, in 1974 the area was given the institutional name "North City West" in the master plan. The name "Carmel Valley" was readopted in the early 1990s.

Education

Carmel Valley has an odd overlay of various school districts. For the elementary schools, the northern section is part of the Solana Beach School District (K-6). The southern section is managed by the Del Mar Union School District (K-6). Overlaying the entire community, the San Dieguito Union High School District manages the middle schools and high schools. Some Carmel Valley residents attend schools in the bordering communities of Pacific Highlands Ranch, Torrey Hills, and Torrey Pines.

Elementary schools
Ashley Falls (Del Mar Union School District)
Carmel Creek (Solana Beach School District)
Carmel Del Mar (Del Mar Union School District)
Del Mar Pines (Private nonsectarian)
Ocean Air (Del Mar Union School District)
Sage Canyon (Del Mar Union School District)
Solana Highlands (Solana Beach School District)
Solana Pacific (Solana Beach School District)
Sycamore Ridge (Del Mar Union School District) - Actually in Pacific Highlands Ranch.
Torrey Hills (Del Mar Union School District) - Actually in Torrey Hills.

Middle/Junior high schools
Carmel Valley Middle (San Dieguito Union High School District)

High schools
Torrey Pines (San Dieguito Union High School District)
Canyon Crest Academy (San Dieguito Union High School District)
Cathedral Catholic High School (Private)

K through 8
Notre Dame Academy (Roman Catholic)

K through 12
San Diego Jewish Academy (Jewish)

Colleges and universities
University of Phoenix, 11682 El Camino Real, (800) 473-4346

Los Peñasquitos Canyon
12020 Black Mountain Road
San Diego, CA 92130
(858-484-7504) Map
Hours: 8 a.m.- Sunset, every day.

Carmel Valley Recreation Center
3777 Townsgate Drive
San Diego 92130
(858-552-1616) Map

The Carmel Valley Recreation Center and pool were built in 1999 and were dedicated the same year. Facilities: Outdoor courts, tot lot, playground, picnic areas, a multi purpose athletic field, tennis courts, a full size gymnasium, meeting room, game room, craft room, full size kitchen and a swimming pool nearby.

Police
3840 Valley Center Drive #602, San Diego, CA 92130
(858-552-1619) Map

Fire
13077 Hartfield Avenue, San Diego, CA 92130 Map

Ashley Falls School (K-6)
13030 Ashley Falls Drive, San Diego, CA 92130
(858-259-7812) Map - Website

Carmel Creek Elementary School (K-6)
4210 Carmel Center Road, San Diego, CA 92130
(858-794-4400) Map - Website

Carmel Del Mar School (K-6)
12345 Carmel Park Drive, San Diego, CA 92130
(858-481-6789) Map - Website

Sage Canyon Elementary School (K-6)
5290 Harvest Run Drive, San Diego, CA 92130
(858-481-7844) Map - Website

Solana Highlands Elementary School (K-6)
3520 Long Run Drive, San Diego, CA 92130
(858-794-4300) Map - Website

Torrey Hills Elementary School (K-6)
10830 Calle Mar De Mariposa, San Diego, CA 92130
(858-481-4266) Map - Website

Carmel Valley Middle School (4-8/7-8)
3800 Mykonos Lane, San Diego, CA 92130
(858-481-8221) Map - Website

Torrey Pines High School (9-12)
3710 Del Mar Heights Road, San Diego, CA 92130
(858-755-0125) Map - Website

San Diego City Website
Carmel Valley Chamber of Commerce
Carmel Valley Demographic Profile - Fact Sheet
Carmel Valley Demographic Profile - Map

Carmel Valley Weather - NOAA
Air Quality Forecast
Moon Phases & Astronomical Events
Recent Earthquakes

Carmel Valley Homes For Sale
Carmel Valley Condominiums For Sale
Carmel Valley Multi-Family Properties For Sale
Carmel Valley Rentals

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City of San Diego Community Profile - Carmel Valley
City of San Diego Community Profile - Carmel Valley Map
City of San Diego Neighborhood Maps - Northern Neighborhood
Del Mar Union School District
San Diego County Business Directory - City of San Diego
San Dieguito Union High School District
Solana Beach School District
Wikipedia - Carmel Valley, San Diego, California

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