Portola Valley (94028) an incorporated town in San Mateo County, California, United States, which was founded in 1964. It's one of the wealthiest ZIP codes in America, with the highest per-capita income level in the country. Portola Valley is characterized by its rural charm, particularly exemplified in the fact that the town has more miles of trails than it does roads.
Portola Valley is one of the wealthiest towns in the United States, with a median household income of over $250,000 a year. Within the State of California, Portola Valley is ranked within the top 5 wealthiest ZIP codes. The zip code 94028, which encompasses the whole of Portola Valley, had the 9th most expensive housing prices within the country according to Forbes Magazine in 2013. Portola Valley, according to the most recent available data, is the wealthiest ZIP code in America based on per-capita income--ranking above nearby ZIP codes 94027 (Atherton, 2nd Respectively) and 94022 (Los Altos Hills, 7th Respectively). See: California ZIP Codes and Per-Capita Income.
Maps, Directions, and Place Reviews
History
Portola Valley was named for Spanish explorer Gaspar de Portolá, who led the first party of Europeans to explore the San Francisco Peninsula in 1769. The town was officially incorporated in 1964. The town's long history dates back to 1834, when land was used for the Rancho Corte de Madera primarily for cattle grazing. Another place of interest within the town was the Searsville area (now owned by Stanford). Searsville's redwood trees were logged and used for building housing. Evidence of logging can be seen by walking through the preserve and examining the abnormal redwood growth from where the trees used to stand. Today, Portola Valley maintains its small-town charm and rural feel with a population of under 5,000 people, as well as boasting to have more miles of trails than roads to preserve its natural beauty.
Portola Valley has also been included many times on lists of America's wealthiest ZIP codes. Initially, Portola Valley was an exclusive vacation community for wealthy San Franciscans who would make trips down during the summer in horse and buggy. It kept growing and eventually became central to the tech industry and Silicon Valley as an alternative to the hustle and bustle of more crowded cities, providing a quiet rural refuge directly in the heart of the Peninsula for over 4,000 residents.
Below is a small sample of the many spots on elite ZIP code lists Portola Valley has earned. Note that years when 94028 has cracked the top 10 most expensive ZIP codes on a national level have been highlighted in bold.
- 2005: 4th Most Expensive ZIP Code in America (Advertising Age)
- 2006: 21st Most Expensive ZIP Code in California (Forbes)
- 2007: 21st Most Expensive ZIP Code in America (Forbes)
- 2008: 10th Most Expensive ZIP Code in the Bay Area (CityData)
- 2009: 37th Most Expensive ZIP Code in America (Forbes)
- 2010: 31st Wealthiest ZIP Code in the US (Forbes)
- 2011: 7th Wealthiest ZIP Code in America (Forbes)
- 2011: 5th Wealthiest ZIP Code in America (Bloomberg)
- 2013: 9th Most Expensive ZIP Code in America (Forbes)
- 2013: 3rd Wealthiest Neighborhood in Silicon Valley (Silicon Valley Business Journal)
- 2014: 8th Most Expensive ZIP Code in America (The Atlantic)
- 2014-2016: 2nd Wealthiest ZIP Code in the Bay Area (Silicon Valley Business Journal)
- 2015: 5th Most Expensive ZIP Code in Silicon Valley (PropertyShark)
- 2015: 11th Most Expensive ZIP Code in America (CNBC)
- 2015: 33rd Most Expensive ZIP Code in America (Forbes)
- 2015: 2nd Most Affluent ZIP Code in the Bay Area (SF Business Times)
- 2016: 10th Most Expensive ZIP code in America (Business Insider)
- 2016: 6th Wealthiest ZIP Code in California (World's Top Ten Lists)
- 2016: 4th Wealthiest ZIP Code in the Bay Area (Property Shark/KQED)
- 2016: Wealthiest ZIP Code in America (American Community Survey/FindTheHome)
- 2017: 5th Wealthiest ZIP Code in the Bay Area (Curbed San Francisco)
Mercedes Redwood City Video
Geography
Portola Valley is located at 37°22?30?N 122°13?7?W (37.375023, -122.218635), on the eastern slope of the Peninsula Coastal Range of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The Windy Hill Open Space Preserve is on the town's southwest side and the Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve is on the north side of town. It is off Interstate 280, near Woodside, just west of Palo Alto and Los Altos and south of Menlo Park, and is in a mostly wooded area, with some open plains.
Portola Valley can generally be divided into 7 subdivisions: Central Portola Valley, The Ranch, Corte Madera, Los Trancos/Vista Verde, Woodside Highlands, Westridge, and Blue Oaks.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 9.1 square miles (24 km2), 99.98% of it land and 0.02% of it water.
Local Attractions
- Felt Lake
- Ford Field
- Alpine Hills Tennis and Swimming Club
- Ladera Oaks Country Club
- Ladera Tennis and Swimming Center
- Hidden Valley Farm
- Arastradero Preserve
- The Village Restaurants and Shops
- Alpine-Portola Junction
- Roberts Market
- Triangle Park
- Portola Valley Hardware
- Ron Ramies Auto Repair
- Portola Cafe Deli
- Hiking and Biking Trails
- Windy Hill Open Space
- Coal Mine Ridge
- Coal Creek Open Space
- Portola Valley Trails
- Portola Valley Schools
- Ormondale Elementary School
- Corte Madera Middle School
- Woodside Priory High School (Private)
- Ladera Shopping Center
- Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve
- Searsville Lake
- Searsville Dam
- Searsville Lake
- Portola Valley Town Center
- Portola Valley Library, Children's Playground, Field
- Portola Valley School (historical)
- Villa Lauriston
An estate located at 5050 Alpine Road, encompassing almost 29 acres. Villa Lauriston was initially commisioned by the founder of Fairmont Hotels and Resorts.
Demographics
2010
The 2010 United States Census reported that Portola Valley had a population of 4,353. The population density was 478.7 people per square mile (184.8/km²). The racial makeup of Portola Valley was 3,960 (91.0%) White, 12 (0.3%) African American, 5 (0.1%) Native American, 242 (5.6%) Asian, 1 (0.0%) Pacific Islander, 29 (0.7%) from other races, and 104 (2.4%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 175 persons (4.0%).
The Census reported that 4,309 people (99.0% of the population) lived in households, 9 (0.2%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 35 (0.8%) were institutionalized.
There were 1,746 households, out of which 518 (29.7%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 1,149 (65.8%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 70 (4.0%) had a female householder with no husband present, 35 (2.0%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 37 (2.1%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 21 (1.2%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 420 households (24.1%) were made up of individuals and 290 (16.6%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47. There were 1,254 families (71.8% of all households); the average family size was 2.93.
The population was spread out with 1,001 people (23.0%) under the age of 18, 145 people (3.3%) aged 18 to 24, 538 people (12.4%) aged 25 to 44, 1,496 people (34.4%) aged 45 to 64, and 1,173 people (26.9%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 51.3 years. For every 100 females there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.2 males.
There were 1,895 housing units at an average density of 208.4 per square mile (80.5/km²), of which 1,392 (79.7%) were owner-occupied, and 354 (20.3%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.0%; the rental vacancy rate was 9.8%. 3,702 people (85.0% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 607 people (13.9%) lived in rental housing units.
According to the most recent data from Trulia, Portola Valley's median household income is estimated to be $250,001.
2000
As of the census of 2000, there were 4,392 people, 1,772 households, and 1,269 families residing in the town. The population density was 487.5 people per square mile (188.3/km²). There were 1,772 housing units at an average density of 193.6 per square mile (74.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 4,210 White, 29 African American, 22 Native American, 217 Asian, 5 Pacific Islander, 54 from other races, and 64 from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 149.
There were 1,772 households out of which 532 had children under the age of 18 living with them, 1,176 were married couples living together, 68 had a woman householder with no man present, and 431 were non-families. 339 of all households were made up of individuals and 226 had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 2.93.
In the town the age distribution of the population shows 1021 persons under the age of 18, 90 from 20 to 24, 867 from 25 to 44, 1492 from 45 to 64, and 938 who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47.5 years old. For every 100 women there were 96.8 men. For every 100 women age 18 and over, there were 91.7 men.
The median income for a household in Portola Valley, including earnings, is $244,771 and the median income for a family was $180,893. Men have a median income of over $200,000 versus $172,585 for women. The per capita income for Portola Valley is $152,128. About 18 families and 104 people were below the poverty line, including 38 of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.
Education
The Portola Valley Elementary School District has two public primary schools: Ormondale School (with grades K-3) and Corte Madera School (grades 4-8). Portola Valley is one of the few (perhaps only) school districts that has a school named after a race horse (Ormonde).
Portola Valley is also home to a Roman Catholic Benedictine monastery and an independent college-preparatory Roman Catholic day and boarding school, Woodside Priory School, with grades 6-12.
The nearest public secondary school is Woodside High School, located in neighboring Woodside. Many children attend other public and private institutions such as Woodside Priory School (located within the town limits of Portola Valley), Menlo-Atherton High School, Summit Preparatory Charter High School, Everest Public High School, Saint Francis High School (Mountain View), Menlo School, Sacred Heart Preparatory (Atherton, California), Junípero Serra High School, and Crystal Springs Uplands School.
The city is served by the Portola Valley Public Library of the San Mateo County Libraries, a member of the Peninsula Library System.
Government
In the California State Legislature, Portola Valley is in the 13th Senate District, represented by Democrat Jerry Hill, and in the 24th Assembly District, represented by Democrat Marc Berman.
Federally, Portola Valley is in California's 18th congressional district, represented by Democrat Anna Eshoo.
Politically, Portola Valley leans slightly democratic based on voting patterns for past presidential elections.
Notable people
- Billionaire businessman and real estate mogul John Arrillaga.
- Engineer Hewitt Crane (1927-2008) who invented a magnetic computer.
- Operatic tenor Richard Crooks (1900-1972), longtime host of The Voice of Firestone on network radio and who, in later years, sang with the choir at the local Presbyterian church, lived in Portola Valley for many years until his death.
- Dr. Thomas J. Fogarty, surgeon and inventor of the embolectomy catheter.
- Tennessee Ernie Ford (1919-1991), singer best known for "Sixteen Tons".
- Computer pioneer Cuthbert Hurd (1911-1996) who discovered a popular variety manzanita in his garden.
- Jacques Littlefield (1949-2009), President and Founder of the Military Vehicle Technology Foundation, one of the largest collections of historical military vehicles in the world.
- Vinod Khosla, a co-founder of Sun Microsystems and current owner of Khosla Ventures.
- Donna Dubinsky, CEO of Palm, Inc.
- Laurence W. "Bill" Lane Jr. (1919-2010), the first mayor and one of the founders of Portola Valley, also served as Ambassador to Japan and Australia for the US, and the publisher of Sunset Magazine.
- Kent Mitchell, Olympic rowing champion, former mayor of Portola Valley
- Pete McCloskey, former Member of Congress and Co-chair of Earth Day. Pete McCloskey was also the Town of Portola Valley's first city attorney.
- Ed Oates, a cofounder of Oracle Corporation; currently on the board of the San Francisco Zoological Society, and the San Jose State University Tower Foundation.
- Taylor Eigsti (1984-), jazz pianist. From Menlo Park, California, but graduated salutatorian of his high school class at Woodside Priory School.
- Roger Craig retired pro football player.
- Scott McNealy co-founder of Sun Microsystems.
- Pat Burrell retired baseball player.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
EmoticonEmoticon