There are four cities nestled in this picturesque peninsula on the Pacific Coast: Palos Verdes Estates, Rancho Palos Verdes, Rolling Hills and Rolling Hills Estates.

Palos Verdes Estates – (1)
About 14,000 people live in the most prestigious location in Southern California. Near the ocean, well-maintained but not opulent single family homes enjoy the view. Further away horse trails thread through rolling hills. About 28% of the acreage is reserved as permanent park land, some of it used for walking or hiking trails, with an array of wildlife. Neptune’s Fountain, a replica of 15th century Italian art reigns as the local landmark in the Malaga Cove Plaza. The city runs and maintains a golf club, a private beach, an athletic club and stables.

Rancho Palos Verdes – (2)
Rancho Palos Verdes was incorporated as a city in 1950 with fewer than 500 homes. Ninety percent of the homes were built in the 50s through the 70s. Housing ranges from plenty of glass to tracts with four or five bedrooms. Some houses are mansions with ocean views while most are slightly upscale homes. A portion of homes resides behind the gates. Strict planning and development controls are in place where a population of 43,000 flourishes.

Rolling Hills – (3)
Fences and gates are a way of life in this exclusive community of 2,000. Casual visitors and looky-loos are not welcome. Governed by a city council and a homeowners association, more than half of the homes have nine or more rooms. This is one of the richest cities in the United States.

Rolling Hills Estates – (4)
This city winds through the three other sister cities and has equally tight building controls for its’ 8,300 residents. Homes range from everyday suburban to opulent – offering 28 different neighborhoods, each having their own specific character and architectural style. Retail stores, banks and boutiques provide a tax base to fund local amenities that the other peninsula cities don’t have. There are ten miles of bicycle paths and 25 miles of city bridle paths in Rolling Hills Estates. Additional recreation can be found at the city’s six parks, a city owned tennis club and stables.

Each city on the peninsula is served by the Palos Verdes Unified School District with scores in the 90th percentile, often ranked the highest in the state.

COMMUNITY LINKS

For more information on the Palos Verdes Peninsula region, including: Local Business Directories; Links to Schools; Demographic Information; City Calendar of events; City Government, Services and Organizations Directories, please visit:

• Wikipedia