 Arroyo Grande
and Pismo Beach
Arroyo Grande and Pismo Beach...An area known for natural beauty and friendly people...
In this beautiful area of southern San Luis Obispo County, the splendor of our natural surroundings has attracted thousands of people in search of life that offers a quality found in very few other regions.
Located between the Santa Lucia Mountain range to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west, this area has the best of all opportunities for recreational activities. With the convenience of being halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco, right on State Highways 1 and 101, the area provides easy access for the visitor and business person alike.
Many people who come for a wonderful vacation have created their own professional opportunities and relocated to this area as permanent residents. In addition to the fine climate, convenient location and proximity to many recreational activities, many older citizens have been encouraged to retire here.
Home prices are favorable when compared to larger cities, and the amenities available locally create an ideal environment for senior citizens. This area has fostered a managed growth philosophy and courts business that will add to the positive posture of this area.
Ocean sports, fresh water fun at Lake Lopez, hiking, wine tasting, fine dining, lodging and shopping are all part of the experience when in the Arroyo Grande and Pismo Beach areas.
NIPOMO DUNES
The Nipomo Dunes are home to the only drive-on beach in California, providing access to the beauty of the area to many people unable to walk in the sand. Off-road vehicle enthusiasts love to camp in the Dunes and ride their motorcycles, dune buggies and ATVs. Many other types of recreational activities are enjoyed year-round in the Dunes including horseback riding, hiking, bird watching and botanical exploration.
RESIDENTIAL LIFESTYLE
Residing in Arroyo Grande and Pismo Beach has its own special feeling. It is a blending of the best of two worlds...the wonderful small town ambiance and the benefits of a vital, growing community providing the necessary services to make life comfortable. The housing market provides a wonderful variety at very affordable prices. Historical homes have been preserved and enhanced, while contemporary modern housing has been tastefully constructed to become an asset to the community.
HEALTH CARE
Arroyo Grande has blossomed into the health care center for the entire southern San Luis Obispo County. Arroyo Grande Community Hospital has served as a focal point with their expanding health care facility providing acute health care in a hospital that has recently more than doubled in size to 100 patient beds.
Arroyo Grande is continuing to see the addition of many medical specialists serving the needs of our growing community. The hospital now offers a state-of-the-art Diagnostic Imaging Center, Intensive and Coronary Care Unit and an Endoscopy Suite. The hospital medical staff is over 100 strong, and approximately one-third of the staff are physicians representing a major specialty.
Health care facilities in Arroyo Grande range from emergency medical treatment, medical specialists, skilled nursing centers, home health care, clinics, acute care hospital and support services for home medical care.
Residents can now feel confident that they are getting the best in health care while enjoying the convenience and comfort of staying close to home.
AREA SHOPPING
Shopping in the area is truly unlimited! Whether you're looking for specialty antiques, country crafts, locally produced varietal wines or a wonderful new piece of clothing or an entire new outfit, you can find it all in the Arroyo Grande and Pismo Beach Areas.
Many new shopping areas have been developed to compliment the long-running, established businesses in the area. From small convenience stores to utilize when you are in a hurry, to the giant "all under one roof" type of supermarket, you can find it all in the area very conveniently.
Antique shops have become clustered in the Village of Arroyo Grande and the central business district of Pismo Beach. Plan to spend some time exploring the many shops with wonderful items from past years, whether it is small mementos or large pieces of beautiful furniture, you are bound to enjoy this shopping experience.
With all the retail shopping and services available, residents and visitors alike are able to fill all their needs and desires within only a few miles.
Welcome to Santa Maria
 Santa Maria is located in California's Central Coast between Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties, approximately 170 miles north of Los Angeles and 270 miles south of San Francisco, where the craggy, brush-covered foothills of the Sierra Madre Mountains descend into a flat, fertile valley. The Santa Maria area includes the cities of Santa Maria and Guadalupe and the unincorporated areas of Orcutt and Nipomo. These combined areas make up the urban and most populated area of the Central Coast.
For those fortunate enough to relocate to this peaceful valley, they will find friendly neighbors, a strong community spirit, a growing business sector, and a moderate cost of living and housing compared with Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego.
Stemming from the custom ranches, the "Santa Maria-Style Barbecue" still flourishes as a widely-known attraction. Top sirloin of beef is cooked over chunks of locally grown red oak, seasoned, and served with salsa, sweet buttered French bread, and salad. More than 50 wineries are found between Paso Robles and Santa Barbara, and the Central Coast is gaining a reputation for premium, award-winning wines.
Lompoc
The Lompoc Valley Land Company was formed and incorporated in August of 1874. The Company undertook the settlement of Lompoc Valley as a temperance colony on existing Mexican rancho lands which were purchased from the owners for $500,000. The area was incorporated as a City on August 13, 1888.
Early Lompoc was essentially agricultural, but the community economic and labor base grew and diversified. The growth and diversification of Lompoc was due in part to the establishment and growth of Camp Cooke, now Vandenberg Air Force Base. The population of Lompoc soared from 6,665 in 1957 to over 40,000 in 1993.
As we enter the final decade of the century, the community expects to continue to grow and diversify, while retaining the rich heritage and values characteristic of early Lompoc.
Educational Facilities
The Lompoc Unified School District includes 10 public elementary schools, 2 middle schools, 2 high schools, 1 orthopedically handicapped school for ages 3 through 21, 1 continuation school, and one adult school.
The University of California at Santa Barbara is 50 miles south and Cal Poly at San Luis Obispo is 60 miles north; 4 colleges and universities provide undergraduate and graduate programs at Vandenberg Air Force Base and Lompoc which are available to all local residents. Allan Hancock Community College offers a full range of undergraduate courses in Lompoc and on VAFB.
Recreation
Recreational facilities include a City indoor swimming pool, 2 high school pools, 2 public tennis court facilities (6 courts), 8 high school tennis courts, indoor racquetball courts, an 18-hole golf course and country club, an 18-hole public golf course, a lookout point, BBQ and picnic areas, fishing pond, fitness trail, campground (RV and tent) on the Santa Ynez River, state historical park, an ocean front county park and wildlife refuge, and a nearby state beach with camping facilities (RV and tent).
Additional recreational facilities are nearby including a variety of parks and a national forest which feature pristine beaches, 500-foot giant sand dunes, a 4-wheel drive recreational vehicle area, lakes, mountains and wilderness areas. Activities available include horseback riding, camping, boating, climbing, hiking, fishing, surfing, windsurfing, and swimming, as well as cross country skiing and snowmobiling.
Biking
The Lompoc Valley is considered the premier bike riding area in the state with rides ranging from difficult to pleasant. Tough rides traverse low mountains and rolling hills covered with wildflowers and yellow mustard. The easy 25-mile ride takes participants through fragrant flower fields (May-Sept.) and out to unspoiled beaches of the Pacific Ocean.
Welcome to Solvang 
Solvang, founded in 1911 as a Danish-American colony on a portion of the sprawling Rancho San Carlos de Jonata, has developed into one of the principal tourist attractions in the country.
Located inland along the Central California Coast some 45 miles north of Santa Barbara, the town embodies the expression "Denmark lives in Solvang" with the village of 4,800 representing a page from a Hans Christian Andersen story.
The Santa Ynez Valley is a California coastal valley, nearly 20 miles wide. It is blessed with one of the finest climates in the State of California. Santa Ynez boasts of a smog free, mild year round climate
Santa Ynez Valley is renowned for its horse breeding farms, art galleries, award winning wineries, and the quaint Danish village of Solvang. The quiet beauty of the Valley is often described as utopia by the celebrities, world and business leaders who make their homes here. Scattered throughout the valley are interesting little towns noted for their fine restaurants, shops and hotels.
The towns--Los Olivos, with its turn of the century flavor, is a favored location for artists and galleries. The old western town of Santa Ynez, the Danish Village of Solvang, and the suburban town of Buellton are a mecca to visitors and residents alike.
Recreation facilities abound in the Santa Ynez Valley area. There is the Lake Cachuma Recreational area for fishing, and wonderful tennis facilities and Championship golf courses nearby. The Los Padres national forest is a delight for wilderness seekers.
An ideal place to live. 2 hours to Los Angeles, 30 minutes to historic Santa Barbara, 4 hours to San Francisco. A wonderful environment for both the young and the retired. Whether it's your choice to live in a residential neighborhood, a farm, or on a 5,10, or 20 acre estate, you will enjoy living in the Santa Ynez Valley.
Solvang is home to two museums. The Elverhoj Museum is housed in a replica of a Danish farmhouse. The museum is devoted to the cultural heritage of Solvang. Displays include information about early Solvang history, examples of Danish and Danish-American furnishings and rotating exhibits of art. The Hans Christian Andersen Museum in downtown Solvang features a large collection of the author's books. Displays in the museum also relate to the life, art and loves of Denmark's most famous and beloved author.
A Solvang tradition since 1974 and acclaimed by critics nationwide, the Solvang Theaterfest offers... repertory theater at its finest with plays presented by the Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts. The 780-seat outdoor theater offers a variety of theatrical presentations from June through September each year.
Although it is frequented by thousands upon thousands of visitors from all parts of the country, as well as from all over the world, each year Solvang has still managed to retain in its charm and quaintness plus its cleanliness. Every morning shopkeepers, many of them Danish costumes, apply their brooms to the sidewalks and roadways. Next task is to arrange their American and Danish flags in their holders.
Solvang is a town of flags, with practically every business establishment and many homes displaying the national banner of the United States, the stars and stripes and the red and white Dannebrog, the world's oldest flag.
|
