Surfridge, Abandoned Roads at the End of LAX Runways
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- Опубликовано: 12 июл 2022
- Join Kendall as he tells you the story of the former housing development along the Pacific Ocean known as Surfridge or Palisades Del Rey in the Playa Del Rey. This beautiful South Bay neighborhood was lost due to growth, expansion and modernized technology. As the Southern California area grew and jet planes were introduced, this once thriving neighborhood fell victim to eminent domain as Los Angeles International Airport, LAX, expanded. If you've ever driven along Vista Del Mar near Dockweiler Beach, you've probably noticed this unusual sight or site as it is both. The deserted area has a mysterious vibe. Learn the history and the demise of this abandoned neighborhood that was once full of life and beautiful South Bay California coastal homes.
I just retired from the airlines as a pilot and have flown into LAX hundreds of times and always wondered about that area near the beach with the old streets. Thanks for solving that for me. Nice work young man.
Glad to help! It's such an interesting place.
At least 99% of the time you fly over Surfridge is on takeoff. Landings almost always occur from east to west.
Yes, most of the times I have had the best look at it were very early mornings when for noise and off shore winds they might be landing east. I saw it mostly in the level 5 sims that had goggle maps visuals while teaching or giving check rides.@@davebennett4087
@@davebennett4087 Depends on what time of day for arrivals and departures. Late night operations typically land to the east and depart west for noise abatement. Day ops are landing/departing west unless there are strong easterly winds.
@@mountainrunner6922 That may be. Most of my flights arrived and departed between 7am and 7pm. Wouldn’t think you would see Surfridge at night though.
I grew up going to that beach. Many of my friends lost their homes. My school avoided the wrecking ball, but it was right on the border across the street from the removed homes. So we looked at empty lots. The noise from the planes was so great because they flew so close over us it felt like we could reach up and touch their landing gear. So loud you couldn't hear on the playground. Beautiful homes with great views just taken away for less than fair value. People complained about the noise and the vibrations cracking their windows. The city would constantly replace people's windows. Finally the city said-- it's easier to buy everyone out. So they did. People didn't have any choice but to take the price the city offered because who else would outbid them knowing everything was being torn down? But a handful of people actually refused to leave and remained living there for many years. The city would tear each of the purchased homes down if the owners hadn't moved the house to another location-- which many did. So you'd have one house sitting alone on a block that looked like bombed out Berlin with weeds growing in the street. People forget, but the people forced to move were very upset and felt cheated.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Others have expressed similar accounts. As bad as it all looks now, you can tell it was spectacular at some point. It's a shame homeowners didn't get treated more fairly.
Same thing happened in Chicago. Still is happening.
@@danielmorse4213 It's so easy for officials to make these decisions, but so hard on many families that are impacted.
yea eminent domain is fucked up
Yup i remember
My dad and his family lived here until their home was compulsorily purchased. I have photos of him and his siblings outside their house. In addition to the noise, the roofs of all the homes were damaged by oil/petroleum effluence dropping from overhead flights. Thanks for making this.
It's sad what happened to the beautiful homes. Glad you enjoyed it.
I was there in 1961. Never knew about the exhaust damage but certainly makes sense; if damaged roofs what about our lungs 🫁?😮
Air pollution was bad in Los Angeles in the late forties and fifties. I was born there in 1943 and remember when my lungs late in the day on certain days. This was the Baldwin Hills area.
Very enjoyable video. I was born in 1943 in Los Angeles and lived in the Baldwin Hills until 1964. I remember going to Los Angeles airport in the late 40s early 50s and it was at a different location further east. I do not remember Surfridge or the property immediately west of the airport along the beach. In the mid-50s military aircraft used LAX for takeoffs and landings. My friend and I would watch jet fighter planes take off and land there.
In summer of 1965 I worked for a LA yellow cab out of the l.a. airport garage. I rented a very small studio behind a lady's house on 99th street. All of that is gone for big hotels.
I wonder if the city of Los Angeles really paid “market value” for movie stars’s homes to replace them with grass lots!
The Rockford Files episode "The House on Willis Avenue" (1978) was filmed in part in the boarded-up neighborhood of Surfridge. As a kid watching this I found it strange that an entire neighborhood would be abandoned like that.
I was also told about an episode of CHiPs with Surfridge in the background. I'll look for that Rockford FIles episode.
I was a little kid living around the corner from the Rockford Files filming of that episode. James Garner was an incredibly nice man who laughed and joked with all us neighborhood kids. Dennis Dugan didn’t say much but I got his autograph anyway. Weird coincidence was my last name is Willis.
As a college student and surfer between 62-65, I knew the plane noise at what was called Playa del Rey was getting worse. I left to attend Long Beach State, and when I returned in 68 after grad school, was shocked to see the abandoned homes. I was unaware of the abatement, but will always remember that quaint hillside community. Thanks for the fine update.😎
You're welcome!
Was there decent surf at Dockweiler? I never saw it. For board surfing we'd go further north to Salispuedes on the north end of M.B. back in the day, saving Dockweiler and PDR for body surfing.
I remember all that. Graduated from LB state in 1966.
I currently live in one of the houses that was moved from surfridge in 1966. My house lived on Ives street. I had this idea to move my house back to surfridge to turn into a museum. It is such a cute little bungalow and it is in danger of being torn down due to my monster two story neighborhood. Builders are tearing little bungalows down left and right. Someone may not care at all about the history of this house. This place has incredible history and I think there needs to be a museum there where people can go in and learn about it. Is this a crazy idea or is anyone with me on this???? I cannot bear to have my cute little house torn down and this history can't be forgotten.
First, your home is special and it needs to be spared and honored! I'd love to see photos of it. It has been suggested that I do a follow up video telling stories just like your. Maybe your house could be a future episode? Also, have you looked into getting it registered with the local municipality as having historic significance?
Our family has a home in Hermosa that is 872 sq feet. It was purchased by my great great aunt in 1934 and has remained in the family all this time. It is surrounded by the massive homes, so I completely understand how you feel about it. My mom has photos of the house the year it was purchased and it was about the only thing around. Now there is no open space and buildings are right up to the property lines.
I hope you'll consider letting us tell your story!
@@adventureswithkendall Hello, Thank you for your reply! We are working on the house right now. When I get it to where I want it I will let you know and show photos of it. I thought of the historical route but honestly no one will care and will tear it down to build a big mansion....We are on a 7500 sq ' lot- house is only 1100 and everything around us in being torn down. Anything is possible but I will tell you more a bit on down the road ....We are going to be here another 3 years or so and I don't want to draw too much attention to it quite yet. Will be in touch :)
NO, not a crazy idea. Problem now is the traffic generated would interfere with the amazing animal and plant life discoveries. I guess we could say "SCREW THAT/THEM" but I would take a more conciliatory approach. If it were to open, I would try some eco-friendly way to go visit ... I knew that area well, especially Grand Pre Blvd ... some cool, funny stories about that round-about there overlooking the South Complex. Never did find IVES street you mentioned. I remember a IVALEE street north of SANDPIPER, which I believe was called MOSCOW street back then. Not sure about the name change though, but recall there was no Sandpiper back in the day.
That really hurts my heart. The same thing is happening all over the country with ranch style homes. The only way a developer can make any money is to keep the footprint and build up, resulting in absolute monstrosities that don't fit in with the rest of the neighborhood. Eventually, they will all be gone. I lived there for 20 years and it was always my dream to live in a bungalow - thanks for caring about preservation!!
@@hgr4255 Hello, Oh I made a typo. The address of the house was in fact 126 Ivalee not Ives. Ives is in my neighborhood It was the next street north of Sandpiper. I'm going to talk to some "historical" big wigs and see what they think???? Our house is such a unique cute bungalow and it doesn't even sit facing forward on the lot which hides all its character (it didn't fit). Its a waste to have it hidden in my monster two story neighborhood. builders want our lot but I'm not having this house torn down. I don't know if I can attach a photo but I'll try. I understand what you are saying about the interference of the nature..Maybe they could find a place to put it close by. Its probably just a dream...I'll give it a shot! nope can't post a photo...its on another surfridge youtube channel.
I lived in LA for over 35 years and I never knew about this. Mel was our patient at UCLA when I started working there in the 80s. Good video, well done. 🙌🏻💕
Thank you, glad you learned something new.
Someone HAD to ask Mel Blanc to do a Yosemite Sam every now and then!
@@DeflatingAtheism Lol, he did all the voices for the ER doctor and staff. We all heard the stories about it throughout the whole hospital. It happened right after I started working there. 🥰
@@DeflatingAtheismCool!!😊
I’m an LA native and never knew about this community! So interesting and great video!
So glad you enjoyed it and learned something new!
Same here. And I drive up Vista Del Mar every single day. Crazy! 🔥
I always find it eerie when I look at abandoned neighborhoods and see nothing left but streets, foundation slabs, and the trees that used to be in someone's yard but are now the only living remnant of their home.
It is eerie. The street lights, the trees and such all behind big chain link fences. Then you look the other direction and see the incredible view the homes would of had.
I have flown in and out of LAX for many decades and have wondered what happened to the houses that used to be there. Thanks for finally solving the mystery for me.
Glad to help!
Great job finding so many original photos and video of Surfridge, it’s been difficult to find this. I recently learned that much of the early skateboarding evolved here when homes were vacated and their pools were drained. I think it was on the Dogtown documentary. I hope you are able to make a sequel if you get more footage.
I'd love to make a sequel. It would be great to interview people who lived there. The skateboarding make sense. I need to look into that.
Thank you for this wonderful video! My family actually lived on Napoleon Avenue in the Palisades Del Rey community in the 1960’s. It was very loud and our dog, Deacon used to try to run away to escape the noise. I also have faint memories as a child of walking on the beach in Playa Del Rey with my Mother and Sister as the debris from a SAS DC-8 that had crashed in the Santa Monica Bay washed ashore. Very surreal, looking back.
Scott, these first hand memories are so fascinating as they put real feelings into what this was like for the residents. Poor Deacon! It must have been like the 4th of July over and over.
Ha, I assume you're dog was named after the great Ram player. He was my favorite back east as a kid.
Thank You Scott!! I remember that crash when I was a kid but was starting to think it was a manufactured memory. Now I may have a way to look it up. I kind of remember pictures of pleasure craft trying to help.
I remember the SAS accident. I lived on 4th Street in Santa Monica at the time and it was pouring rain that evenng. About the same week, A united 727 ditched in the bay off of " Surfridge " in simillar weather conditions. A sad chapter in the history of LAX ..
I’ve lived in L.A. 43 years and never knew this story. Thank you for sharing this wonderful piece of history. Kudos on all the wonderful archival photos. Just loved it!
Glad you enjoyed it
I started driving some 35 years ago and would go out exploring different parts of LA. I came across this area in the 1990's and would stop on Sandpiper to watch the jets taking off. Sandpiper was closed off after 9/11 for security reasons. I was just at Dockweiler Beach this weekend and saw that the abandoned streets and lampposts are still there. Everything is fenced off but visible from the coastal highway.
When I see it now, I try to imagine what it was like with the beautiful homes. I had passed it for years not knowing the story.
I used to work around LAX. Sometimes we would brown bag it and have lunch on Sandpiper.
Sandpiper was where my dad took me when I was a little boy in the late 70s early 80s. There were still houses on the north side of the street. I still take my kids to Dockweiler and when I pass by on Pershing I usually stop and walk over to the fence and stare at the top of that roller coaster hill and remember all those good times with my old man.
As a longtime resident of Playa del rey, it is good see videos that speak to the rich history of our community. Great pics.
There are a few other videos about the South Bay Area. I love the area.
Fascinating. I lived there directly under the flight path in 1961 as an 11 year old. Never knew it’s history till your fascinating clip. Mel Blanc? Never would have guessed. Yes, astonishing loud whenever a jet passed over. Many thanks 😊
Glad you enjoyed it.
Back in the mid 1980s I drove the streets of this area before it was fence up. It was interesting to see the old foundations, driveways and some street lamps in this area. It was one way to get to the beach.
That's cool. I wish I could have drove around the streets.
It's especially great to hear about the endangered species that have space to thrive
Yes, something good happening now.
North of PDR is the Bollona wetlands, where the LA River ends. It's protected, but city-filthy 😢
I'm stoked to find this video. I've been flying in and out of LAX as a commercial pilot for decades. Several times I've driven those roads and seen them in movies. Never have I heard the history of the area. Thank you for answering a long standing question. All the best to you...much appreciated.
Glad it was helpful!
In the late 1980s airline business often brought me to LAX for a week or two at a time. I discovered the remains of the Surfridge neighborhood while on walks from my hotel and pretty much understood its story on sight. I always wondered about who might have lived there in the day. Thanks for the information.
You're welcome!
THAT would be one helluva walk if you walked from World Way, whew. Power walk comes to mind if you're walking from hotel row along Century. Good on ya! I can't do that.
As a 76 year old native of Southern California, I remember when my friend and his family were forced out of their home there. His father was in a wheelchair and the home and swimming pool had been custom built to accommodate his father’s physical difficulties. They were never able to purchase or build a comparable home. My comments about LAX and Los Angeles in general are not printable. My late husband and I fled California nearly 40 years ago.
So many were displaced by the airport expansion. I've heard many stories like that of your friend.
As kali has declined into a serious woke scum-land, consider yourself fortunate for having escaped!
You are fortunate to have gotten out of commiefornia. I am still here, unfortunately.
I went to college in the area in the late 70's. I also remember the abandoned neighborhoods along Arbor Vitae.
I'll have to go check that area out.
In the early 70s my friends at St. Bernard and Westchester High Schools had broken into one of the boarded up homes in Surfridge and made it a party house and stashed booze and porn there. Lasted a long time, maybe 1-2 years. But it was an eerie place to hang out at night; lots of strange animals. It was fenced off mostly so it became its own ecosystem. Most memorable was a huge possum the size of a St. Bernard that stood on its hind legs and was terrifying! I know of some homes moved to Mar Vista; still very chic.
I am not surprised about any of this. Those abandoned homes would have been a great place to hang out for some. I'm also not surprised by the animals and it being creepy. There are unexpected animals all over that region in the populated areas. Thanks for the comment. I love hearing first hand what people experienced.
I have lived just a couple miles away for nearly 20 years and I had no idea about Surfridge. Thanks for the great video and your research. I enjoyed learning about this forgotten town.
Glad you learned something new about that amazing area.
I also live a couple of miles away in Westchester. I've ridden my bike many times through that area but never explored the cliffs.
I love this son! Thanks for showing me the history of this interesting place. I have passed it many times and always wondered why there weren't home there.
You are welcome.
This is such a very sad story. That beautiful and sweet community was there first, and the civil engineers should have done their homework and not built next to this community knowing that the noise and pollution level would be devastating and incredibly unhealthy. Thank you for your very great journalistic work. I have just subscribed to your channel.
Thank you!
They knew and didn't care.
Interesting story & it relatable even though Chicago is where my parents were looking to move out of in the late 1950s. They moved to a far Western Suburb. But 10 years later Niles was were friends of the parents moved & tried to get them to Buy the new house next door.
I remember being in their backyard & every 2 minutes a big jet would pass overhead & completely drowned out any conversation. After experiencing that the parents stayed right where they were
because the noise was horrible. Niles had home owners complaining too but the O'Hare airport was there a long time. Same with Midway airport the runways are very short & go right in the middle of a neighborhood.
People living there must like the sound of Jets.
What a great history lesson I was born in Los Angeles, raised in Europe, and love history. Thank you for sharing. Absolutely fascinating!
So glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks for the tour, Kendall! I grew up in Culver City in the 1960s and this area was one of several that I actually got to take driving lessons at before heading out into really heavy traffic. We learned how to parallel park a car on a hill there, both heading uphill and then downhill. “Remember, prevent runaways. Curb your wheels!”
Sounds like a great place to practice that.
My sisters and I learned to drive stick shift on sandpiper
I lived in El Segundo in the 70's & 80's and as a teen, my friends and I used to go to that area in bikes and later in cars (it wasn't always fenced). We knew why it was abandoned (noise) but it was great to get the whole story. Thanks!
You're welcome!
Kendall, your Mom shared this one on Facebook. It brought me to your channel. And I am really enjoying your work. You keep it up you are great.
Thank you so much! I appreciate you letting me know.
I went to a Christmas party at a friend's apartment there in 1969. Sad that urban sprawl forced the residents of those neighborhoods to move.
Great episode, Kendall. Your investigation and report were nicely done.
Thank you!
I used to work in El Segundo & would take the back roads to Marina Del Rey all of the time. I never knew about these old neighborhoods. Such a great video…❤️
Glad you enjoyed it.
Well done Kendall! I live down the road, and drive past this all the time. I learned a lot from your effort; thanks for the great video.
Thanks for watching!
I used to live in Playa del Rey and always wondered about that 'ghost neighborhood'. Thanks Kendall for the history lesson.
My pleasure!
Kid, I clicked on this while I was getting things ready for tomorrow's schedule and it ultimately blew me away!!!
I grew up near there and just got schooled! Bless you for the local forgotten history!
As an aside, in one county the Burrow Owl is endangered; 20 miles away they're pests to be eradicated!? Hahaha!
Greta, get over yourself! Let things fix themselves.
Cucamunga man. Cucamunga!!!!
Cheers!
Ha ha, glad I was able to school you 😂
Interesting video. Thanks for that.
A portion of the video for Dwight Yoakam's tune "Pocket Of A Clown" was shot there, circa 1993, with the band jumping on trampolines while 747's flew right over their heads.
Interesting, I'll have to watch that video. Thanks for sharing.
Great video. You need to do a sequel to this video of Surfridge, PDR. Perhaps you can add more images of the past of Surfridge. There's many people still alive that lived in or near Surfridge. People have shared their pictures of Surfridge. I don't think they would mind if you showed them on your videos. Giving them the proper credit when possible as long as you are not using them for profit
That's such a great idea. I wish we would of had a way to find some of these people prior to making this video.
Very interesting, I used to work at LAX and always wondered what it was like at Dockweiler beach,thanks for this video.😊❤
You’re welcome!
You know the same thing happened in the 1990's to the Westchester neighborhood just to the north of LAX. And when they removed those houses, they used one of them for an explosion scene in the movie Speed with Sandra Bullock. And just in the last few years the airport has taken a neighborhood to the east for it's new consolidated rental car facility and associated people mover automated rail system. It wouldn't surprise me if some day they expand the runways out into the ocean.
I was just in Westchester yesterday getting footage of that area north of the runways. I've had several people comment that they lived there during all of that. The golf course story is interesting too.
Sandpiper Street was a terrific lunch spot for me in the 90's.
Surf View and planes flying over.
Thanks for the comment. We love to hear about personal experiences with the places we visit.
Oooh exciting! Thanks for this, I hope your channel gets the recognition it deserves! So well researched and interesting.
Thank you! The encouraging comments help keep me going.
The original Los Angeles municipal Airport terminal was shown momentarily in this video. Fun fact, it was used for the farewell scene in Casablanca. Some years back, it was slated for demolition in order to build more warehouses, but thankfully preservationists fought to save it. It is easily viewed as you approach LAX on the 105 freeway.
That's a cool fact. I had no idea.
@@adventureswithkendall Check KCET’s “From Mines Field to LAX: The Early History of L.A. International Airport.” Some years back, I lived in El Segundo and was based as a flight attendant for American Airlines at LAX. Although I transferred to Miami international, I routinely layed over in Los Angeles. Returning to LAX the following day, I would point out to fellow crew members the Mines Field terminal and share the Casablanca trivia. Once you know this fun fact, you can never watch the farewell scene and not think of Mines Field. I searched a little bit to see if it was possible to visit the terminal, but was unable to figure it out. My guess is that since it is in a secure area, it might not be possible. Perhaps you will be able to find out and maybe pay a visit. I wish you the best with your channel.
I recently spent ten years working in LAX, but I live in San Diego. I often wondered about that "butterfly sanctuary" on my way to the parking lot. I would hang out in my car in that neighborhood just north, waiting for my shift to start. Very interesting local history that makes me appreciate San Diego more. Thanks for this video.
Thanks for watching.
I lived in Surf Ridge when I was a child. I didn’t know the name of the development until YT picked this video for my feed. I think I’ll have to dig into it’s history some more now that I know it’s name.
It was a beautiful place to live, and I can still remember the day we moved out; it was cloudy and cold, fitting weather for such a sad day. The old jets were indeed very loud, the noise would literally hurt my ears if I was outside, but they were fascinating to watch as they flew right overhead. The sunsets, we’re beautiful and the location gave me a lifelong interest in commercial aircraft. Thank you for this video and your research!
Glad to help!
Great job! I've been driving by this area twice a day every day for several years and I learned a lot by this video - thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
There were many places to locate an International Airport in Los Angeles besides right on the beach! Beaches and beach property are very limited anywhere, let alone Southern California.
Because of all the bribes and political favors, this is why I dropped out of urban planning at the University. It was obvious that compromises would be too great.
This video clears up a lot of questions. A great job done and much gratitude to you.
Thank you for the kind words.
This was one of the most fascinating videos I’ve seen on RUclips and I watch it all day everyday!!! Kudos!!! I’ve never even heard of Surf Ridge and I was BORN miles from there!!!! My mom never heard of it either! 😮😮😮 Im flabbergasted by this discovery. Thanks for making this video! 🎉
Wow, thank you!
I grew up in Inglewood and Westchester. Like many of the other commenters, I have fond memories of this area. Nearby, was the Dockweiler State Beach park that had fire pits. My family had many good times there cooking hot dogs and marshmallows. After the north runway was built at LAX, the noise increased tremendously. We were so used to the prop planes and later the jets that it didn’t bother us that much. Later I worked at Continental Airlines first at the airport and later in El Segundo. Our senior high school class year book had a picture of the LAX theme building on the front cover.
They still have fire pit at Dockweiler. It's cool to drive by at night. Thanks for watching.
Love the video. Its always interesting to find out the comings and goings of things around us. I especially like the scene where you show the jet plane flying low over the house. Reminds me of my home when I was a child. I lived in Melbourne Florida and we were very close to the airport. There were times when they would take off and fly right over our house, like the picture showed. I remember at least one time when we were outside playing and one flew right over our house, it was so low, it scared me, cuz, it looked like it was going to hit our t.v. antenna. But, also it was so loud, it would utterly rattle our windows. Between that and the train track that was at the end of our back yard, its a wonder we got any peace and quiet, but, we learned to adapt to it. At first it was hard to sleep with the train track only about 30 ft away, but, eventually, we could sleep right through it.
Glad you enjoyed it! I live in Fresno where essentially everyone lives in the flight path. We have a air national guard here. The military jets are so loud. I love trains so I'd probably love living near noisy tracks. Thanks for sharing your experience. It makes this all so much more fun when we hear the personal connections.
Great Job!! I live a few blocks from there in PDR. You should research Westchester Parkway....it was filled with homes at one time. The airport bought up all the land and either tore down the homes or picked them up and moved them to Watts for a dollar each. I lived on El Manor and Will Rogers, just west of Sepulveda. We were the last family to leave that area. I used to watch some of the houses roll down the street during the middle of the night. I'm sure there are many stories of that.
Oh wow! I'll look into that. It sounds really interesting. Thanks for the info.
We must have been neighbors! My family lived on the south side of Will Rogers St west of Sepulveda Westway. My parents were one of the first to sell to the Airport after the north runways were built. We moved a dozen blocks north. People told my parents that they saw the Airport run a bulldozer through our old house. I remember seeing your house on the north side of Will Rogers St by itself for many years.
My parents drove by that area yesterday and I'll go soon to get some footage. I'm having trouble finding much about it, but found info on the golf course being 15 holes and then years later restored to 18. Do either of you have any old photos of your home? I'd appreciate anything you can share with me. You can email anything including a photos, details about how your family felt about the situation, etc. to me at gowithkendall@gmail.com. Personal stories always make the content more interesting. Thanks!
I lived in Manchester Square east of the airport, and went to Westchester High. All our houses were carted away starting in early '70's, and now there's nothing left.
I currently live in Playa del Rey and walk by this place almost daily. You literally captured footage of my route to the beach… Really fascinating history! Great job!
Thank you!
Great video. I’ve been a resident of SoCal for decades and never knew any of this, though I always wondered what was on the ocean side of LAX.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Wow! That was the most interesting video I’ve seen in many a year. I know a lot of trivia but I never knew anything about this. Bravo, young man. Video of the year from my point of view and great research too! Outstanding!!!
Thank you! 😊
Great video, as an airline pilot, I love to learn the history of the area I fly in and out of.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I loved the old films and pictures!
Thanks. The history and old images are my favorite part too.
Wow! Incredible history and what a nice looking place to live before the airstrip got too big.
It's a beautiful area right along the coast.
I actually grew up in that neighborhood, although with the introduction of the Boeing 707, it was a noisy place as you mentioned. My dad bought our house, a cape-cod style house with 2 floors and an attic which my dad converted into two addition bedrooms for my brother and I for a third floor. We lived at 9120 Trask Avenue and that was one house away from Haviland Drive running from PCH up to the top of the sand dune. We were hardly wealthy though, as this was much later and the noise probably caused the wealthy to exit and kept property values down. Side note: at the end of Haviland was a small Nike Missile Air defense post. I remember having army troops going in and out from there to operate the missile defense. They troops only worked there as there was a base about 1 mile away that they were quartered in right on the edge of airport property. They shut that down very early in the 1960s though as I have only dim memories of that being operational. We used to climb the fence and explore the little outpost. Much to explore for a kid!!
Our house abutted LAX property and we spent many a day roaming around all that land as well. It was separated from LAX proper by a fence and Pershing Drive which ran the western perimeter of the airport. We were a good 150 feet above the airport level property and would spend every dinner hour wathcing the planes take off. As you mentioned they were mostly prop-planes when I was younger, but quickly in my lifetime were replaced with the 707s. Later the 727s and even the very first 747 jumbo jet arrived at LAX in a nationwide tour around Christmas-time. Good times with the beach being two blocks away and down a pretty decent sized bluff - 100 foot tall or so as I remember - and Dockweiler State Beach and the ocean.
Back to life there - even in our house, someone would have to sit 4-5 feet from the TV set in the living room as we did not have remote control back then and you would turn the volume to near max as the jet roared over, and then back down as you sat back down. Repeat that every 4 minutes or so!!! We were dead off the shorter southern pair of runways mostly runway 25R (the right most runway of the south-pair). I mentioned they were shorter, but were extended later as larger planes became the norm. The 747s, DC10s and such were initially restricted to using the northern runways 24 L/R.
Thank you for the tour. Brought back many fond memories. We all loved that location and house, but alas, the city of Los Angeles, department of airports, condemned the entire neighborhood and houses were either moved or torn-down - with most being run through with a bulldozer. We witnessed about 1/2 or the neighborhood removal before my parents agreed to sell.
- Chris Pace
Oh by the way, we never called it surf ridge. That must have predated our time there. We just called it by the post office name: Playa del Rey (spanish for King's Beach or some such). I went to elementary school at Paseo del Rey - so we learned many of the spanish names that existed around the area.
Wow! That's truly amazing! I lived at 9120 Trask Ave too! 🤣🤣🤣 You remember it all better than I do. My memory is a little foggy because my big brother used to throw concrete blocks at my head and push me off the upper bunk backwards before we moved upstairs. Lol. Well, obviously, we both survived somehow. Thanks for sharing this with me. I'll write a comment to this, too.
What a story! It must have been hard to watch when they were demolishing houses and moving them. Thanks so much for sharing all these great details.
In the late 1970’s my friends and I used to go into these houses and explore. I miss those days.
Sounds like fun.
used to bike by here all the time when i lived in the area and had no idea about all this. thank you for sharing all the cool history!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Me too in the mid eighties.
I had a friend in the 1980's whose mother had been an elected official in Los Angeles during the time Surfridge and Palisades Del Rey were destroyed. The mother said, in my presence, that L.A. City Council members had gotten so tired of dealing with the home owners complaints, they decided the best way to fix the problem was to get rid of the home owners. This despite the fact that the home owners had the law on their side in regards to the noise issue. But the City of L.A. made so much $$$$$ from LAX, that what the home owners wanted didn't matter. What the greedy politicians wanted DID matter.
Interesting aspect I hadn't thought about. Im honestly not surprised though.
I grew up in So Cal in the 50's and had to chuckle when you said "see the beauty that Was California". It sure isn't what it used to be.
I get hung up on what I say at times, but that is funny.
When I was little (1960s), we had family friends who lived in adjoining Playa del Rey. I remember having conversations there having to be halted as the aircraft took off.
They were one of the last to sell their home.
I can only imagine.
This is beautiful. Thanks for the brain food ❤️ Mom sent me here. Thanks mom 🏆
Always glad to feed the brain. My mom is my biggest fan for sure.
Nice job. I grew up about 200 yards north of the runway in Westchester and LAX did the same thing to those homes in the early 70’s. Our family ended up having to move and ended up in Orange County.
The other part of the story is that I remember the lawyers from LAX tried to gip my parents of $7000 in the purchase of their house so my parents took them to court and without any lawyers of their own, just husband and wife, ended up winning a judgment against three LAX lawyers to collect the additional funds.
I'm in that neighborhood today shooting some video. Another viewer of this video said his family was the last to leave that area of Westchester. Then another chimed in and said his house was the first to go. I'm doing research on that project. If you have a statement about what it was like or any photos of your former home or neighborhood, I'd love to use them. You can email me at gowithkendall@gmail.com
@@adventureswithkendall sure I could find some pix…
That would be great!
@@adventureswithkendallA friend of mine told me that his dad had purchased a house near the airport and had it moved to la Sierra area in Riverside CA. 92506 I think it would still be there today. Left off of the 91 freeway at la Sierra st. near the park. That would be crazy if it was.
Wow. I grew up in So-Cal from 1977 and my dad worked for United at LAX and I never even knew that place existed. I probably flew over it a hundred times.
I've heard that a lot.
Great little look into the neighborhood. Thanks.
I was raised there, from 1961 until when my parents sold to the airport in 1978 or so. You can see my old backyard off Napoleon street in the background of your shot of the little park @ 5:37.
It took my mom some years to acclimate to the lack of noise when we finally ended up moving, but being a kid, I just loved watching the jets fly over.
I love the personal memories that have been shared. Thanks!
sandpiper street was always a spot to park and drink beers until they fenced it off.
Too funny!
Great video my dude, I have always driven by Surfridge and pondered what it was all about. You cleared up all questions I once had. Great content and keep it up! Got a sub outta me :)
So glad you learned from it and thanks for the subscription!
I was born and raised on the corner to the left of your opening photo - -the corner of Ringe and Nay. My dad fresh out of the Navy after World War II log in built on that corner our first house in 19 46. Thank you so much for bringing back some incredible memories. I'm now 77 years old is living in San Francisco as a polis priest call St. Mary's Cathedral at the corner of California Street and Grant Street. Thanks again for sharing have a great day.
I love the personal stories. Glad you enjoyed it.
My grandmother took me over there in 1978. The concrete streets and leveled foundations that were closed off by chain link fences have only grown more weeds since then. The old street lampposts still remained giving me a clue as to its approximate age. I remember wondering how long ago that happened, not too long before that according to the timeline you gave in the video. Thank you for answering a question I had been pondering for many years.
Glad it was helpful!
I remember when there were still houses there. they were used in a few Rockford files episodes . after all the houses were torn down the streets remained open for years, then the city blocked all but one street going from pureshing way down to the beach . now that one is blocked also.
I wish I could have seen it before.
@@adventureswithkendall.. I saw it when it was already abandon . I'm not old enough to have seen it when people still lived there. I'm from Hermosa Beach. not far from there. but I remember the empty houses .
Hermosa is my second home. Ive done several episodes on the area including one on Hermosa itself, the Greenbelt and the bike trail. We have a small home that's been in my family for nearly 90 years.
We have a place like this here in New York. It’s called Queens.
I'll have the check that out sometime. I'd love to get back to that area.
I remember visiting someone in that neighborhood in the early 60s. Horrible, horrible noise. I couldn't wait to get out of there.
I can only imagine.
Spent many nights learning about paradise by the dashboard lights back in the ‘70s.
😂
A large part of the final decision to vacate the neighborhood was due to excessive lawsuits. LA was paying out big bucks for some suits and contended with two that I recall from back in the day.
1) Family sues LA International and the city because the frequent flyovers of the new jets caused their dog to bite them. The suit was in the high hundreds of thousands, a lot of money back then.
(2) Another one was blaming the jet noise on their sons recent 'outing', saying he was gay. The blamed it on the jets. I should have sued as well. One time, sitting on Sandpiper drive, I had to scratch my nose. I should've stated it a nervous condition from all the new noisy jets flying over. What trash they come up with, and look who prevailed. I'm not saying eminent domain is a great thing, but the city HAD to grow it's airport, the lifeline of any growing city. Sorry Surfridge, to this day I still love plying your crumbled and overgrown weeded streets, until they finally closed off the last road, Sandpiper.
Wow! Great info. Yes, progress isn't always pretty.
Wow, well done! Fascinating history, and it's a shame to see the people who were there first get stepped on for "the good of the public."
Right, good of the public isn't always good for all. Glad you enjoyed it.
I used to work for a guy who speculated in real estate by purchasing condemned houses and moving them to other locations, fixing them up and them selling them. My first day working for him, I was hand digging footings in the crawl space under his home for a second story addition that he was doing. this was in Orange Park Acres, a then semi-rural area east of Orange Calif. Imagine my surprise when, lying on my belly, digging a 4'x4'x4' footing, looking up to see acoustic ceiling spray on the underside of the ground floor of this house. Come to find out that the owner had purchased a two story house from LAX in Surfridge and had used the second floor for this house. I don't know what happened to the first floor, but knowing the owner, it was used and sold somewhere. We added a 1700 sq ft second floor to the former second floor giving him about 3500 sq.ft. This all went down in 1980-1981.
Fascinating!
Would love to see that house! Sounds very interesting. So now 3 houses seem to still exist from Surfridge.
I used to live there. It was such a beautiful area.
I can only imagine from seeing the old photos. You can tell by driving by that it was something spectacular at one time.
Just half a mile north of there still had that style of house. I wonder if the noise reduces the price of those houses
This was a great video! I grew up in Los Angeles and didn't know this story. Feel bad for the people who lost their homes to the airport though. Thanks Kendall!
Thanks! Yes, it's been a learning experience for me. Progress comes a a cost.
This video helped me to finally understand something that I've been trying to figure out for years. Surfridge was used as a filming location for an episode of the TV show "The Rockford Files." The episodes in question (it was a two part) was "The House on Willis Avenue." I've watched and rewatched it many times over my life, and I was always fascinated that the producers managed to find a whole abandoned neighborhood to use as a filming location. The only clue that I had were some signs you could see in the footage that proclaimed that the area was condemned for "noise abatement." Your video helped me to put the final piece of the puzzle together! Thanks.
Glad to help and thanks for watching. I need to watch that episode.
This was fascinating. I was born and raised less than 20 miles from here and never knew bout this community. Thanks!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Used to live in Hawthorne years ago. At the time there was still one road open from Pershing over to Vista Del Mar. Would take my son down there, park at the top of the ridge and watch the jets take off. Thanks for bringing back some happy memories.
Sounds amazing!
I got to drive on those roads as a kids in the 90s bcoz my grandpa used to work as an aircraft mechanic and had access to that area. Such a cool feeling seeing the planes take off overhead. Great video!
I love hearing the personal stories about the area. Thanks for watching.
I had a friend who lived in that area. In 1976 he took me to see his former home. The streets were not yet blocked off, and the houses had not been removed yet. We were able to go inside the house and look around. We only went inside the one house. It was dirty, damaged, from ‘squatters’ or partiers. Graffiti was everywhere, but the structure was sound. Most of the windows were broken (not boarded up) and the doors still on their hinges. These days it probably would have been stripped by by looters, but that was not the case in 1976. It was strange seeing all these homes (middle class homes in this neighborhood) empty and in disrepair.
I can't imagine how hard it was for your friend to see his former home like that.
To “justify” forcing homeowners to sell and move, L.A. had the area declared a “butterfly sanctuary” for the protection of the “Blue Butterfly”.
Thank you for your time helping me with local historical education
Glad my work is helpful!
Thank you!! As a teenager and young woman, I would ride my bike past here and just wonder about this abandoned place!! Wherever 'Emminant Domain' is dictated,peoples' lives and dreams are more often than not- wrecked and destructed in a very un natural way.😢😥😡😭💔
I'm learning that quickly. So many passionate comments in this feed from some who were impacted.
My husband and i just watched(stumbled on ut!) your historical telling of Surfridge and so appreciate the time you out into this! We went to LMU and used to watch sunsets on Sandpiper! We knew the history but not the details - and great pics!- you included. Thanks for a lovely trip down memory lane, and a history adventure!!
Glad it stirred up such great memories and thanks for watching!
I worked for the airlines. Based at LAX starting in 1986. I lived in apts at the end of the runway. We used to sometimes drive to these abandoned streets at night, that over-looked the ocean. It was a kind of hang out place. I always wondered and never knew why the streets had zero houses around and only fields. Wow. Never heard this story before. Thanks
Glad it was helpful. Thanks for watching.
i Really Enjoyed This Video About the Real History Of LAX Airport & The Area Once Known As Surfridge in L.A. Thanks So Much
Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for watching!
Excellent report and a bit of melancholy from looking at those old photos. Cheers!
Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for watching!
My Dad and I stopped for a picnic here at a small park during our summer of 1970 road-trip. I remembered it was near the end of the runways of LAX., also the first time I saw a 747 (Pan Am). The opening scene of „Easy Rider“ was filmed near here also.
Thank-You for this informative feature.
BTW the El Segundo Blue Butterfly 🦋 was the first insect to be designated as “endangered”
There is a small park that is still there. I find it interesting they haven't made the park larger as it would be a great place to watch the planes take off. I did not know the El Segundo Blue Butterfly was the first labeled as endangered. That is great info, thanks!
Very enjoyable video. I was born in 1943 in Los Angeles and lived in the Baldwin Hills until 1964. I remember going to Los Angeles airport in the late 40s early 50s and it was at a different location further east. I do not remember Surfridge or the property immediately west of the airport along the beach. In the mid-50s military aircraft used LAX for takeoffs and landings. My friend and I would watch jet fighter planes take off and land there.
In summer of 1965 I worked for a LA yellow cab out of the l.a. airport garage. I rented a very small studio behind a lady's house on 99th street. All of that is gone for big hotels. I made love to my first girlfriend there for the last time. With zero passion because she was done with me. I had it coming. R I.P., Jonna.
Glad you enjoyed the video.
That's really neat, I really love history and appreciate your review of surfridge and the adjoining communities!
Thanks! I hope you'll enjoy more of my videos. I almost always have a look at the history before I go see what it's like now.
Interesting video. Thank you, Kendall. My younger son, Stephen, is 22 years old and is also on the Autism spectrum. Like you, he enjoys creating videos. I really like your motto, "Autistic and Gifted". I'm sure that he'll appreciate it, too.
I hope it will help inspire others who are autistic. We think differently but that doesn't mean we can't find our gifts and use them to make the world a better place. I think it's pretty common that those of us on the spectrum like making videos. I started this channel as a learning tool and hoped it would be a great resume some day. In the mean time, we have fun going places and I love what has been called the "history dump" in the videos. It's my favorite part.
Great that it's become a wildlife preserve!!!
It sure is!
I lived in Manhattan Beach for a long time - thanks for the memories!
Our pleasure! It's a great area. I spend a lot of time in Hermosa.
I love the autistic and gifted sign❤❤👍👍
Thanks! My mother recognized I had gifts at a young age. She knew to encourage the gifts and not focus on my shortcomings that come with being autistic. That is why I came up with a tagline at the end of all my videos of "use your gifts to bless the world". I hope the sign and the work I do will provide more awareness and hope for others who are autistic.
Kendall,excellent job setting and putting this all together!! You're a good narrator too!!🤗👍🤙💯
Thank you so much!
Adventures With Kendall: thanks for posting. I'm here in Norwood, Pa. Cecil B. DeMille attended P.M.C.(Pennsylvania Military College) down the road in Chester, Pa. P.M.C. is now Widener University. Cheers!🥨
Thanks, I love learning new things.
Fascinating video! I had always assumed it was a planned neighborhood that never got built. I had no idea it was a full-fledged neighborhood. Thanks for sharing.
Glad you enjoyed it!