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Laguna West-Lakeside, Elk Grove, California facts for kids

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Laguna West
Community (Neighborhood)
Laguna West-Lakeside
Town Square Park In Laguna West.jpg
Country United States
State California
County Sacramento County
City Elk Grove
Time zone UTC-8 (Pacific Standard Time)
 • Summer (DST) UTC-7 (Pacific Daylight Time)

Laguna West-Lakeside is a community located on the west side of the city of Elk Grove in Sacramento County, California. It was once a separate place, but it officially became part of Elk Grove in 2003. Before it joined Elk Grove, about 8,414 people lived there in the year 2000.

Geography of Laguna West-Lakeside

CAMap-doton-Laguna West-Lakeside
Location of Laguna West-Lakeside, California

Laguna West-Lakeside is located in California. It covers an area of about 2.2 square miles (5.7 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, with a small part being water.

People and Community

In 2000, about 8,414 people lived in Laguna West-Lakeside. There were over 3,000 homes. Many families lived here, and about 43% of homes had children under 18. The community was quite diverse. About half of the people were White, and many others were African American or Asian. People from Hispanic or Latino backgrounds also made up a part of the population.

The average age of people living in Laguna West-Lakeside was 33 years old. This means it was a community with many young adults and families.

Laguna West: A Planned Community

Laguna West was designed to be a special kind of neighborhood. It is known as a "master planned community." This means it was carefully planned out before it was built.

Community Design Principles

The design of Laguna West was created by Peter Calthorpe. He used ideas from something called New Urbanism. This way of planning aims to make neighborhoods friendly for people walking.

Some key design features included:

  • Walkable Neighborhoods: Streets were made to encourage walking.
  • Small Front Yards: Houses often had smaller front yards.
  • Alleyways: Many homes used alleyways behind them.
  • Narrow Streets: The streets were designed to be narrower.
  • Shade Trees: Plans included planting many trees. These trees were meant to grow and create a continuous canopy of shade. This made the area cooler and more pleasant.

How Laguna West Was Developed

A person named Phil Angelides helped develop Laguna West. He was a developer and later became a politician. He was known for building "smart growth communities." These communities are designed to be good for the environment and easy to live in. Angelides wanted to create places that were more livable and responsible towards nature.

Challenges with Transportation

Even though Laguna West was well-planned, it faced some challenges. One challenge was about public transportation. The original idea was for the community to have access to light rail. However, the planned train line changed direction. This meant Laguna West did not get the train access it hoped for. As a result, people living there often needed cars to get around. As of 2007, only an hourly bus service was available.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Laguna West-Lakeside para niños

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