Signal Hill, CA

Signal Hill is really two places stacked on top of each other, a commercial flatland ringing the base and a residential hill rising out of the middle. Down on the flats, Willow Street, Cherry Avenue and Spring Street carry big-box stores, auto businesses, strip centers and older bungalow blocks. Up the slopes, the housing turns newer, with condo and townhome complexes, custom houses on steep lots and a few streets where pump jacks still work beside driveways. Hilltop Park at the summit is where the city goes to watch the sun set over the basin, with views stretching from downtown Los Angeles to Catalina on clear evenings. Down the hill, a larger park beside the library hosts summer concerts. Much of the food and drink sits along Willow Street. on Willow sells houseplants and pots, and the brewery, Thai-Lao and barbecue spots on the same corridor fill in the evenings. Errands are easy thanks to the retail flats, where supermarkets and big stores sit a short drive from any house. Light rail trains on the Metro A Line stop a short drive west in Long Beach, and the 405 passes just north of town. Much of daily life, from beach days to most restaurants, happens across the line in Long Beach, and the town's own commercial streets lean toward chains. What residents of Signal Hill keep for themselves is the hill, and the view from the top belongs to anyone willing to make the climb.