Westlake Village, CA

Westlake Village is a planned town at the far western tip of Los Angeles County, still running the way its designers drew it, with a lake at the center, business parks near the freeway and homes arranged around greenbelts and oaks. Around the lake and along Lindero Canyon Road, the houses are the original ranch and split-level designs from the late 1960s and 1970s. Power lines were buried from day one, which is a big part of why the streets look so tidy. The lake itself is private, so public outdoor time happens elsewhere. The main city park on Thousand Oaks Boulevard handles ballgames and skateboarding, and on the south side Triunfo Creek Park protects a stretch of oak woodland and creek at the edge of the Santa Monica Mountains, where the trails start heading into the hills. Boccaccio's sits right on the lake off Lindero Canyon Road and serves steaks, seafood and weekend brunch with a view of the boats. For a bigger outing, The Promenade at Westlake, across the county line in Thousand Oaks, has a cinema and a row of restaurants. Errands stay close, with grocery stores and shopping centers along Lindero Canyon, Agoura Road and Thousand Oaks Boulevard. The same Westlake Village mailing address can belong to this city or to Thousand Oaks, which changes the school district, city services and local rules, so the exact side of the line matters when choosing a house. Living here comes down to how the plan still holds up. Nearly sixty years on, the lake is still the center, the oaks are still standing, and the town still feels like one design.