Daisy-Villa, Pasadena, CA

Daisy-Villa is a small, all-residential corner of east Pasadena, named for the two streets that meet in its middle. About 350 single-family homes fill it, with the San Gabriel Mountains right behind them. Parks are what set it apart from its neighbors. Gwinn Park fills the northeast corner, and Victory Park, Sunnyslope Park and Vina Vieja Park are all within walking range, adding up to nearly 40 acres. Vina Vieja holds Alice's Dog Park, which pulls dog owners from all over the city. Homes went up mostly in the 1940s and 1950s. Ranch houses make up much of the stock, joined by bungalows, split-levels and a few Mediterranean designs, and many front yards look straight at the mountains. The streets are quiet because nothing else is here, and through traffic mostly sticks to Sierra Madre Boulevard and Orange Grove. Saturday mornings belong to the Pasadena Certified Farmers Market at Victory Park on Sierra Madre Boulevard, where up to 60 vendors set up from 8:30 to 12:30. Crown Valley Nursery on East Sierra Madre Boulevard is the local garden stop. With no businesses inside, groceries mean Foothill Boulevard or Hastings Ranch, and nearly every errand starts with the car. For rail, the closest platform is the end-of-line stop at Sierra Madre Villa. The tradeoff is the 210, which forms the southern edge. It makes commuting simple and sends road noise into the closest blocks. Farther in, with four parks in easy reach of Daisy-Villa, a lot of the daily routine ends up happening outdoors.