Playa Vista, Los Angeles, CA

Playa Vista sits on the land where Hughes Aircraft built the Spruce Goose, and the giant hangar still stands in this Los Angeles neighborhood, now filled with tech offices. Construction on the planned community began in 2001 on the flats below the Westchester bluffs, next to Del Rey, Marina del Rey and the Ballona Wetlands. Condos, townhomes and apartment buildings make up most of the housing, with a smaller share of detached homes, all built since 2001 using green building methods. A mix of affordable and market-rate units was part of the plan from the start, and buildings sit close together around small parks. Parks are the neighborhood's strongest feature. The restored Ballona freshwater marsh and riparian corridor on the edge of the neighborhood draw birders and walkers. The Runway at Playa Vista on Millennium Drive is the retail hub, and Whole Foods on Jefferson Boulevard covers groceries. Joliet pours coffee and cocktails in an Art Deco room, and SOL Mexican Cocina cooks over a wood fire and stocks more than 70 tequilas. Most errands are walkable, and the Playa Vista Branch Library is inside the neighborhood. Commutes lean on Jefferson and Lincoln boulevards, and the Silicon Beach offices here mean some residents never leave the neighborhood for work. Because it was built at once, the architecture is uniform, and Playa Vista lacks the mix of older storefronts and quirky houses found in Del Rey and Venice. Walks along Bluff Creek pass within sight of the old Hughes hangar, where the Spruce Goose was assembled before its single flight in 1947.