Fastest-Appreciating Neighborhoods in Modesto, CA

To understand Robertson Road, a large stretch of southwest Modesto, eat your way along Crows Landing Road. Las Morenas Taqueria is known for burritos in handmade tortillas, El Pollo Feliz does chalupas and street tacos, Mariscos La Roca adds seafood, Birrieria Chito serves birria, and Jose's Mexican Restaurant has a sit-down menu. Taco trucks and carnicerias fill the gaps in between. Independent shops outnumber chains along these blocks, and weekend mornings bring a steady stream of shoppers to the markets and bakeries. ... See Full Page

Lakewood, on the east side of Modesto, takes its name from a park, a school and an avenue, and the avenue has the best story. Neighbors say Lakewood Avenue began as a dirt road that pooled with water every winter, lined with wood stacked from nearby peach orchards. The area is also called Eastridge. ... See Full Page

Shade trees cover most of the College Area, a settled part of Modesto northwest of downtown that grew up around Modesto Junior College, which opened in 1921. Craftsman cottages, bungalows and ranch houses line the older street grid, and a few newer cul-de-sacs have been added along the edges. ... See Full Page

Downtown Modesto is a compact grid of brick storefronts, theaters and a few surviving Victorian houses. The cruising that inspired George Lucas's American Graffiti happened on these streets, and George Lucas Plaza marks the connection. The Modesto Certified Farmers' Market gives the center a weekly morning routine. ... See Full Page

Wide-open space is what sets the Airport District apart in southeast Modesto. The Modesto City-County Airport anchors the map, and the Tuolumne River runs along the district's edge, so much of the horizon is simply sky. The city lists no scheduled airline service at the field at present, which means the noise overhead comes mostly from small private planes. ... See Full Page

Soccer shapes the feel of Village One. Mary Grogan Community Park, off Litt Road in northeast Modesto, anchors the neighborhood with night-lit fields, a cricket pitch and covered picnic areas, and it was expanded earlier this year. ... See Full Page

Sherwood Forest runs along Coffee Road in northern Modesto and feels older than the subdivisions around it. Its homes come from several eras, mostly medium to large single-family houses on lots with mature trees, which is the clearest sign you have left the newer north end. ... See Full Page

Central Modesto sits between the old downtown grid and the newer subdivisions to the north, and McHenry Avenue is the road that ties it together. The Graffiti USA Classic Car Museum is the stop for anyone who wants a look at the cruising years that made Modesto famous. ... See Full Page

Standiford is where Modesto goes to shop. Costco, WinCo, Save Mart and Safeway all sit inside its lines, and Vintage Faire Mall, which has anchored the area since the late 1970s, stands where Sisk Road, Dale Road and Highway 99 come together, so shoppers from across the area pass through and weekends are the busiest days. ... See Full Page

Start with breakfast on Yosemite Boulevard and East Modesto makes sense quickly. Huckleberry's at 2213 Yosemite cooks Louisiana-style, with fried green tomatoes and eggs, bananas foster French toast and a gumbo of andouille and okra. Panaderia La Michoacana, a little farther along, bakes Mexican pastries, and Modesto Cafe is where people go for boba and Thai tea. ... See Full Page

Sylvan sits at the northeast end of Modesto, and Beyer Park is its focal point. The blocks around it hold well-kept houses on quiet streets. ... See Full Page

Pelandale, in northern Modesto, is a neighborhood where you can run most errands without leaving it. The Dale Road shopping district holds Trader Joe's, O'Brien's Market, Target and a Regal movie theater, with Save Mart for staples, and the chains, an In-N-Out among them, make it the busiest eating area in the north end. ... See Full Page

La Loma is Spanish for the hill, which is a generous name for ground this flat. The neighborhood sits just east of downtown Modesto, bounded roughly by Yosemite Boulevard and Dry Creek, with La Loma Avenue and El Vista Avenue marking the other limits. The neighborhood association describes La Loma as a place that builds community through friendship and teamwork, and its native plant garden and pollinator festival show how that plays out in the parks. ... See Full Page

Four small parks give North Beyer Park, in northeast Modesto, its backbone: Coleman F. Brown Park, Brewers Rose Park, Sylvan Park and Ellison Park. None is a destination, but they give the streets places to walk without leaving home, and cyclists can reach the Standiford Trail, which ends at Wesson Ranch Park, or the paved Dry Creek Trail farther south. ... See Full Page

Woodland West starts with a museum. The Great Valley Museum and Planetarium sits on the Modesto Junior College West Campus off Blue Gum Avenue, with exhibits on Central Valley habitats and planetarium shows. Around it, the neighborhood fills the west side of Modesto, with Blue Gum Avenue on the north, Kansas Avenue on the south, Carpenter Road on the east and Morse Road on the west. ... See Full Page