Van Nuys, California

Van Nuys, California is a neighborhood in the City of Los Angeles centrally located within the San Fernando Valley.

Van Nuys, as a neighborhood, has no universally recognized boundaries. While the City of Los Angeles Planning Department defines the neighborhood of Van Nuys expansively, for the purposes of this article, the boundaries of Van Nuys will correspond to the more restrictive boundaries defined by the Van Nuys Neighborhood Council in its “The State of Van Nuys” report from the year 2013.

The San Diego Freeway (Interstate 405) forms the western boundary of Van Nuys, beyond which lies the City of Los Angeles neighborhood of Lake Balboa and the Sepulveda basin.

Amtrak and Union Pacific rail lines form the northern boundary of Van Nuys, separating Van Nuys from the City of Los Angeles neighborhoods of Panorama City and North Hills.

Burbank Boulevard forms the southern boundary of Van Nuys. The City of Los Angeles neighborhood of Sherman Oaks is the southern neighbor of Van Nuys.

Extending east from Van Nuys are the City of Los Angeles neighborhoods of Valley Glen and North Hollywood, as well as the independent city of Burbank.

Van Nuys encompasses approximately 5.8 square miles.

Much of Van Nuys is residential, housing dating mainly from the 1950s through the 1980s. Some portions of Van Nuys near the Amtrak and Union Pacific rail lines and the Metro G (Orange) Line are mainly industrial. Commercial development is concentrated on Van Nuys Boulevard. Other thoroughfares with significant commercial development include Sepulveda Boulevard, Sherman Way, and Victory Boulevard. Several large apartment complex projects were in the works as of the writing of this article, as Van Nuys experiences a recent boom in multifamily mixed-use construction.

Just west of Van Nuys proper is Van Nuys Airport, the busiest general aviation airport in the United States. Van Nuys Airport, founded as the Metropolitan Airport in 1928, is used for a wide variety of public and private uses. High-profile individuals in politics and the entertainment industry take advantage of the privacy afforded by the airport’s lack of commercial air travel passengers to fly their private planes in and out of Van Nuys Airport. News, police, emergency medical transport services, and fire department helicopters also use the airport as a base, as do services that provide aerial tours of Los Angeles. More than 100 businesses are located on the 730-acre site, which includes two business parks. Total flight operations at the airport exceeded 280,000 in the year 2022. According to a report by the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation, in 2015 Van Nuys Airport contributed more than $2 billion in business activity to the economy of Los Angeles County and created more than $295 million in tax revenues. The main runaway is 8,000 feet in length, while a training runway at the airport—which was rebuilt in 2022, requiring more than 76,000 hours of work—is 4,000 feet long. The airport has a Federal Aviation Administration control tower. Los Angeles World Airports is the governing body for both Van Nuys Airport and Los Angeles International Airport. The Airport Police Bureau provides security. During World War II, the United States government purchased what was then Metropolitan Airport and converted it into a military base and manufacturing center as the Navy Lockheed Plant.

Valley Presbyterian Hospital is a 350-bed independent, nonprofit community hospital with a busy maternity unit and emergency services department.

The G (Orange) Line, operated by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), is a rapid transit bus line with dedicated, exclusive right-of-way lanes on surface streets. The route connects several San Fernando Valley Communities, including Van Nuys, to Metro’s subway and light rail transit systems. The Metro G Line has four stops within Van Nuys. By the year 2030, Metro’s East San Fernando Valley Light Rail Transit Project will connect riders to the Metro G Line by bringing light rail transit service to Van Nuys.

The area now known as Van Nuys was used mainly for cattle ranching for much of the 19^th century. Eventually the land was subdivided and, beginning in 1911, lots were sold to eager buyers. Soon stores, homes, and other buildings were built on what had been barren countryside. In 1915, to benefit from the newly opened Los Angeles Aqueduct, which augmented limited local water sources with imported water from the Owens River, over 200 miles to the north, Van Nuys was annexed by the city of Los Angeles.

The United States Army Corps of Engineers completed nearby Sepulveda Dam in 1941. The dam was built to help prevent the occurrence of severe flooding like that which caused massive destruction and loss of life in the Los Angeles area in 1938. Sepulveda Dam is one of several dams constructed to provide flood risk management for the San Fernando Valley. The Army Corps of Engineers acquired over 2,100 acres of land for construction, operation, and maintenance of Sepulveda Dam. Presently, approximately 1,526 acres of the land is leased to the City of Los Angeles for recreational purposes. This large green space is home of lakes and ponds, golf courses, public gardens, parks, and recreation and community centers. It may be a surprise to recent arrivals to Los Angeles, but the Los Angeles River was once prone to severe flooding every few decades during rainstorms and even changing its course. Sepulveda Basin is along a major north-south flyway for migratory birds and a wide variety of birds visit the basin to hunt for food and for rest.

While City Hall for the City of Los Angeles is in downtown Los Angeles, the City also has three satellite civic centers, one on the west side of Los Angeles, one in San Pedro, and one in Van Nuys. Van Nuys Civic Center (Van Nuys Government Center), which is the center of government for the San Fernando Valley, is home to the Van Nuys Courthouses and other government offices.

Our office helps those who have been harassed or discriminated against at work based on protected personal characteristics such as Disability or Age. Additionally, our office helps those who are owed wages due to an employer’s failure to pay overtime, or who have not received legally compliant meal or rest breaks. The details of each person’s situation are unique, so call the experienced employment attorneys at Kokozian Law Firm, APC. You may also Contact Us via our online form. We advance all costs. No recovery, no fee.