Illegal lot splits in the area of deep residential lots has been causing many headaches for the City. City Attorney Phillips feels that most illegal splits occur because of ignorance of the law by owners and buyers. The City does not learn of the deal until it has been finalized.
Janet S. Maynard was arrested for trying to raffle off her $250,000 home for $25 a ticket. She organized the raffle because she has been unable to sell the house and was facing foreclosure.
1. California's choicest locality. Brochure describing San Gabriel Valley. n.d. circa 1900. 2. A.P. Green subdivision. Brochure from Carroll & Pearce Realty Co. about tract at Baldwin Avenue and Green Street. January 1, 1927. 3. R.D. Vedder tract. Brochure from Carroll & Pearce Co. about t…
1. California's choicest locality. Brochure describing San Gabriel Valley. n.d. circa 1900.
2. A.P. Green subdivision. Brochure from Carroll & Pearce Realty Co. about tract at Baldwin Avenue and Green Street. January 1, 1927.
3. R.D. Vedder tract. Brochure from Carroll & Pearce Co. about tract at Live Oak Avenue and Monte Vista Avenue. January 20, 1927.
4. "Egg Basket" into city. Arcadia Tribune January 22, 1978.
5. We were shown the other day by H.A. Unruh, manager for E.J. Baldwin, a map of land which he proposes to put on the market. Copy of news item in Sierra Madre Vista March 26, 1891.
6. English Oaks homes development. Pasadena Star News June 20, 1980.
7. Santa Anita Oaks is unique among homeowners groups. Arcadia Tribune June 8, 1980.
8. O.E. Winkler, owner of Peach Orchard Subdivision. Copy of sales contract dated May 3, 1929; made from original loaned by son, Adrian Winkler.
9. Grant Deed from Anita Baldwin to Otto Winkler and Rudolph H. Schwarzkopf dated July 1, 1920; made from original loaned by son, Adrian Winkler.
10. Santa Anita Rancho, Anoakia Breed Farm, Anita Baldwin, Prop. Bill of sale to Winkler & Schwarzkopf December 27, 1921.
11. Arcadia Investment and Development Co. Tract #6641. Flyer on tract offered by A.N. Muler, O.E. Winkler and D.M. Payne. n.d. Made from original loaned by son, Adrian Winkler.
12. Map of Arcadia - Santa Anita Tract 1887. Copied from original at the Huntington Library; another copy in Maps 1880-1949.
13. Santa Anita Tract; part of the celebrated Santa Anita Ranch. Ad. n.d. circa 1887.
14. 2,000 acres in five to 25 acre lots at $400 to $600 per acre, with water. Ad as it appeared in the Los Angeles Daily Herald January 23, 1887.
15. Choice home sites on Baldwin Acres. Los Angeles Express January 29, 1916.
16. Fine suburban property. Los Angeles Tribune January 30, 1916.
17. Complaints spark controversy. Highlander p. 1 February 3, 1988.
18. Santa Anita Oaks advertisement. Pasadena Star News January 25, 1948.
19. Santa Anita Highlands ready for new homes. Los Angeles Times, June 15, 1941. The area north of Foothill Boulevard and east of Santa Anita Avenue is open for the construction of homes. This subdivision was formerly a part of the Elias J. "Lucky" Baldwin Rancho and is now owned by the Three Cities Land Co.
20. "Lucky Baldwin's daughter made Santa Anita part of Arcadia," by Lauren McSherry, Pasadena Star News, March 13, 2010, p. 2 of Real Estate section. Gives history of Santa Anita Oaks area (bounded by Baldwin Avenue to the west, Santa Anita Avenue to the east, Sierra Madre Boulevard to the north and Foothill Boulevard to the south) and Rancho Santa Anita area. Homes for sale in the Santa Anita area given, starting at $2.148 million.
21. "TV producer selling one-acre Georgian estate in Arcadia," Pasadena Star News, March 28, 2010, Real Estate section. Television producer, writer and director Sheldon Bull (written for shows MASH, Newhart, Coach, Sabrina the Teenage Witch) and his wife, interior designer Annette Bull, have listed their one-acre Georgian estate in the Santa Anita Oaks area of Arcadia at $3,588,000. It was designed by architect Leslie Lippich.
22. Restrictions Santa Anita Highlands, Tract 4129, by Three Cities Land Co., 1941. Declaration of certain restrictions for certain lots in Tract 4129. Notable for page 3: "That none of said lots, nor any portion thereof, shall be sold, conveyed, leased or occupied by any person other than one of the Caucasian race, except that persons of other than the Caucasian race may be used in the domestic service of the owner or occupants of any of said lots." CC&Rs. Separate copy in History Desk right drawer.
23. In Arcadia real estate, 4 is a negative number. Many Chinese buyers shy away from 4, because in Cantonese and Mandarin the words for it and death sound similar. A law allowing address changes may be revived. Los Angeles Times, May 21, 201. Article by Ching-Ching Ni. Retrieved from Internet on June 4, 2011, from www.latimes.com.
24. The exceptional story of Arcadia real estate (45% higher median home price than a year ago and almost 60% more homes on the market, Chinese buyers), by Josh Ritnimit, Arcadia Weekly, p. 15, September 4, 2014.
25. Cash Pad: Chinese money transforms a California suburb (Arcadia) (Why are Chinese millionaires buying mansions in an L.A. suburb?) by Karen Weise. Bloomberg Newsweek, October 20-October 26, 2014, pp. 52-57. See also printed online version in VF Population.
26. Arcadia housing boom with Chinese dollars? Bloomberg Business Week says kickbacks and Chinese cash deals are fuelind the rapid growth of mansions in Arcadia. Arcadia Weekly, pp. 1, 32, 33, October 30, 2014.
27. How Arcadia is remaking itself as a magnet for Chinese money, by Christopher Hawthorne. Los Angeles Times, December 3, 2014. Retrieved from www.latimes.com on December 4, 2014.
28. Arcadia high-end home sales decrease in early 2015, by Joe Taglieri. Arcadia Weekly, March 26, 2015.
29. Arcadia faces mansion mayhem: how will home size restrictions impact property values within the city? Pasadena Star News, March 18, 2016. By Courtney Tompkins. Floor area ratio (FAR).
30. Arcadia zoning regulations will have to wait a little longer pending an economic impact study. Pasadena Star News, February 27, 2016. By Courtney Tompkins. Re: floor area ratio (FAR) , or a maximum allowable square footage for a home based on lot size.
31. Mansionization: debate spurs Arcadia to adopt new home-size law (floor area ratio-FAR), building height, setbacks, basement, parking and hillside standards. By Courtney Tompkins. Pasadena Star News, p. A1, A4, April 4, 2016.
32. Measure targeting mansions derailed after city clerk's office discovered a discrepancy in the number of qualifying signatures. Pasadena Star News, p. A1, A4, April 6, 2016.
33. Proposed ballot initiative "Saving Arcadia responsible development, reasonable standards," designed to curb mansionization. Door hanger to join movement to "Save Arcadia" from mansionization. (Did not make it onto April 2016 ballot.)
34. Update to housing standards approved but changes possible after council election Tuesday (mansions, floor-area ratio). Pasadena Star News, April 7, 2016.
35. Smaller home ordinance official (mansions, floor-area ratio). By Scott Hettrick, April 21, 2016 from Arcadiasbest.com.
36. New city housing standards approved (mansions, floor-area ratio). By Courtney Tompkins, Pasadena Star News, April 21, 2016.
37. Arcadia updated its building code to combat mansionization. But are the new rules working? From Pasadenastarnews.com, September 7, 2016.
38. USC Study. Mansionization, home expansions obliterating urban greenscapes. As houses get bigger, trees and shrubs are disappearing, increasing the heat island effect. The Weekly Star, May 7, 2017.
39. Median home values 5-year estimates for 2005-2009, 2006-2010, 2007-2011, 2008-2012, 2009-2013, 2010-2014, 2011-2015, 2012-2016 from American FactFinder website, Census data, printed January 3, 2018. 4 pages front and back.
40. Race restrictions in Arcadia assures future property investments. No colored population in city, a record unparalleled in this section of the San Gabriel Valley. Arcadia Bulletin, August 31, 1939.
Arcadia set a local record for the highest percentage increase in the median price of an existing, single-family detached home in California, as compared to a year ago, with an increase of 28.2%.
Residents fed up with the so-called "mansionization" of their neighborhood are proposing limits that would curb the proliferation of large houses on small lots.
Median home prices in California surged to a record $305,940 in March, up 19 percent from last year. In Arcadia, prices averaged $355,000, up 9.2 percent.
Arcadia is praised for its top-scoring schools, ranch-style homes, and lack of ethnic tensions and political turmoil in similar cities like Monterey Park.
The City Council unanimously approved a zone change that would prohibit future lot splits in the Lower Rancho Area. The revision increased the minimum lot size from 15,000 to 20,000 square feet.
