AREA CITIES RANKED AMONG WEALTHIEST.Byline: Michael Coit Daily News Staff Writer Enjoying a leisurely lunch Monday at a Westlake Village restaurant, Richard and Linda Ordin weren't surprised to learn that four neighboring cities along the Ventura Freeway The Ventura Freeway is a freeway in southern California running from Ventura to Pasadena. It is the principal east-west route through Ventura County and in the southern San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County. corridor rank among the nation's 300 wealthiest. The Ordins live in Calabasas, which ranks 91st by Worth Magazine, and work in Westlake Village, which ranks 218th. They pass through Agoura Hills, which ranks 251st, on their daily drive to work. Nearby Hidden Hills ranks 44th. Their favorite? Westlake Village. ``It's just a nice town. It's not as frenzied,'' Richard Ordin said. ``We'd love to live here, but it's too expensive.'' Planning a family, the couple said Westlake Village would be a great place to raise children. ``This is more of a community. It's real laid back,'' Linda Ordin said. Worth Magazine ranked the 300 wealthiest towns based on two prime indicators: average household income and average home value. The project relied on data from the U.S. Census Bureau Noun 1. Census Bureau - the bureau of the Commerce Department responsible for taking the census; provides demographic information and analyses about the population of the United States Bureau of the Census that was updated to reflect economic and demographic trends through 1995. The selected areas either were incorporated municipalities or places defined by ZIP codes. ``There's a curiosity about where the wealthy and affluent people are living these days,'' said Nancy Saltsman, spokeswoman for Worth Magazine, which is based in New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. . ``The surprising thing is the small communities are not what you first think of when you think of the top affluent communities,'' she noted. ``They aren't fitting the stereotypes.'' The magazine ranked the following cities along the Ventura Freeway corridor: Hidden Hills, with a listed population of 1,879, had an average household income of $203,400 and an average home value of $488,700. Calabasas, with a listed population of 15,076, had an average household income of $156,741 and an average home value of $482,656. Westlake Village, with a listed population of 7,922, had an average household income of $109,500 and an average home value of $432,500. Agoura Hills, with a listed population of 25,143, had an average household income of $106,600 and an average home value of $395,400. Agoura Hills had one of the larger populations among the 300 wealthiest places. Yet the city maintains a small-town charm, said Amy Klass, a mother of three boys. ``We have nice neighborhoods out here. The city is really family-oriented,'' said Klass, who moved with her husband to Agoura Hills 11 years ago. ``Now it's hard to get in.'' Debbie Cohen cohen or kohen (Hebrew: “priest”) Jewish priest descended from Zadok (a descendant of Aaron), priest at the First Temple of Jerusalem. The biblical priesthood was hereditary and male. , also a mother of three boys, said she was pleased that Agoura Hills did not rank higher because more people would want to move into town. ``I don't think we want to rank too high,'' she said. ``I think we're all out here because it's a nice place to raise kids.'' RICH TOWNS Here are the U.S. cities with the wealthiest residents, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a coming edition of Worth Magazine. 1. Rolling Hills Rolling hills are like a mountain chain, only a "hill chain" of hills that roll on and on continually. You will often find them in between plains and mountains, near major rivers, or randomly anywhere. The only places without rolling hills are deserts and flood plains. , Calif. 2. Hewlett Bay Park, N.Y. 3. Hewlett Harbor, N.Y. 4. Saddle River Saddle River may refer to:
5. Kings Point, N.Y. 6. Atherton, Calif. 7. Jupiter Island NOTE: This article is about the Florida barrier island, Jupiter Island. For the town of the same name on that island, Please see Jupiter Island, Florida. Jupiter Island is a barrier island on the coast of Martin and Palm Beach counties, Florida. , Fla. 8. Hillsborough, Calif. 9. Oyster Bay Oyster Bay, uninc. area (1990 pop. 6,687) of the Town of Oyster Bay, Nassau co., SE N.Y., on N Long Island, on Long Island Sound; settled 1653. It is chiefly residential. Cove, N.Y. 10. Los Altos Los Altos (lôs ăl`tōs, lŏs), residential city (1990 pop. 26,303), Santa Clara co., W Calif.; inc. 1952. There is diversified light manufacturing. Hills, Calif. SOURCE: Worth Magazine CAPTION(S): Photo, Box Photo: (color) Agoura Hills, with homes such as thoseon Toth Place, was listed as Worth Magazine's 251st wealthiest city. Jeremy Greene/Special to the Daily News Box: RICH TOWNS (see text) |
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