Community Resources
Things to do in Bixby Knolls
Rancho Los Cerritos
Rancho Los Cerritos Historic Site is a public museum open for tours, programs and events. Built in 1844, the adobe home and grounds echo with the rich history of Spanish, Mexican and American California and with the families who helped transform Southern California from its ranching beginnings to a modern, urban society. The two-story Monterey-style adobe is primarily furnished to reflect occupants and lifestyles from the 1860s-1880s. The site, a National, State and Long Beach Historic Landmark, also includes historic gardens and a research library and archives. It is owned by the City of Long Beach and operated through the Department of Parks, Recreation and Marine.
California Heights Home Tour
The California Heights Neighborhood Association (CHNA) is a nonprofit organization working to promote public knowledge and preservation of historic and architectural resources in the California Heights Historic District. Our projects enhance the ties that bind and preserve Cal Height’s truly community oriented nature.
Dominguez Wet Land
The Dominguez Gap is an area in North Long Beach where two side-channel wetlands parallel the Los Angeles River from just upstream of the 405 Freeway to upstream of Compton Creek. This walk showcases only the 30-acre east basin. A similar 14-acre basin exists on the west side of the river, but it’s difficult to access. Though the river itself is contained in a concrete-lined channel, the wetlands support seasonal bird populations. It is generally better seen at the wetter times of the year, winter through early summer.
Uptown Dog Park
The Uptown Dog Park opened in November 2009 on the Long Beach Blvd. side of Scherer Park, 4600 Long Beach Blvd. The dog area is near picnic tables and a nearby parking lot. The Uptown Dog Park also provides separate areas for small and large dogs to play off leash. The fenced area is located near picnic areas and a parking lot.
Uptown Farmer’s Market
Thursdays from 3:00pm – 6:30pm
This weekly Certified Farmers Market is held in Bixby Knolls, at Atlantic Ave & E. 46th St, on frontage road flanking the east side of Atlantic Ave (between Del Amo Blvd. and San Antonio Dr).
Dana Branch Library
The Dana Neighborhood Library started as California Heights Station in 1928 at 913 Wardlow Road, and moved to 3924 Atlantic in 1941. The Library moved to its present location at 3680 Atlantic Avenue on May 30, 1958. The Library was dedicated to Richard Henry Dana, Jr. who sailed on the Pilgrim out of Boston, to the California coast. From this experience he wrote the classic Two Years Before the Mast. A unique feature of the library is a tile mosaic of the ship Pilgrim in the entrance hall.
Bixby Knolls Park
Jotham Bixby Company donated the land for this park in 1948, while it was still in the County. It was annexed to the City of Long Beach in 1949. The conditions of the gift were that the park was to be named “Bixby Knolls Park,” improvement was to start immediately, and a suitable marker was to be installed indicating the source of donation. On February 14, 1950, the development plan was approved by the City Council and, in June 1950, a contract was awarded for initial development. The park is improved with a playground, a picnic area and a small staff building. The playground was redeveloped with new equipment in 1998 with funding from the Los Angeles County Safe Neighborhood Parks Bond Act of 1992.
Los Cerritos Park
The park is located at Country Club Drive and Bixby Road. The original park consisted of 1.9 acres, and was donated by Amelia M. E. Bixby and dedicated to the County of Los Angeles in May 1907. It was annexed to the City of Long Beach in 1924. This park adjoined the Pacific Electric Los Cerritos Station on its west side, and the steps leading down to the station remain.
Historical Society of Long Beach
The Historical Society of Long Beach is a 501(c)3, nonprofit organization, with gallery, archive, and offices located in Long Beach. At our facility and through our programs, we promote, develop, exhibit, and preserve Long Beach history. We serve students, educators, researchers, and those interested in local history.
Join the free weekday neighborhood jogging/walking group in Bixby Knolls. All levels are welcomed. They meet Monday through Friday rain or shine. A run is led Mon, Wed, Fri and a walk is led every Tues & Thurs. We do not meet on Holidays. The 3-4 mile route starts and ends in front of Jamba Juice at the corner of Atlantic & Carson, leaving at 5:15am sharp. People usually arrive around 5:05-5:10am. Routes provided upon arrival.
Neighborhoods
Bixby Knolls
On October 17, 1929, the Long Beach Press-Telegram front page announced plans for a 120-acre residential area east of Atlantic Avenue and between Bixby Road and San Antonio Drive. Created by the Bixby family, it would, the article states, “be to Long Beach what the Wilshire section is to Los Angeles.”
From the beginning, the developers made sure Bixby Knolls was impeccable in designs and detail, and went so far as to enlist an architectural committee to approve all construction.
Residents adhere to that same thinking today with beautifully landscaped homes that retain much of the original architectural features that make Bixby Knolls a unique place to live.
California Heights
The city’s population grew extensively in the 1920s, and so did the demand for new housing in outlying areas. California Heights Terrace as it was originally known, quickly began to be sub-divided. The homes were custom built in Provincial Tudor and Spanish Colonial Revival. Due to airport expansion and oil drilling, displaced Craftsman Bungalows were moved to the area to save time and money, instead of building a new home.
La Linda Drive
A quiet, gated community with documented historical significance and whose charm is timeless every home having its own unique individuality.
A true neighborhood – a place where you know your neighbors with a tradition of special annual events.
Los Cerritos/Virginia Country Club
Originally a farming community, Los Cerritos took its name from the adjacent Rancho Los Cerritos, which means “Rancho of the Little Hills.” Large Craftsman and Shingle style homes were initially the favored home styles. Due to the 1920s oil boom many grand estates were built in Colonial, Spanish Revival and Provincial designs to mirror the current trends. The Virginia Country Club, established by Colonel Drake, initially constructed for the hotel guests of his Virginia Hotel, opened its doors in 1921, and furthered the neighborhood’s prestigious appeal.
Ridgewood Heights
The neighborhood has thrived since 1948 when the Bixby Knolls shopping center was built and Jotham Bixby donated the land for the Bixby Knolls Park that was completed in 1949.
Since Lloyd Whaley developed the luxury “Lanai” homes in our Ridgewood Heights Bixby Knolls Neighborhood, we have had generations of families that have lived, shopped, played, and even retired in this neighborhood.
Several of our neighbors are children and grandchildren of original owners. It is a great place to live.
