Neighborhood Spotlight: Woodland Hills is a power-shopper's mecca with outdoor delights

"His name was Victor Girard, and he came to Los Angeles in the late 1800s after making a fortune as a purveyor of Persian rugs of questionable authenticity. By the early 1920s he had, like so many enterprising young men of the age, hung out his shingle as a real estate developer. He saw his big chance in the San Fernando Valley and bought nearly 3,000 acres of its hot, windy and altogether inhospitable southwestern corner."

"Looking to maximize his profit, Girard subdivided that land into 6,000 postage stamp-sized lots - some as small as 25 feet wide - at a time when most parcels in the Valley were 40 acres at a minimum. On 100 of these lots, on winding country roads in the treeless hills, he built tiny rustic cabins, some of which still stand today."

"Girard's marketing plan for this settlement, which he naturally enough dubbed 'Girard,' was broad in scope and extraordinarily dishonest. Citing its proximity to Topanga Canyon Road, he called Girard the closest town to the beach in the whole of the San Fernando Valley."

Victor Girard arrived in Los Angeles in the late 1800s after profiting from selling Persian rugs of questionable authenticity. By the early 1920s, he became a real estate developer and purchased nearly 3,000 acres in the San Fernando Valley's southwestern corner. He subdivided this land into 6,000 unusually small lots, some only 25 feet wide, compared to the standard 40-acre parcels of the era. On 100 of these lots, he constructed tiny rustic cabins, many still standing today. Girard's marketing strategy was notably dishonest, claiming his settlement was the closest town to the beach in the San Fernando Valley by citing proximity to Topanga Canyon Road, despite the actual distance being considerable.

Read at Los Angeles Times