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2016-2022 EDUCATIONAL AND FACILITIES MASTER PLAN
BACKGROUND CHAPTER 1 – BACKGROUND

BACKGROUND

The Santa Clarita Valley (SCV) includes the
communities of Saugus, Valencia, Canyon Coun-
try, Newhall, Stevenson Ranch and Castaic. This
valley, surrounded by scenic mountain ranges,
is the northern gateway to Los Angeles County.
Santa Clarita is the third largest city in Los An-
geles County, preceded only by Long Beach and
the largest city, Los Angeles. Santa Clarita enjoys
a lower density of population, with space for
significant expansion. This is a stark contrast to
most cities in the Los Angeles basin where people
and companies are simply running out of room.
REGIONAL CHARACTERISTICS
The area is characterized by many canyons that
generally run in a north-south direction and
slope upward toward the north. The valleys are
fertile and once supported agriculture, but most
of the area is now in rapidly-growing housing
and commercial development. Many of the
283,000 residents commute each day to the An-
telope and San Fernando valleys and south into
the Los Angeles basin. Northern Gateway to Los Angeles

The SCV sits poised to take advantage of a sig- square miles and borders Ventura County. South Startlingly, projections contained in the District’s
nificant portion of the growth from the burgeon- of the Sierra Pelona and north of the San Gabriel 2002 Master Plan called for the student popu-
ing Los Angeles basin. Changes and significant and Santa Susanna mountain ranges, the District lation to reach 20,000 by the year 2010. This
progress have occurred throughout the SCV over is 40 miles north of Los Angeles International number was surpassed nearly three years earlier
the years, and College of the Canyons (COC)/ Airport and 30 miles east of the Pacific Ocean. than predicted when the Fall 2007 enrollment
Santa Clarita Community College District reached 21,300 students.
(SCCCD) has been propelled forward by a The Valencia Campus of College of the Canyons
combination of the community’s growth and the is 34 miles north/northwest of downtown Los INNOVATIVE PARTNERSHIPS
unwavering vision of the Board of Trustees and Angeles. While the 153.4-acre Valencia Campus Because current projections show continued
campus leadership to transform it into the best already includes more than 640,000 square feet double-digit growth, the District is seeking inno-
community college in the country. of dedicated learning space, more space will be vative ways to obtain the resources to meet these
provided through a variety of projects before demands. These include identifying additional
The District, which sits completely within Los the Valencia campus reaches its final build-out ACCESS sites in the west and northwest por-
Angeles County, serves a geographic area of 367 capacity. tions of COC’s capture area and additional joint

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