Los Angeles Living

First Fridays at Abbot Kinney is a great way to get a taste of the art, shopping and music scene in the trendy Venice, California neighborhood.

The next event will take place on December 4th, from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m.

Neighborhood merchants come together to showcase the best artists, gifts, music and more and it is a chance to get to know Abbot Kinney as a walking destination.

These merchants also contribute towards supporting the local community.

There is an eclectic mix of participants in First Fridays which makes for a fun evening.

Venice California, median home pices rose 17% in the last year.

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The number of homes going under contract in every given month increased 40%

For sale properties dropped 15%.

New properties coming on the market dropped 23%.

Inventory of homes in Venice California is down 46%.

And the months supply of inventory is also down 46%.

Venice (90291, 90292, 90293, 90294, 90295, 90296), located south of Santa Monica and east of Culver City, was founded in 1905 by tobacco millionaire, Abbot Kinney and so named because of the miles of canals built to drain the area's marshes. Kinney also built a Venetian-style arcaded business street which remains today.

Most of the canals were paved over by the City of Los Angeles in 1929 to as it was felt that more streets were needed.

Over the years, Venice was sorely neglected and by the 1950s it was known as the slum by the sea. Homes were run-down, rents were low and the area became unsafe.

Venice has now gone through gentrification, is one of the more eclectic and lively areas in Southern California., and like Santa Monica, is liberal-leaning.  The Venice Family Clinic is the largest free clinic in the country.

Venice, has a diversity of areas, from the multiple pedestrian-only streets running from the beach to Ocean Avenue, to upscale Abbot Kinney with its trendy restaurants, art galleries, bars, nightclubs, and art deco clothing stores. From the multi-million dollar cottages bordering the canals, and the nearby "Walk Streets"  to the extremely modest homes, rentals and condos dotted throughout the area.

World famous Venice Beach and Muscle Beach are a huge tourist draw, and during the summer it is impossible to find parking in the area. One cannot visit Los Angeles without walking along the boardwalk of Venice Beach to see all the stores, hawkers, street entertainers, and oddballs who inhabit the area.

Venice is also the home of many stars, including Julia Roberts, Nicholas Cage, Kate Beckinsale, Viggo Mortenson, to name but a few.

The schools are in the Los Angeles Unified School District where you can search for a school by address.

Some useful local links are:

Venice Neighborhood Council

Venice, California History