Los Altos Hills

Los Altos Hills is what you get when a community decides, early and on purpose, that it does not want to become a suburb. The town has no shopping center, no main street and no gas station. Lots are at least an acre. Instead of sidewalks there are footpaths, many of them dirt, that wind between properties and connect to open space. On a weekend morning you are as likely to meet a horse as a delivery van.

For visitors the town is mostly a place to pass through on the way to a trail, or to visit Hidden Villa or Foothill College. For people considering a move it is one of the most distinctive and expensive places to live on the Peninsula. This guide covers both.

Where Los Altos Hills is

Los Altos Hills sits in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains in Santa Clara County. It borders Palo Alto to the north and northwest, Los Altos to the east and unincorporated county land and open space to the south and west. Interstate 280 runs through it. The town covers about 9 square miles. The town says another 5.2 square miles of unincorporated land around it falls within its sphere of influence.

The town hall is at 26379 Fremont Road. From downtown Palo Alto it is about a 15-minute drive by Foothill Expressway or Arastradero Road. Palo Alto's Pearson-Arastradero Preserve and Foothills Nature Preserve both lie along its edges.

A short history

First peoples and ranchos

The town's own history page says Ohlone people were the first known residents and that village and burial sites have been found here, including a major site uncovered on O'Keefe Lane in 1970 and studied by Foothill College. Further mounds and village sites have been excavated along Permanente and Matadero creeks.

Two Mexican land grants covered the area. Rancho La Purísima Concepción, about 4,400 acres, was granted in 1840 to José Gorgonio and his son José Ramón, both Ohlone. They sold it in 1844 to Juana Briones de Miranda, a San Francisco businesswoman and healer, for $300. Rancho San Antonio went to Juan Prado Mesa. Adobe Creek formed the line between them. The two families became related through marriage.

Vineyards, orchards and summer estates

In 1855 Briones sold 3,000 acres to Martin Murphy, founder of Sunnyvale, who passed most of it to his daughter Elizabeth Yuba and her husband William Taaffe. Their home stood on what is now the Foothill College campus. The ranchos were later divided into smaller ranches and vineyards, mostly Zinfandel, many run by Italian and French growers along Purissima Road. After blight hit the vines around 1900, apricot, plum and prune orchards took over. Wealthy San Franciscans built summer estates in the hills. Several survive. The town lists Morgan Manor and Griffin House as official landmarks.

Incorporation

Development was slow for decades, partly because water was scarce. As the valley below filled with tract homes after World War II, hill residents moved to protect their way of life. The Town of Los Altos Hills incorporated on January 27, 1956 with about 2,500 people. Its founders were committed to the "preservation of the rural atmosphere of the foothills" and set out their principles in a document called the Green Sheets. The town buried a time capsule at its 60th anniversary in 2016, to be opened in 2031.

The hills also have a place in counterculture history. In 1968 Joan Baez and David Harris moved to Struggle Mountain, a commune in Los Altos Hills. Our page on Palo Alto in the 1960s tells that story.

Rural by design

Three rules shape the town more than anything else:

1. No commercial districts. The town says the absence of commerce was planned by its founders and has been upheld by residents ever since. Schools, religious institutions and recreational clubs are allowed.
2. Large lots. Zoning requires a minimum lot size of one acre, with setbacks and easements for public paths.
3. Pathways. Property owners grant easements and keep paths clear. The result, according to the town, is about 80 miles of trails and off-road paths that work as the town's sidewalks.

Town Hall reflects the same values. The current building opened in June 2005 with solar panels and an energy-efficient design. Behind it grow 25 apricot and prune trees beside historic farm equipment. Next door is the Heritage House, a building that resembles an old schoolhouse. It was formerly the Eschenbruecher House in Los Altos and was donated to the town in 1984.

Things to see and do

Hidden Villa

Hidden Villa, at 26870 Moody Road, is a nonprofit farm and wilderness area that stretches over about 1,600 acres. Frank and Josephine Duveneck opened their property as a gathering place for social causes in the 1920s. Today it runs farm and environmental education programs and welcomes day visitors to its organic farm, gardens, farm animals and about 8 miles of hiking trails. Its website asks for a $10 parking fee and describes reservations and access passes, so check before you go. Dogs on leash are welcome in some areas but not on the wilderness trails.

Byrne Preserve and Westwind Barn

Byrne Preserve, along the upper part of Altamont Road, is a patchwork of donated land, including 50 acres given by Albert M. Byrne through the Nature Conservancy and 25 acres from Countess Betty Byrne Dezahara. Its meadows connect to town paths and offer wide views of the bay. Next door, the town owns and runs Westwind Community Barn, a 15-acre horse facility that Countess Margit Bessenyey donated in 1976. It hosts riding programs, including therapeutic riding for people with disabilities.

Other parks and open space

• Bicentennial Park at Edith and Fremont roads, a small wooded spot along Adobe Creek.
• Juan Prado Mesa Preserve, reached from Dawson Drive or Stonebrook Road along Hale Creek.
• Rancho San Antonio, the county park and Midpeninsula preserve just south of town, with more than 25 miles of trail and Deer Hollow Farm.
• Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District lands border the town and connect to many of its paths.

Foothill College

Foothill College, a community college, has its campus in Los Altos Hills and is also the headquarters of the Foothill De Anza Community College District. Its campus hosts classes, performances and summer programs that draw people from across the area. Our schools and universities page puts it in context.

Getting there from Palo Alto

• Car: Foothill Expressway and Arastradero Road are the usual routes. From Interstate 280, exits at Page Mill Road, Magdalena Avenue and El Monte Road lead into town. Roads are narrow and winding, with few places to park.
• Bike: Arastradero Road and Page Mill Road are popular climbs. Our biking guide covers routes and etiquette.
• Transit: There is no train station and very little bus service in the residential areas. Foothill College has bus service from VTA. Check VTA for current routes.

Where to eat and stay

There are no restaurants or hotels in Los Altos Hills apart from a campus bookstore and similar small exceptions. Pack water and snacks for any hike. For a meal, downtown Los Altos is the closest choice, with California Avenue in Palo Alto and Castro Street in Mountain View not much farther. For a place to sleep, the hotels along El Camino Real in Palo Alto and Mountain View are 10 to 20 minutes away. You can compare hotels near the foothills in one search.

Living in Los Altos Hills

• Schools: The northern part of town is in the Palo Alto Unified School District and the southern part is in the Los Altos School District. Gardner Bullis School, a public elementary school, reopened in town in 2008. Private Pinewood School has its upper campus here. See our Palo Alto public schools guide for the PAUSD side.
• Services: The town contracts with Santa Clara County for police and fire services. It has no post office or public library of its own.
• Housing: Single-family homes on lots of an acre or more. Prices are among the highest in the country.
• Wildfire and safety: The town runs wildfire and emergency preparedness programs and encourages residents to register for alerts. Our emergency preparedness guide covers the region.
• Community: Residents serve on many town committees. Events like the annual Pathways Run bring neighbors together.

Frequently asked questions