This is a
response to Patrick Soulages blog post on Brentwood. http://patricksoulagesblog2.blogspot.com/2012/10/week-2-brentwood.html
This was a very interesting
post for me to read, as I thought to write about Brentwood myself, but instead
opted for responding to someone’s thoughts on Brentwood. My experience in
Brentwood differs from what you seem to talk about, although I do agree it is a
more affluent neighborhood when compared to many other cities in Los Angeles.
However, from my perspective and past outings to Brentwood, I find it more of a
recent graduate haven or more the Westwood for recent graduates. It seems to be
the city where most Bruins gather afterwards, and it is filled with people in
their twenties and early thirties, giving it a very young vibe. In my opinion,
Brentwood is a cleaned up version of Westwood in a sense. This is definitely
not a generalization of Brentwood, but from what I have been able to observe.
Walking around
the streets and even asking friends who currently live in that neighborhood, it
seems that everyone nearby is around the same age group, yet they are
benefitting from the real life experiences of affording better homes and a improved
quality of life. There are also many distinctions from the life led in Westwood
to the one in Brentwood. For example, grocery shopping in the Ralph’s located
on Bundy Drive is an entirely different experience compared to the shopping experience
at the Ralph’s in Westwood. Red cups and ping pong balls are no longer on
display every aisle in the supermarket or hanged next to the beer. The streets
are in much better conditions as well, no longer filled with trash all over the
sidewalk or overflowing dumpsters with beer cans and pizza boxes. The
apartments are also nicer, the buildings are kept in better shape and they are
decorated with better style.
Moreover,
overall the lifestyle chosen by the residence of Brentwood seem much healthier
as well. I do not recall seeing many fast-food places near the area, and during
the day I see many people jogging in the residential area. I also went to their Sunday Farmer’s Market
set up near an elementary school, and the street was filled with shoppers as
many couples and young families arrived to purchase their weekly groceries.
Many of these people were in gym clothes either coming or going to work out.
These images made me feel that perhaps people in this area were more careful
with their health than in other places, as these were not details that stood
out in other places I have visited.
Having said all
that, I also acknowledge that certain parts of Brentwood are definitely not
affordable by recent graduates, such as the Brentwood Country Club where many
celebrities are sighted coming in and out of. In addition, I do agree it is a
zone where people move out to, especially when we consider the concentric
circle discussed in lectures. If we consider Downtown LA, or Wilshire to be the
center due to the locations of various world renowned companies as you
mentioned, then Brentwood would be the zone where people moved on to when they rose
in the socioeconomic status. It is
interesting to observe the great difference between cities in quality of life
and neighborhood “status” even when they are located in such proximity that
going from one street to another can be from a poor area to a wealthy one.
Brentwood is an interesting
city to explore and I would say its demographic is a mixture of young adults
and young families, while there are also many celebrities located in these
areas as well. I enjoyed reading about your experience in Brentwood, which has
made me curious to learn more about the other aspects of it and perhaps I will
also visit the Brentwood Country Mart as well.
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