Glorietta Ct, Orinda

The Glorietta neighborhood is the leafy residential area that stretches off Glorietta Blvd. in southern Orinda. This is a very leafy neighborhood filled with long flat Ranch homes that date it as one of the Orinda neighborhoods that saw its big growth spurt in the 1950’s and 60’s. It is, as most of Orinda is, a very wealthy area where the average yearly income is well into the six figures. You might not surmise this affluence from just looking at most of the houses here. The homes on first sight seem relatively modest compared to what your average six-figure income earner could afford. A closer look reveals the reason why residents here are will to pay the higher prices for the privilege of living here.

Most of those who live in the Lamorinda area know Glorietta Blvd., the main artery that crosses the neighborhood, as an alternate manner of getting to Lafayette and Moraga when Moraga Way has been blocked up.

Glorietta Elementary is also in this neighborhood and it, like the other schools in Orinda is just hands down fantastic. It ranks way above the state average in virtually every category where it is tested. There API score, for example, was 965 last year (the max is 1000) and students tested in the 80% and above on average in both math and English across all grade levels. Really fairly impressive, even by Orinda’s high educational standards. For pre-school kids or those that need daycare, there is also St. Marks just down the street on Moraga. It is the daycare run by Holy Shepard Lutheran Church and gets high praise from some of the local schools.

There are also some places in this neighborhood that even those who live in Orinda don’t really know about. For example, nestled up on what most people think is a purely residential street--Heather Lane—is Meadow Swim and Tennis Club. This is one of at least four such swim and tennis clubs that hideaway among the residences of Orinda and give the community a slightly snooty air about it. The facility, from what I can tell from driving by, is really very nice—as you would expect here.

To sum up: yet another great Orinda neighborhood.