Peninsula Center

The Peninsula Center neighborhood is immediately north of the Peninsula Center shopping district and is bordered by Hawthorne Boulevard and Silver Spur Road. A neighborhood at the northern part of this area is called the Blackhorse area and contains homes that are larger, newer and more expensive than the homes closer to Silver Spur Road.

The area has three shopping areas, actually located in the City of Rolling Hills Estates, including the Avenue of the Peninsula, the Peninsula Center, and the Town and Country Shopping Center, which are all located to the south of Silver Spur Road. This neighborhood includes the commercial heart of the Peninsula. The Promenade of the Peninsulais a three level open air mall featuring a skating rink, movie theatres, restaurants, and shops. The other two shopping centers feature grocery stores, drug stores, and other shops. The main Public Library as well as the main Peninsula Post Office is located on Deep Valley Road, This road has a "village" feel to it, with several excellent restaurants, and several new developments are planned for the near future, including new office and senior housing (see below). The Mall and other shopping centers and commercial areas bordered by Silver Spur Road between Hawthorne Blvd. and Crenshaw and Indian Peak Road are all within the boundaries of the City of Rolling Hills Estates. Several new condo projects are still on the drawing board to be constructed near the shopping mall on Deep Valley Drive.

Silver Spur Road is the main road servicing this area, and includes most of the office development in the City.The Norris Center for the Performing Arts is also located here. The Norris presents many excellent plays and musicals during the entire year, several of which are local productions.

Palos Verdes Peninsula High is very close to this neighborhood. The nearest intermediate school is Ridgecrest Intermediate, a few miles away on Highridge Road.

The Peninsula Center is nestled amongst the city of Rolling Hills Estates, which is part of the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Rolling Hills Estates is known for its vast open spaces, horse trails and white fences. The Peninsula Center is the main shopping center located on the corner of Silver Spur Road and Hawthorne Blvd. The Center offers many eateries like Pizza Hut, Burger King, Subway Sandwiches, but also clothing retailers such as Steinmart and TJ Maxx. Their main grocery store is the Pavilions, which is very popular by the Palos Verdes Peninsula High School students. It is located across the street. The school is one of the best high schools in the country. At lunch time the older students visit the Pavilions to get either Panda Express or Starbuck’s (both are inside the Pavilions).

My favorite store in the shopping center is by far, Rite Aid. Since the Center lacks any large retailers, such as Target or Home Depot, Rite Aid comes in very handy. Again, a popular hangout place for the high schoolers because of the inexpensive ice cream Rite Aid has to offer.

The Center has some educational opportunities ranging from music lessons to ballet, from tutoring services to art classes. Since all the schools on the Peninsula rank high, educational programs such as SAT workshops and tutoring are very popular amongst the students.

Every Sunday, the Peninsula Shopping Center hosts a Farmer's Market from 9am to 1pm. It has a pretty good selection on fresh produce and other things. The biggest event, however, takes place in June when the Street Fair comes to the Peninsula. More than 70,000 people attend this fair. My kids love it for the rides and the music. On Halloween, kids can go trick-or-treating from store to store. It’s nice, because most stores participate in this event.

Parking at the Peninsula Center is great, even during the holiday season. The place is very clean and safe. The traffic can be kind of crazy around the high school’s dismissal time. Watch out for the student drivers. The store clerks on the Peninsula are very courteous and professional. During Christmas, the Peninsula Center looks beautiful. Christmas music is played through the speakers, and the place looks very festive. Personally, I do most of my shopping in Torrance, since the Peninsula Center lacks any major retail stores.