Sharon Heights

Nestled in the hills of West Menlo Park, the Sharon Heights neighborhood offers its residents a lovely respite from the hustle and bustle typical of Bay Area living — just off Sand Hill Road and a stone’s throw from Interstate 280 and Stanford University.

Developers Duncan McDonald and Mark Radin began building the residential neighborhood in the 1960s. Now Sharon Heights features a variety of homes, many of them ranch-style, single-family residences, as well as townhouses, condominiums, and apartments.

Established in 1961, the Sharon Heights Golf & Country Club borders the community and features a premier golf course, pool, tennis center, and dining.

And a shopping center with a Safeway supermarket, drugstore, gas station, and popular Starbucks is located just off Sand Hill Road on Sharon Park Drive, near the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory.

Neighborhood kids have access to several great schools, both public and private. Through eighth grade, children attend the highly ranked Las Lomitas Elementary School District, which in 2013 earned a state Academic Performance Index score of 958 out of 1,000. Menlo-Atherton, the local high school, also performed well, scoring an impressive 819.

Nearby private schools include the Phillips Brooks School, Trinity School, and Menlo School.

Want to live in this picturesque community of rolling hills and leafy trees? It’ll cost you.

In November the median sale price of Sharon Heights single-family homes for sale jumped 53 percent to $2.8 million, from $1.8 million a year earlier, according to MLS data. During that same period, the number of homes on the market shot up 66.7 percent in November compared with November 2012.

Sharon Heights is an almost exclusive residential, upper middle-class community nestled deep into the woodlands of Menlo Park. It is made up of about 5,000 residents (largely white) and spans about 1.8 square miles of leafy residential terrain. If you’re driving around the community, you’ll pass through the long, curving roads that venture around the hilly geography. For your shopping needs, Sharon Heights Shopping Center straddles the eastern corner of the neighborhood. The plaza hosts most of your typical neighborhood essentials and quick shopping needs.

For the perspective resident, you have a lot to look forward to. For the most part, homes are long and somewhat sizable, stretching along quiet residential streets. Many residences have a rather old style house front (built within 1960’s), but others have been revamped in the last decade or so. Properties are relatively large and bushy, with nicely trimmed landscaping making for an aesthetic community space. For those with deeper pockets, there are more sizable, two-story homes situated around Campo Bello Lane. Price tags for these residences are pretty pricey, circling around $1.75 million. And according to the 2010 US Census, the median household income in the district is around 125,000/year. Community renters also have a couple options, but you really just have your pick of beige, middle-of-the-road condos/apartment housing clustered along Sharon Road

The area also encompasses the private Sharon Heights Golf and Country Club, a beautifully maintained 18-hole course and clubhouse. Elsewhere, Slac National Accelerator Laboratory takes up most of the local commerce. The company, which focuses on high energy physics and radiation research, is located just adjacent to the community. The district’s commercial also provides a moderately sized commercial plaza complete with many neighborhood essentials. This includes a market, a drug store, a handful of somewhat trendy and family oriented restaurants with a huge parking lot. And finally, La Entrada Middle School is located within the neighborhood’s limits. According to local review sites, its one of the best schools around.