Los Angeles has a lot of bedroom communities and, while it’s not exactly the Lincoln bedroom, Upland is one of the prettiest. Sitting just a smidge over 30 miles from La-La Land, residents are within spitting distance of the king of So Cal’s commerce and culture (hush up East Coasters).
Located at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains, Upland began life as an orange grove, as did much of Southern Cali. Since then, it’s grown into a city that may not be the best little city in the world, but it sure does feel like it to an awful lot of its residents. It’s generally at the top of the list of best places to live in San Bernardino County. With a vacancy rate of 8.3 percent (lower than the national average) you should still be able to slip into something quite comfortable in Upland.
So, you want the real skinny on this L.A. ‘burb? I think once you hear what it has to offer, you’ll wanna set down roots in the rich agri-soil of Upland, CA.
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Upland Neighborhoods
Wherever you choose to live in Upland you won’t be far from a park, so it’s a dandy town for outdoorsy types or those with pets that needs lots of exercise.
The operative word when apartment hunting in Upland, CA is “Foothill.” Actually, Foothill is more than a word, it’s a street -- in the northern part of town -- and you may want to stay north of it, and west of Campus, at least according to Uplanders in the know.
Keep in mind that the apartments with lower rents go quickly and don’t come on the market very often. Plan on spending from the middle of the listed range to the upper range. But officially? The median rent for an Upland apartment is $1,142 a month.
Downtown
Charming is a good word to describe downtown Upland. The historic heart of this little city, while not as robust as surrounding cities, still offers plenty of stuff for residents to do: antique stores, restaurants and a weekly farmer’s market – that doesn’t allow dogs (Fido says “Up yours, Upland" to that restriction) during spring and summer. You know how in many cities you wouldn’t dare live downtown? Upland is different -- a mostly middle class area except for the northwest corner, which is more expensive. Apartments in the northern and western parts of the downtown neighborhood were built in the 1950s and 60s while those in central downtown tend to be a little newer. Rents here will run you between $800 and $1,500 a month.
Los Olivos
Just north of Foothill and east of Euclid, the Los Olivos ‘hood offers lots of tree-lined streets and plenty of conveniences. Most of the apartment complexes here are low-rise but the units are larger than in other parts of town. You’ll have the best luck if you apartment hunt around the area of N. Campus Avenue. Rents in the Los Olivos neighborhood range between $600 and $1100 a month.
North Ontario
Between the 10 and Arrow Highway, east of San Antonio Avenue, sits the North Ontario neighborhood where you can snag a crib for between $800 and $1250 a month. Most of the apartment complexes are located along the northern border of the ‘hood but you’ll also find a few right off the 10, making it a snap to commute.
North Upland
That part of Upland that is bordered on the east by Rancho Cucamonga and on the west by Claremont is known as North Upland. Most of the area lies south of Foothill but you’ll find pockets that are quite livable, with apartment complexes in residential areas. It’s a neighborhood full of diversity of both peeps and rents: $500 to $3,000.
North of Foothill
Go north of the North Upland neighborhood and you’ll be in what is known as North of Foothill. Although there is more wealth here, rents run about the same as in North Upland. Maybe a smidge more.
South of Foothill
If you need a bigger pad, this is your place. There are lots of complexes with larger units in the southern part of the South of Foothill area, where it borders Rancho Cucamonga, around Baker and 6th St. Check out the area north of W. 4th street near Montclair, too. Plan on spending $600 to $1,450 on rent in the South of Foothill neighborhood.
Upland Palms
You might want to check out the Upland Palms area if you plan on attending Pomona College in Claremont. Located in the southwest part of town, it’s a bit pricier but, hey, you’ll spend less on gas to get to classes every day and the apartments are big enough to share – you can set up sort of a mini dorm. Just don’t tell the landlord – or about your two St. Bernards. Rents in Upland Palms run between $1000 and $1,100.
Getting Around
This is one So Cal city where you really don’t need a car unless you like to take weekend jaunts to the beach or mountains.
If you don’t own a car and don’t feel like slippin’ your chevrolegs into shoedebakers to get around, you’ll be ecstatic to hear about Upland’s transportation alternatives.
Upland is home to a Metrolink rail station where you can catch a choo-choo to L.A. and beyond. It’ll put you at Cal State L.A. in 45 minutes and downtown L.A. in a bit over an hour. Not a bad way to commute to work and the round trip fares are less than what it would cost you to drive.
Then there’s the OmniTrans bus system that runs mostly north to south in Upland.
The Folks
Like most California cities, Upland took a hit during the recession, with unemployment rising to around 9.5 percent. That rate’s falling, but slowly. That said, Uplanders that do have jobs make more, on average, than the residents of most other California cities.
Lest you get the impression I work for the Upland Chamber of Commerce or something, here’s a tidbit for your “cons” list: The smog tends to settle here and on some days the air is pretty bad. Upland’s air quality is listed as significantly worse than the U.S. Average.
Of unofficial note, the town name sounds like a prision colony in an alien movie. Again, that's unofficial.
Oh, one other thing you might want to know: Uplanders lean a bit more to the right than other Californians. Not quite as far to the right as folks in Huntington Beach, but this ain’t no Berkeley either.
There ya go. Upland, California where, up until you decided to call it your own, it had a population of 73,732. Now see what you’ve done? They gotta change that Welcome to Upland sign. Causing trouble already. Sheesh.
