@down-the-road Manhattan Beach Pier heading toward the ocean on Manhattan Beach Blvd. Hello, Our family history goes back to the early 50s in Manhattan Beach . After spending several years in hot inland Pacoima, my wife’s family moved to Manhattan Beach to continue the job hunt in the aerospace industry, now burgeoning in this coastal city area. Between the Highway 1 and inland, the open space was ripe for big industry and companies to come with their offices and buildings with nearby access to the large Los Angeles Airport. Manhattan Beach Elementary School After the elementary school years on the coastline in So Cal, they moved back in 1955 to OKC to continue the job market and see family. They were in OKC for 1955 to late 56 and then finally drove back to So Cal to finalize their cross country journeys by settling in a permanent house near Knott’s Berry Farm. The aerospace industry companies had spread its wings(pun intended) and had several big name companies withing driving distance of this area of inland Orange County. Manhattan Beach 1955 Jnaki My wife and I always stopped in Manhattan Beach on our way home from our coastal road trips because the city is a cool place to be. It gave us the coastal route away from the hectic LAX traffic and since it was about half way from Santa Barbara and the coastal OC, a nice respite from the traveling. As we found out, it was also for the outstanding restaurants along this street that runs into the pier and beach/ocean. There were/are plenty of shops for all sorts of styles and items for daily usage in design. But, it was the atmosphere of being a local So Cal beach community that gave this locale a “heads up” on other places, such as inland cities. A walk on the boardwalk always improves the outlook on life in general. And… as used before: the “warmth of the California sun” is a pleasure most of the year. YRMV Note: As one can see, like other coastal cities when visiting these days, “parklets” have been allowed to take up some parking spaces during the pandemic timeline. That allowed some folks to still go to dinner in an outdoor arena, to help keep the restaurant businesses alive. Most coastal cities have these temporarily in place and one city, Laguna Beach, has made the main downtown city a permanent “parklet” dining experience. Outdoors, nice multiple bulb lights and no cars as the main street is now closed to through traffic. Manhattan Beach and their protected “parklets,” on Manhattan Beach Blvd.
When drag racing I sometimes used the phrase “Cut The Tree Down”, when referencing a great reaction time on the green light. But never did I think of it literally or as done in these pictures .
The Jalopy Journal
