4S Ranch

4S Ranch is located in the scenic hills of north San Diego, this 3525-acre community features homes with varied architecture, eco-friendly facades and front porches. Quiet tree-lined neighborhoods with walkable promenades are clustered around 4S Commons Town Center.

During the early 1800s, Spanish settlers from Mission San Diego de Alcala grazed livestock in the valleys and hills of what is now 4S Ranch. In 1842, Captain Joseph Snook was granted a massive 17,000 acres of the land in an area he called Rancho San Bernardo—some of which land would eventually become known as 4S Ranch. He constructed a large adobe near the site of an original structure sacked in the Indian uprising of 1837. Here he settled with his wife, Maria Antonia Alvarado, until his death in 1852. The land remained under the ownership of Ms. Antonia Alvarado until her death in 1860. The land was divided and changed hands several times until in 1921 Albert E. Smith purchased the area that is now 4S Ranch and began to give it shape. The Albert Ralphs family bought the property in 1938, developing the open space as grazing land for livestock, as well as tomato cultivation and citrus orchards—which were irrigated by water fed by the dam reservoirs. Ground wells provided water for both domestic and agricultural needs, and preserved the beauty of the land. Planning for the residential and commercial development began in the late 1970s, with environmental studies initiated in the early 1980s. 

Housing development began in the early 2000s. The 4S Ranch Village Center shopping center opened in 2003, and the 4S Ranch Commons Town Center opened in 2006. The 4S Health Center opened in 2012.

4S Ranch is served by numerous public schools within the Poway Unified School District. Public high school students attend Del Norte High School; Middle schools students generally attend Oak Valley Middle School; Elementary schools serving this area include Stone Ranch Elementary School, Monterey Ridge Elementary School, and Del Sur Elementary School.