Carmel Valley

Carmel Valley is a newer, master-planned neighborhood  that has matured into a place where people can live, work and play. Families with children are attracted by the large houses and award winning schools.

Carmel Valley encompasses approximately 4,462 acres of land and there are approximate 36,000 people living in the neighborhood. The median age is 39.3. There are 2.77 persons per household. The annual median household income was approximate $150,000. There are over 13,000 houses in the neighborhood and vacancy rate is 5.1%.

Carmel Valley is bordered to the north by the North City Future Urbanizing Area (NCFUA) and Pacific Highlands Ranch; to the south by Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve and Torrey Hills; to the east by Pacific Highlands Ranch and Del Mar Mesa; and to the west by Interstate 5.

The earliest known inhabitants of Carmel Valley were the La Jolla and subsequent Ipai peoples, who left cultural artifacts along the banks of Carmel Creek. During the Rancho period, the area was known as Cordero, after a Spanish “leather jacket” soldier. Following the California Gold Rush, miners drifted south and established homesteads here. McGonigle Canyon was named after an early settler. An old adobe Butterfield pony express and stagecoach stop sat next to a spring along old El Camino Real until the late 1970s. Later, the area was largely used for horse farms and agriculture, focusing on drought tolerant crops such as lima beans, which were grown on the property that later became The Grand Del Mar golf course.
Around 1905 the Carmelite Sisters of Mercy established a dairy farm and monastery in the area. The site, on the south side of Carmel Creek, was connected by a bridge to the St. William of York Church, whose cemetery includes the graves of some of the nuns and priests. Among other things, the nuns raised pigs, and even now local animal-keeping provisions say, “except for swine.” Carmel Mountain, the last undeveloped coastal mesa in Southern California, takes its name from these nuns.
Carmel Creek, now largely marked by SR-56 and the CVREP corridor, was intended to meander freely to the sea, allowing water to return to the ground and providing residents with natural open space and recreational opportunities. The first houses in the planned community were built in 1983 and the local Planning Board brought back the name “Carmel Valley” in the early 1990s.

Public High Schools & Middle Schools:

San Dieguito Union High School District

• Carmel Valley Middle School
• Earl Warren Middle School
• Torrey Pines High School
• Canyon Crest Academy(Optional)
  

Publie Elementary Schools:

Del Mar Union School District

• Ashley Falls Elementary School
• Carmel Del Mar Elementary School
• Ocean Air Elementary School
• Sage Canyon Elementary School
• Sycamore Ridge Elementary School
• Torrey Hills Elementary School

Solana Beach School District

• Solana Highlands Elementary School
• Solana Pacific Elementary School
• Carmel Creek Elementary School
  

Private Schools: 

• Notre Dame Academy(K-8)
• San Diego Jewish Academy (k-12)