Footbridge Square

 

Footbridge Square, a lovely tree-lined neighborhood in Studio City, is named after the footbridge at Laurelgrove that crosses the LA River to Ventura Blvd. This eponymous bridge gives locals easy access to some of the best shopping, dining, and entertainment in the area, while also leading to a lovely walking path that runs along 1.9 miles of the LA River channel. This path is a great place to take an evening stroll, walk one’s dog, exercise, or just head to one of the two local parks that sit on the river’s bank. The Footbridge Square area is bounded by Moorpark to the north, Whitsett to the west, Laurel Canyon to the east, and Ventura Blvd to the south and lies within the district boundaries for the award-winning Carpenter Avenue Elementary School.

The neighborhood is also known for its many local traditions, with the annual Fourth of July Parade being a particular highlight. Every summer, thousands of residents from Footbridge Square and the surrounding areas pack the streets, decked out in red, white, and blue attire, celebrating their civic pride. The Footbridge Square annual pancake breakfast and barbecue grill potluck is a local event that has been going on for more than 40 years. Footbridge residents are encouraged to bring home-cooked dishes for other attendees as well as canned food to donate to the local Valley Food Pantry. Events such as this highlight the neighborly goodwill that characterizes Footbridge Square, a quality that explains why so few choose to leave this lovely area once they’ve settled in.