Plumbing Across L.A.

The neighborhood paper about the pipes under Los Angeles houses

Find your neighborhood

Find your part of town below, then your neighborhood, to see who supplies your water, which LADWP service area it falls in, and roughly how old the houses tend to be. House ages are broad and rest on the sources in each edition, not a count of your block, so treat them as a starting guess; the supplier named on your bill always outranks this page.

An asterisk (*) means LADWP lists the place but says its water sources may fluctuate. LADWP serves West Hollywood and Culver City only in part, so check your bill there.

Updated .

Green hillside dotted with houses under a blue sky
Hillside houses from the Fryman Canyon overlook.

Hills & Eastside

All City of Los Angeles, so LADWP supplies the water and LA Sanitation runs the sewer mains, though LADWP files these neighborhoods under three different service areas with different sources.

Hills & Eastside stops

  1. Hollywood HillsLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaMany hillside eras; check your yearLADWP groups it with the Valley, not with Hollywood below it.
  2. HollywoodLADWP, Central areaOften 1920s courts and housesBungalow courts largely set the early pattern here.
  3. Los FelizLADWP, Central areaOften pre-war; check your yearCheck for pumps and long laterals on the slopes.
  4. SilverlakeLADWP, Central area1920s to postwar, some ModernistLADWP spells it as one word in its report.
  5. Echo ParkLADWP, Eastern areaOften before 1930Angelino Heights, inside it, dates from 1886 to 1925.
  6. Highland ParkLADWP, Eastern areaOften before 1930Much of it sits in a historic overlay zone.
  7. Eagle RockLADWP, Eastern areaOften pre-war; check your yearHarder Eastern water applies here.
  8. Mt. WashingtonLADWP, Eastern areaMixed hillside erasSteep lots bring the pressure questions.
  9. Atwater VillageLADWP, Eastern areaOften pre-war; check your yearFlat ground beside the river, Eastern water.
  10. Lincoln HeightsLADWP, Eastern areaOften pre-war; check your yearAsk about shared lines on subdivided lots.
  11. Boyle HeightsLADWP, Eastern areaOften pre-war; check your yearAsk about shared lines at courts and duplexes.
  12. El SerenoLADWP, Eastern areaSome 1920s; check your yearThe Maycrest Bungalows court is here.

Read the Hills & Eastside edition

The Valley

Nearly all City of Los Angeles and LADWP's San Fernando Valley area, which blends aqueduct water, local wells and State Water Project supply; Burbank is the big exception, listed in the next section.

Valley stops

  1. Van NuysLADWP, San Fernando Valley area1910s onward, much of it postwarFounded in 1911 and annexed to Los Angeles in 1915.
  2. North HollywoodLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaMixed; check your yearAges change block to block.
  3. Sherman OaksLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaOften postwar; check your yearAsk about hillside lines on the south side.
  4. Studio CityLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaMixed; check your yearHillside lots behave differently from the flats.
  5. EncinoLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaOften postwarLarger lots get bigger summer tier blocks.
  6. ResedaLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaOften 1950s tractsTraditional Ranch tracts from the mid-1950s appear here.
  7. Panorama CityLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaLate 1940s and 1950sKaiser's planned community, with a master plan of over 4,000 houses.
  8. NorthridgeLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaOften 1950s and 1960sSeveral Ranch subdivisions date from 1955 to 1959.
  9. Canoga ParkLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaOften 1950s and 1960sWestridge Park was built in 1957 and 1958.
  10. Woodland HillsLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaOften 1950s onwardSummer heat is the local concern for attics.
  11. Granada HillsLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaOften 1950s and 1960sRanch tracts; ask what is under the slab.
  12. SylmarLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaMixed; check your yearAt the north edge of the LADWP list.
  13. SunlandLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaMixed; check your yearConfirm the sewer connection with the city.
  14. TujungaLADWP, San Fernando Valley areaMixed; check your yearFoothill lots at the edge of the service area.

Read the Valley edition

Pasadena, Glendale, Burbank

Three separate cities with three utilities of their own, so LADWP's rates, rebates and City of Los Angeles sewer rules do not apply; unincorporated neighbors may have other suppliers.

Foothill city stops

  1. Bungalow Heaven, PasadenaPasadena Water and PowerMostly 1905 to 1920A landmark district of Craftsman houses.
  2. Elsewhere in PasadenaPasadena Water and PowerMixed; check your yearPWP's report gives 12 to 16 grains per gallon.
  3. South PasadenaSeparate city; check your billMixed; check your yearThis paper did not confirm its supplier.
  4. AltadenaUnincorporated; check your billMixed; check your yearFire-damaged blocks should follow utility notices.
  5. Rossmoyne, GlendaleGlendale Water & PowerOften 1920s to 1940sGlendale's largest historic district, at 503 homes.
  6. Elsewhere in GlendaleGlendale Water & PowerMixed; check your yearRead its report for hardness; none is printed here.
  7. La CrescentaUnincorporated; check your billMixed; check your yearDon't assume Glendale's utility reaches you.
  8. Magnolia Park, BurbankBurbank Water and PowerOften 1920s and laterA 1920s subdivision by the studios.
  9. Benmar Hills, BurbankBurbank Water and PowerOften 1920s and laterFoot of the Verdugo Mountains.
  10. Southwest BurbankBurbank Water and PowerOften early 1940sModest homes built for Lockheed workers.

Read the Pasadena, Glendale, Burbank edition

Westside & Beach

City lines cut through this area more often than anywhere else in this paper; Santa Monica runs its own water, while most of the rest sits in LADWP's Western area on aqueduct and State Water Project supply.

Westside stops

  1. Santa MonicaCity of Santa MonicaBungalows to postwar; check your yearMostly local groundwater, about 75 percent.
  2. VeniceLADWP, Western areaOften 1905 to 1930Opened as a resort in 1905.
  3. Mar VistaLADWP, Western areaOften 1940s and 1950sIncludes the 1948 Mar Vista Tract.
  4. Culver City*Part LADWP; check your billMixed; check your yearNot all of it is LADWP.
  5. West Hollywood*Part LADWP, Central area; check your billMixed; check your yearPart of the west side has another supplier.
  6. BrentwoodLADWP, Western area1920s to postwarHillside and flat lots behave differently.
  7. Pacific PalisadesLADWP, Western area1920s to postwar, rebuilding nowFounded in 1921; tap water declared safe in March 2025.
  8. CastellammareLADWP, Western areaOften 1926 onwardBluff lots; hillside rules apply.
  9. WestwoodLADWP, Western areaMixed; check your yearSame area as Sawtelle and West Los Angeles.
  10. SawtelleLADWP, Western areaMixed; check your yearCity of Los Angeles sewer rules apply.
  11. WestchesterLADWP, Western areaMixed; check your yearThis paper did not confirm a date range.
  12. Playa del ReyLADWP, Western areaMixed; check your yearSalt air reaches outdoor metal here too.

Read the Westside & Beach edition

South L.A. & Inglewood

Most addresses inside Los Angeles here fall in LADWP's Central area, though its list skips several neighborhoods; Inglewood is a separate city.

South L.A. stops

  1. Baldwin HillsLADWP, Central areaMixed; check your yearHills here sit above the flat grid.
  2. CrenshawLADWP, Central areaOften pre-war; check your yearAsk about older laterals under street trees.
  3. Hyde ParkLADWP, Central areaOften pre-war; check your yearCity of Los Angeles sewer rebates apply.
  4. WattsLADWP, Central areaOften pre-war; check your yearIts own city until annexed in 1926.
  5. Leimert ParkNot listed by name; likely LADWP, check your billOften from 1928A planned community by the Olmsted Brothers firm.
  6. West AdamsNot listed by name; likely LADWP, check your billOften 1880s to 1920sSurveyLA surveyed much of this plan area.
  7. Mid CityLADWP, Central areaOften pre-war; check your yearHouses mix with small apartment buildings.
  8. InglewoodSeparate city; check your billMixed; check your yearHardness not confirmed; read your utility's report.
  9. GardenaSeparate city; check your billMixed; check your yearLADWP does not list it.
  10. HawthorneSeparate city; check your billMixed; check your yearLADWP does not list it.
  11. LennoxUnincorporated; check your billMixed; check your yearCounty sewer guidance may apply.

Read the South L.A. & Inglewood edition

Long Beach & Harbor

Long Beach has its own utility for water and gas and owns its sewers; San Pedro and Wilmington are City of Los Angeles, so LADWP's Harbor area supplies them mostly from the State Water Project and the Colorado River.

Harbor stops

  1. Rose Park, Long BeachLong Beach UtilitiesMostly 1910 to 1922Craftsman bungalows, close together.
  2. Bluff Heights, Long BeachLong Beach UtilitiesMostly 1910 to 1923More than half are Craftsman bungalows.
  3. Belmont Heights, Long BeachLong Beach Utilities1905 on, peak 1918 to 1923Two-thirds Craftsman, per the city.
  4. California Heights, Long BeachLong Beach UtilitiesOften 1920sThe city's largest district at nearly 1,500 homes.
  5. Elsewhere in Long BeachLong Beach UtilitiesMixed; check your yearTwo water zones, so read which one you are in.
  6. Signal HillSeparate city; check your billMixed; check your yearSurrounded by Long Beach but not part of it.
  7. LakewoodSeparate city; check your billOften postwarNot covered by Long Beach rules.
  8. CarsonSeparate city; check your billMixed; check your yearLADWP does not list it.
  9. San PedroLADWP, Harbor areaMixed; check your yearWeymouth and Diemer water, about 13.7 grains.
  10. WilmingtonLADWP, Harbor areaMixed; check your yearCity of Los Angeles, despite the distance.
  11. Harbor CityLADWP, Harbor areaMixed; check your yearSame LADWP rates as the rest of the city.
  12. Harbor Gateway*LADWP, Harbor areaMixed; check your yearThe narrow strip connecting the port to the city.
  13. East San PedroLADWP, Harbor areaFew houses; check your yearLADWP's name for Terminal Island.

Read the Long Beach & Harbor edition

What this was checked against

  1. Who falls in which LADWP area: Drinking Water Quality Report
  2. Santa Monica supply: Santa Monica's 2025 report
  3. Districts list: Long Beach Development Services
  4. Sewer ownership: LBU sewer page
  5. Pasadena range: PWP's 2025 report
  6. Valley and Hollywood dates: Conservancy listings
  7. Leimert dates: NPS

Sources read in November 2026. Rules and prices change: check the agency before you act.