Unincorporated Towns, San Mateo County
© McCormack's Guides
Zip Code: 94037
Coastal
villages south of Pacifica. Unincorporated, which means they are governed by
board of supervisors, sitting in Redwood City, but through the Midcoast
Community Council residents make their concerns known. www.mccormacks.com
Although
talked of as separate hamlets, the two are close together, have connecting
streets and common interests: protecting the shore against development. Seton
Medical Center in Moss Beach.
Pretty.
Rustic. Artsy look. Many pine trees. State beach in Montara, Fitzgerald Marine
Reserve in Moss Beach. Lighthouse at Point Montara. Restaurants, stores. Half
Moon Bay Airport, private, extends into Moss Beach. If buying or renting, check
with neighbors about noise.
Click for regional or detailed map
Homes
east and west of Highway 1. Many down on the ocean. Many residents along the
coast want to limit development but these neighborhoods seemingly are always
adding custom homes, if only one or two at a time.
Montara
population 2,950, of whom 19 percent are over 55 years and 25 percent under 18
years. Kids under 5 number 191. Moss Beach has 1,953 residents — 17
percent over 55, about 24 percent under 18. Kids under five years: 94. (Census
2000). Median age of residents in
both hamlets is 41 — getting up there.
Every
ten years or so, Highway 1 gets washed out at Devil's Slide, an area north of Montara.
The slide was patched up again in 1995 but a permanent fixing was not done
because conservationists oppose widening the road, believing this will
encourage development. In 1996, San Mateo County voters approved building a
tunnel underneath the slide. But no money was available to build the job and
for years it seemed to be wandering among the lost souls of highway funding.
Then to almost universal shock, the feds came through and work started in 2005.
Completion about 2011. The old road will be turned into hiking and biking path. www.mccormacks.com
Kids
attend El Granada Elementary, then move up to Cunha Intermediate and Half Moon
Bay High. All are part of the Cabrillo Unified School District. See Schools.
In this
neck of the woods, gotta love that fog. Plentiful in summer. Many homes go in
for large picture windows pointed toward the Pacific. Montara is trying to
improve its water system, old and leaky.
Little
in the way of traditional recreation. No sports fields or community center.
Have to go to Pacifica or Half Moon Bay for them. Residents are trying to get
county to build a regular park with at least one playing field.
