North Whisman, Mountain View

The North Whisman neighborhood on the northeastern corner of Mountain View may look modern, with its collection of sprawling apartment complexes and condominiums. Yet at the center of the neighborhood, a 1950s architectural style and sense of community remain.

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Just west of Sunnyvale and south of Moffett Field, the neighborhood is bounded by Moffett Boulevard, Evandale Avenue, Whisman Road and Middlefield Road. It makes up nearly half of a 700-acre parcel of agricultural land the city annexed in 1954.

Today, the neighborhood features a diverse mix of housing types, with apartments and condominiums on the outskirts and single-family homes in the heart of the neighborhood on Leong Drive, Emily Drive, Rosyln Circle and Wake Forest Drive.

North Whisman facts CHILDCARE AND PRESCHOOLS: German International School of Silicon Valley, 310 Easy St.; Kiddie Academy, 205 E. Middlefield Road; NASA Ames Child Care Center, Mail Stop N-270-1 Moffett Field; Walnut Grove Children's Center, 84 Murlagan Ave. FIRE STATION: No. 4, 229 N. Whisman Road NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION: North Whisman Neighborhood Association, Soosh and Jessica Gandhi, 650-969-2429; jessicasgandhi@yahoo.com PARKS: Whisman Park, Easy Street and Middlefield Road POST OFFICE: Moffett Field, Bldg. 67 PRIVATE SCHOOLS: German International School of Silicon Valley, 310 Easy St. PUBLIC SCHOOLS: Mtn. View-Whisman School District -- Huff, Landels or Monta Loma elementary schools, Crittenden Middle School; Mtn. View-Los Altos Union High School District -- Mountain View High School SHOPPING: Strip mall on Leong Drive; retail centers on Middlefield Road and Whisman Road MEDIAN 2006 HOME PRICE: $679,500 ($610,000-$875,000) # HOMES SOLD: 8 MEDIAN 2006 CONDO PRICE: $465,500 ($289,000-$771,000) # CONDOS SOLD: 46

Most of the houses in North Whisman are one-story structures with a streamlined 1950s aesthetic, and many yards hold tall pine trees that shade the streets.

"Our housing area was built in the 1950s as naval housing for Moffett Field," said Jessica Gandhi, a resident on Wake Forest Drive since 1999.

The variety of housing choices brings a wide range of residents to North Whisman. Gandhi said professionals, blue-collar workers, families, senior citizens and couples all call the area home. And all have access to the paved Hetch Hetchy trail that runs through the neighborhood and Whisman Park with a playground, basketball and tennis courts, and soccer and softball fields.

Art Bernal, a resident since 1970, said a negative repercussion of the neighborhood's transformation from homes set amid orchard land to rows of apartment complexes is that residents are no longer a tightly knit group. He said it's difficult to get to know neighbors when they're constantly moving in and out.

To help combat the problem, Arturo Olmos and a handful of residents formed the North Whisman Neighborhood Association in the late 1990s. Olmos, a resident whose family has lived on Rosalyn Circle since 1963, said an additional goal of the organization was to beautify the neighborhood.

Gandhi, the current co-president along with her husband, said the association has created a strong sense of community, primarily among area homeowners. A neighborhood picnic held each August at Whisman Park has become a popular event, and the association also holds garage sales, potluck parties and several meetings every year, she said.

In May of 2005, the neighborhood association organized a clean-up day, which served both of the group's goals of bringing residents together and enhancing the beauty of the area.

Many homeowners, particularly those involved in such events, say the old-fashioned neighborliness of residents is North Whisman's greatest asset.

"We try to take care of each other and watch out for each other," Olmos said.

Ghandi has experienced this sense of community. After she and her husband had a baby, a different neighbor brought them food every day for two weeks.

"It's the way we think of neighborhoods having been in the 1950s," she said.

-- Katie Vaughn