CHRIS GUZIAK 

ABOUT TOP OF THE WORLD

Top of the World is located 850 feet above sea level on a hilltop overlooking all of central Laguna Beach on one side and the Saddleback Valley on the other. Despite being on a hill, the neighborhood is relatively flat, making it very easy to get around by walking or riding. About a 5 to 10 minute drive from downtown, the neighborhood feels worlds away, with a suburban element that is hard to find in Laguna Beach. There are wide streets and sidewalks, street lights and underground utilities. Most of the homes were originally built in the 1950s and 1960s, and one or two-level ranch style homes. Over the years they have been expanded, remodeled and customized, resulting in an interesting collection of architectures, from very modern to craftsman to Mediterranean. One of the city's two elementary schools is located in the neighborhood. Top of the World is flanked on one end by Alta Laguna Park, which has tennis courts, basketball, baseball and soccer fields, and on the other end by a footpath leading to Moulton Meadows park about a mile away. Aliso and Woods Canyon Wilderness Park is accessible all along Top of the World, offering hundreds of miles of hiking and biking trails along ridges and through acres of canyons and oak groves along Aliso Creek. Homes in Top of the World are generally more affordable, ranging from under $2 million for smaller homes that need work to about $4 million, with a few more expensive homes on the ridgetops at either end of Alta Laguna Boulevard. Top of the World is very family-oriented, with more children per household than the average in the city..