Sylmar is a low-density, moderately diverse neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. It has a relatively high percentage of Latino residents. Its attractions include the second-oldest cemetery in the San Fernando Valley and a number of city and county parks or recreation areas. Known in past years for its profusion of olive orchards, Sylmar can trace its history to the 18th Century and the founding of the San Fernando Mission. In 1890 olive production was begun in a systematic manner. The Sylmar climate was also considered healthy, and so a sanitarium was established, the first in a series of hospitals in the neighborhood.
Near Sylmar is the Sylmar Converter Station, the static inverter plant for the HVDC Pacific DC Intertie power line. The plant was inaugurated in 1970, destroyed in the earthquake of 1971, rebuilt in 1972, and extended in 1985. When the Pacific Intertie was extended in 1989, a second static inverter station called Sylmar-East was built a few miles away.
The City of Los Angeles Sylmar Recreation Center, which also functions as a Los Angeles Police Department stop-in center, includes auditoriums, a lighted baseball diamond, lighted outdoor basketball courts, a children's play area, a community room, an indoor gymnasium without weights, picnic tables, an unlighted soccer field, and lighted tennis courts. The city also operates the Stetson Ranch Park.
