Piñon Hills, California

Piñon Hills (from piñón, Spanish for 'pine nut') is a census-designated place in San Bernardino County, California, near the Los Angeles County line. It is located along Pearblossom Highway, 28 miles east of Palmdale, and 15 miles west of the Cajon Pass where Pearblossom Highway meets Interstate 15. The town lies within 25 miles of Hesperia and Victorville. Piñon Hills is in a tri-community that consists of Piñon Hills, Phelan, and Wrightwood. The elevation is . The population was 7,258 at the 2020 census.

Corporations and buildings

Piñon Hills currently has only one elementary school, Piñon Hills Elementary, which is part of the Snowline Joint Unified School District. Middle school age students attend Piñon Mesa Middle School, and high school age students attend Serrano High School, both located in Phelan. There are alternative education options for students from kindergarten to senior year within the district: Snowline Virtual School, Heritage School, Eagle Summit Community Day School, and Chaparral Continuation High School.

The ZIP Code is 92372, and the community is inside area codes 442 and 760.

Geography

thumb|upright|Much of Piñon Hills is visible in the lower left of this aerial view across [[Mount Baden-Powell in the San Gabriel Mountains, with the Los Angeles Basin beyond.]]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP covers an area of 32.1 square miles (83.2 km), 99.99% of it land, and 0.01% of it water.

The Puma Canyon Ecological Reserve (PCER) consists of over 350 acres in Pinon Hills. The reserve is open to the public and it is enjoyed by hikers and horseback riders alike. These communities include; Pinyon-Juniper, Joshua Tree, Desert Wash, Desert Scrub, and Mixed Chaparral (a threatened plant community type). The Reserve is home to abundant and dense woodlands of the state candidate species, the Western Joshua tree.

Demographics

Piñon Hills first appeared as a census designated place in the 2010 U.S. census.

The age distribution was 21.1% under the age of 18, 7.1% aged 18 to 24, 22.8% aged 25 to 44, 29.6% aged 45 to 64, and 19.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 105.1 males age 18 and over.

There were 2,912 housing units at an average density of , of which 2,624 (90.1%) were occupied. Of these, 78.3% were owner-occupied and 21.7% were occupied by renters. 9.9% of housing units were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.0%, and the rental vacancy rate was 4.9%.

Education

The CDP is in the Snowline Joint Unified School District.

Notable people

Andy Engman was a Disney animator for over 30 years. He was born in Vaasa, Finland, and he died in Piñon Hills. There is a street named after him called Engman Road.

Kit Galloway was an American video artist and a pioneer in satellite-based telecommunications art. He worked exclusively with Sherrie Rabinowitz under the moniker Mobile Image from 1977 onwards. Kit Galloway lives on a horse ranch at Piñon Hills.

Events

One of the largest Military Simulation Airsoft events in the United States, Operation Lion Claws, is held in the mountains of Piñon Hills, on the Jubilee Boy Scout Ranch.