About Yucca Valley

Yucca Valley is an incorporated town located in San Bernardino County, California, United States. The population was 20,700 at the 2010 census. Yucca Valley lies 17 miles (27 km) west of Twentynine Palms, 37 miles (60 km) north of Palm Springs, 89 miles (143 km) south of Barstow via State Route 247, 45 miles (72 km) southeast of Lucerne Valley and 55 miles (89 km) east of San Bernardino.

Bordered in the west by the San Bernardino Mountains and in the south by the Joshua Tree National Park, the Yucca Valley community is located in the Mojave Desert at roughly 3,300 feet (1,000 m) above sea level.

Yucca Valley is governed by a town council whose mayor as of 2013 is Marl Abel. Other Town Council members are George Huntington, Dawn Rowe, Robert Lombardo, and Robert Leone. Yucca Valley contracts its police and public safety services from the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department. Fire suppression and ambulance services are provided by the San Bernardino County Fire Department.

Yucca Valley, with its 22,000 citizens rests in the middle of the Morongo Basin with proximity to Southern California’s finest vacation spots and outdoor areas. At a base elevation of 3300 feet, Yucca Valley enjoys a unique combination of mild but seasonable weather. Yucca Valley is proud of their clean air, dark night skies, spectacular vistas and casual lifestyle. The residents enjoy easy access to the Palm Springs resort communities, Big Bear mountain destinations, and the beaches of Southern California. The majestic Joshua Tree National Park, celebrating its 75th birthday in 2011, is adjacent to its southern border.

Norman J. Essig was a key player in the late 1950s in working toward establishing Yucca Valley as a place for entertainment celebrities to come and live in privacy. He personally acquired hundreds of acres of land during this time and owned and ran Glenn Realty. He helped to put in the main roads that are running throughout the town off of Hwy 62. He was personal friends with the late Jimmy Van Heusen and gave him prime real estate in Yucca Valley to build his house, which can still be seen atop the highest hill in the center of the town. He is survived by his two daughters Jean Essig and Marie Hodge and seven grandchildren.