Overview
About Kensington
Kensington covers 33.5 acres, the seventh largest of the fifty Aliso Viejo communities on this site, and holds 154 addresses across 177 mapped parcels. Five streets run inside it: Fawnridge Place, Groveside Drive, Heartwood Way, Oak View Drive and Wild Rose Place. At under five addresses to the acre the measured density is the fifth lowest of the fifty. The city zones 23.7 acres Residential Low Density, where the municipal code allows up to eight units to the gross acre, and gives two further acres the Open Space Preservation designation.
Westridge Park sits 68 feet from the boundary, 2.5 acres kept by the Aliso Viejo Community Association with a tot lot, picnic tables and walkways. Acorn Park at three acres is 956 feet off, and Canyon View Park at 23.8 acres is 1,781 feet. Capistrano Unified's own address locator assigns this ground to Canyon Vista Elementary for TK through grade 5, then Don Juan Avila Middle and Aliso Niguel High.
View available homes in KensingtonHistory
How Kensington was built
Kensington Estates was first built in 1998 as a private gated community in Westridge, the high western part of Aliso Viejo, with four to six bedroom houses of 2,842 to 4,000 square feet. There are 154 of them on 33.5 acres, which is a lot of ground per house. The five streets are oak woodland words, Fawnridge, Groveside, Heartwood, Oak View and Wild Rose, and the English name is borrowed from the London district.
The Mission Viejo Company bought the final 6,600 acres of the Moulton Ranch in 1976, and the master plan the county approved in 1979 gave 2,600 acres to Orange County for the Aliso and Wood Canyons Wilderness Park. It opened on 31 March 1990 and now covers about 4,500 acres with three creeks, roughly thirty miles of trails, 137 species of nesting and migratory birds, and old growth oak and sycamore recognized by the Old-Growth Forest Network in 2021.
By the Numbers
Kensington by the numbers
Lifestyle
The Kensington lifestyle
Schools
Schools serving Kensington
Capistrano Unified serves Kensington, and the district's own address locator returns one set of campuses across the boundary: Canyon Vista Elementary for TK through grade 5, then Don Juan Avila Middle and Aliso Niguel High. Oak Grove Elementary at 0.27 miles is the nearest campus of any kind and is not the assignment. The tiles below carry federal enrollment counts and distances measured from the city's published boundary. Confirm the campus for a specific address with the district before it matters to an offer.
9-12 · 2,563 students
6-8 · 863 students
K-5 · 569 students
K-5 · 672 students
K-5 · 533 students
K-5 · 425 students
FAQs
Common questions about Kensington
How big is Kensington, and how many homes are there?
Measured against the boundary the City of Aliso Viejo publishes, Kensington covers 33.5 acres, the seventh largest of the fifty Aliso Viejo communities on this site. The city's address layer records 154 addresses inside it, across 177 mapped parcels.
How dense is it, and what does the code allow?
At 154 addresses over 33.5 acres the measured density is under five to the acre, the fifth lowest of the fifty communities here. The city zones 23.7 acres Residential Low Density, where the municipal code allows up to eight units to the gross acre, and gives two further acres the Open Space Preservation designation.
Which schools serve Kensington?
Capistrano Unified's own address locator returns Canyon Vista Elementary for TK through grade 5, then Don Juan Avila Middle and Aliso Niguel High, and it returns the same three at every interior point across the boundary. Canyon Vista is 0.62 miles away and enrolled 533 students on the 2024-25 federal count, Don Juan Avila Middle 0.56 miles with 863 and Aliso Niguel High 1.28 miles with 2,563.
When was Kensington subdivided?
Six maps cover it, the first two recorded on 16 September 1997 and the last on 26 October 1999. Only five of the fifty communities on this site were first mapped later. James R. Crawford, licensed surveyor 4965, signed all six. A recorded map dates the subdivision rather than the buildings on it.
What parks are nearby?
Westridge Park is 68 feet from the boundary at 2.5 acres, with a tot lot, picnic tables and walkways. Acorn Park at three acres is 956 feet off, with a sports field, a tot lot, a drinking fountain, a restroom and picnic tables, and Canyon View Park at 23.8 acres is 1,781 feet. All three are kept by the Aliso Viejo Community Association.