Following today's L.A. City Council vote, Van Nuys upholds its reputation as the incredible shrinking town. Over time bits of the largely blue-collar, Latino community have either broken off to form Valley Glen or simply thrown in the towel completely and joined Sherman Oaks — when Sherman Oaks would let them. And that's not always been a given, as some of the Oaks' residents view their northern brethren as little more than boat people washing across Burbank Boulevard.

Well, make that Oxnard Boulevard now, as the City Council has extended part of Sherman Oaks' northern boundary up a few blocks, to include more of what until today was Van Nuys. The shift affects fewer than 1,900 people, many of whom claim to have stronger bonds with Sherman Oaks because of shopping habits and since it's where they send their kids to school.

LAist reports that

some Van Nuys residents, bucking the trend of other moderate-income

communities to gerrymander themselves into wealthier ones, announced

they would begin a movement to secede

from the city of Los Angeles. In other words, to become its own town

and stop the erosion of its boundaries. Perhaps this will lead to a

micro-replay of the Great Valley Secession movement of  2002, in which

the entire San Fernando Valley tried to cut loose from City Hall. Or

maybe the City Council can just make everyone feel happy by extending

Sherman Oaks' northern boundary to — where else? — Sherman Way.

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