The city of Santa Clarita unveiled the Newhall Walking Tour app on Monday, showcasing interesting and historical places as well as information on the Walk of Western Stars in Old Town Newhall for tourists and engaged community members.

Officials believe the app will increase awareness of the many notable places in the town.

Evan Thomason is an economic development associate with the city of Santa Clarita, and has worked on developing those places.

“If residents come down to Newhall one or two times a week,” he said, “they’ve probably seen some filming.”

Some shows that have been filmed in the area are “Sons of Anarchy,” “NCIS” and “Criminal Minds.”

“What we do is very unique,” said Thomason. “We’ve got a great reputation for filming among the studios.”

The app began as a way to celebrate this reputation and was inspired by those honored in the Walk of Western Stars.

The Walk of Western Stars in Newhall works much like the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame. Famous actors and others involved in movie or television production are honored with their names placed on plaques inserted into the walkway.

A city of Santa Clarita produced brochure on the actors featured in the Walk of Western Stars is updated every year, and directly led to the creation of a digital tour guide. But the idea expanded into a larger project where historical sites and filming locations were also cataloged.

Kelli Lajer, a film project technician with the city, was instrumental in developing this part of the app. As part of the filming division of the Santa Clarita government, she keeps records of all shoots on location that take place in Santa Clarita.

“As you keep walking down Main Street,” she said, “there’s more and more and more.”

The local benefit to all of the filming is estimated to be over 33 million dollars into the Santa Clarita Valley economy every year.

“You have different styles on every street,” said Lajer. “Santa Clarita can double for just about every part of the world.”

Approximately 7,000 Santa Clarita residents are a part of filming, and actively work in various film crews.

There is also a self-guided tour inside the app, where a directional marker will take viewers around the area and pointing out the biggest highlights of downtown Newhall.

“You’re going to see Santa Clarita (on TV),” Lajer said, “and once you see it in person, there’s a big moment of recognition.”

| Chris McCrory