I think you answered your own question. I never had a pond and a u cal ah petus in the same place so I can't provide much help there but as a former Southern Cal resident I can say from childhood to adult they were neat to be around, I love the smell, they were great to climb in and they provided a lot of shade. The biggest downside for me was that in high winds they would break apart, I mean big pieces of tree would come crashing down, house destroying chunks.

1/4 & 3/4 acre ponds. A thousand miles from no where and there is no place I want to be...
Dwight Yoakam