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Norwalk, California

Norwalk is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 102,773 at the 2020 census.

Founded in the late 19th century, Norwalk was incorporated as a city in 1957. It is located 17 mi southeast of downtown Los Angeles and is part of the Greater Los Angeles area.

Norwalk is a member of the Gateway Cities Council of Governments. Norwalk's sister cities are Morelia in the Mexican state of Michoacán, and Hermosillo, in the Mexican state of Sonora.

History

The area known as "Norwalk" was first home to the Shoshonean Native American tribe. They survived primarily on honey, an array of berries, acorns, sage, squirrels, rabbits and birds. Their huts were part of the Sejat Indian village.

In the late 1760s, settlers and missions flourished under Spanish rule with the famous El Camino Real trail traversing the area. Manuel Nieto, a Spanish soldier, received a Spanish land grant (Rancho Los Nietos) in 1784 that included Norwalk.

After the Mexican–American War in 1848, the Rancho and mining days ended. Portions of the land were subdivided and made available for sale when California was admitted into the union of the United States. Word of this land development reached the Sproul Brothers in Oregon. They recalled the fertile land and huge sycamore trees they saw during an earlier visit to the Southern California area. In 1869, Atwood Sproul, on behalf of his brother, Gilbert, purchased 463 acre of land at $11 an acre ($2,700/km2) in an area known as Corazón de los Valles, or "Heart of the Valleys".

By 1873, railroads were being built in the area and the Sprouls deeded 23 acre, stipulating a "passenger stop" clause in the deed. Three days after the Anaheim Branch Railroad crossed the "North-walk" for the first time, Gilbert Sproul surveyed a town site. In 1874, the name was recorded officially as Norwalk. While a majority of the Norwalk countryside remained undeveloped during the 1880s, the Norwalk Station allowed potential residents the opportunity to visit the "country" from across the nation.

The families referred to as the "first families" of Norwalk (including the Sprouls, the Dewitts, the Settles, and the Orrs) settled in the area in the years before 1900. D.D. Johnston pioneered the first school system in Norwalk in 1880. Johnston was also responsible for the first real industry in town, a cheese factory, by furnishing Tom Lumbard with the money in 1882. Norwalk's prosperity was evident in the 1890s with the construction of a number of fine homes that were located in the middle of orchards, farms and dairies. Headstones for these families can be found at Little Lake Cemetery, which was founded in 1843 on the border between Norwalk and Santa Fe Springs at Lakeland Road. At the turn of the 19th century, Norwalk had become established as a dairy center. Of the 50 local families reported in the 1900 census, most were associated with farming or with the dairy industry. Norwalk was also the home of some of the largest sugar beet farms in all of Southern California during this era. Many of the dairy farmers who settled in Norwalk during the early part of the 20th century were Dutch.

After the 1950s, the Hispanic population in Norwalk grew significantly as the area became increasingly residential.

Airplane disaster
In February 1958, two military aircraft, a Douglas C-118A military transport and a U.S. Navy P2V-5F Neptune patrol bomber, collided over Norwalk at night. Forty-seven servicemen were killed, as was a civilian 23-year-old woman on the ground who was hit by falling debris. A plaque commemorating the disaster and erected by the American Legion in 1961 marks the spot of the accident, today a mini-mall at the corner of Firestone Boulevard and Pioneer Boulevard.

The Hargitt House
Built in 1891 by the D.D. Johnston family, the Hargitt House was built in the architectural style of Victorian Eastlake. The Hargitt House Museum, located at 12426 Mapledale, was donated to the people of Norwalk by Charles ("Chun") and Ida Hargitt.

The Sproul House
The Sproul House is a Stick Style-influenced, Victorian farm house built in 1870 by the founder of Norwalk, Gilbert Sproul. He and his family lived there while he founded Norwalk. His descendants lived in the house continually until 1962 when it was donated to the city. Today it houses the Gilbert Sproul Museum which covers Norwalk history through artifacts, photos, documents and other interpretive elements.

Geography
Norwalk is located at 33.90694°N, -118.08333°W (33.906914, -118.083398).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 25.243 km2. 9.707 sqmi of it is land and 0.039 sqmi of it (0.40%) is water.

Norwalk is bordered by Downey to the northwest, Bellflower to the southwest, Cerritos and Artesia to the south, and Santa Fe Springs and Whittier to the north and east.

Demographics

67.7% of persons age 5 years+, 2014–2018 live in a home where language other than English is spoken.

2010
The 2010 United States Census reported that Norwalk had a population of 105,549. The population density was 10,829.6 PD/sqmi. The racial makeup of Norwalk was 52,089 (49.4%) White (12.3% Non-Hispanic White), 4,593 (4.4%) African American, 1,213 (1.1%) Native American, 12,700 (12.0%) Asian (5.3% Filipino, 2.5% Korean, 0.9% Chinese, 0.8% Indian, 0.8% Vietnamese, 0.6% Cambodian, 0.3% Thai, 0.3% Japanese), 431 (0.4%) Pacific Islander, 29,954 (28.4%) from other races, and 4,569 (4.3%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 74,041 persons (70.1%)

The Census reported that 103,934 people (98.5% of the population) lived in households, 315 (0.3%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 1,300 (1.2%) were institutionalized.

There were 27,130 households, out of which 13,678 (50.4%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 15,190 (56.0%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 5,045 (18.6%) had a female householder with no husband present, 2,348 (8.7%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 1,712 (6.3%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 178 (0.7%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 3,417 households (12.6%) were made up of individuals, and 1,631 (6.0%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.83. There were 22,583 families (83.2% of all households); the average family size was 4.10.

The population was spread out, with 29,164 people (27.6%) under the age of 18, 12,026 people (11.4%) aged 18 to 24, 30,138 people (28.6%) aged 25 to 44, 23,790 people (22.5%) aged 45 to 64, and 10,431 people (9.9%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32.5 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.3 males.

There were 28,083 housing units at an average density of 2,881.4 /sqmi, of which 17,671 (65.1%) were owner-occupied, and 9,459 (34.9%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4%; the rental vacancy rate was 3.8%. 70,180 people (66.5% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 33,754 people (32.0%) lived in rental housing units.

During 2009–2013, Norwalk had a median household income of $60,770, with 12.9% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

2000
As of the census of 2000, there were 103,298 people, 26,887 households, and 22,531 families residing in the city. The population density was 10,667.6 PD/sqmi. There were 27,554 housing units at an average density of 2,845.5 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 44.82% White, 4.62% African American, 1.16% Native American, 11.54% Asian, 0.39% Pacific Islander, 32.75% from other races, and 4.71% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 62.89% of the population.

There were 26,887 households, out of which 46.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.1% were married couples living together, 16.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 16.2% were non-families. 12.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.79 and the average family size was 4.08.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 32.1% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 30.5% from 25 to 44, 17.6% from 45 to 64, and 9.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $46,047, and the median income for a family was $47,524. Males had a median income of $31,579 versus $26,047 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,022. About 9.5% of families and 11.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.8% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over.

Mexican (50.7%) and Filipino (4.3%) were the most common ancestries. Mexico (58.8%) and the Philippines (9.2%) were the most common foreign places of birth.

City government
Norwalk operates under a Council/Manager form of government, established by the Charter of the City of Norwalk which was drafted in 1957. The five-member City Council acts as the city's chief policy-making body. Every two years, Council members are elected by the citizens of Norwalk to serve four-year, overlapping terms. Council members are not limited to the number of terms they may serve. The Mayor is selected by the council and serves a one-year term.

According to the city's most recent Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the city's various funds had $78.2 million in Revenues, $79.1 million in Expenditures, $107.2 million in Total Assets, $48.7 million in Total Liabilities, and $54.8 million in Cash and Investments.

The structure of the management and coordination of city services is:

Public safety
Norwalk is a contract city, in which the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department provides police services. It maintains its own station, which also provides police services to La Mirada and unincorporated South Whittier. At one time the station also provided contracted police services to Santa Fe Springs, but those services ended when the city entered into a contract with the Whittier Police Department. The station is staffed with 206 sworn personnel.

Fire protection in Norwalk is provided by the Los Angeles County Fire Department with ambulance transport by Care Ambulance Service.

Registrar/recorder
Norwalk is the home of the Los Angeles County Registrar/Recorder. The Los Angeles County Registrar's Office is responsible for the registration of voters, maintenance of voter files, conduct of federal, state, local and special elections and the verification of initiative, referendum and recall petitions. There are approximately 4.1 million registered voters, and 5 thousand voting precincts established for countywide elections. The office also has jurisdiction over marriage license issuance, the performance of civil marriage ceremonies, fictitious business name filings and indexing, qualification and registration of notaries and miscellaneous statutory issuance of oaths and filings. The office issues approximately 75,000 marriage licenses and processes 125,000 fictitious business name filings annually. The Recorder's Office is responsible for recording legal documents which determine ownership of real property and maintains files of birth, death and marriage records for Los Angeles County. It serves the public and other County departments such as the Assessor, Health Services, Public Social Services and Regional Planning. The office processes 2 million real and personal property documents and 750,000 birth, death and marriage records annually and services approximately 2,000 customers daily.

County, state, and federal representation
In the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, Norwalk is in the Fourth District, represented by Janice Hahn.

In the California State Senate, Norwalk is in. In the California State Assembly, it is split between, and.

In the United States House of Representatives, Norwalk is in.

The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services operates the Whittier Health Center in Whittier, serving Norwalk.

The United States Postal Service operates the Norwalk Post Office at 14011 Clarkdale Avenue and the Paddison Square Post Office at 12415 Norwalk Boulevard.

Superior Court
The Southeast District of the Los Angeles County Superior Court is located in Norwalk.

Metropolitan State Hospital
The 162 acre Metropolitan State Hospital, a psychiatric and mental health facility operated by the California Department of State Hospitals, is located in Norwalk. It has four different types of categories for patient intake. The four categories being; incompetent to stand trial (PC 1370), offender with a mental health disorder (PCS 2962/2972), not guilty by reason of insanity (PC 1026), and conservatorship lanterman-petris-short (LPS) Act.

Freeways
Three freeways travel through the city. The Santa Ana Freeway (I-5) and San Gabriel River Freeway (I-605) pass through and intersect just above its northern edge, while the Century Freeway (I-105) ends in Norwalk at Studebaker Road.

Norwalk Transit
Norwalk Transit serves Norwalk and its adjacent communities. Six bus lines operate in Norwalk and adjacent cities, including Artesia, Bellflower, Cerritos, La Mirada and Whittier. Norwalk Transit Buses make connections with Los Angeles Metro Rail C Line from Route 2 and Metrolink from Route 7

Long Beach Transit
Long Beach Transit provides service to the Metro C Line Station via Studebaker Road from Long Beach.

Los Angeles Metro
The Los Angeles MTA ("Metro") provides both bus and rail service from Norwalk. The Metro C Line (formerly the Green Line) light rail provides service from the C Line station to LAX (via shuttle from Aviation Station) and Redondo Beach. Metro bus routes provide service to the west on Florence Avenue, Firestone Boulevard, Imperial Highway, and Rosecrans Avenue from the Norwalk C Line Station. Express routes also connect to Disneyland, El Monte Bus Station, Long Beach and downtown Los Angeles.

Metrolink
The Metrolink Orange County Line and 91/Perris Valley Line (which operate on the same track in this area) trains connect Norwalk (the Norwalk/Santa Fe Springs station) with Orange County, Riverside County, and Downtown Los Angeles.

Top employers
According to the city's 2013 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:

Education
Although Norwalk is credited with being the home to Cerritos College, only the east half of the campus is actually in Norwalk, the west half is in Cerritos. Founded in 1955, Cerritos College is a public community college serving an area of 52 sqmi of southeastern Los Angeles county. The college offers degrees and certificates in 87 areas of study in nine divisions. Over 1,200 students complete their course of studies each year.Most of Norwalk is served by the Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District, headquartered at 12820 Pioneer Boulevard in Norwalk. NLMUSD also contains The California distinguished school J.B. Morrison Elementary Magnet School in Norwalk.

Certain areas of Norwalk are served by the Little Lake City School District (elementary school district), headquartered in Santa Fe Springs, and the Whittier Union High School District. Another section is within the ABC Unified School District, based in Cerritos.

Among the several parochial schools in Norwalk are Saint John of God School (Roman Catholic, of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles), Pioneer Baptist School (Baptist Christian), and Saint Linus School (Roman Catholic).

Media
The independent TV station KHJ-TV/KCAL-TV channel 9 was licensed to Norwalk for a year in 1989 during an ownership transfer as part of a settlement with the FCC by former owner RKO General; the one-year change in city of license was barely noted on-air (it returned to a city of license of Los Angeles in 1990), and the station never had any actual assets based in Norwalk. Los Cerritos Community News serves the city.

Notable people

 * Ruth Asawa, sculptor
 * Shirley Babashoff, swimmer, winner of eight Olympic medals and 1975 world championship, Norwalk High School graduate, 1973
 * Dick Bass, born Richard Lee Bass, played professional football as running back for Los Angeles Rams from 1960 through 1969
 * William Conrad (1920–94), actor, director and producer in film and television; lived in Bellflower, graduate of Excelsior High School
 * Tiffany Darwish, 1980s singer and actress
 * James Gattuso, analyst and pundit in Washington, D.C., who often appears on television and radio to give opinions on domestic policy; Excelsior High School Class of 1975
 * Keith Ginter, MLB player for Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers, and Oakland Athletics
 * Bob Kevoian, radio host, The Bob & Tom Show, Norwalk High Class of 1969
 * Joseph "Mang0" Marquez, professional Super Smash Bros. player for Cloud9, graduate of John Glenn High School class of 2010
 * Ron McGovney, the first bass player of Metallica
 * Lindsay Mendez, Broadway actress
 * Alexandra Nechita, artist, considered youngest cubist ever discovered (at age 8) and nicknamed "petite Picasso"; attended Moffit Elementary School prior to her fame when she relocated outside of Norwalk
 * Pat Nixon (1912–93), First Lady of United States 1969–74, wife of President Richard Nixon; graduate of Excelsior High School Class of 1929 (family bought a truck farm in Dairy Valley, formerly in Artesia, now part of Cerritos)
 * Donald Novis, actor, died in Norwalk 1966
 * Rashaad Penny, running back, Seattle Seahawks
 * Ron Rinehart, lead singer, Dark Angel
 * Poncho Sanchez, Latin jazz artist
 * Cindy Sheehan, anti-Iraq War activist
 * Gene Taylor, blues-rock and boogie-woogie pianist, Norwalk High Class of 1970
 * Cristina Valenzuela, voice actress
 * Delta Work, drag queen and stylist
 * Nikki Schieler Ziering, Playboy Playmate, actress and Ian Ziering's ex-wife

Neighborhoods

 * Carmenita (South Norwalk)
 * Civic Center (Central Norwalk)
 * Norwalk Hills (North Norwalk)
 * South Norwalk
 * Studebaker (North Norwalk)
 * Norwalk Manor (South East Norwalk) (not to be confused with Norwalk Manor, a major subdivision built in 1947 to 1949)

Sports
The Falcon Field is the largest venue by capacity (12,000) in Norwalk. It is the home of the public community college football team Cerritos Falcons and a major venue for track and field events.

title: Norwalk, California


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Palmdale, California

Palmdale is a city in northern Los Angeles County in the U.S. state of California. The city lies in the Antelope Valley of Southern California. The San Gabriel Mountains separate Palmdale from the Los Angeles Basin to the south.

On August 24, 1962, Palmdale became the first city in Antelope Valley. Forty-seven years later, in November 2009, voters approved making it a charter city. Palmdale's population was 169,450 at the 2020 census, up from 152,750 at the 2010 census. Palmdale is the 32nd most populous city in California. Together with its immediate northern neighbor, the city of Lancaster, the Palmdale–Lancaster urban area had a population of 359,559 in 2020.

History
Palmdale was first inhabited by various Native Americans. Populated by different cultures for an estimated 11,000 years, the Antelope Valley was a trade route for Native Americans traveling from Arizona and New Mexico to California's coast. Before the arrival of Europeans, the Palmdale area was occupied by the Kitanemuk. The Yokuts, Chumash people and Shoshone may have also been present in the area.

Spanish soldier Captain Pedro Fages explored the Antelope Valley in 1772. The opening of California to overland travel through the forbearing desert was due to Captain Juan Bautista de Anza and Father Francisco Garces, a Spanish padre. They led a colonizing expedition including 136 settlers across the Mojave Desert from Mexico to Monterey in 1773.

Later in 1776 while exploring the Valley, Garces with several Indian guides from the San Gabriel Mission recorded viewing the vast expanse of what was the El Tejon Rancheria (the Badger Ranch) of the Cuabajoy Indians. After the Shoshone Indians left the valley, immigrants from Spain and Mexico established large cattle ranches there. Then, in the late 1880s, the ranches were broken up into smaller homesteads by farmers from Germany, France and the state of Nebraska.

Palmenthal, 1886–1913
"Palmenthal", the first European settlement within the limits of Palmdale, was established as a village on April 20, 1886, by westward Lutheran travelers from the American Midwest, mostly of German and Swiss descent. According to area folklore, the travelers had been told they would know they were close to the ocean when they saw palm trees. They took the local Joshua trees for palms and named their settlement after them. (Palmenthal is German for Palm Valley.) According to David L. Durham, Joshua trees were sometimes called yucca palms at the time, which was the reason for the name. The village was officially established upon the arrival of a post office on June 17, 1888.

By the 1890s (soon after the last of the indigenous antelopes, which the valley was named after, had been hunted to extinction by Europeans), farming families continued to migrate to Palmenthal and nearby Harold to grow grain and fruit. Most of these settlers were unfamiliar with farming in a desert climate, so when the drought years occurred, most abandoned their settlement.

By 1899, only one family was left in the original village. The rest of the settlers, including the post office, moved closer to the Southern Pacific railroad tracks. This new community was renamed Palmdale and was located where the present day civic center is. A railroad station was built along the tracks there. This railroad was operated by Southern Pacific and traveled between Los Angeles and San Francisco. The Wells Fargo stagecoach line that ran between San Francisco and New Orleans stopped there as well.

The only remaining pieces of evidence of the original settlements of Palmenthal and Harold are the old Palmdale Pioneer cemetery located on the northeast corner of Avenue S and 20th Street East, acquired and restored by the city as part of a future historical park, and the old schoolhouse now relocated to McAdam Park.

Palmdale's modern development commenced in the mid-1800s due to the influence of the gold rush, cattle ranching, the introduction of stagecoaches, and the establishment of the Southern Pacific Railroad line in 1876. Significant population expansion only took place after the completion of the California aqueduct in 1913, drawing in a considerable influx of farmers.

First two decades of the Town of Palmdale, 1913–1933
As the population of Palmdale began to increase after relocation, water became scarce, until November 5, 1913, when the California – Los Angeles Aqueduct system was completed by William Mulholland, bringing water from the Owens Valley into Los Angeles County. During this period, crops of apples, pears and alfalfa became plentiful.

In 1915, Palmdale's first newspaper, the Palmdale Post, was published. Today it is called the Antelope Valley Press.

In 1921, the first major motor vehicle link between Palmdale and Los Angeles was completed, Mint Canyon/Lancaster Road, later designated U.S. Route 6. Completion of this road caused the local agricultural industry to flourish and was the first major step towards defining the metropolis that exists today. Presently this road is known as Sierra Highway.

In 1924, the Little Rock Dam and the Harold Reservoir, present day Lake Palmdale, were constructed to assist the agricultural industry and have enough water to serve the growing communities.

Next three decades of the Town of Palmdale, 1933–1962
Agriculture continued to be the foremost industry for Palmdale and its northern neighbor Lancaster until the outbreak of World War II. In 1933, the United States government established Muroc Air Base (from an original founder's name, Effie Corum, spelled backwards) 6 mi north of Lancaster in Kern County, now known as Edwards Air Force Base.

They also bought Palmdale Airport in 1952 and established an aerospace development and testing facility called United States Air Force Plant 42. One year later, in 1953, Lockheed established a facility at the airport. After this point in time, the aerospace industry took over as the primary local source of employment. The city has been referred to as the "Aerospace Capital of America" because of its rich heritage in being the home of many of the aircraft used in the United States military.

In August 1956, an unpiloted out-of-control Navy drone flew over Palmdale while Air Force Interceptor aircraft tried to shoot it down with unguided rockets. Many rockets landed in and around the city, starting fires and damaging property.

In 1957, Palmdale's first high school, Palmdale High School, was established, making it easier for youths to not have to travel to Antelope Valley High School in nearby Lancaster.

Incorporation, 1962–1980
In August 1962, the township of Palmdale officially became the city of Palmdale with the incorporation of 2 mi2 of land around the present day civic center.

In 1964, the Antelope Valley Freeway, or State Highway 14, was completed as a link between Palmdale and Los Angeles. The freeway at this time ran all the way to present-day Technology Drive. It was at this time that talk about the future Palmdale Intercontinental Airport was seen as the way of the future. By 1965, the new city had annexed an additional 20 sqmi of land and industry was thriving. Talk of the future commercial airport had many investors buying up large quantities of land. In 1970, the city of Los Angeles went forward with buying 17,750 acre of land east of the city for its proposed intercontinental commercial airport. However, the United States Air Force desired to put construction of this new facility on hold until the existing airport reached its commercial capacity. So, under a joint use agreement with the military, the Los Angeles Department of Airports, now called Los Angeles World Airports, built a 9,000 square foot (800 m2) terminal on leased land that opened in 1971, creating present day LA/Palmdale Regional Airport which the City of Palmdale has taken control of in an effort to establish reliable air service in the region.

By 1974, the Antelope Valley Freeway construction ended at the southern border of Mojave in Kern County. In 1977, Palmdale built its first municipal building, the Palmdale City Library. This was the same year that its northern neighbor Lancaster incorporated as a city. Since the 1920s, Lancaster had been the much larger and principal community of the Antelope Valley, as well as the rest of California's Mojave Desert.

First housing market growth and recession, 1980–1990

The 1980s and 1990s were the decades that really started to define the two Antelope Valley cities. Affordable housing in the area caused a dramatic spike in the population. The city, like its northern neighbor Lancaster, became a bedroom community for those employed in Los Angeles. In 1980, Palmdale's population was 12,227.

Geography
Palmdale is located in Los Angeles County, and the urbanized centers of Palmdale and Los Angeles are separated by the San Gabriel mountain range, which is about 40 mi wide. This range forms the southern edge of the Antelope Valley portion of the Mojave Desert. Palmdale is the second-most populous city in the Antelope Valley, and fifth overall in the Mojave Desert, after Las Vegas, Henderson, North Las Vegas, Nevada; and Lancaster. Palmdale is part of a twin-city complex with its northern neighbor Lancaster and together they are the principal cities within the Antelope Valley region and California's High Desert.

Downtown Palmdale is located at 34.57944°N, -118.11667°W, at an elevation of 2655 ft above sea level.

According to the United States Census Bureau the city has a total area of 106.2 sqmi, of which, 106.0 sqmi of it is land and 0.3 sqmi of it is water (including man-made Lake Palmdale, the most visible and scenic part of the municipal water supply system). The total area is 0.24% water.

The city lies in proximity to the San Andreas Fault, making it prone to severe earthquakes. This fault cuts across the Antelope Valley Freeway just north of the Avenue S off-ramp; running westward along the old Butterfield Stage Line (now Elizabeth Lake Road) into Leona Valley.

Climate
Typical of the High Desert, Palmdale has an arid climate (Köppen climate classification BWk), and it is part of USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 8b. Winters are cool to mild, with daily normal minimum temperatures at or just below freezing from late November until late January, and the coolest month, December, having a normal mean temperature of 44.4 °F. Summers are hot and nearly rainless, with July and August, tied for the hottest month, having a normal mean temperature of 81.2 °F. On average, annually there are 52 mornings with a minimum at or below freezing, and 35 afternoons with a maximum at or above 100 °F. The normal annual rainfall is 5.90 in, occurring on an average of only 27 days.

Record temperatures range from 3 °F on January 13, 1963, to 118 °F on August 5, 1990. The “rain year” from July 1940 to June 1941 had the highest annual precipitation on record, at 18.41 in, whilst the most precipitation in a calendar month was in December 1943 at 7.55 in, as well as the most in one calendar day on December 11, 1943, at 3.43 in; conversely, the lowest annual precipitation was 1.15 in from July 2012 to June 2013.

Notes:

Flora and fauna
Plants native to Palmdale are big berry manzanita, fremont cottonwood, California aster, White Sage, Giant wildrye, Deerbrush, California buckwheat, Black Sage, California Goldfields, Antelope Bitterbrush, Golden Yarrow, Desert Globemallow and more. Animals in the area are golden mantled ground squirrel, Beechey ground squirrel, red-tailed hawk, Cooper's hawk, Stellar's jay, leopard frog and rattlesnake. Coyotes are found throughout Palmdale. The California condor, a rare species of bird occupies Palmdale. Palmdale was a juniper berry processing area. California poppies are grown near Palmdale.

2010
The 2010 United States Census reported that Palmdale had a population of 152,750. The population density was 1,438.1 PD/sqmi. The racial makeup of Palmdale was 74,901 (49.0%) White, (24.5% Non-Hispanic White), 22,677 (14.8%) African American, 1,316 (0.9%) Native American, 6,548 (4.3%) Asian (2.2% Filipino, 0.4% Indian, 0.4% Korean, 0.3% Chinese, 0.3% Vietnamese, 0.2% Japanese, 0.16% Cambodian, 0.11% Thai and 0.07% Pakistani), 335 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 38,773 (25.4%) from other races, and 8,200 (5.4%) from two or more races. There were 83,097 Hispanic or Latino residents (54.4%). 38.1% of Palmdale residents are of Mexican ancestry; 6.2% Salvadoran; and 2.4% of Guatemalan heritage and 0.79% Honduran, 0.76% Puerto Rican, 0.69% Nicaraguan, 0.50% Cuban, 0.47% Colombian and Argentinian 0.34%. Spanish is spoken by 36.4% of the population and Tagalog by 1.3%. The most common ancestries are German 5.2%, Irish 4.1%, English 2.9%, Italian 2.7%, French 1.1%, Polish 1.0%, Norwegian 0.7%, Scottish 0.6%, Dutch 0.6%, Russian 0.6%, Swedish 0.5%, Belizean 0.4%, Armenian 0.4% and Danish, Welsh and Greek 0.3%.

According to the 2000 Census, Mexican and German were the most common ancestries in Palmdale. Mexico and El Salvador were the most common foreign places of birth.

The Census reported that 152,551 people (99.9% of the population) lived in households, 158 (0.1%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 41 (0%) were institutionalized.

There were 42,952 households, out of which 23,345 (54.4%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 24,199 (56.3%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 7,821 (18.2%) had a female householder with no husband present, 3,318 (7.7%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 2,998 (7.0%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 316 (0.7%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 5,828 households (13.6%) were made up of individuals, and 1,880 (4.4%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.55. There were 35,338 families (82.3% of all households); the average family size was 3.87.

The age distribution of the population included 50,514 people (33.1%) under the age of 18, 17,089 people (11.2%) aged 18 to 24, 40,077 people (26.2%) aged 25 to 44, 34,963 people (22.9%) aged 45 to 64, and 10,107 people (6.6%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.3 males.

There were 46,544 housing units at an average density of 438.2 /mi2, of which 29,167 (67.9%) were owner-occupied, and 13,785 (32.1%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.2%; the rental vacancy rate was 9.4%. 102,444 people (67.1% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 50,107 people (32.8%) lived in rental housing units. According to US Census Population Estimates, July 1, 2022: 15.8% of the population was living below the federal poverty line.

Religion
37.0% of people are Catholic in Palmdale. 53.4% in the city are religious.

Homelessness
In 2022, Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority's Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count counted 309 homeless individuals in Palmdale.

Economy
The most important industry for Palmdale is the aerospace industry. Other manufacturing companies have relocated to Palmdale seeking more affordable land, proximity to Palmdale Airport, and special tax breaks.

The special tax breaks granted for companies that relocate to Palmdale is due to the city having the Antelope Valley Enterprise Zone and the Palmdale Federal Foreign Trade Zone. These are special zoning areas within the city that are given various state and federal tax breaks and municipal grant incentives to relocate their business there. These zones were put in effect to help Palmdale, as well as nearby Lancaster, draw more jobs to the area so that they would be less dependent on the Los Angeles Basin and the San Fernando Valley area for employment. This will help relieve traffic congestion and pollution and stabilize the Antelope Valley economy on several industries. The local governments of the Antelope Valley seek to diversify their economies and not just depend on the aerospace industry as it is known for having "feast or famine" seasons. Palmdale refers to itself with the nickname the "aerospace capital of the United States", and has been the site of research, development, final assembly, flight testing and/or servicing/modifications of the Space Shuttle, B-1 Lancer, X-15, B-2 Spirit, B-21 Raider, F-117 Nighthawk, F-22 Raptor, F-35 Lightning II, SR-71 Blackbird, Lockheed L-1011 Tristar, and many other aircraft that have been used in the United States Air Force, NASA and air forces and airlines around the world. USAF Plant 42, where the aerospace projects occurred / occur is home to major operations of the following aerospace companies: Boeing, Lockheed Martin and its famed Skunk Works, and Northrop Grumman. The Los Angeles World Airports owns the former Boeing hangar (formerly North American Rockwell) at Plant 42 near LA/Palmdale Regional Airport which is one of the largest buildings in the world. The hangar was used for the set of the 2004 film The Terminal, which featured an enormous replica of a JFK International Airport terminal. NASA's SOFIA program relocated its operation to this hangar at Site 9 from Edwards Air Force Base.

A number of world class corporations and manufacturing firms have made Palmdale home, helping to diversify the local economy. Delta Scientific, a world leader in high strength vehicle barrier systems, supplying protection for many federal, state and local buildings, and a prime supplier to the military and US State Department for embassies and other installations worldwide, and US Pole, a major manufacturer of street lighting poles, are major anchor tenants in the Fairway Business Park. The Palmdale Trade and Commerce Center is home to many other major manufacturing, industrial, corporate offices and other employers, as well as home to the Palmdale Auto Mall. A number of medical and related support offices are coming on-line to meet the needs of the new Palmdale Regional Medical Center. On July 8, 2009, Quallion LLC, which manufactures lithium ion cells and battery packs, announced plans to build a battery manufacturing plant in Palmdale if it won a government grant being offered by the U.S. Department of Energy.

Beginning in the 1960s, Palmdale was home to Don Babb's The Model A Ford Company, which became Classic Manufacturing and Supply, builder of exact reproduction and custom steel bodies and parts for hot rods and customs.

With an $890-million contract to build 175 light-rail cars for Metropolitan Transportation Authority that was behind schedule, Kinkisharyo, the El Segundo-based U.S. arm of Kinki Sharyo Co. Ltd. of Osaka announced in December 2014 that they would retrofit an existing space in Palmdale to build the P3010 series vehicles. A major shipment was needed for the Expo Line Phase II extension to Santa Monica and Foothill Extension to Azusa which were scheduled to open in 2016. The balance of the 175 cars will be needed in the following years as the K Line and Regional Connector open. Final assembly work has already occurred in hangar space the company leased in Palmdale from Los Angeles World Airports. The first car was delivered to Metro in October for testing before series production begins.

The Antelope Valley Mall is the retail shopping destination in the region, with a variety of dining choices on its restaurant row.

Onions are the most valued crop that grows in Palmdale. Some of Antelope Valley's onions were exported to Japan, Taiwan, Dubai and Australia. Other crops grown in Palmdale and the Antelope Valley are alfalfa, wheat, fruit, oats and barley.

Largest employers
Employers include:
 * Lockheed Martin 3,700
 * Northrop Grumman 2,100
 * Antelope Valley Mall 1,800
 * Palmdale School District 1,792
 * Walmart 1,242
 * Westside Union School District 1,160
 * Antelope Valley Union High School District 1,116
 * Boeing 850
 * Palmdale Regional Medical Center 800+
 * Los Angeles County 500
 * CarMax

Local government
Palmdale is a Charter City governed under the council / manager form of local government. Beginning with the November 2016 election, the City Council was subjected to districting, with councilmembers were selected from each of 4 districts. The mayor is elected at-large every two years for a two-year term. Every two years, two of the four district council members are elected to serve four-year terms. Palmdale does not have term limits for council and mayor.

The City Council appoints the City Manager and City Attorney.

The city also has an appointed Planning Commission divided into four separate districts. The Planning Commission was organized to help with the planning, zoning, and development of various city areas in different districts and to give the residents of those particular districts a greater voice in local land use decisions. There is also an appointed Board of Library Trustees, and Youth Council.

On November 3, 2009, local residents voted in favor of a measure to change Palmdale's general law city status to that of a Charter city. This allowed Palmdale to draft a city charter and constitution, enabling it to make more decisions at the local level without interference or rules from the state government.

Palmdale has animal services, Palmdale Animal Care Center.

Municipal services
The city provides a number of municipal services, including a Planning Department, Economic Development Department, Building and Safety Department, Public Works Department, Parks and Recreation Department, and Library Department. The city also operates the Palmdale Transportation Center which serves as the hub for public transit services including Metrolink trains, Antelope Valley Transit Authority, Amtrak Thruway, and Greyhound Lines. Palmdale was selected as a stop for the California High-Speed Rail system that will link northern and southern California. City officials have formed the Palmdale Airport Authority, as they pursue regional air service from a joint use facility at USAF Plant 42.

Recreation and cultural services include the Palmdale City Library, Legacy Commons, Larry Chimbole Cultural Center, Palmdale Playhouse and Art Gallery, Dry Town Water Park, Palmdale Amphitheater, Best of the West Softball Complex, Hammack Activity Center, Palmdale Oasis Park Recreation Center, Marie Kerr Park Recreation Center, Joe Davies Heritage Airpark at Palmdale Plant 42, and four swimming pools.

Public safety
The city is policed by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department under a formal contract with the County of Los Angeles and has its municipal judicial system intertwined with the Los Angeles County Superior Court.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) operates the Palmdale Station in Palmdale. Palmdale has the largest Sheriff's Station in Los Angeles County. Palmdale's innovative Partners Against Crime (PAC) Program, a cooperative effort between law enforcement, landlords and community members, has successfully focused on quality of life issues and crime suppression, reducing the crime rate annually. Recently, the Partners for a Better Palmdale program was initiated by the City Council, to further engage residents, schools, community groups and law enforcement in improving community quality of life. The city pioneered the use of municipal Community Service Officers for low level incidents to free up Deputies for higher priority matters, and employ high-tech tools, such as Automated License Plate Recognition Systems on patrol cars, to increase officer productivity.

The city is served by the Los Angeles County Fire Department for its fire and paramedic services through the Consolidated Fire Protection District. Palmdale downtown Station #37 is one of the busiest fire stations in the United States. Two new fire stations went into service in late 2008 on the east and west sides of Palmdale.

Public utilities
Utility services within the city are provided by several public and private agencies. Water service is primarily provided by Palmdale Water District (separate public agency) and Los Angeles County Waterworks (part of the County Public Works); sewer service is provided by the County Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County (separate public agency, with City Council members on district board); electrical service is provided by Southern California Edison; natural gas service is provided by Southern California Gas; cable television service is provided by Time Warner Cable; telephone service is provided by AT&T and Frontier; refuse pickup and disposal service is provided by Waste Management, Inc of the Antelope Valley under a franchise agreement with the city. The city successfully licensed and sold permits for a hybrid natural gas and steam turbine power facility and its operator is awaiting state approval of amendments to begin construction.

County representation
The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services operates the Antelope Valley Health Center in Lancaster, serving Palmdale.

In the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, Palmdale is in the 5th District, represented by Kathryn Barger.

State and federal representation
In the California State Legislature, Palmdale is in, and in.

In the United States House of Representatives, Palmdale is in.

Kindergarten – grade 12 schools
Palmdale has three separate elementary school districts and one high school district:

 * The Palmdale School District is one of the largest elementary school districts in the nation consisting of 29 schools with about 28,000 students. This school district covers the majority of the city's kindergarten through 8th grade students. One of the unique features of this school district was its practice of naming schools after desert flora and fauna. For instance, there are Tumbleweed, Juniper, Mesquite, Manzanita and Joshua Hills schools.
 * The Westside Union School District covers the schools on the far west-side of Palmdale and its western suburbs. This school district has over 8,250 students and 11 schools for K–8 education.
 * The Keppel Union School District covers the schools on the far east-side of Palmdale and its eastern suburbs. This school district has six schools and nearly 3,000 students for K–8 education.
 * The Antelope Valley Union High School District covers nearly all of the 9th–12th grade education for the entire metropolitan area, with the exception of private high schools. It has 12 schools with over 25,000 students.
 * The Palmdale Aerospace Academy is a joint venture between the city of Palmdale, the AERO Institute, and the Palmdale School District. It is a new independent charter school which opened in August 2012.
 * Paraclete High School is a private high school that serves the greater Antelope Valley, including Palmdale.

Colleges and universities

 * The Antelope Valley Community College District currently has a satellite campus in Palmdale with a student population of about 470. This temporary campus was set up until a permanent community college campus could be established within the city, which is being planned for the southside of the city on 25th Street East, south of Avenue S. The district has one full service campus in nearby Lancaster with about 14,000 students.
 * The California State University system also has a satellite campus from its Bakersfield facility in nearby Lancaster at the Antelope Valley College main campus.
 * DeVry University has a campus in Palmdale that includes its Keller Graduate School of Management.
 * Brandman University has a satellite campus in Palmdale.
 * University of Antelope Valley (private 4yr college)
 * University of La Verne has a satellite campus in Palmdale.
 * University of Phoenix has a satellite campus in nearby Lancaster.
 * The AERO Institute at the Palmdale Institute of Technology is a facility in Palmdale at the Civic Center. It is operated by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the City of Palmdale, and distance learning through a number of universities is available including Purdue, USC, University of San Diego, Pepperdine University, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Caltech and Cal Poly Pomona. This specialized school offers graduate and undergraduate education in aerospace science, engineering, and technical skills.

Newspapers

 * Antelope Valley Press
 * The Antelope Valley Times
 * Aerotech News and Review
 * AV Political Observer
 * El Sol Del Desierto

Online newszine
Antelope Valley New Press

www.thepalmdalejournal.com

AM

 * KAVL 610 AM Sports
 * KTPI 1340 AM Adult Standards
 * KOSS 1380 AM News/Talk
 * KUTY 1470 AM Spanish Oldies

FM

 * KCRY 88.1 FM NPR (KCRW Santa Monica)
 * KTLW 88.9 FM Religious/Christian
 * KLXP 89.7 FM Religious/Christian (simulcast of Hollister KHRI 90.7)
 * K211EY 90.1 FM Religious/Christian (simulcast of Victorville KHMS 88.5)
 * K216FA 91.1 FM Religious/Christian (simulcast of Twin Falls KAWZ 89.9)
 * KWTD 91.9 FM Religious/Christian (simulcast of Bishop KWTW 88.5)
 * KQAV 93.5 FM Classic Rock
 * KTPI-FM 97.7 FM Country
 * KKZQ 100.1 FM Modern Rock
 * KSRY 103.1 FM Modern Rock (simulcast of Los Angeles KYSR 98.7)
 * KGBB 103.9 FM Adult Hits
 * KEPD 104.9 FM Country
 * KVVS 105.5 FM Top 40 (simulcast of Los Angeles KIIS 102.7)
 * KGMX 106.3 FM Adult Contemporary
 * KMVE 106.9 FM Regional Spanish

Internet radio

 * Surge Radio Online Radio Dance Hits

Television stations

 * TW Cable 3 Local Events / News
 * Palmdale 27 City's cable information channel
 * KPAL-LP 38 Home Shopping / Local Events

Transportation
According to the latest U.S. Census report released in September 2009, Palmdale has the longest average commute time in the United States at 41.5 minutes. This commute time exceeds that of even New York City. this is due to the majority of citizens commuting to nearby Santa Clarita and farther south to Los Angeles.

Airport
The LA/Palmdale Regional Airport/Air Force Plant 42 (PMD) has two runways, each over 2.25 mi in length, although there is currently no commercial airline service at the airport. PMD's commercial terminal is owned and operated by Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA), a municipal department of the City of Los Angeles, on leased land from the U.S. Air Force. Airline service has been sporadic since commercial flights were first offered in 1971. Most recently, United Express/SkyWest Airlines flew between PMD and San Francisco from June 7, 2007, to December 6, 2008. The city of Palmdale formed the Palmdale Airport Authority to move forward to control the facilities and the lease with the USAF, to better develop regional air service in the High Desert.

LAWA also owns 17500 acre of land adjacent to the existing airport. The land was acquired between 1970 and 1983 to be developed into "Palmdale Intercontinental Airport", intended to surpass the air traffic of LAX. The land remains undeveloped. LAWA is currently developing a Master Plan for Palmdale that will guide airport land use and development decisions through 2030.

The FAA's Los Angeles Air Route Traffic Control Center is located adjacent to the airport.

NASA has consolidated its research, environmental and training aircraft, support services and facilities at the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale. From the oversized runway and the massive hangar located at Air Force Plant 42 Site 9, NASA conducts worldwide environmental research with its ER-2 (a U-2 variant) and cutting edge deep space imaging with the 747-based SOFIA infrared telescope.

Highways
The Antelope Valley Freeway (SR 14) is the major north–south highway connecting Palmdale to Los Angeles and Mojave.

State Route 138 (SR 138) is the major east–west highway connecting Palmdale to the Inland Empire and Frazier Park.

State Route 18 (SR 18) heads eastward out of the Antelope Valley connecting it to Victorville and via I-15 the Barstow area. This road is commonly used as a route to Las Vegas, Nevada.

Street system
The street system in the Antelope Valley is set out in a grid. Unless otherwise named or curved around due to terrain, east–west roads are called avenues and north–south roads are called streets. The city is essentially on a perfect grid, and the traffic signals are coordinated by a central processing facility at the Civic Center.

East–west avenues are lettered mile-by-mile from north to south, starting with Avenue A on the Los Angeles-Kern County line. One mile south of Avenue A is Avenue B, and so on. Smaller roads between major avenues carry suffixes "-1" (nearest to the lettered avenue) through "-15" (nearest to the next lettered avenue). Some "-8" avenues can be major thoroughfares, for example, Avenue R-8 is halfway between Avenue R and Avenue S.

North–south streets are numbered with an "east" or "west" suffix with respect to their distances from Division Street. The number increases by 10 for each mile, so a mile east and west of Division Street lie "10th Street East" and "10th Street West" respectively. Some streets like 5th or 15th can also be major thoroughfares.

House addresses on east–west "avenues" are numbered according to the "streets". For example, "2001 East Palmdale Boulevard" is just east of 20th Street East, and "6066 West Avenue M-2" is just west of 60th Street West on Avenue M-2, which is 2/16 of a mile south of Avenue M.

On north–south streets, numbers are counted from downtown Los Angeles (thus increase from south to north), and while in the Antelope Valley, the difference is 800 per mile. For example, Palmdale Boulevard (geographically "Avenue Q-8") is 38400, Avenue Q is 38800, Avenue P is 39600, and so on. "37200 25th Street East" would be at the corner of Avenue S.

In accordance with Los Angeles County standards, odd numbers are on west and north sides of the road, and even numbers are on east and south sides of the road.

Avenue M is the general border of the connected population between Palmdale and Lancaster. Avenue L is actually the longer border between the two cities, east of Challenger Way, but is not as heavily populated. Avenue M has recently been named Columbia Way out of respect for the astronauts on board the Space Shuttle Columbia that disintegrated on re-entry in 2003. 10th Street East north of Columbia Way was renamed Challenger Way in 1987, in honor of those lost in the Challenger Disaster. (All of the shuttles were built in Palmdale.)

Public transportation
The Palmdale Transportation Center, completed in March 2005, is the central mass transit center for the Antelope Valley. It serves as the transit hub for the Antelope Valley Transit Authority, the city's public bus system, as well as an Amtrak, Greyhound Bus, and commuter rail Metrolink station. The station is also designated a stop on the proposed California High-Speed Rail system and the proposed Orange Line Maglev rail from Irvine.

Sites of interest

 * Best Of The West Softball Complex
 * Dry Town Water Park on Avenue S, open each summer from May to September
 * Joshua Ranch Trail a natural preservation area, temporarily closed due to a housing development under construction.
 * Palmdale Amphitheater is a 10,000 seat outdoor amphitheater hosting the Starlight Concert Series with world-famous performers on evenings in the summer
 * Joe Davies Heritage Airpark at Palmdale Plant 42 and next-door the Air Force Flight Test Center Museum's Blackbird Airpark Annex show off displays of various aircraft built or tested at Palmdale Air Force Plant 42
 * Palmdale Playhouse and Art Gallery
 * Barrel Springs Equestrian Center
 * Palmdale Schoolhouse at McAdam Park, the only remaining building of the original village of Palmenthal in the late 19th century
 * Rancho Vista Golf Course Palmdale's only PGA class golf course
 * Thursday Night on the Square features an outside market, live entertainment, various arts and crafts, refreshments, and children's activities on Thursday Nights in the summer
 * Antelope Valley Mall More than a million square feet of shopping space with chain stores.

ZIP Codes
The Palmdale vicinity currently has a total of ten ZIP Codes:

 * 93536: Most of Quartz Hill (district and adjacent town). Shared with cities and towns of Lancaster (westside), Neenach, Del Sur, and Antelope Acres.
 * 93543: Parts of Sun Village. Shared with town of Littlerock.
 * 93550: Downtown Palmdale Civic Center, Harold, Vincent-Grade, and Barrel Springs.
 * 93551: Palmdale Central City, Anaverde, Rancho Vista, Desert-View Highlands, Portal Ridge, Leona Valley (district and adjacent town), and parts of Quartz Hill (district). Some P.O. boxes.
 * 93552: Pearland, parts of Palmdale East, and parts of Sun Village.
 * 93553: Parts of Sun Village. Shared with town of Pearblossom. Some P.O. boxes.
 * 93590: Palmdale Regional Airport, USAF Plant 42, and some of Palmdale's P.O. boxes.
 * 93591: Lake Los Angeles (district and adjacent town), parts of Palmdale East, and some P.O. boxes.
 * 93592: Only P.O. Boxes
 * 93599: Only P.O. Boxes

In popular culture
Many Western films were filmed in Palmdale.

Movies and TV

 * In Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, the character Allison (on which Cameron is based) is from Palmdale.

Music

 * Britney Spears filmed a video in Palmdale for "Perfume".
 * Avril Lavigne filmed a music video in Palmdale for her song Rock n Roll.

Sister cities
Palmdale has one sister city:
 * 🇲🇽 Poncitlán, Jalisco, Mexico

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Palmdale, California


text:
Palos Verdes Estates, California

Palos Verdes Estates is a coastal city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated on the Palos Verdes Peninsula and neighboring Rancho Palos Verdes and Rolling Hills Estates. The city was master-planned by the noted American landscape architect and planner Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. The city is located along the Southern California coastline of the Pacific Ocean.

The population was 13,347 at the 2020 census, a slight decrease from its 2010 population of 13,438. Palos Verdes Estates is one of the wealthiest cities in the United States. The 90274 ZIP code (covering the cities of Palos Verdes Estates and Rolling Hills) is considered some of the most exclusive and expensive neighborhoods in the United States. The city is also known for its high-performing school district, hiking trails, and oceanfront properties.

History
Palos Verdes Estates was established as a planned community in 1923, with 3200 acre carved out of the former Rancho Palos Verdes property of over 16000 acre. Frank Vanderlip established both a land syndicate holding the Palos Verdes Peninsula, and a real estate development trust for the Palos Verdes Estates subdivision. The Commonwealth Trust Company filed the Palos Verdes Protective Restrictions in Los Angeles County in 1923. These restrictions established rules for the developer and all land owners. The developer was required to set aside half of the land for common use, including roads and parks, but also to build bridle paths, a golf course, and retain several miles of coastline free of development. No less than ninety percent of the remaining land was required to be used for single-family homes.

The designers of Palos Verdes Estates, Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. and Charles Cheney, used deed restrictions as a method of controlling development of the subdivision, even after many of the lots would have already been sold. The deed restrictions prohibited nuisance businesses, such as polluting industries, but also bars and cemeteries. The deed restrictions also included an exclusionary racial covenant which forbid an owner from selling or renting a house to anyone who wasn't white. They were also not permitted to have African-Americans on their property with the exception of chauffeurs, gardeners, and domestic servants. The “sundown rule” was strictly in effect, and it wasn’t until 1948 when such restrictions were declared unconstitutional. Yet, it took 20 more years until the Fair Housing Act was passed in 1968 for the reality of the civil rights protections to take hold. An art jury reviewed all building plans, regulating any structure in regard to style, material, and even small details like color and the pitch of the roof. The construction of fences and hedges were subject to evaluation by the art jury.

The city's oldest building is La Venta Inn built in 1923 as a sales office for Vanderlip and his business associates. Other buildings were erected mostly around the shopping area in Malaga Cove. Palos Verdes Estates was finally incorporate in 1939. The Malaga Cove Plaza building of the Palos Verdes Public Library, designed by Pasadena architect Myron Hunt, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.8 sqmi, over 99% of it land. The city is bordered by Torrance to the north and east, Rancho Palos Verdes to the south, and Rolling Hills Estates to the southeast.

2010
The 2010 United States Census reported that Palos Verdes Estates had a population of 13,438. The population density was 2,814.8 PD/sqmi. The racial makeup of Palos Verdes Estates was 10,346 (77.0%) White (73.4% Non-Hispanic White), 161 (1.2%) African American, 21 (0.2%) Native American, 2,322 (17.3%) Asian, 8 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 94 (0.7%) from other races, and 486 (3.6%) from two or more races. There were 631 people (4.7%) of Hispanic or Latino origin, of any race.

The Census reported that 13,421 people (99.9% of the population) lived in households, 17 (0.1%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.

There were 5,066 households, out of which 1,686 (33.3%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 3,649 (72.0%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 296 (5.8%) had a female householder with no husband present, 138 (2.7%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 91 (1.8%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 26 (0.5%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 848 households (16.7%) were made up of individuals, and 534 (10.5%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65. There were 4,083 families (80.6% of all households); the average family size was 2.97.

The population was spread out, with 3,113 people (23.2%) under the age of 18, 588 people (4.4%) aged 18 to 24, 1,787 people (13.3%) aged 25 to 44, 4,702 people (35.0%) aged 45 to 64, and 3,248 people (24.2%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 49.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.0 males.

There were 5,283 housing units at an average density of 1,106.6 /sqmi, of which 4,496 (88.7%) were owner-occupied, and 570 (11.3%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.7%; the rental vacancy rate was 5.6%. 11,958 people (89.0% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 1,463 people (10.9%) lived in rental housing units.

According to the 2010-2014 U.S. Census, the median income for a household in Palos Verdes Estates was $171,328. The per capita income for the city was $87,408.

2000
As of the census of 2000, there were 13,340 people, 4,993 households, and 4,119 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,784.9 PD/sqmi. There were 5,202 housing units at an average density of 1,086.0 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 78.3% White, 17.1% Asian, 2.0% African American, 0.1% Native American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.6% from other races, and 2.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.8% of the population.

There were 4,993 households, out of which 32.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 75.7% were married couples living together, 4.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 17.5% were non-families. 15.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 23.2% under the age of 18, 4.1% from 18 to 24, 19.8% from 25 to 44, 33.0% from 45 to 64, and 19.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.8 males.

Public safety
Palos Verdes Estates is the only city on the Palos Verdes Peninsula to have its own police department (the other three peninsula cities contract with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, using the station in nearby Lomita). The department currently has 25 officers. These officers are assigned to different divisions such as traffic, patrol and detectives. The city also has its own dispatch center and jail. Both are staffed 24 hours a day.

Fire prevention and paramedic response services are provided by the Los Angeles County Fire Department with engine company firehouse facilities located within the city limits.

It is the home of the Lunada Bay Boys surf gang which has been subject to several lawsuits over the past years and much publicity.

The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services operates the Torrance Health Center in Harbor Gateway, Los Angeles, near Torrance and serving Palos Verdes Estates.

County, state, and federal representation
In the state legislature Palos Verdes Estates is located in the 26th Senate District, represented by Democrat Ben Allen, and in.

In the United States House of Representatives, Palos Verdes Estates is in.

The United States Postal Service Palos Verdes Estates Post Office is located in Suite 102 at 2516 Via Tejon.

Public schools
The city is served by the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District. A previous The Washington Post study ranked the nearby Palos Verdes Peninsula High School (the "Panthers"; enrollment 2,400) as the #8 best among public and private high schools in the United States. U.S. News & World Report recently academically ranks it # 89 among 18,500 U.S. high schools, and Newsweek ranks it # 146. In 2014, thedailybeast.com ranked the two area high schools as the 44th and 121st best high schools in the country.

Palos Verdes Peninsula High School also annually honors the largest collection of National Merit Scholar recipients (usually 50–60) enrolled in a U.S. high school in any year. In any given year there is routinely a dozen-way or more tie for the valedictorian (highest grade point average) honors in the graduating class. The smaller enrollment Palos Verdes High School (the "Sea Kings"; enrollment 1,900) achieved the same API score as Palos Verdes Peninsula High School (898). Both schools' students and faculties in science and computer science curricula are participants in national robotic engineering advancement, and have competed against universities (Caltech, Stanford, Princeton, Cornell) and defense contractor firms in government-sponsored robotic science application challenges (example: The Sea Kings competed in the 2005 DARPA Grand Challenge; the only U.S. high school to do so).

Private schools
Chadwick School is another well known school in the area. It is a K-12 independent, nonsectarian school which was established in 1935.

In 1992 the International Bilingual School, a Japanese preparatory school for grades K-9, moved to Palos Verdes Estates. By 2002 the PVUSD had filed suit to force the International Bilingual School to leave the property that the school was located in. The PVUSD owned the school building.

Public libraries
The Palos Verdes Library District operates the Malaga Cove Library in Palos Verdes Estates.

Notable people

 * Matt Barnes (born 1980) – Forward for the Golden State Warriors (born in Santa Clara, California)
 * Chester Bennington (1976–2017) – Musician and lead singer of Linkin Park (Originally from Phoenix, Arizona)
 * David Benoit (born 1953) – Musician (born in Bakersfield, California)
 * Robert DeLeo (born 1966) – Bassist and co-founder of Stone Temple Pilots (Originally from Montclair, New Jersey)
 * Bill Laimbeer (born 1957) – American basketball player (Detroit Pistons) - Originally from Boston, Massachusetts
 * Daniel Levitin (born 1957) – Best-selling author, neuroscientist, musician (born in San Francisco, California)
 * Matt Manfredi (born 1971) - American screenwriter (born and raised in Palos Verdes Estates)
 * Randy Nauert (1945-2019) – Bassist and co-founder of The Challengers (born and raised in Palos Verdes Estates)
 * Donald Peterman (1932–2011) – Academy Award-nominated cinematographer (born in Los Angeles, California)
 * Christen Press (born 1988) – American soccer forward and World Cup champion (born in Los Angeles, California)
 * Shahbudin Rahimtoola (1931–2018 ) – Cardiologist (Originally from Bombay, India)
 * Anderson Silva (born 1975) – UFC Middleweight Champion (Originally from São Paulo, SP, Brazil)
 * Gary Wright (1943-2023) – Musician (Originally from Cresskill, New Jersey)

title: Palos Verdes Estates, California


text:
Paramount, California

Paramount is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. According to the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 54,098, down from 55,266 at the 2000 census. Paramount is part of the Greater Los Angeles Area and is bordered by Compton and Lynwood to the west, South Gate and Downey to the north, Bellflower to the east and south, and Long Beach to the south.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, Paramount has a total area of 4.8 sqmi, of which 4.7 sqmi is land and 0.1 sqmi (2.28%) is water.

History

While the Paramount economy was based largely on the hay and dairy industries, the high cost of land led to their local demise. The last Paramount dairy closed in 1977.

2010
At the 2010 census Paramount had a population of 54,098. The population density was 11,177.1 PD/sqmi. The racial makeup of Paramount was 22,988 (42.5%) White (5.6% Non-Hispanic White), 6,334 (11.7%) African American, 440 (0.8%) Native American, 1,629 (3.0%) Asian, 419 (0.8%) Pacific Islander, 20,023 (37.0%) from other races, and 2,265 (4.2%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 42,547 persons (78.6%).

The census reported that 53,788 people (99.4% of the population) lived in households, 27 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 283 (0.5%) were institutionalized.

There were 13,881 households, 7,999 (57.6%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 6,919 (49.8%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 3,104 (22.4%) had a female householder with no husband present, 1,328 (9.6%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 1,153 (8.3%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 105 (0.8%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 1,904 households (13.7%) were one person and 558 (4.0%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 3.87. There were 11,351 families (81.8% of households); the average family size was 4.22.

The age distribution was 17,630 people (32.6%) under the age of 18, 6,360 people (11.8%) aged 18 to 24, 16,271 people (30.1%) aged 25 to 44, 10,421 people (19.3%) aged 45 to 64, and 3,416 people (6.3%) who were 65 or older. The median age was 28.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.

There were 14,571 housing units at an average density of 3,010.5 per square mile, of the occupied units 6,024 (43.4%) were owner-occupied and 7,857 (56.6%) were rented. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.8%. 23,759 people (43.9% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 30,029 people (55.5%) lived in rental housing units.

According to the 2010 United States Census, Paramount had a median household income of $44,934, with 22.1% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

2000
At the 2000 census there were 55,266 people in 13,972 households, including 11,331 families, in the city. The population density was 11,678.3 PD/sqmi. There were 14,591 housing units at an average density of 3,083.2 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 34.70% White, 13.59% African American, 1.06% Native American, 3.35% Asian, 0.84% Pacific Islander, 41.69% from other races, and 4.78% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 72.28%.

Of the 13,972 households 55.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.3% were married couples living together, 21.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.9% were non-families. 14.6% of households were one person and 4.6% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 3.93 and the average family size was 4.31.

The age distribution was 36.9% under the age of 18, 12.0% from 18 to 24, 31.9% from 25 to 44, 14.0% from 45 to 64, and 5.2% 65 or older. The median age was 26 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.3 males.

The median household income was $36,749 and the median family income was $37,276. Males had a median income of $27,730 versus $22,472 for females. The per capita income for the city was $11,487. About 19.1% of families and 21.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.5% of those under age 18 and 10.5% of those age 65 or over.

According to the 2000 census, Mexican (60.1%) and Filipino (1.5%) were the most common ancestries in the city. Mexico (80.9%) and Guatemala (4.0%) were the most common foreign places of birth.

Public services
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department operates the Lakewood Station in Lakewood, serving Paramount. The department operates the Paramount Substation within Paramount.

The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services operates the South Health Center in Watts, Los Angeles, serving Paramount.

The United States Postal Service Paramount Beach Post Office is located at 7200 Somerset Boulevard.

State and federal representation
In the California State Legislature, Paramount is in, and in.

In the United States House of Representatives, Paramount is in.

Culture
Paramount has a large community of Mexicans originally from the state of Sinaloa  reflected in the many restaurants selling Mexican food "estilo sinaloense" meaning "Sinaloan style." The city has been described as a "second Sinaloa."

Transportation
The Century Freeway (Interstate 105) passes east–west through the northern portion of Paramount, the Long Beach Freeway (Interstate 710) follows north–south along the city's western border, and the Artesia Freeway (State Route 91) runs east–west less than a one-half-mile from the southern Paramount city limits.

Paramount is served by bus service from Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and Long Beach Transit. The city also operates Easy Rider Shuttle, a fixed-route local bus.

Education
The Paramount Unified School District includes schools in Paramount, as well as a few in surrounding cities.

The schools located within Paramount are Paramount High School-senior and west campus, Alondra, Lincoln, Wirtz, Jefferson, Mokler, Zamboni, Los Cerritos, Gaines, Jackson, Hollydale, Tanner, Roosevelt, and Paramount Park. Schools that are run by the Paramount Unified School District, but are located in Lakewood include Buena Vista Continuation High School, Odyssey STEM Academy, and Lakewood School. Collins school is also run by PUSD but is located in Long Beach.

Our Lady of the Rosary Private Catholic School is one of several private schools located in Paramount.

Renovations to the high school started at the end of 2007-08 school year. It was a four-phased endeavor that would improve the athletics field, development of a field house, expansion of the gymnasium and finally improvement to the west campus.

Libraries
The County of Los Angeles Public Library operates the Paramount Library.

Sites and attractions
The Paramount Hay Tree is a California State Historical Landmark. It is a still standing mature camphor tree remembered for its importance to the hay trading marketplace of the towns of Hynes and Clearwater, which later incorporated as Paramount. The hay traders met under the tree each working day to discuss the price of hay. Their numbers were quoted by the New York mercantile markets as the global hay standard.

Paramount is also home of the Zamboni Company. Frank Joseph Zamboni Jr. is the inventor of the ice resurfacing machine. Zamboni & Co. began and is still headquartered in Paramount. Zamboni manufactures and sells the machines worldwide. Since 1939 the Zamboni family has also operated Iceland, an ice skating rink with improvements patented by Frank Zamboni.

The city also gives its name to a packaging firm called Paramount Global, which was founded here in 1976.

Sister city
Paramount has one sister city:
 * 🇲🇽 Tepic, Mexico

title: Paramount, California


text:
Pico Rivera, California

Pico Rivera is a city located in southeastern Los Angeles County, California. The city is situated approximately 11 mi southeast of downtown Los Angeles, on the eastern edge of the Los Angeles basin, and on the southern edge of the area known as the San Gabriel Valley. As of the 2020 United States census, the city has a population of 62,088. Pico Rivera is bordered by Montebello to the west, Downey to the south, Santa Fe Springs to the southeast, and Whittier to the east. Northrop Grumman's Advanced Systems Division developed the B-2 Spirit bomber here.

History
Pico Rivera was founded in 1958, from the merger of the long-standing unincorporated communities of Pico (named for Pío Pico, the last Mexican governor of California) and Rivera (the Spanish word for "riverbank"). Situated on a rich alluvial plain between the Rio Hondo and the San Gabriel River, the area was once predominantly agricultural; but, at the end of WWII, the fast rising demand for homes lured builders to the attractive terrain. Since the 1950s, it has been both residential as well as industrial. It had a Ford Motor Company plant for many years: Los Angeles Assembly. Pico Rivera lies below the Whittier Narrows, making it one of the "Gateway Cities".

In January 1958, 56 percent of the electorate voted for incorporation. They approved a Council-Manager form of government, and the name "Pico Rivera" was established for the new city. Five citizens were chosen from a slate of 24 candidates to serve as members of the first City Council; Pico Rivera officially became the 61st city in Los Angeles County.

Geography
Pico Rivera is bordered by Downey on the southwest, Santa Fe Springs on the southeast, Whittier on the east, City of Industry on the northeast, Montebello on the northwest, and Commerce on the west. Rosemead/Lakewood Boulevard, CA 19 runs through the center of the city, and the San Gabriel River Freeway (I-605) runs along its southeastern edge.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 23.003 km2. 21.485 km2 of it is land and 1.518 km of it (6.60%) is water.

Pico Rivera was the epicenter of a magnitude 4.4 earthquake on March 16, 2010, which occurred at 4:04 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time (11:04 a.m. Greenwich Mean Time).

2010 census
The 2010 United States Census reported that Pico Rivera had a population of 62,942. The population density was 7,086.8 PD/sqmi.

The racial makeup of Pico Rivera was 5.2% Non-Hispanic White, 1.0% Black or African American, 1.4% Native American, 2.6% Asian, and 0.1% Pacific Islander. Hispanic or Latino of any race is 91.2% of the population.

The Census reported that 62,488 people (99.3% of the population) lived in households, 39 (0.1%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 415 (0.7%) were institutionalized.

There were 16,566 households, out of which 8,073 (48.7%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 8,843 (53.4%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 3,334 (20.1%) had a female householder with no husband present, 1,470 (8.9%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 1,041 (6.3%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 91 (0.5%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 2,276 households (13.7%) were made up of individuals, and 1,154 (7.0%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.77. There were 13,647 families (82.4% of all households); the average family size was 4.10.

The population was spread out, with 16,792 people (26.7%) under the age of 18, 6,971 people (11.1%) aged 18 to 24, 17,225 people (27.4%) aged 25 to 44, 14,323 people (22.8%) aged 45 to 64, and 7,631 people (12.1%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males.

There were 17,109 housing units at an average density of 1,926.3 /sqmi, of which 11,440 (69.1%) were owner-occupied, and 5,126 (30.9%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.0%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.1%. 44,643 people (70.9% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 17,845 people (28.4%) lived in rental housing units.

2000
As of the census of 2000, there were 63,428 people, 16,468 households, and 13,866 families residing in the city. The population density was 7,645.7 PD/sqmi. There were 16,807 housing units at an average density of 2,026.0 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 49.44% White, 0.71% African American, 1.35% Native American, 2.65% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 40.28% from other races, and 5.44% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 88.29% of the population.

There were 16,468 households, out of which 43.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.7% were married couples living together, 17.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 15.8% were non-families. 12.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.83 and the average family size was 4.12.

The population of the city has 31.0% people under the age of 18, 10.5% from 18 to 24, 29.7% from 25 to 44, 17.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $41,564, and the median income for a family was $45,422. Males had a median income of $29,397 versus $24,491 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,011. About 11.6% of families and 12.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.0% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.

Economy
The Los Angeles Assembly, a 157 acre manufacturing facility at the corner of Rosemead and Washington boulevards, was owned and operated by the Ford Motor Company. The plant opened in 1958 and closed in 1980 and was purchased by Northrop Grumman in 1982 for its Advanced Systems Division. Upon the unveiling of the B-2 Spirit bomber in 1988, it was revealed that much of the development for the former black project had occurred at the site. In the early 1990s, the division was renamed the B-2 Division to reflect its most famous product. At its peak, the project employed approximately 13,000 workers in Pico Rivera. The site was closed and then demolished in 2001 partially due to air quality remediation efforts, and became a large retail center.

There has been significant redevelopment in the city: the opening of the Pico Rivera Towne Center, a 60 acre along Washington Boulevard, that has brought businesses into the city.

"Pico Crossing" is a 2.79 acre with several national retailers. Noteworthy redevelopment has taken place in recent years along historic Whittier Boulevard More developments include the "Pico Rivera Village Walk", a $22 million, 12 acre located at the southwest corner of Whittier and Paramount boulevards. The 8.10 acre has opened at the corner of Washington and Rosemead Boulevards. The cities taxes were raised from 10.25 percent to 10.75 percent in mid 2009.

Los Cerritos Community News serves the city.

2019
According to the city's 2019 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:

2009
According to the city's 2009 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city were:

Sports
The north side of the city is home to the Pico Rivera Sports Arena, where concerts and other events are held.

Parks and recreation
There are nine parks and eight playgrounds throughout the city, including Smith Park on Rosemead Boulevard, Rivera Park on Shade Lane, Pico Park on Beverly Boulevard, Rio Vista Park, and Stream Land Park at the north end of Durfee Road. The community enjoys more than 120 acres committed to public recreational facilities. There are 18 athletic fields, two gymnasiums and four community centers, a nine-hole executive golf course, skatepark and aquatic center.

Pico Rivera Municipal Golf Course
In 1965, the Pico Rivera Municipal Golf Course was built for the communal enjoyment of not only its residents and golfers, but also for those in the surrounding communities. The executive nine-hole course plays to a par 29 and measures 1,504 yards. The practice facilities include two putting greens and a covered driving range. Lighting throughout the golf course and driving range enables play and practice until 10:00 p.m.

Senior Center
Pico Rivera's Congressional Representative, Grace Napolitano, helped with the funding, and city officials launched a newly renovated senior center that includes a high-tech computer lab with 16 computers and a modern dance room. Funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the city's general fund, the US$350,000 renovation of the over 20-year-old center "is an example of your tax dollars at work," Napolitano told a crowd of local officials and residents, who toured the new facility. Napolitano secured a $198,000 federal grant for the project and the city contributed $157,000 in federal stimulus funds. The fitness room has 18 exercise machines, a set of free weights and two 40-inch flat screen TVs. The activity room has a mirrored wall with a ballet barre and a state-of-the-art sound system. The billiard room, which is a popular part of the senior center, was relocated to larger quarters within the center. Since August 24, 2010, it has housed four new pool tables.

Government
In the California State Legislature, Pico Rivera is in, and in 56th Assembly district, represented by Democrat Lisa Calderon.

In the United States House of Representatives, Pico Rivera is in.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) operates the Pico Rivera Station in Pico Rivera.

The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services operates the Whittier Health Center in Whittier, serving Pico Rivera.

City Council
As of 2023, the city council is composed of Mayor Erik Lutz, Mayor Pro Tem Andrew Lara, Councilmembers Gustavo V. Camacho, Dr. Monica Sanchez, and John Garcia. The city has a council/city manager form of government. The title of Mayor is a ceremonial position that is changed each year within the council.

Emergency services
Fire protection in Pico Rivera is provided by the Los Angeles County Fire Department with ambulance transport by Care Ambulance Service. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department provides law enforcement.

Education
The city is served by the El Rancho and Montebello Unified School Districts (K-12) with nearby university and college systems in Los Angeles and Orange counties providing higher education. Most students attend schools in the El Rancho Unified School District. Those who reside in the Montebello Gardens area are in the Montebello Unified School District.

The Armenian Mesrobian School, a K-12 Armenian private school, is also located in Pico Rivera.

Transportation
One of Pico Rivera's chief attractions to residents and businesses is its central location. It is highly accessible via several freeways, the San Gabriel (605), Santa Ana (5) and the Pomona (60). Public transportation is provided by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and Montebello Bus Lines. The MTA website also provides maps of bus and train routes. Information about Montebello Bus Lines schedule is available at City Hall or at hyperlink. Dial-a-Ride service is available to elderly (over 55 years old) and disabled residents.

Pico Rivera's main arterial roads that run from south–north include Rosemead Boulevard, Paramount Boulevard (does not connect to Montebello's Paramount Boulevard), and Passons Boulevard. The main arterial roads that run from west–east include Whittier Boulevard, Slauson Avenue, Washington Boulevard, Beverly Boulevard, and Telegraph Road. Mines Boulevard and San Gabriel River Parkway are other important arterials.

Notable people

 * Jennifer Syme, late actress
 * Mack Ray Edwards (1918–1971), Heavy equipment operator, and child sex abuser and serial killer
 * Actress Lupe Ontiveros was "a longtime resident of Pico Rivera".
 * Singer Jeanette Jurado, a member of Exposé, is a Pico Rivera native who lived in Pico Rivera until high school.
 * Baseball player Randy Flores is an American director of scouting for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB), a sports commentator, entrepreneur, coach, and former professional baseball relief pitcher. Flores attended El Rancho High School and the University of Southern California.
 * Soccer player and two-time MLS Cup champion Cristian Roldan is a current player for the Seattle Sounders FC of Major League Soccer. Roldan graduated from El Rancho High School in 2013 and attended the University of Washington.
 * Controversial former councilmember Gregory Salcido
 * James C. Shugg built the first schoolhouse, the Rivera School, in 1868.
 * Gloria Molina (1948-2023) American politician and a former member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority

Sister cities

 * 🇲🇽 San Luis Potosi (city), Mexico
 * 🇲🇽 Mazatlan, Mexico
 * 🇲🇽 Tlajomulco de Zúñiga, Mexico
 * 🇲🇽 Chapala, Jalisco, Mexico

title: Pico Rivera, California