Aliso Viejo, California

Aliso Viejo is a city in Orange County, California, United States. As of the 2000 census, Aliso Viejo population was 40,166. Aliso Viejo became Orange County's 34th city on July 1, 2001, and has been the only city in Orange County to incorporate since 2000. It borders the cities of Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, and Laguna Woods.

1 History
- 1.1 Incorporation
- 1.2 City Council
  - 1.2.1 2001 - 2004
  - 1.2.2 2004 onward
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 Economy
5 National attention
6 Emergency services
7 Education
8 Notable natives and residents
9 References
10 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Incorporation

Aliso Viejo had been an unincorporated community since around 1990, when it became Orange County's 34th City on July 1, 2001. Aliso Viejo became a City mainly in response to Aliso Viejo's Cityhood 2000 committee, which was responsible for introducing an initiative onto the ballot for the City's 2001 special election. Voters passed the initiative, making Aliso Viejo officially a City, with a whopping 93.3% in favor. [2] The Committee was created by the City's first Mayor, Carmen Vali-Cave, who was the Committee' co-founder and president.

[edit] City Council

Aliso Viejo has five spots on its City Council, with its members serving staggered four-year terms. Each year, the Council votes for its next Mayor and Mayor pro tem.

[edit] 2001 - 2004

In 2001, the City's first City Council was voted into office. The original City Council consisted of Carmen Vali, Cynthia Pickett, Bill Phillips, Karl Warkomski, and Greg Ficke. [3] The Council selected Vali-Cave to serve as the City's first Mayor, and Pickett as the City's first Mayor pro tem.

Vali-Cave and Pickett served as the Mayor and Mayor pro tem from 2001 to 2002. In 2003, Pickett became Mayor with Phillips as Mayor pro tem.

[edit] 2004 onward

In 2004, City Councilmen Karl Warkomski, Bill Phillips, and Greg Ficke faced re-election. All three candidates were re-elected for four more years on Council. Other candidates included Todd Gillespie and Don Garcia.

In 2004 Phillips served as the City's Mayor with Warkomski as Mayor pro tem. In 2005, Warkomski served as Mayor with Carmen Vali-Cave as Mayor pro tem. In 2006, Vali-Cave served as Mayor with Cynthia Pickett-Adams as Mayor pro tem.

In November 2006, Carmen Vali-Cave and Cynthia Pickett-Adams were re-elected to four-year terms. They had run against newcomers Daniel Orlowski and Larry Flynn. Orlowski, an 18 year old college student, created a bit of publicity during the campaign due to his age.

In 2007, Adams, again, served as the City's Mayor with Vali-Cave, again, as the City's Mayor Pro Tem.

In February of 2007, Councilman Warkomski resigned from office unexpectedly and the council appointed resident Don Garcia to his position.

[edit] Geography

Aliso Viejo is located at 33°34′30″N, 117°43′32″W (33.575096, -117.725431)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 26.5 km² (10.2 mi²), all land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 40,166 people, 16,147 households, and 10,689 families residing in the CDP (now a city). The population density was 1,516.0/km² (3,927.7/mi²). There were 16,608 housing units at an average density of 626.8/km² (1,624.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP (now a city) is 78.16% White, 2.06% Black or African American, 0.39% Native American, 10.99% Asian, 0.22% Pacific Islander, 3.51% from other races, and 4.66% from two or more races. 11.65% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 16,147 households out of which 37.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.7% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.8% were non-families. 23.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 1.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the CDP (now a city) the population is spread out with 26.1% under the age of 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 48.8% from 25 to 44, 16.3% from 45 to 64, and 3.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 93.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP (now a city) is $76,409, and the median income for a family was $84,592. Males had a median income of $61,316 versus $44,190 for females. The per capita income for the CDP (now a city) is $35,244. About 2.3% of families and 2.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.5% of those under age 18 and 2.8% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Economy

Aliso Viejo is known for being the home of the headquarters of many large companies. The following companies are based in Aliso Viejo:

Loan Link, a home mortgage lender
Buy.com, an online retailer
eEye Digital Security, a digital security company
Fluor Corporation, an international construction contractor for petrochemical, infrastructure, and environmental projects, headquartered in Aliso Viejo until it was relocated to the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex suburb of Irving, Texas in March 2006
FUGU Corporation, a producer and distributor of online consumer training
Ketel One, a vodka company
LAN International, a division of Clearchannel, is a software development company specializing in radio advertising
Lennexe Productions, a video production company
Marie Callender's, a restaurant chain
Pacific Life, an insurance company
QLogic, a network storage manufacturer
Quest Software, a software manufacturer
Red 5 Studios, a computer game company
SafeGuard Dental & Vision, an insurance benefits company
Smith Micro Software, a software developer
SMS Media Group, Inc., a mobile messaging company
Tamiya Corporation, a manufacturer of model cars
US Technology Resources, an IT services and business process outsourcing company
USWeb, an Internet marketing company
Novelics, an embedded memory company

[edit] National attention

[edit] The dihydrogen monoxide incident

Aliso Viejo city officials famously came close to banning styrofoam cups in 2004 after hearing that "dihydrogen monoxide" was used in their production, neglecting the fact that this substance is actually plain water. A paralegal working for the city found the dhmo.org website and subsequently proceeded to propose the ban.^[1]

[edit] William Freund murder-suicide

In October 2005, the City gained national media attention once again when 19 year old resident William Freund donned a cape and mask and murdered two of his neighbors before killing himself. Freund was an alumnus of Aliso Viejo's only high school, Aliso Niguel High School, and he had recently been diagnosed with Aspergers syndrome.

On November 17, 2006, the family of the two victims sued Freund's parents for "wrongful death and emotional distress."^[2]

[edit] School dance ban

In September 2006, Charles Salter, the principal of Aliso Niguel High School, Aliso Viejo's High School, gained widespread media attention when he infamously banned all school dances until further notice. Salter came under fire for his decision. His decision was based on the school's "Welcome Back Dance", in which several students became intoxicated, while others engaged in "freak dancing". Salter views "freak dancing" as inappropriate at a school dance. At the end of the month, Salter stood his ground and cancelled the school's annual Homecoming Dance, which gained both Salter and the school notoriety.^[3] A story on the school was featured on the national television program, Geraldo at Large and the BBC also covered the dance ban. In late November, it was announced that the dances would return to the school, but under new rules that banned, "freak dancing."^[4]

[edit] In popular culture

On October 4, 2006, author Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez wrote a book for young adults called Haters, which revolves around a young girl who moves to Aliso Viejo, California and attends the City's Aliso Niguel High School. Residents reacted angrily to the book and alleged that Valdes-Rodriguez portrayed the City and school in a negative and slanderous light.^[5]