Pico Rivera, California

Pico Rivera is a city located in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 63,428.

1 History and culture
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 Business
- 4.1 Recent Development
5 Emergency services
6 Education
7 Famous Residents
8 References
9 External links

[edit] History and culture

Public Library, built 1961

Pico Rivera was incorporated in 1958 from the merger of the long-standing unincorporated communities of Pico (named for Pío Pico, the last Californio governor of California) and Rivera. Situated on a rich alluvial plain between the Rio Hondo and the San Gabriel River, the area was once predominantly agricultural, but since the 1950s it has been primarily residential. Pico Rivera lies below the Whittier Narrows, making it one of the "Gateway Cities."

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

A number of good parks dot the landscape, including Rivera Park on Shade Lane, Smith Park on Rosemead and Mines, Pico Park on Beverly Blvd, and Stream Land park at the North end of Durfee Road.

[edit] Geography

Pico Rivera is located at 33°59′20″N, 118°5′21″W (33.989013, -118.089121)^GR1. It 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. As Rosemead and Lakewood Boulevards, California State Highway 19 runs through the center of the city, and the San Gabriel River Freeway (I-605) runs along its southeastern edge.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 22.9 km² (8.8 mi²). 21.5 km² (8.3 mi²) of it is land and 1.4 km² (0.6 mi²) of it (6.22%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 63,428 people, 16,468 households, and 13,866 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,950.6/km² (7,645.7/mi²). There were 16,807 housing units at an average density of 781.8/km² (2,026.0/mi²). 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.

In the city the population was spread out with 31.0% 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.

[edit] Business

[edit] Recent Development

There has been frequent redevelopment in the city of late, starting with the opening of a mega-shopping complex along Washington Blvd, bringing well-known businesses such as Starbucks, the Borders Group bookstore, Ross, Walgreens, a newly added Del Taco and others into the town.

Other redevelopment has taken place in recent years along historic Whittier Boulevard, bringing new businesses such as Target and Panda Express there.

New developments include the Krikorian Theatres at the corner of Paramount Blvd. and Whittier Blvd as well as a new Rite-Aid at the former Lucky's supermarket site on Durfee Ave. and Whittier Blvd. A state of the art LA Fitness is set to open a new location in the city at the former K-Mart site at the corner of Rosemead Blvd. and Washington Blvd.