La Mirada is a city in southeast

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 2023. Its population is greater than that of 40 individua ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, and is one of the Gateway Cities, on the border with Orange County. The population was 48,008 at the 2020 census. The La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts and the Splash! La Mirada Regional Aquatics Center are two of its major attractions. It is the home of

Biola University Biola University () is a private, nondenominational, evangelical Christian university in La Mirada, California. It was founded in 1908 as the Bible Institute of Los Angeles. It has over 150 programs of study in nine schools offering bachelor' ...

, an

evangelical Christian Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...

institution of higher education.

History

La Mirada ( Spanish for ''the look'') was the creation of two men, Andrew McNally, a printer and mapmaker from Chicago (see

Rand McNally Rand McNally is an American technology and publishing company that provides mapping software and hardware for consumer electronics, commercial transportation, and education markets. The company is headquartered in Rosemont, Illinois with a di ...

) and his son-in-law Edwin Neff. In 1888, McNally purchased over of Rancho Los Coyotes, south of Whittier, for $200,000. He developed into his own home called Windermere Ranch and surrounded it with olive, orange and lemon groves. McNally built a plant to process the olive oil, which was of the best quality, as well as a railroad station on Stage Road. From here his olive oil and fruit were shipped all over the U.S. In 1896, McNally turned his property over to his daughter and his son-in-law. McNally and Neff formed the La Mirada Land Company, which published a booklet entitled "The Country Gentleman in California", advertising parcels of land for sale including pictures, a map and descriptions of the scenic olive, alfalfa, lemon and grapefruit groves. In 1946, "Along Your Way", a "Station by Station Description of the Santa Fe Route Through the Southwest," describes La Mirada with a population of 213, surrounded by orange, lemon, walnut and olive groves; oil wells; olive oil factory; and fruit packing houses. The city received a lot of attention for the fact that it was going to be completely structured and planned out. Referred to as "the Nation's completely planned city" during the early 1950s, the city of La Mirada received a lot of attention from the

State Fair A state fair is an annual competitive and recreational gathering of a U.S. state's population, usually held in late summer or early fall. It is a larger version of a county fair, often including only exhibits or competitors that have won in t ...

. The Fair praised the city for planning for the future while still maintaining practicality for today. In 1953, the land was sold to subdivisions for 5.2 million dollars, one of the largest real estate transactions in California. In 1954, Louis M. Halper, a prominent Southland residential and commercial builder, purchased 2,100 acres of La Mirada land for $8,000,000. Halper launched construction on what was to be a $150,000,000 community with schools, shopping centers, and 10,000 homes that he completed by the end of two years. His firm had taken over the acreage from a group of corporations and Harold L. Shaw, who launched the original La Mirada development. He said at the time the entire community would be redesigned for maximum advantages of a modern planned city. Halper had developed a new pattern for community development by wholesaling land to other builders and establishing the La Mirada Civic Council to control quality. Three and four-bedroom homes were sold in the $13,000 price range. By 1960, the year the city was incorporated, La Mirada had grown from a mere 100 homes to over 8,000. The city was incorporated as "Mirada Hills" on March 23, 1960. On November 8, 1960, voters approved a change of name to the current La Mirada, which was officially certified on December 15, 1960. Today, the current population is just over 50,000 with the addition of a new subdivision on the eastern portion of the town.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of . of it is land and of it (0.22%) is water. The city is on the border between Orange and Los Angeles counties. The cities that border it on the

side are

Santa Fe Springs Santa Fe Springs (''Santa Fe'', Spanish for "Holy Faith") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is one of the Gateway Cities of southeast Los Angeles County. The population was 19,219 at the 2020 census, up from 16,22 ...

to the west and Cerritos to the southwest; and unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County such as East Whittier, and South Whittier to the north. The cities bordering it in Orange County are Fullerton and La Habra to the east and Buena Park to the south.

Demographics

La Mirada first appeared as a city under the name Mirada Hills City in the 1960 U.S. Census as part of the Whittier census county division; and then as La Mirada in the 1970 U.S. Census.

2020

2010

The 2010 United States census reported that La Mirada had a population of 48,527. The population density was . The racial makeup of La Mirada was 29,462 (60.7%)

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

(38.0% Non-Hispanic White), 1,099 (2.3%)

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 394 (0.8%) Native American, 8,650 (17.8%) Asian, 142 (0.3%)

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 6,670 (13.7%) from other races, and 2,110 (4.3%) from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 19,272 persons (39.7%). The Census reported that 45,670 people (94.1% of the population) lived in households, 2,586 (5.3%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 271 (0.6%) were institutionalized. There were 14,681 households, out of which 5,368 (36.6%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 8,971 (61.1%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 1,731 (11.8%) had a female householder with no husband present, 802 (5.5%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 544 (3.7%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 93 (0.6%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 2,536 households (17.3%) were made up of individuals, and 1,578 (10.7%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.11. There were 11,504

families Family (from ) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictability, structure, and safety as ...

(78.4% of all households); the average family size was 3.48. The population was spread out, with 10,246 people (21.1%) under the age of 18, 7,092 people (14.6%) aged 18 to 24, 11,609 people (23.9%) aged 25 to 44, 12,203 people (25.1%) aged 45 to 64, and 7,377 people (15.2%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37.9 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.4 males. There were 15,092 housing units at an average density of , of which 11,608 (79.1%) were owner-occupied, and 3,073 (20.9%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.8%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.0%. 36,660 people (75.5% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 9,010 people (18.6%) lived in rental housing units. During 2009–2013, La Mirada had a median household income of $81,961, with 7.0% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

2000

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 46,783 people, 14,580 households, and 11,518 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 14,811 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 64.46%

, 1.93%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

, 0.75% American Indian, 14.88% Asian, 0.27%

, 13.64% from other races, and 4.08% from two or more races. 33.47% of the population were

or Latino of any race. There were 14,580 households, out of which 37.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.1% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.0% were non-families. 17.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.10 and the average family size was 3.49. In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.2% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $61,632, and the median income for a family was $66,598 (these figures had risen to $77,952 and $87,037 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $47,364 versus $31,993 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $22,404. About 3.7% of families and 5.6% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 6.1% of those under age 18 and 4.5% of those age 65 or over. Mexican (25.7%) and German (8.8%) are the most common ancestries. 10,626 (22.7%) of residents were foreign born, low for Southeast and low for the county.

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

(29.7%) and

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

(16.8%) were the most common foreign places of birth.

Government and politics

The city is governed by a five-member council-manager government. Voters began electing council members by district in March 2017 in order to avoid litigation for alleged violation of the California Voting Rights Act. Each year the five members vote one of themselves to be the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem. In the

California State Legislature The California State Legislature is the bicameral state legislature of the U.S. state of California, consisting of the California State Assembly (lower house with 80 members) and the California State Senate (upper house with 40 members). ...

, La Mirada is in , and in . In the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

, La Mirada is in . The

Los Angeles County Department of Health Services Health Services Los Angeles County, officially the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, operates the public hospitals and clinics in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County and is the United States' second largest municip ...

operates the Whittier Health Center in Whittier, serving La Mirada.

Emergency services

The

Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD), officially the County of Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, is a law enforcement agency serving Los Angeles County, California. LASD is the largest sheriff's department in the United States a ...

(LASD) operates the Norwalk Station in Norwalk, serving La Mirada. In addition the department operates the La Mirada Substation. The Norwalk Station is also responsible for providing contracted police services to the city of Norwalk as well as unincorporated South Whittier. The department has a substation in La Mirada located adjacent to City Hall. Crime in La Mirada is consistently lower than in neighboring communities and fell 8.9% in 2018 after spiking close to 30% over the three previous years, mirroring the experiences of most communities across the state. Fire protection and

paramedic A paramedic is a healthcare professional trained in the medical model, whose main role has historically been to respond to emergency calls for medical help outside of a hospital. Paramedics work as part of the emergency medical services (EMS), ...

services are provided by the

Los Angeles County Fire Department The Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACoFD) provides firefighting and emergency medical services for the unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County, California, as well as 59 cities through Contract city, contracting, including the city of ...

(LACoFD). The department maintains Station #49 in La Mirada adjacent to City Hall, provides coverage to the central parts of the city. Station 49 also serves as the headquarters for Battalion 21. In May 2010, a ribbon cutting was held to celebrate the opening of a second fire station operating in the city. Station 194 moved from its temporary home at 1401 South Beach Boulevard into the new quarters at 13540 Beach Boulevard. The site was chosen as it provides first-in coverage to the city of La Habra, which funded half of the cost of the construction project. In return for investment towards the construction of Station 194, La Habra now enjoys the benefits of having a fourth Paramedic Assessment Fire Engine serving the city at no cost to La Habra taxpayers for a 20-year period (La Habra signed a ten-year fire service agreement extension in 2015). The entire cost of the four-person crew is funded by the County Fire District in which La Mirada belongs. The construction of the new fire station, which was a key component of this agreement, was completed in just over four years after a series of design and construction delays. Neighborhoods in eastern La Mirada that once experienced six-minute response (travel) times can now be reached in three minutes or less. Crews from two nearby stations also include parts of La Mirada as their first-in district. Engine 35, stationed in Cerritos on Artesia Boulevard, covers most of the industrial areas of the city that are south of

Interstate 5 Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels thro ...

. Station 15 located in

East La Mirada East is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fact that eas ...

on Santa Gertrudes Avenue handles the north and northeast sections of town. The four-person crew assigned to Quint 15 now staff the only truck company in the area. In addition to ladder truck duties a Quint also has the ability to pump water at a fire. Prior to the 2005 reduction of staff at the La Mirada Boulevard station, there was a truck staffed as well as the engine and paramedic squad currently staffed. La Mirada both receives and provides assistance to neighboring fire agencies called for in agreements called automatic aid. In the southern part of the city, resources based in Buena Park and South Santa Fe Springs respond to fires instead of County Fire resources further away and the favor is returned in designated areas outside of La Mirada. The La Mirada-based Paramedic-Unit, Squad 49 also responds to medical emergencies in Satna Fe Springs when that city's medics are unavailable. An expanded agreement went into effect in 2018 with the City of Fullerton that has seen a sharp increase in the response by La Mirada fire resources to both medical and fire calls there by both Squad 49, and Engine 194 Beach and Hillsborough Station.

Education

Public education A state school, public school, or government school is a primary school, primary or secondary school that educates all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in part by taxation and operated by the government of the state. State-f ...

in a majority of La Mirada is governed by the Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District, headquartered in neighboring Norwalk. La Mirada has one public secondary school, La Mirada High School. The Creek Park and Granada Heights neighborhoods in northern La Mirada are within the boundaries of the East Whittier City School District K - 8th grade, the Whittier Union High School District, and Rio Hondo College District all with campuses in nearby Whittier. Several

private school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

s are located in La Mirada: * St. Paul of the Cross School in the Foster Park neighborhood * Beatitudes of Our Lord School The city is home to one private

higher education Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...

institution,

. According city's 2017 Demographic Overview (which is collected from sources deemed reliable, including US Census, ESRI, GCR Marketing Network, Claritas, HDL and city, state & county data), approximately 26.23% of the population have some college education, 9.8% have an associate degree, 20.08% have a

Bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

, 8.05% have a

Master's Degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

, and 1.05% have a Doctorate Degree.

Transportation

Metrolink operates

commuter rail Commuter rail or suburban rail is a Passenger train, passenger rail service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Central business district, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter town ...

service on this right-of-way; the nearest stations to La Mirada are Buena Park and Norwalk/Santa Fe Springs.

Public transportation Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of whi ...

is provided by the

Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA), branded as Metro, is the county agency that plans, operates, and coordinates funding for most of the Transportation in Los Angeles, public transportation system in Los Ang ...

(Metro), Norwalk Transit, and Montebello Bus Lines. The LA Metro route 460 bus connects to downtown Los Angeles and Crypto.com Arena. The main arterial streets running west-to-east are Rosecrans Avenue, Alondra Boulevard, and Imperial Highway. The main arterial streets running south-to-north are Valley View Avenue, La Mirada Boulevard, and Santa Gertrudes Avenue. Leffingwell Road runs along the north end of the city, and

Artesia Boulevard Artesia Boulevard is a west-east thoroughfare in Los Angeles County and Orange County, California, Orange County. Route description Artesia Boulevard begins at the intersection with California State Route 1, Pacific Coast Highway. West of th ...

runs along the south end of the city.

passes briefly through the southwest corner of the city, while Beach Boulevard (SR 39) passes briefly through the east end of the city. Freight

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

traffic through the city is handled by

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three Transcontinental railroad, transcontine ...

on its right-of-way in the southwest portion of the city. Union Pacific Railroad operates a rail line along Interstate 5 and serves the southern industrial areas south of I-5. An construction Iwatani station planned for

hydrogen highway A hydrogen infrastructure is the infrastructure of points of hydrogen production, truck and pipeline transport, and hydrogen stations for the distribution and sale of hydrogen fuel, and thus a crucial prerequisite before a successful commerciali ...

Economy

'' Los Cerritos Community News'' is based in the city.

Top employers

According to the city's 2017 Demographic Overview, the top employers in the city are:

Notable people

* Gary Allan, country singer, born in La Mirada * Jacob Barron, soccer player * Derby Carrillo, soccer player who represented the

El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...

national team * Tony Corrente, NFL referee * Chase De Leo, professional ice hockey player for the

New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The club w ...

* Jennie Finch, Olympic

softball Softball is a Variations of baseball, variation of baseball, the difference being that it is played with a larger ball, on a smaller field, and with only underhand pitches (where the ball is released while the hand is primarily below the ball) ...

player * Steven L. Kwast, Air Force lieutenant general * Janine Lindemulder, porn actress * Cole McDonald, football player for the

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Argonauts compete in the East Division (CFL), East Division of t ...

* Keith McGill, football player for the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team based in Oakland, California, from its founding in 1960 to 1981, and again from 1995 to 2019 before Oakland Raiders relocation to Las Vegas, relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan ...

* Shotaro Omori, American figure skater * Daniel Poncedeleon,

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals * Russell Poole an

LAPD The City of Los Angeles Police Department, commonly referred to as Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), is the primary law enforcement agency of Los Angeles, California, United States. With 8,832 officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the th ...

Detective noted for the investigation into the deaths of rap star Notorious B.I.G. and the cop to cop shooting between LAPD officers, Kevin Gaines and Frank Lyga. In addition to uncovering of LAPD notorious Rampart Scandal * Amber Riley, actress and singer best known for her role in ''

Glee Glee may refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 3000 album) * ''Glee'' (Logan Lynn album) * Gle ...

'' * Ryan Vargas,

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...

driver * Derrick Williams, basketball player for the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Confere ...

* Eric Winter, actor best known for his role in ''

Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that aired on the network NBC from November 8, 1965, to September 9, 2022; the soap has streamed n ...

'' * YTCracker, former hacker,

nerdcore Nerdcore is a genre of hip hop music characterized by subject matter considered of interest to nerds and geeks. Self-described nerdcore musician MC Frontalot has the earliest known recorded use of the term (to describe this genre) in the 2000 ...

rapper

References

External links

* *
City-Data.com Profile
{{authority control 1896 establishments in California 1960 establishments in California Cities in Los Angeles County, California Incorporated cities and towns in California Populated places established in 1896 Populated places established in 1960 Gateway Cities