Pico-Union is a neighborhood in Central Los Angeles, California. The name "Pico-Union" refers to the neighborhood that surrounds the intersection of Pico Boulevard and Union Avenue. Located immediately west of

Downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) is the central business district of the city of Los Angeles. It is part of the Central Los Angeles region and covers a area. As of 2020, it contains over 500,000 jobs and has a population of roughly 85,000 residents ...

, it is home to over 40,000 residents. The neighborhood contains two historic districts, both listed in the National Register of Historic Places. It has five public schools as well as a public library.

Geography

Google Maps

Google Maps draws the following boundaries for Pico-Union: Olympic Boulevard on the north, the

Harbor Freeway Route 110, consisting of State Route 110 (SR 110) and Interstate 110 (I-110), is a state and auxiliary Interstate Highway in the Los Angeles metropolitan area of the US state of California. The entire route connects San Pe ...

on the east, the Santa Monica Freeway on the south and Hoover St. on the west.

Mapping L.A. Project

According to the ''Los Angeles Times

Mapping L.A. Mapping L.A. was a 2009 project of the ''Los Angeles Times''. It identified 158 cities and Unincorporated area, unincorporated areas within Los Angeles County, California. It also drew boundary lines for 114 neighborhoods within the Los Angeles, C ...

project, Pico-Union is bounded by Olympic Boulevard on the north, the Harbor Freeway on the east, the Santa Monica Freeway on the south and

Normandie Avenue Normandie Avenue is one of Los Angeles County's longest north–south streets, with a stretch of about . It lies between Western Avenue to the west and Vermont Avenue to the east. The avenue begins in the south by branching off from Vermont A ...

on the west. It also includes the

California Highway Patrol The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is the principal state police agency for the U.S. state of California. The CHP has primary jurisdiction, including patrol and Criminal investigation, investigations, over all California Controlled-access highw ...

station beneath the Dosan Ahn Chang Ho Memorial Interchange northeast of Washington Boulevard. Pico-Union is flanked by

Koreatown A Koreatown (), also known as a Little Korea or Little Seoul, is a Korean-dominated ethnic enclave within a city or metropolitan area outside the Korean Peninsula. History Koreatowns as an East Asian ethnic enclave have only been in existence s ...

and Westlake to the north and northeast,

Downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in American and Canadian English to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ( ...

to the east, Adams-Normandie, University Park and Exposition Park to the south and

Harvard Heights Harvard Heights is a neighborhood in Central Los Angeles, California. It lies within a municipally designated Los Angeles Historic Preservation Overlay Zone, historic preservation overlay zone designed to protect its architecturally significant s ...

to the west.
"Central L.A.," Mapping L.A., ''Los Angeles Times''
"Pico-Union," Mapping L.A., ''Los Angeles Times''
South L.A.," Mapping L.A., ''Los Angeles Times''

History

The

Tongva The Tongva ( ) are an Indigenous peoples of California, Indigenous people of California from the Los Angeles Basin and the Channel Islands of California, Southern Channel Islands, an area covering approximately . In the precolonial era, the peop ...

village of Geveronga was located at the present-site of Pico-Union. It was destroyed in 1781 by Spanish

settler A settler or a colonist is a person who establishes or joins a permanent presence that is separate to existing communities. The entity that a settler establishes is a Human settlement, settlement. A settler is called a pioneer if they are among ...

s as part of the Anza Expedition who issued a claim to the land and water rights from King Carlos III. The area was part of the early

Pueblo de Los Ángeles El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles del Río de Porciúncula, shortened to the Pueblo de los Ángeles, was the Spanish colonial pueblos and villas in North America, Spanish civilian ''pueblo'' settled in 1781, which became the ...

settlement in Spanish and Mexican California. The area encompassed by Pico-Union was developed as a middle and upper middle class residential district beginning in the 1910s. Easy access to downtown Los Angeles and the nearby Wilshire District drew large numbers of affluent homeowners. Following the Second World War, the Pico-Union area, like many inner city neighborhoods, experienced an outflux of residents to the suburbs. The loss of residents and business led to high vacancy rates and lower property values in much of the neighborhood by the 1960s. In the late 1970s and 1980s, the area became a major point of entry for Salvadoran and

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

n immigrants seeking refuge from

civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

, according to the ''Pico Union Self-Guided Walking Tour,'' published in 2009 by the

Los Angeles Conservancy The Los Angeles Conservancy is a historic preservation organization in Los Angeles, California that works to document, rescue and revitalize historic buildings, places and neighborhoods in the city. The Los Angeles Conservancy is the largest m ...

. Pico-Union became the city's 19th

Historic Preservation Overlay Zone The Historic Preservation Overlay Zone of the City of Los Angeles in California has been hailed by historic preservation advocates for its pioneering program, which designates not just buildings but entire neighborhoods or districts as worthy o ...

on August 10, 2004. It contains two historic districts listed in the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

: South Bonnie Brae Tract Historic District and Alvarado Terrace Historic District. In August 2012, the City of Los Angeles designated a portion of

Vermont Avenue Vermont Avenue is one of the longest running north–south streets in City of Los Angeles and Los Angeles County, California. With a length of , is the third longest of the north–south thoroughfares in the region. For most of its length be ...

in Pico-Union as El Salvador Community Corridor; parts of Pico-Union are also being considered for designation as The Central American Historical District. The former First Church of Christ, Scientist, once one of

Jim Jones James Warren Jones (May 13, 1931 – November 18, 1978) was an American cult leader, preacher and mass murderer who founded and led the Peoples Temple between 1955 and 1978. Jones and the members of his inner circle planned and orchestrat ...

' Peoples Temples, was located in Pico-Union, at the corner of

Alvarado Street Alvarado Street is a north–south thoroughfare in Los Angeles, California in the United States. The street was named after California governor Juan Bautista Alvarado. Geography North of Glendale Boulevard, it starts off as a residential stre ...

and Alvarado Terrace.

Population

Pico-Union is the fourth-most-dense neighborhood in Los Angeles, surpassed only by East Hollywood, Westlake and

. The 2000 U.S. census counted 42,324 residents in the 1.67-square-miles neighborhood—an average of 25,352 people per square mile. In 2008, the city estimated that the population had increased to 44,664. The median age for residents was 27, considered young for the city and the county. The ethnic breakdown in 2000 was

Latinos Hispanic and Latino Americans are Americans who have a Spanish or Latin American background, culture, or family origin. This demographic group includes all Americans who identify as Hispanic or Latino, regardless of race. According to th ...

, 85.4%;

Asians "Asian people" (sometimes "Asiatic people")United States National Library of Medicine. Medical Subject Headings. 2004. November 17, 200Nlm.nih.gov: ''Asian Continental Ancestry Group'' is also used for categorical purposes. is an umbrella term ...

, 7.6%;

whites White is a racial classification of people generally used for those of predominantly European ancestry. It is also a skin color specifier, although the definition can vary depending on context, nationality, ethnicity and point of view. De ...

, 3.0%, blacks, 2.9%; and others, 1.1%. El Salvador (44.4%) and Mexico (23.3%) were the most common places of birth for the 64.6% of the residents who were born abroad, a figure that was considered high in comparison with foreign-born in the city as a whole. Other immigrants come from

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Ocean at the Gulf of Fonseca, ...

and

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

.Antonio Olivo, "Learning From a Community’s Hard Work," ''Los Angeles Times,'' October 2, 1999, pageB-1
/ref> The median household income in 2008 dollars was $26,424, considered low for both the city and the county. The percentage of households earning $20,000 or less was high, compared to the county at large. The average household size of 3.3 people was relatively high for Los Angeles. Renters occupied 90.5% of the housing units, and home- or apartment owners the rest. The percentages of never-married men (43.4%) and never-married women (36.2%) were among the county's highest. The census found 2,113 families headed by single parents, the 23.3% rate being considered high for both the city and the county. In 2000 there were 667 military veterans living in Pico-Union, or 2.3% of the population, considered a low rate for the city and the county overall.

Education

Pico-Union residents aged 25 and older holding a four-year degree amounted to 6.7% of the population in 2000, considered low for both the city and the county, and there was a high percentage of residents with less than a high school diploma.

Schools

These are the elementary or secondary schools within the neighborhood's boundaries: *

West Adams Preparatory High School West Adams Preparatory High School is a secondary school in Central Los Angeles, California. The school is a part of the Los Angeles Unified School District and is operated by a nonprofit organization working in conjunction with LAUSD. The orga ...

LAUSD Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is a State school, public school district in Los Angeles County, California, United States of America. It is the largest public school system in California in terms of number of students and the List ...

, 1500 West Washington Boulevard * SIATech Pico-Union is a public charter high school, 2140 West Olympic Boulevard suite 327. "Classes are held from approximately 9:00 am - 4:00 pm. This site is an independent study school where students complete work at home, online and on site." * Loyola High School of Los Angeles, private, 1901 Venice Boulevard * Berendo Middle School, LAUSD, 1157 South Berendo Street, which claims the title as the oldest

intermediate school Middle school, also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school, is an educational stage between primary school and secondary school. Afghanistan In Afghanistan, middle school includes g ...

continuously in operation in Los Angeles and perhaps in the entire United States * Sophia T. Salvin Special Education Center, LAUSD, 1925 Budlong Avenue * Leo Politi Elementary School, LAUSD, 2481 West 11th Street * Tenth Street Elementary School, LAUSD, 1000 Grattan Street * Saint Thomas the Apostle School, private elementary, 2632 West 15th Street * Magnolia Avenue Elementary School, LAUSD, 1626 South Orchard Avenue * Los Angeles Christian School, private, 1630 West 20th Street
Equitas Academy Charter Schools
charter, 1700 West Pico Boulevard

Public library

Los Angeles Public Library The Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) is a public library system in Los Angeles, California, operating separate from the Los Angeles County Public Library system. The system holds more than six million volumes, and with around 19 million resid ...

operates the Pico-Union Branch Library at 1030 South Alvarado Street.

Cemetery

Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery is a cemetery, located at 1831 West Washington Boulevard in the West Adams, Los Angeles, West Adams neighborhood of Los Angeles, southwest of Downtown Los Angeles, Downtown. History Located in the West Adams, Los Angeles ...

was founded as Rosedale Cemetery in 1884, when Los Angeles was a small city of around 28,000 people, on of land between Washington and Venice boulevards (then 16th Street) between Normandie Avenue and Walton and Catalina Streets.''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'', Nov. 20, 1884, "Rosedale—The Opening of a New Cemetery in this City," p. 0_4

Notable people

Larry Elder Laurence Allen Elder (born April 27, 1952) is an American conservative political commentator and talk radio host. He hosts ''The Larry Elder Show'', based in California. The show began as a local program on Los Angeles radio station KABC in 199 ...

, talk show host and politician * Elizabeth Harrower (1918 - 2003), actress, writer *

, founder and the leader of the Peoples Temple * Jacob Kuhrts, 19th Century Los Angeles businessman and politician * Pomeroy Wills Powers, president, Los Angeles City Council, 1900–02 *

Susan Seaforth Hayes Susan Seaforth Hayes (born Susan Seabold; July 11, 1943) is an American television actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Julie Williams on the NBC drama '' Days of Our Lives'', and her intermittent portrayal of Joanna Manning on the ...

, actress

References

Notes

{{Northwest Los Angeles Neighborhoods in Los Angeles Central Los Angeles Northwest Los Angeles Salvadoran-American culture in California