West Carson is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. The population was 21,699 at the 2010 census, up from 21,138 at the 2000 census. For statistical purposes, the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

has defined West Carson as a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

(CDP).

Geography

The area is bounded on the east by the city of Carson along the

Harbor Freeway A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is a ...

( Interstate 110). The area is bounded on the other three sides by the city of

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Del Amo Boulevard is the north boundary with the neighborhood of

Harbor Gateway The Harbor Gateway is a in the Los Angeles Harbor Region, in the southern part of the city. The neighborhood is narrow and long, running along a north-south axis. Its unusual shape has given it the alternative name of "the Shoestring Strip". T ...

. Lomita Boulevard is the south boundary with the neighborhood of

Harbor City Harbor City is a highly diverse neighborhood in the Harbor region of Los Angeles, California, with a population upward of 36,000 people. Originally part of the Rancho San Pedro Spanish land grant, the Harbor City was brought into Los Angeles as ...

. The west boundary along

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 Aven ...

is shared by both Los Angeles neighborhoods. The ZIP Code encompassing most of the area is 90502 which the United States Postal Service designates as a Torrance mailing address after the city that lies to the west over the Los Angeles strip. The southern portion shares the 90710 ZIP Code with the Harbor City neighborhood. According to the

, the CDP has a total area of , over 99% of it land.

Demographics

2010

At the 2010 census West Carson had a population of 21,699. The population density was . The racial makeup of West Carson was 7,630 (35.2%) White (21.4% Non-Hispanic White), 2,330 (10.7%) African American, 185 (0.9%) Native American, 6,730 (31.0%) Asian, 301 (1.4%) Pacific Islander, 3,411 (15.7%) from other races, and 1,112 (5.1%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7,100 persons (32.7%). The census reported that 20,493 people (94.4% of the population) lived in households, 176 (0.8%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 1,030 (4.7%) were institutionalized. There were 7,166 households, 2,236 (31.2%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 3,634 (50.7%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 978 (13.6%) had a female householder with no husband present, 450 (6.3%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 311 (4.3%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 46 (0.6%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 1,687 households (23.5%) were one person and 712 (9.9%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.86. There were 5,062 families (70.6% of households); the average family size was 3.40. The age distribution was 4,066 people (18.7%) under the age of 18, 1,816 people (8.4%) aged 18 to 24, 5,805 people (26.8%) aged 25 to 44, 6,109 people (28.2%) aged 45 to 64, and 3,903 people (18.0%) who were 65 or older. The median age was 42.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.8 males. There were 7,426 housing units at an average density of 3,258.7 per square mile, of the occupied units 5,459 (76.2%) were owner-occupied and 1,707 (23.8%) were rented. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.3%. 15,074 people (69.5% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 5,419 people (25.0%) lived in rental housing units. According to the 2010 United States Census, West Carson had a median household income of $62,100, with 8.6% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

2000

At the 2000 census there were 21,138 people, 7,156 households, and 5,052 families in the CDP. The population density was 9,355.3 inhabitants per square mile (3,611.3/km). There were 7,406 housing units at an average density of . The

racial makeup A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...

of the CDP was 41.99% White, 11.75% African American, 0.66% Native American, 25.07% Asian, 1.20% Pacific Islander, 13.94% from other races, and 5.39% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 29.44%. Of the 7,156 households 29.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.6% were married couples living together, 12.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.4% were non-families. 24.0% of households were one person and 9.1% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.85 and the average family size was 3.41. The age distribution was 22.6% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 24.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.3% 65 or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.5 males. The median household income was $49,118 and the median family income was $55,000. Males had a median income of $41,085 versus $32,032 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $21,023. About 7.4% of families and 9.5% 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 t ...

, including 12.4% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Residents are zoned to the

Los Angeles Unified School District Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is a public school district in Los Angeles, California, United States. It is the largest public school system in California in terms of number of students and the 2nd largest public school district in ...

. Meyler Street Elementary School and Van Deene Elementary School are in West Carson.Home
Van Deene Avenue Elementary School. Retrieved on April 13, 2019. "826 W. Javelin Street Torrance, California 90502" Some of the students attend Torrance Unified School District even though it is located in the Los Angeles Unified School District.

Government and infrastructure

The

Harbor–UCLA Medical Center Harbor–UCLA Medical Center, is a 570-bed public teaching hospital located at 1000 West Carson Street in West Carson, an unincorporated area within Los Angeles County, California. As implied by the name, the hospital is owned by the Los Angel ...

, operated by the

Los Angeles County Department of Health Services Los Angeles County Department of Health Services (abbreviated DHS and LADHS) operates the public hospitals and clinics in Los Angeles County, and is the United States' second largest municipal health system, after NYC Health + Hospitals. DHS ope ...

, has a Torrance postal address, but it is located in West Carson.West Carson CDP, California
"

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

. Retrieved on May 18, 2019. Compare to th
Zoning map of
an
Land use map of
(which indicates hospitals)

Torrance, California Torrance is a city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area located in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay region of the m ...

. Harbor-UCLA is not in the Torrance city limits.

Politics

In the state legislature West Carson is located in the 28th

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

District, represented by Democrat Isadore Hall, III, and in the 55th

Assembly Assembly may refer to: Organisations and meetings * Deliberative assembly, a gathering of members who use parliamentary procedure for making decisions * General assembly, an official meeting of the members of an organization or of their representa ...

District, represented by Democrat Al Muratsuchi. Federally, West Carson is located in California's 43rd and is represented by Democrat

Maxine Waters Maxine Moore Waters (née Carr; born August 15, 1938) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 1991. The district, numbered as the 29th district from 1991 to 1993 and as the 35th district from 1993 to 2013, incl ...

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles Harbor Region Census-designated places in California South Bay, Los Angeles