Cerritos (; Spanish for "Little hills") is a city in

Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States counties and county equivalents, most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 202 ...

, United States, and is one of several cities that constitute the Gateway Cities of southeast Los Angeles County. It was incorporated on April 24, 1956. As of 2020, the population was 49,578. It is part of the Los Angeles–Long Beach–Anaheim, California Metropolitan Statistical Area designated by the

Office of Management and Budget The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is the largest office within the Executive Office of the President of the United States (EOP). The office's most prominent function is to produce the president's budget, while it also examines agency pro ...

History

Cerritos was originally inhabited by Native Americans belonging to 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 ...

(or "People of the Earth"). The Tongva were called the "Gabrieleños" by the Spanish settlers after the nearby

Mission San Gabriel Arcángel Mission San Gabriel Arcángel () is a Californian mission and historic landmark in San Gabriel, California. It was founded by the Spanish Empire on the Nativity of Mary September 8, 1771, as the fourth of what would become twenty-one Spanish mi ...

. The Tongva were the largest group of indigenous peoples in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

as well as the most developed in the region. The Tongva lived off the land, deriving food from the animals or plants that could be gathered, snared or hunted, and grinding acorns as a staple. Beginning in the late 15th century, Spanish explorers arrived in the New World and worked their way to the California coast in 1542. The colonization process included "civilizing" the native populations in California by establishing various missions. Soon afterward, a town called El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles de Porciúncula (

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

today) would be founded and prosper with the aid of subjects from

New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( ; Nahuatl: ''Yankwik Kaxtillan Birreiyotl''), originally the Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain. It was one of several ...

and Native American labor. One soldier, José Manuel Nieto, was granted a large plot of land by the Spanish King Carlos III, which he named Rancho Los Nietos. It covered of what are today the cities of Cerritos,

Long Beach Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

, Lakewood, Downey, Norwalk,

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 ...

, part of Whittier,

Huntington Beach Huntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County, California, United States. The city was originally called Pacific City, but it was changed in 1903 to be named after American businessman Henry E. Huntington. The population was 198,711 as o ...

, Buena Park and Garden Grove. The rancho was divided five ways among Nieto's heirs during the

nationalization Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization contrasts with p ...

of church property by the Mexican government, with Juan José Nieto retaining the largest plot, called Rancho Los Coyotes. Nieto called the area of Rancho Los Coyotes "''cerritos''" or "little hills". After the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

, the rancho would eventually wind up in the hands of the Los Angeles and San Bernardino Land Company, which encouraged development and rail lines to be built by Henry E. Huntington and his Pacific Electric Railway company. It was through rapid development, combined with improved transportation systems, that the modern-day city of Artesia was formed in Rancho Los Coyotes in 1875, and from it, the city of ''Dairy Valley''. Cranford Airport, a small general-aviation airport, was built around 1946 and consisted of two 2,300-foot runways, one oriented north–south & the other northeast–southwest. Each runway had a parallel taxiway, and a ramp along the south side of the field had two building hangars. The former airport site is on the northwest corner of the intersection of South Street & Carmenita Road. Cranford Airport closed at some point between 1953 and 1954. The city of Dairy Valley was incorporated on April 24, 1956, as a reaction to nearby Artesia's rapid

urbanization Urbanization (or urbanisation in British English) is the population shift from Rural area, rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. ...

. The city's name symbolized the more than 400 dairies, 100,000 cows and 106,300 chickens found within its limits. The cows outnumbered the 3,439 residents by a factor of 29 to 1. The chickens outnumbered the residents by over 30 to 1. The first business license in the new city was for Walter Marlowe's "Dairy Valley Egg Farms". Two years later, Dairy Valley voted to become a chartered California city. As land values and

property taxes A property tax (whose rate is expressed as a percentage or per mille, also called ''millage'') is an ad valorem tax on the value of a property.In the OECD classification scheme, tax on property includes "taxes on immovable property or net we ...

in California rose in the early 1960s, agriculture became increasingly unprofitable, and development pressures increased. In a special election held on July 16, 1963, residents voted to permit large-scale residential development. As a reflection of its newly planned suburban orientation, the city's name was formally changed to Cerritos on January 10, 1967, after the nearby Spanish land grant Rancho Los Cerritos, which figured prominently in the region, and after Cerritos College in neighboring Norwalk. Cerritos is a prime example of the "fiscalization" of California politics after the tax revolt of the 1970s and the passage of

Proposition 13 Proposition 13 (officially named the People's Initiative to Limit Property Taxation) is an amendment of the Constitution of California enacted during 1978, by means of the initiative process, to cap property taxes and limit property reassessmen ...

. The only way for California cities to raise long-term tax revenue in light of Proposition 13 was to create as many commercial zones as possible to take advantage of the percentage of county sales tax allocated back to

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

as sales tax revenue. Cerritos was one of the first cities in

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 ...

to successfully develop large-scale retail zones, such as the Los Cerritos Center and Cerritos Auto Square. City leaders reinvested funds into the community with large public works projects and an increasing number of community services and programs. The current progressive nature of the Cerritos government and the unusually strong tax base is best reflected in its facilities. In 1978, Cerritos dedicated the nation's first solar-heated

City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

complex. In 1993, the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts opened its doors. In 1994, the City unveiled the Cerritos Towne Center project, combining office, retail, lodging, fine arts and dining in an open-air location. In 1997, the city opened the Cerritos Sheriff's Station/Community Safety Center to provide public safety services. In 2002, the City rededicated its

public library A public library is a library, most often a lending library, that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil servic ...

. In 2006, the City celebrated its

golden anniversary A golden jubilee marks a 50th anniversary. It variously is applied to people, events, and nations. Bangladesh In Bangladesh, golden jubilee refers the 50th anniversary year of the separation from Pakistan and is called in Bengali ''"স� ...

with memorials and the unveiling of a sculpture garden. The assessed valuation of the city is $7,177,428,066. Between 1970 and 1972, Cerritos was the fastest-growing city in California; the population skyrocketed from 16,000 to 38,000. Since the 1980s, Cerritos has attracted a large number of Filipino,

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, people from the Korean peninsula or of Korean descent * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Korean **Korean dialects **See also: North–South differences in t ...

, Taiwanese, Indian and Chinese immigrant families. On August 31, 1986,

Aeroméxico Flight 498 Aeroméxico Flight 498 was a scheduled commercial flight from Mexico City, Mexico, to Los Angeles, California, United States, with several intermediate stops. On Sunday, August 31, 1986, the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 operating the flight was clippe ...

, on approach to

Los Angeles International Airport Los Angeles International Airport is the primary international airport serving Los Angeles and its Greater Los Angeles, surrounding metropolitan area, in the U.S. state of California. LAX is located in the Westchester, Los Angeles, Westcheste ...

from

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

, was struck by a small

Piper aircraft Piper Aircraft, Inc. is a manufacturer of general aviation aircraft, located at the Vero Beach Regional Airport in Vero Beach, Florida, United States and owned since 2009 by the Government of Brunei. Throughout much of the mid-to-late 20th cent ...

that had strayed into a Terminal Control Area without clearance from Air Traffic Control. The Piper crashed into Cerritos Elementary School's unoccupied playground, but the

Douglas DC-9 The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is an American five-abreast, single-aisle aircraft designed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. It was initially produced as the Douglas DC-9 prior to August 1967, after which point the company had merged with McDonnell ...

fell inverted (upside-down) and plowed into dense residential zones, immediately flattening four houses. The resulting fire destroyed eight more houses before firefighters could bring it under control. A total of 82 people died, including 15 people on the ground. A sculpture in the Cerritos Sculpture Garden memorializes the incident.

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 (1.48%) is water. Cerritos lies along the

and Orange County border. The cities bordering Cerritos on the Los Angeles County side include Artesia in the center, Bellflower, Lakewood, Norwalk,

and La Mirada. Buena Park and

La Palma La Palma (, ), also known as ''La isla bonita'' () and historically San Miguel de La Palma, is the most northwesterly island of the Canary Islands, a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in Macaronesia in the North Atlantic Ocean. La Pa ...

border the city on the Orange County side. Other cities in the region include

Cypress Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs from the ''Cupressus'' genus of the '' Cupressaceae'' family, typically found in temperate climates and subtropical regions of Asia, Europe, and North America. The word ''cypress'' ...

in Orange County, and

Hawaiian Gardens Hawaiian Gardens is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the smallest city in the county in area (approximately 1.0 mi2) and was incorporated on April 9, 1964. The population was 14,149 at the 2020 United States ce ...

and

in Los Angeles County. The former postal ZIP code of Cerritos was 90701 and was shared with the city of Artesia; however, it was later changed to the exclusive 90703 to accommodate the increasing number of new addresses in the city during the mid-1990s.

Climate

Cerritos, as well as most of coastal

, generally has a

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

. Summers are warm to hot, and winters are mild, rarely falling below freezing.

Precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls from clouds due to gravitational pull. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, rain and snow mixed ("sleet" in Commonwe ...

occurs predominantly during the winter months. Cerritos also has a unique "semi-marine" climate pattern within Los Angeles County. The fog that typically covers the beach cities rarely reaches Cerritos, but the breeze that comes along the San Gabriel River from the Pacific Ocean has a significant cooling effect. As a result, Cerritos is rarely affected by the smog, Santa Ana winds and smothering heat of the

Los Angeles Basin The Los Angeles Basin is a sedimentary Structural basin, basin located in Southern California, in a region known as the Peninsular Ranges. The basin is also connected to an wikt:anomalous, anomalous group of east–west trending chains of mountai ...

Demographics

2020 census

The 2020 United States census reported that Cerritos had a population of 49,578. The population density was . The racial makeup of Cerritos was 15.0%

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 ...

, 6.6%

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 ...

, 0.4% Native American, 62.6% Asian, 0.4%

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 ...

, 5.7% from other races, and 9.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 14.3% of the population. The census reported that 99.4% of the population lived in households, 0.2% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0.4% were institutionalized. There were 16,019 households, out of which 32.6% included children under the age of 18, 64.5% were married-couple households, 2.6% were

cohabiting Cohabitation is an arrangement where people who are not legally married live together as a couple. They are often involved in a romantic or sexually intimate relationship on a long-term or permanent basis. Such arrangements have become incr ...

couple households, 22.2% had a female householder with no partner present, and 10.8% had a male householder with no partner present. 13.4% of households were one person, and 8.6% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 3.08. There were 13,317

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 ...

(83.1% of all households). The age distribution was 17.8% under the age of 18, 8.1% aged 18 to 24, 22.0% aged 25 to 44, 27.3% aged 45 to 64, and 24.8% who were 65years of age or older. The median age was 46.4years. For every 100 females, there were 91.9 males. There were 16,374 housing units at an average density of , of which 16,019 (97.8%) were occupied. Of these, 76.4% were owner-occupied, and 23.6% were occupied by renters. In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that the median household income was $133,953, and 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 ...

was $54,839. About 5.0% of families and 5.9% of the population were below the poverty line. According to

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 ...

, Korean (17.1%) and Chinese (11.2%) were the most common ancestries in 2000. Korea (26.5%) and the Philippines (16.7%) were the most common foreign places of birth.

Economy

The two major sources of revenue for Cerritos are a retail sales tax and interest income from its general fund. Employment within Cerritos is primarily in two districts, Los Cerritos Shopping Center and Cerritos Industrial Park. Businesses found in Cerritos Industrial Park provide jobs in light manufacturing and assembly of electronic and automotive parts, among other things.

United Parcel Service United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) is an American multinational corporation, multinational package delivery, shipping & receiving and supply chain management company founded in 1907. Originally known as the American Messenger Company specializi ...

, the city's largest employer with a staff of 6,000, is in the park. In 2010, Los Cerritos Center provided for 4,450 full and part-time positions, and the Cerritos Auto Square employs 2,160 people. Retail and industrial trades are responsible for Cerritos' $2 billion taxable retail sales and $7.2 billion assessed property valuation. According to the California State Board of Equalization, Cerritos residents are the second-highest retail spenders in California (second to

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...

), averaging $36,544 per resident. Applied Development Economics, in a presentation for the Cerritos Economic Commission on February 14, 2006, stated total annual household spending on retail is about $365 million a year with new car dealerships, grocery stores, department stores, service stations and eating places having the strongest demands. A business survey conducted by Applied Development Economics in February 2006 revealed the total consumer breakdown in Cerritos is: 25% from residents from other parts of

, about 21.9% from Cerritos residents, 18% from commuters, 16% from neighboring communities, 13% from business to business/employee transactions, 10% from residents of Orange County, 5% from households from outside of Southern California, mainly to purchase vehicles from the Auto Square.

Cerritos Auto Square

The Cerritos Auto Square is an

auto Auto may refer to: Vehicles * An automobile, or car * An autonomous car, a self-driving car * An auto rickshaw Mechanisms * Short for automatic * An automaton * An automatic transmission Media * Auto (art), a form of Portuguese dramatic play * ...

mall combining all auto dealers within Cerritos into one large three-block center accessible through two freeways.

Los Cerritos Center

Since September 1971, the Los Cerritos Center has been an integral source of retail tax revenue. The total gross lease area is and is the city's largest tax revenue source, producing $800 per square foot in 2015.

Cerritos Towne Center

The Cerritos Towne Center is a power center that combines offices, retail, hotel and entertainment facilities in one master planned project. The Towne Center includes the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts, a 203-room Sheraton hotel and more than one million square feet (93,000 m²) of office space. The retail portion of the project includes several anchors and specialty shops. The project is bounded by 183rd Street to the south, Bloomfield Avenue to the west, Shoemaker Avenue to the east and the

Artesia Freeway State Route 91 (SR 91, locally referred to as the 91) is a major east–west state highway in the U.S. state of California that serves several regions of the Greater Los Angeles urban area. A freeway throughout its entire length, it offici ...

(Route 91) to the north.

The Magnolia Power Project

The uncertainty of availability of electricity in California prompted the city of Cerritos on February 13, 2003, in conjunction with the cities of

Anaheim Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the tenth-most ...

Burbank Burbank may refer to: Places Australia * Burbank, Queensland, a suburb in Brisbane United States * Burbank, California, a city in Los Angeles County * Burbank, Santa Clara County, California, a census-designated place * Burbank, Illinois, ...

, Colton, Glendale and

Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial d ...

, to participate in the Magnolia Power Project, which authorized the construction of a 310-

megawatt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of Power (physics), power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantification (science), quantify the rate of Work ...

power plant in Burbank. Cerritos receives 10 megawatts, or 4% of the total output, to power public facilities, park lighting, traffic signals and water wells. Excess power (approximately five megawatts) is sold to public and/or private agencies.

Top employers

According to the city's 2014 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:

Arts and culture

The Cerritos Fine Arts and Historical Commission has an "Art in Public Places Program" whereby the city commissions artists to create sculptures and fountains to be displayed in public points of interest, commercial property and gateways into the city. '' Los Cerritos Community News'' serves the city.

Tournament of Roses Parade

Since 2002, the City of Cerritos has participated in the

Tournament of Roses Parade A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

held every New Year's Day in

. Floats in the parade are awarded prizes in the Tournament of Roses Parade.

Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts

The Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts (CCPA) features live performances in music, magic, comedy, dance and drama. The 154,000-square-foot (14,300 m²) arts center has movable seats, floors, ceilings and stage areas, with a theater that can transform into six distinctive seating configurations, ranging in capacity from 921 to 1,800 seats. The facility also houses three additional meeting and banquet areas. The CCPA was designed by architect

Barton Myers Barton Myers (born November 6, 1934) is an American architect and president of Barton Myers Associates Inc. in Santa Barbara, California. With a career spanning more than 40 years, Myers is a fellow of the American Institute of Architects and wa ...

. The cost of the CCPA had reached over $60 million by the end of construction and scheduling. It was designed to serve as a cultural icon for people in the community and formally opened its doors on January 9, 1993, with a four-day performance by

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

. The CCPA collected four awards for design shortly after its opening and has been named one of the top grossing theaters in its category in the United States.

Cerritos Millennium Library

The Cerritos Library originally opened to the public on September 17, 1973, with a "First Ladies" theme (in recognition of former First Lady

Pat Nixon Thelma Catherine "Pat" Nixon (; March 16, 1912 – June 22, 1993) was First Lady of the United States from 1969 to 1974 as the wife of President Richard Nixon. She also served as the Second ladies and gentlemen of the United States, second lady ...

's home in the community). Eight years later, the city made its first renovation to the library for $6.6 million. were added for $5.4 million, and the remaining $1.2 million was spent on furniture and equipment. In the late 1990s, Cerritos recognized the ever-changing innovation in

information technology Information technology (IT) is a set of related fields within information and communications technology (ICT), that encompass computer systems, software, programming languages, data processing, data and information processing, and storage. Inf ...

and the internet, and plans for a second renovation were approved. During the reconstruction, all materials were moved off site to temporary trailers in the parking lot of the Cerritos Towne Center for two years. The second renovation and expansion was completed on March 16, 2002. At the time of its rededication, the newly renamed Cerritos Millennium Library was the first building in North America to be coated in

titanium Titanium is a chemical element; it has symbol Ti and atomic number 22. Found in nature only as an oxide, it can be reduced to produce a lustrous transition metal with a silver color, low density, and high strength, resistant to corrosion in ...

panels. This $40 million library features an elaborate interior design with themed reading rooms in a variety of old world and ultramodern styles. A third floor was added to include several conference rooms and an outdoor terrace. The Cerritos Library holds a Smithsonian Affiliation. It was awarded the

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world. History 19th century ...

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

" Award of Excellence" in 1989. It was also honored with ''Reader's Digest's'' 2004 Best Library Award.

Cerritos Sculpture Garden

The Cerritos Sculpture Garden was dedicated on March 11, 2006, and included a ribbon cutting ceremony attended by representatives from Cerritos'

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inte ...

, Loreto, Baja California Sur, Mexico. It is in the Civic Center and is designed to house approximately 20 sculptures to be phased in over the coming years. At the time of the dedication ceremony, three sculptures were already in place: * The Air Disaster Memorial, by sculptor Kathleen Caricof, honors by name all the victims of the

disaster on August 31, 1986. * A replica of the

Statue of Freedom The ''Statue of Freedom'', also known as ''Armed Freedom'' or simply ''Freedom'', is a bronze statue designed by Thomas Crawford (sculptor), Thomas Crawford that, since 1863, has crowned the United States Capitol dome. Originally named ''Freedo ...

that sits atop of the

United States Capitol dome The United States Capitol features a dome situated above its rotunda. The dome is in height and in diameter. Designed by Thomas U. Walter, the fourth Architect of the Capitol, it was constructed between 1855 and 1866 at a cost of $1,047,291 ...

. * Elements Fountain, by artist Jane DeDecker, depicts female embodiments of the four elements

allegories As a literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a meaning with moral or political significance. Authors have used allegory throughou ...

(earth, water, wind and fire) over a reflecting pool. The garden was made to be able to accommodate future sculpture installations in a lush

landscape A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or human-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes th ...

Parks and recreation

Cerritos Olympic Swim & Fitness Center

The Cerritos Olympic Swim & Fitness Center provides year-round, indoor recreational, instructional and competitive swimming and gym. The Swim Center was used by Olympians for swimming practices during the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the ...

in Los Angeles.

Pat Nixon Park

The Pat Nixon Park is a recreational park that pays tribute to the late First Lady

on the site of her childhood home, which was destroyed by fire in 1978. The city of Cerritos undertook the project of building a senior center in 1993 to create a state-of-the-art public facility dedicated to its seniors with social events, services, life-enriching programs and clubs.

Community and neighborhood parks

Heritage Park, a community park in the center of the city, pays tribute to revolutionary America and the founding of the country. It re-opened to the public in 2002 with a refurbished colonial-themed play island and

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch dug around a castle, fortification, building, or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. Moats can be dry or filled with water. In some places, moats evolved into more extensive water d ...

. Liberty Park, another community park in the western end of town, underwent massive renovation and re-opened to the public in February 2005. It features an updated community center, fitness center, rubberized jogging track and children's playground. Camp Liberty, a children's

amphitheater An amphitheatre ( U.S. English: amphitheater) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ('), meaning "place for vie ...

within Liberty Park, has also been updated. Don Knabe Community Regional Park houses the Cerritos Sports Complex, the skate park and outdoor swimming pools. The unique characteristic is an artificial lake complete with sporting fish.

maintains 75% of Regional Park and Cerritos oversees the remaining 25%. The city also has 18 neighborhood parks near residential tracts, an executive golf course and two community

gym A gym, short for gymnasium (: gymnasiums or gymnasia), is an indoor venue for exercise and sports. The word is derived from the ancient Greek term " gymnasion". They are commonly found in athletic and fitness centres, and as activity and learn ...

nasiums on the Cerritos and

Whitney High School (Cerritos, California) Gretchen A. Whitney High School, called Whitney High School or WHS, is a public school in Cerritos, California serving grades 7–12. It is in the ABC Unified School District. According to US News Report, as of 2024, Whitney High School is rank ...

campuses.

Government

Cerritos operates under a council–manager form of government, established by the charter of the city of Cerritos in 1958. The five-member city council acts as the city's chief policy-making body and as members of the Cerritos Redevelopment Agency.

Local government

City Council

The mayor, selected by the council, is its presiding officer and serves a one-year term. In the mayor's absence, the mayor

pro tempore ''Pro tempore'' (), abbreviated ''pro tem'' or ''p.t.'', is a Latin phrase which best translates to 'for the time being' in English. This phrase is often used to describe a person who acts as a '' locum tenens'' ('placeholder'). The phrase is ...

assumes his or her responsibilities. City Council elections were held on a Tuesday after the first Monday in April until the 2017 election. Effective with the 2020 California Primary election, the elections will be held on the Tuesday after the first Monday in March of even-numbered years. Council members are elected to a four-year term and at-large. The mayor is Naresh Solanki.

Emergency services

The Cerritos Sheriff's Station/Community Safety Center provides 24-hour safety services to Cerritos residents. Located in the Civic Center, the station houses the city's Community Safety Division and

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 ...

personnel. The station was constructed by a

referendum A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...

in 1996 and inaugurated in 1997. In 2006, the city council approved the construction of a expansion to the sheriff's station, at a cost of $400,000. Fire protection is provided by

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 ...

Station 30, the headquarters for Battalion 9, with ambulance transport by Care Ambulance Service.

Public services

The

operates the Cerritos Sheriff's Station and Community Safety Center, which was built into the Cerritos Civic Center. The facility, built by the city, has a complaint/dispatch area, an 18-bed jail, administrative and detective personnel offices and a community meeting room. The sheriff's department operates the Lakewood Station in Lakewood, serving Cerritos. 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 Cerritos. The

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...

operates the Cerritos post office at 18122 Carmenita Road.

State and federal representation

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). ...

, Cerritos 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 ...

, Cerritos is in .

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Public schools

The majority of Cerritos is under the jurisdiction of the ABC Unified School District. A small portion on the west side of the city bounded by Palo Verde Avenue on the west, the San Gabriel River on the east, Artesia Boulevard on the north and South Street on the south is under the jurisdiction of the Bellflower Unified School District. Children in the ABCUSD portion of Cerritos attend a neighborhood elementary school (kindergarten to 6th grade) before going to a middle school (7th and 8th grade) and then a high school (9th to 12th grade) unless admitted to Whitney High School, which covers 7th to 12th grade. Whitney High School is ranked as the best school in California, ahead of neighboring Oxford Academy, and 27th nationwide according to a 2012 U.S. News & World Report study. Cerritos_College_Cerritos_CA

Private schools

Valley Christian High School is one of the largest private Protestant schools in Los Angeles County.

Colleges and universities

Cerritos is also serviced by Cerritos College and Fremont College.

Education of citizens

Eighty-five percent of high school graduates go on to higher education. Ten percent of the total population have an associates degree, 26% 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 ...

and 11% have an advanced degree.

Transportation

The city of Cerritos owns a fleet of federally funded buses known as the Cerritos On Wheels (or COW), which has stops throughout town. The acronym "COW" is a tribute to the city's origins as Dairy Valley, when cows outnumbered residents. The propane-fueled COW also connects to the Long Beach Transit, Orange County Transportation Authority, Norwalk Transit and Los Angeles MTA buses at overlapping stops on the borders of the city.

Wi-Fi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for Wireless LAN, local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by ...

internet access is also accessible on the buses. In conjunction with the COW, the city also provides a

Dial-A-Ride Demand-responsive transport (DRT), also known as demand-responsive transit, demand-responsive service,
US National Trans ...

service for its disabled and elderly commuters. Cerritos is directly served by three major California freeways: * SR 91 (the Artesia Freeway) cuts through the center of the city. * Interstate 605 (the San Gabriel River Freeway) runs along the west side between the Los Cerritos Center and Auto Square. *

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 ...

(the Santa Ana Freeway) grazes Cerritos at the northeast border. The major thoroughfares in Cerritos are Alondra Boulevard, Artesia Boulevard, Bloomfield Avenue, Carmenita Road, Del Amo Boulevard, Norwalk Boulevard, Pioneer Boulevard, Shoemaker Avenue, South Street, Studebaker Road and Valley View Avenue. The nearby

Port of Los Angeles The Port of Los Angeles is a seaport managed by the Los Angeles Harbor Department, a unit of the Los Angeles, City of Los Angeles. It occupies of land and water with of waterfront and adjoins the separate Port of Long Beach. Promoted as "Amer ...

and

Port of Long Beach The Port of Long Beach, administered as the Harbor Department of the City of Long Beach, is a container port in the United States, which adjoins Port of Los Angeles. Acting as a major gateway for US–Asian trade, the port occupies of land wi ...

are major ports of entry from the Pacific Ocean for importing and exporting goods. Airports that serve Cerritos include

(LAX),

John Wayne Airport John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

in Orange County,

Bob Hope Airport Hollywood Burbank Airport is a public airport northwest of downtown Burbank, in Los Angeles County, California, United States.. Federal Aviation Administration. effective November 9, 2017 The airport serves Burbank, Hollywood, and the nor ...

Ontario International Airport Ontario International Airport is an international airport east of downtown Ontario, California, Ontario, in San Bernardino County, California, United States, about east of downtown Los Angeles and west of downtown San Bernardino. It is ow ...

and the Long Beach Municipal Airport.

Notable people

Troy Aikman Troy Kenneth Aikman (born November 21, 1966) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. After transferring from the Oklahoma Sooners, he play ...

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

and member of the

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional football (gridiron), professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, 1963, the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of profes ...

. * Chad Allen, actor. *

Marcelo Balboa Marcelo Balboa (born August 8, 1967) is an American former professional soccer player who played as a defender in the 1990s for the United States national team, becoming its captain. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame. After r ...

MLS Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanctioned by the United ...

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Founded in ...

and US national soccer team member. * Bret Barberie, former second baseman for the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East Division. The team plays its home games at LoanDepot Park. The ...

, once married to TV news star Jillian Barberie. * Johnny Chan, professional poker player. *

Morris Chestnut Morris Lamont Chestnut (born January 1, 1969) is an American actor. He first came to prominence for his role as Ricky in the 1991 film ''Boyz n the Hood''. He has appeared in feature films such as ''G.I. Jane'', ''The Brothers (2001 film), The B ...

, actor. *

Robby Gordon Robert Wesley Gordon (born January 2, 1969) is an American semi-retired auto racing driver. He has raced in NASCAR, Championship Auto Racing Teams, CART, the IndyCar Series, the Trans-Am Series, International Motor Sports Association, IMSA, Inter ...

, a

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 ...

Sprint Cup driver, was born and raised in Cerritos. He lives in

Orange, California Orange is a city located in northern Orange County, California, United States. It is approximately north of the county seat, Santa Ana, California, Santa Ana. Orange is unusual in this region because many of the homes in its Old Town District ...

. * Rickey Cradle,

MLB 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 ...

baseball player for the Seattle Mariners. *

Ben Howland Benjamin Clark Howland (born May 28, 1957) is an American college basketball coach who most recently served as the men's head coach at Mississippi State University from to 2015 to 2022. He served as the head men's basketball coach at Northern Ar ...

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

men's basketball head coach. * Jimmy Kim,

taekwondo Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In ad ...

practitioner and instructor who won a gold medal in the heavyweight division at the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and officially branded as Seoul 1988 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. 159 nations were represe ...

in Seoul, South Korea. * Eddie Lewis, professional soccer player. * Roger Lodge, host of the reality show ''

Blind Date A blind date is a romantic meeting between two people who have never met before. Both parties arrange a date with little to no information about each other, hoping for the possibility of making a lasting impression. Typically, a family member or ...

'' and radio sports announcer. * Shane Mack, former MLB baseball player. * Justin H. Min, actor. * Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, filmmaker of '' Innocence of Muslims.'' *

, First Lady and wife of President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

. Her family owned a

truck farm A market garden is the relatively small-scale production of fruits, vegetables and flowers as cash crops, frequently sold directly to consumers and restaurants. The diversity of crops grown on a small area of land, typically from under to so ...

formerly in Artesia, but now in Cerritos. Pat Nixon Park is on the site of her childhood home. *

Max Park Max Park (born November 28, 2001) is an American speedcuber. Widely regarded as one of the greatest speedcubers of all time, he is one of only two speedcubers ever to win the World Cube Association (WCA) World Championship twice (the other b ...

, an expert Rubik's Cube solver *

Lela Rochon Lela Rochon Fuqua (born Lela Rochon Staples; April 17, 1964) is an American actress. She is best known for her starring role as Robin Stokes in the 1995 romantic drama film ''Waiting to Exhale''. Rochon also had roles in the films ''Harlem Nights' ...

, actress. * Jorge Salcedo, NCAA soccer coach at

. and L.A. Galaxy team member. *

Jae Park Park Jae-hyung (; born September 15, 1992), known professionally as eaJ (), is an Argentine-born South Korean singer, songwriter, and former member of the South Korean rock band Day6. He gained early recognition by competing in the first seaso ...

, former lead guitarist and vocalist of Korean rock band DAY6; now a solo artist who goes by eaJ. * Kirsten Vangsness, actress and writer. * Jim Zorn, former NFL coach and quarterback.

In popular culture

According to the

Internet Movie Database IMDb, historically known as the Internet Movie Database, is an online database of information related to films, television series, podcasts, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and biograp ...

(IMDb), the following productions have either been partially or entirely filmed in Cerritos: * ''Almost There!'' (TV series, 1988) * I'm Ready (music video, 2020) * ''

Wayne's World "Wayne's World" was originally a recurring sketch from the NBC television series ''Saturday Night Live''. The first "Wayne's World" sketch appeared in the 13th ''Saturday Night Live'' episode of the Saturday Night Live season 14, 1988–1989 seas ...

'' (1992) * ''Imminent Contact'' (1992) * ''Until Tomorrow Comes'' (1992) * ''McAllister Affair'' (TV series, 1992) * '' Coneheads'' (1993) * '' She's All That'' (1999) * ''The Flip Side'' (2001) * '' Anokha'' (2004) * ''A Modest Proposal'' (2006) * ''Illegal'' (2007) * ''Eli's Liquor Store'' (2007) * ''The First Time'' (2007) * ''

Thunder Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack. The sudden increase in temperature and hence pressure caused by the lightning pr ...

'' (music video, 2008) The main setting of '' Star Trek: Lower Decks'', the ''California''-class

starship A starship, starcraft, or interstellar spacecraft is a theoretical spacecraft designed for interstellar travel, traveling between planetary systems. The term is mostly found in science fiction. Reference to a "star-ship" appears as early as 1 ...

''USS Cerritos'', is named for the city. In the

Apple TV+ Apple TV+ is an American subscription over-the-top streaming service owned by Apple. The service launched on November 1, 2019, and it offers a selection of original production film and television series called Apple Originals. The service w ...

show '' Mythic Quest'', the character David Brittlesbee lives in and commutes to Los Angeles from Cerritos in Season 3

Sister cities

* Itapetinga,

Bahia Bahia () is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Mina ...

, BrazilSister Cities International

References

External links

*
Cerritos Chamber of CommerceArtesia Cemetery deceased records and online map
at Chronicle Cemetery Map {{authority control Cities in Los Angeles County, California Gateway Cities Incorporated cities and towns in California