Palms, Los Angeles
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Palms (originally "The Palms") is a community in the Westside region of
Los Angeles, California 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, ...
, founded in 1886 and the oldest neighborhood annexed to the city, in 1915. The 1886 tract was marketed as an agricultural and vacation community. Today it is a primarily residential area, with many apartment buildings, ribbons of commercial zoning and a single-family residential area in its northwest corner. As of the 2000 census the population of Palms was 42,545.


History


Before 1887


Rancho La Ballona

In Spanish and Mexican days, the area that later became Palms was a part of the Rancho La Ballona, where in 1819 Agustín and Ygnacio Machado, along with Felipe Talamantes and his son, Tomás, acquired
grazing rights Grazing rights is the right of a user to allow their livestock to feed (graze) in a given area. United States Grazing rights have never been codified in United States law, because such common-law rights derive from the English concept of the ...
to of land. It was thenceforth used as grazing land for cattle and sheep. According to ''Culver City History,'' a 2001 work by Julie Lugo Cerra, published for the Culver City Unified School District:
The family lore relates that Agustín was chosen, by virtue of his skill as a horseman to ride his fastest steed, from dawn until dusk, beginning at the foot of the Playa del Rey hills to claim Rancho La Ballona, or Paso de las Carretas. It stretched to Pico Boulevard (abutting Rancho San Vicente y Santa Monica) and to what we know as Ince Boulevard, where Rancho Rincón de los Bueyes began.
Agustin Machado died in 1865, the same year La Ballona School was constructed to serve all elementary-age children within the Ballona School District. In 1871, Ygnacio Saenz established a
general store A general merchant store (also known as general merchandise store, general dealer, village shop, or country store) is a rural or small-town store that carries a general line of merchandise. It carries a broad selection of merchandise, someti ...
at the crossing which later became Washington Boulevard and Overland Avenue. (Three corners of that intersection are in Culver City and one is in Palms.) The store, which was also a way stop on the county road between Los Angeles and the ocean, also housed the area's first post office. By 1882, the county's electoral district serving Palms was known as ''Ballona,'' with voting at La Ballona School.


Land rush and land division

Deke Keasbey, real estate investment specialist for Tierra Properties, has noted that:
The Southern Pacific completed its Los Angeles route in 1883, and only three years later the Santa Fe finished its Los Angeles spur. With a huge investment in their new coast-to-coast rail lines and large Los Angeles land holdings, the railroads set forth a long-term plan for growth. Southern California citrus farming was born. Tourism and the building of towns were promoted to attract investors, to raise land values, and to increase the value of railroad shipments
La Ballona Valley was part of that land rush. In 1882, several Midwestern families chartered a reconditioned freight car and left their homes in
Le Mars, Iowa Le Mars is a city and the county seat of Plymouth County, Iowa, United States. It is located on the Floyd River northeast of Sioux City. The population was 10,571 at the time of the 2020 census. Le Mars is located within America Township an ...
, to settle in the valley. They held their first
Sunday school ] A Sunday school, sometimes known as a Sabbath school, is an educational institution, usually Christianity, Christian in character and intended for children or neophytes. Sunday school classes usually precede a Sunday church service and are u ...
in the old La Ballona School on Washington Boulevard, and in fall 1883 they organized a Church of the United Brethren in Christ, United Brethren Church with 11 members. About that time the valley drew the attention of three speculators – Joseph Curtis, Edward H. Sweetser and C.J. Harrison. They paid $40,000 for . They surveyed their land and cut it up, and then they sold it to the new arrivals. They planted 5,000 trees along of graded streets. They named it The Palms, even though they had to bring in palm trees and plant them near the train station. Their first tract map was dated December 26, 1886, which is now considered the birth date of Palms. During this time, the Palms-Southern Pacific Railroad Depot was constructed, serving as one of only two depots between Los Angeles and Santa Monica. It was moved to the Heritage Square Museum in 1976. The site was midway between Los Angeles and
Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
on the Los Angeles and Independence Railroad (now the E Line light rail line.). Before the massive urban growth engendered by the
Los Angeles Aqueduct The Los Angeles Aqueduct system, comprising the Los Angeles Aqueduct (Owens Valley aqueduct) and the Second Los Angeles Aqueduct, is a water conveyance system, built and operated by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. The Owens Valley ...
, Palms was located within a farming and ranching area.


Since 1886

The subdividers gave the United Brethren Church two lots and $200 in cash to get started. In 1887 the church building was completed, and in 1889 the parsonage was built. In 1908 the old chapel was moved to the rear of the lot and new sanctuary built. In 1916 the old parsonage sold and a new one built. Later a bungalow was added next door to be a Sunday school. Although its exact location has been lost, contemporary sources indicate the existence of a Palms Villa, Palm Villa, or Villa Hotel at least from no later than 1890 through 1904. It may have stood on Tabor Street, which was known as Villa Avenue at the time.


Annexation

The residential development of a vast area west of the Los Angeles city limits brought a pressure for annexation to the city. Particularly noted was, first, the construction by L.A. of a new outfall sewer that could serve the area and, second, plans by the city engineer for a flood control project for the La Cienega region. Agitation for annexation was begun by Palms residents, but the reach was extended all the way west to the then-separate city of Sawtelle limits so that municipality could be annexed later. There were two annexation elections. Both were hard fought. The first, on April 28, 1914, was voted down, according to the ''Los Angeles Times,'' "because the people in the suburban territory are afraid of the municipal bond craze, of which the power scheme is the last straw, and the threatened burden of extra high taxation." The vote was 387 in favor and 264 against; a two-thirds vote was needed, so the "yes" vote was shy by 47. A new petition was almost immediately submitted, leaving out all the areas that had voted against annexation. Nevertheless, Harry Culver, the founder of Culver City, denounced the new plan as a
gerrymander Gerrymandering, ( , originally ) defined in the contexts of Representative democracy, representative electoral systems, is the political manipulation of Boundary delimitation, electoral district boundaries to advantage a Political party, pa ...
and opposed it. But ''The Times'' wrote:
This district comprises some of the richest country between the city and the sea and is directly in the path of the residence expansion westward. Because its growth is inevitable and its population certain to be greatly increased soon, advocates of annexation believe the necessity for securing adequate and permanent water rights is urgent and are working diligently to secure the required two-thirds vote
On June 1, 1914, the annexation succeeded, by a 342–136 vote, and on May 4, 1915, Los Angeles voters approved the annexation of the Palms district, as well as that of the extensive
San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, Los Angeles County, California. Situated to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it comprises a large portion of Los Angeles, the Municipal corpo ...
. Both Palms and the Valley entered Los Angeles on May 22, 1915.


Naming

The ''Travelers' Handbook to Southern California,'' published in 1904, stated that "The Palms" was "named from the number of large palms which dot the region for quite a distance near the Southern Pacific depot" and that "The Los Angeles and Pacific road has eenbuilt via The Palms and Ocean Park to Santa Monica, making its line a belt of sixteen miles or more on each lap." Over the decades following the turn of the 20th century, the definite article was dropped from the place name. By the 1920s, the name was simply "Palms" on local
transit Transit may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film * ''Transit'' (1980 film), a 1980 Israeli film * ''Transit'' (1986 film), a Canadian short film * ''Transit'' (2005 film), a film produced by MTV and Staying-Alive about four people in countrie ...
maps.


Geography

Palms has no official boundaries, but the "Mapping L.A." reference guide of the ''Los Angeles Times'' measures it at 1.95 square miles and places it northwest of
Culver City Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. It is mostly surrounded by Los Angeles, but also shares a border with the unincorporated area of Ladera Heights to the ea ...
, south of Cheviot Hills and Beverlywood, southeast of Rancho Park, west of Mid-City and northeast of Mar Vista. The 1886 subdivision map filed with Los Angeles County showed Palms as bounded on the northeast by what would today be Manning Avenue. When Palms was annexed to the city of Los Angeles in 1915, the bounds extended westward from Arlington Avenue on the southeast and about Rimpau Boulevard and Wilshire Boulevard on the northeast to Pico and Exposition Boulevards on the northwest. West of Overland Avenue wasn't annexed until 1927. The portion of Palms girded by Overland, Sepulveda, National, and Charnock Road was developed just before World War II as Westside Village. The City of Los Angeles has posted official neighborhood signs for Westside Village, and it has its own homeowners association: the Westside Village Homeowners Association. The Palms Neighborhood Council boundaries were defined by the city to omit Westside Village (which had already been claimed by the Mar Vista Community Council) and the area north and east of National Boulevard, which went to the Westside Neighborhood Council. Petitions were passed in both districts for boundary adjustments.


Population

As of the 2000 census the population of Palms was 42,545, and the city estimated its population at 45,475 in 2008. With a population density of 21,983 people per square mile it is one of the most densely populated neighborhoods in Los Angeles. Palms is one of the most diverse neighborhoods in Los Angeles. Residents were 38.3%
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 ...
, 20.2% Asian, 12.2%
African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
, 23.4% Latino, and 5.9% from other races. The median household income was $50,684, about average for the city. Almost half the residents (45.9%) had a four-year degree, which was a high figure compared to the city as a whole. The percentage of residents aged 19 to 34 was among the county's highest. In
ancestry An ancestor, also known as a forefather, fore-elder, or a forebear, is a parent or ( recursively) the parent of an antecedent (i.e., a grandparent, great-grandparent, great-great-grandparent and so forth). ''Ancestor'' is "any person from ...
, Mexican (13.1%) and Irish (4.3%) were the most common, with about 40.4% being foreign born (average for the city). Mexico (17.3%) and Korea (5.9%) were the most common foreign places of birth.


Housing

Until the early 1960s, most of Palms was single-family homes and small duplexes and triplexes, most of which were built in the Craftsman and Spanish Colonial styles that dominated Southern California in the first quarter of the 20th century. Under pressure to provide
affordable housing Affordable housing is housing which is deemed affordable to those with a household income at or below the median, as rated by the national government or a local government by a recognized housing affordability index. Most of the literature on ...
, the city of Los Angeles rezoned most of the district for large multifamily dwellings. This resulted in most of Palms' historic housing stock being razed and replaced with two-story (or larger)
apartment building An apartment (American English, Canadian English), flat (British English, Indian English, South African English), tenement ( Scots English), or unit (Australian English) is a self-contained housing unit (a type of residential real estate) ...
s. Very few original houses remain, and many of those are on lots where additional housing units have been built on what were once backyards. Palms is now one of Los Angeles' most densely populated neighborhoods. The goal of the rezoning plan to provide affordable housing proved to be successful, as the neighborhood is now home to one of the largest concentrations of relatively low-cost rental units in Western Los Angeles. As of 2020, the median sales prices of single family homes in adjacent neighborhoods are all upwards of $1 million, while in Palms apartments can be found for as little as $1500 a month. The housing stock in Palms is now almost completely composed of apartment buildings, and 92% of the population there are renters. In 2000, rentals in the entire Palms neighborhood amounted to 87% of occupied dwellings, compared to 13% of owner-occupied units. The upscale Westside Village district contains the only significant remaining concentration of owner-occupied
single-family home A single-family detached home, also called a single-detached dwelling, single-family residence (SFR) or separate house is a free-standing residential building. It is defined in opposition to a multi-family residential dwelling. Definitions ...
s. While the neighborhood was largely constructed by developer Fritz Burns in assembly-line style just before World War II; most of these houses have been expanded or demolished in the ensuing decades, and the neighborhood today consists of a varied assortment of architectural styles with little resemblance to the original planned community. Apartment buildings, including two UCLA family- and graduate-student housing complexes, line Westside Village's major thoroughfares. Many Palms residents work in adjacent Culver City, which is home to many large office and industrial complexes but has a relatively low population density. Despite being nearly five time larger in land area than Palms, Culver City has a slightly smaller total population.


Transportation


Highway

Palms is served by the 405 (San Diego) and the 10 (Santa Monica osa Parks freeways.


Rail

Palms is served by the Metro E Line, reactivating
Pacific Electric The Pacific Electric Railway Company, nicknamed the Red Cars, was a privately owned Public transport, mass transit system in Southern California consisting of electrically powered streetcars, interurban cars, and buses and was the largest electr ...
passenger service which had been in place from 1875 to 1953. Service restarted in 2012, with the western terminus located near the intersection of Venice and Robertson Boulevards. The line now runs between
East Los Angeles East Los Angeles (), or East L.A., is an unincorporated community and census designated place (CDP) situated within Los Angeles County, California, United States. According to the United States Census Bureau, East Los Angeles is designated as ...
and
Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
, with a stop at the Palms station, which opened on May 20, 2016.


Bicycling

Palms is considerably more bicycle-friendly than many other urban neighborhoods in Los Angeles, and bicycling is very popular owing to the neighborhoods density, young population, and scarcity of parking. Venice Boulevard and Motor Avenue, the two primary commercial corridors in the neighborhood, both feature dedicated bicycle lanes. The construction of the Metro E Line was accompanied by a Class A bicycle trail running adjacent to the tracks along Exposition Boulevard, the Expo Bike Path, which allows for easy bicycle access to the Palms station as well as being popular for recreational use by cyclists and joggers. This path was controversial, however, because of a large gap (stretching from Palms Boulevard to Overland Avenue) in the promised route following the E Line to connect to Santa Monica and the Pacific Ocean.


LAnow

Palms is served by LAnow a new on demand shared-ride service. Serve started in May 2019, users can reserve a ride through the LAnow smartphone app, online or by phone. Once reserved, users can meet the shuttle at the scheduled LAnow pick-up/drop-off point. Within the service area, pick-up/drop-off points are never more than a few blocks (1/4 mile) away.


Landmarks and attractions

Palms' diversity is reflected in its landmarks. Religious sites include the complexes of the
International Society for Krishna Consciousness The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), commonly known as the Hare Krishna movement, is a religious organization that follows the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism. It was founded on 13 July 1966 in New York City by ...
on Watseka Avenue and the
Iranian-American Iranian-Americans, also known as Persian-Americans, are United States citizens or nationals who are of Iranian ancestry, or who hold Iranian citizenship. Most Iranian-Americans arrived in the United States after 1979, as a result of the Irani ...
Muslim Association of North America (IMAN) on Motor Avenue. Palms has many Indonesian, Indian and Pakistani restaurants and businesses. In addition, it is also one of the centers of the Brazilian community in Los Angeles, with a number of Brazilian-oriented restaurants and shops, and one nightclub. In 1979 the original
Chippendales Chippendales is a touring dance troupe best known for its male striptease performances and for its dancers' distinctive upper body costume of a bow tie, collar, and shirt cuffs worn on an otherwise bare torso with jeans and undergarment. Est ...
erotic male dancing club at 3739 Overland Avenue at McCune Avenue was started by Bengali immigrant Steve Banerjee when he turned his nightclub-disco, Destiny II, into a venue for male strippers. The area is host to an unusual museum, the Museum of Jurassic Technology, and a
research institute A research institute, research centre, or research organization is an establishment founded for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research. Although the term often implies natural ...
, the Center for Land Use Interpretation. It has a legitimate theater, the Ivy Substation, which is now home to the Actors Gang, led by
Tim Robbins Timothy Francis Robbins (born October 16, 1958) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Andy Dufresne in the film '' The Shawshank Redemption ''(1994), and Jacob Singer in '' Jacob's Ladder'' (1990), as well as winning an Academy ...
. The Ivy Substation is within Media Park, which has been leased to Culver City on a long-term basis.


Government and infrastructure


Neighborhood council

Palms is served by a Los Angeles city-certified neighborhood council, whose governing body is called the Representative Assembly. The council was certified as part of the city government on December 14, 2004. Its founding president was Len Nguyen, who resigned shortly after his taking office to work for newly elected City Council Member Bill Rosendahl. Todd Robinson succeeded as the second president, but he resigned a few months later. In March 2006 Vice President Pauline Stout moved up to become president. She was succeeded by George Garrigues (2008–09), Dee Olomajeye (2009–12), Eli Lipmen (2012–14), Marisa Stewart (2014–16), Nick Greif (2016–2018) and Alison Regan (2018–2019). All of the stakeholders in Palms are members of th
neighborhood council
Stakeholders include not only those who live, work, or own property in the district but also a broader category of people who can claim affiliation through some other kind of activity on behalf of Palms organizations. Three from that category were elected in spring 2005 to the Representative Assembly, a 13-member governing body composed of officers chosen on a district-wide basis and representatives elected from local areas. Over the last decade, the Palms Neighborhood Council (PNC) has worked to: * Improve the quality of life in Palms * Give our neighborhood a voice on issues affecting the community * Improve the delivery of City services to our area * Make City officials and Departments more accountable to community needs and concerns * Represent the diverse people of Palms; including renters, homeowners, employees, merchants, and others affiliated with local cultural, educational, and religious organizations


Public safety

The
Los Angeles Fire Department The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD or LA City Fire) provides firefighting services and technical rescue services, hazardous materials services, and emergency medical services to the residents of the city of Los Angeles, California, United ...
operate
Station 43
which also serves portions of Rancho Park and Cheviot Hills.
Los Angeles Police Department 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 ...
operates the Pacific Community Police Station at 12312 Culver Boulevard.


County representation

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 ...
SPA 5 West Area Health Office serves Palms.


Post office

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 ...
Palms Post Office is located at 3751 Motor Avenue.


Education

Almost half of Palms residents aged 25 and older had earned a four-year degree by 2000, a high figure for both the city and the county. The percentages of residents of that age with 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 ...
or 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 ...
were also considered high for the county. The schools within Palms are as follows:http://projects.latimes.com/mapping-la/neighborhoods/neighborhood/palms/schools/ "Palms Schools," Mapping L.A., ''Los Angeles Times'' * Redeemer Baptist Elementary School, private, 10792 National Boulevard * Clover Avenue Elementary School, LAUSD, 11020 Clover Avenue * Le Lycée de Los Angeles, private, 3261 Overland Avenue * Palms Elementary School, LAUSD, 3520 Motor Avenue * Palms Middle School, LAUSD, 10860 Woodbine Street * Magnolia Science Academy No. 6, charter, 3754 Dunn Drive * Saint Augustine Elementary School, private, 3819 Clarington Avenue * Charnock Road Elementary School, LAUSD, 11133 Charnock Road * New World Montessori School, private K-6, 10520 Regent Street Alexander Hamilton High School (Los Angeles), LAUSD, 2955 S. Robertson Boulevard serves Palms as its public high school.


Parks and recreation

Palms Park and Palms Recreation Center are in Palms. The recreation center has an auditorium, barbecue pits, lighted outdoor basketball courts, a children's play room, a community room, and picnic tables. The Palms Park Child Care Center is adjacent to the park. Preschool is offered for children ages 3–5. The center has an enclosed play area. Woodbine Park is also located in Palms. It is a small pocket park with picnic tables, a basketball court, and a children's play area. It is this park where rapper
Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. ( ; born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, he is widely regarded as one of t ...
was alleged to have been involved in the shooting death of gang member Philip Woldemariam.
" Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on January 30, 2013.


See also

* Santa Monica Air Line


Citations


General and cited references


Garrigues, George, ''Los Angeles's The Palms Neighborhood,''
Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, South Carolina, 2009


External links

{{Authority control 1886 establishments in California Former municipalities in California Neighborhoods in Los Angeles Populated places established in 1886 Westside (Los Angeles County)