West Covina 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. Located east 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 ...

in the eastern

San Gabriel Valley The San Gabriel Valley (), sometimes referred to by its initials as SGV, is one of the principal valleys of Southern California, with the city of Los Angeles directly bordering it to the west and occupying the vast majority of the southeastern ...

, it is part of

Greater Los Angeles Greater Los Angeles is the most populous metropolitan area in the U.S. state of California, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino County and Riverside County in the eas ...

. The population for the city was 109,501 at the 2020 census. West Covina is bordered by

Covina Covina (Help:IPA/English, /koviːnə/) is a city in the San Gabriel Valley region of Los Angeles County, California, United States, about east of downtown Los Angeles The population was 51,268 according to the 2020 United States census, 2020 ...

to the northeast, Baldwin Park and Irwindale to the northwest, La Puente and Valinda to the southwest,

Industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

to the south, Ramona to the east, and

Walnut A walnut is the edible seed of any tree of the genus '' Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, '' Juglans regia''. They are accessory fruit because the outer covering of the fruit is technically an i ...

to the southeast.

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 ...

were the earliest inhabitants of the San Gabriel Valley. Governor

Pío Pico Don (honorific), Don Pío de Jesús Pico IV (May 5, 1801 – September 11, 1894) was a California politician, ranchero, and entrepreneur, famous for serving as the List of governors of California before 1850, last governor of Alta California und ...

sold much of the land of West Covina to John Rowland and William Workman in 1845. The first permanent settlers arrived in West Covina in 1905. Most famous among them were William Payne, Bob Dancer, Bender, Robinson and Larsen. They cleared the land of sagebrush and cactus. They also planted the first walnut trees in the area. West Covina was incorporated as an independent city in 1923 to prevent the city of

from building a sewage farm in the area. Benjamin Franklin Maxson Jr. (1897–1928) initiated the incorporation process and was the first mayor. Walnut groves and orange groves continued to flourish. The population in 1930 was 769 and blossomed to 1,549 in 1940. As a result of remarkable expansion during the post–World War II building boom, West Covina became one of the fastest-growing U.S. cities between 1950 and 1960, experiencing a growth in population of 1,025.69%, going from less than 5,000 to more than 50,000 citizens. The decades 1960 and 2000 demonstrated steady growth for West Covina, which had slowed significantly by the time of the 2010 census. A 2020 ranking of the fiscal health of California cities issued by State Auditor Elaine Howle's office placed West Covina as the ninth-worst in the state The city was also audited by the state the same year, as the state auditor had determined that the city's poor finances put it at high risk for default. The world's largest collection of shoehorns is housed in the Shoehorn Museum in West Covina

The state of California's largest hazardous waste landfill is also in the city. The California Department of Toxic Substances Control currently estimates clean up of the landfill will cost nearly $1 billion.

Geography

Climate

The San Gabriel Valley region has a Typical Mediterranean climate, hot-summer Mediterranean climate, with summer temperatures averaging above .

Demographics

West Covina first appeared as a city in the 1930 U.S. Census.

2020 census

The 2010 United States Census reported that West Covina had a population of 106,098. The population density was . The racial makeup of West Covina was 42.8%

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 ...

(15.3% Non-Hispanic White), 4.5% Black, 1.0% Native American, 25.8% Asian, 0.2%

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 ...

, 21.3% from other races, and 4.4% from two or more races. Persons of

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

or Latino origin were 53.2%. The Census reported that 105,424 people (99.4% of the population) lived in households, 351 (0.3%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 323 (0.3%) were institutionalized. There were 31,596 households, out of which 13,670 (43.3%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 17,650 (55.9%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 5,402 (17.1%) had a female householder with no husband present, 2,308 (7.3%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 1,664 (5.3%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 202 (0.6%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 4,795 households (15.2%) were made up of individuals, and 2,164 (6.8%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.34. There were 25,360

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 ...

(80.3% of all households); the average family size was 3.68. The population was spread out, with 26,075 people (24.6%) under the age of 18, 11,326 people (10.7%) aged 18 to 24, 28,860 people (27.2%) aged 25 to 44, 26,974 people (25.4%) aged 45 to 64, and 12,863 people (12.1%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.7 males. There were 32,705 housing units at an average density of , of which 20,703 (65.5%) were owner-occupied, and 10,893 (34.5%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.1%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.8%. 70,474 people (66.4% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 34,950 people (32.9%) lived in rental housing units. During 20092013, West Covina had a median household income of $67,088, with 10% of the population living below the federal poverty line. In 2017, there were more than 10,000

Filipino Americans Filipino Americans () are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos in North America were first documented in the 16th century and other small settlements beginning in the 18th century. Mass migration did not begin until after the end of the Sp ...

living in West Covina; they make up the majority population in the south side of the city. West Covina is broken up into five districts. Most of the foreign-born population in West Covina were born in

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

27.3%,

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

18.9%, Mainland

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

13.7%,

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

9.6%

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

5.5%,

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

3.1%,

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

2.7%,

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 ...

1.5%,

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

1.3% and

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

1.2%. According to the 2000 Census,

Mexicans Mexicans () are the citizens and nationals of the Mexico, United Mexican States. The Mexican people have varied origins with the most spoken language being Spanish language, Spanish, but many also speak languages from 68 different Languages o ...

and

Filipinos Filipinos () are citizens or people identified with the country of the Philippines. Filipinos come from various Austronesian peoples, all typically speaking Filipino language, Filipino, Philippine English, English, or other Philippine language ...

were the most common ancestries in West Covina.

and

were the most common foreign places of birth. The most common ancestries in West Covina are Irish, German, English, Italian, and French. The most common non-English languages spoken are Spanish and Chinese.

Homelessness

In 2022, Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority's Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count counted 112 homeless individuals in West Covina.

Economy

Top employers

According to the city's 2022 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:

Retail

There are three major shopping centers in West Covina: Plaza West Covina, Eastland Center, and The Heights at West Covina.

Plaza West Covina

Plaza West Covina is a regional mall that has 208 shops, stores, and restaurants. The mall is two levels and is anchored by Macy's (180,000 sq ft.) to the east, JC Penney (193,963 sq ft.) to the south, Sears (137,820 sq ft.) to the west, Best Buy (45,000 sq ft.) to the north, and the XXI Forever flagship store, also to the north. There is a food court on the second level as well as other restaurants, and food and drink kiosks throughout the mall. The mall is known for its many fashion shops and high-end fashion boutiques.

Eastland Center

The Eastland Center is a power center which has undergone major renovations since it opened in 1957. Eastland is two levels, with parking for the lower level on south side of the center and parking for the upper level on the north side. It has many department stores and is anchored by Target. () to the east.

The Heights at West Covina

The Heights at West Covina is a retail shopping center located just south of the Sportsplex. It is anchored by The Home Depot to the north, and Target to the south. The center has many other stores and restaurants.

Jollibee

Jollibee opened headquarters in West Covina in 2019.

Parks and recreation

West Covina Sportsplex

The West Covina Sportsplex is a commercial and recreational center opened in 2007. Built on a former landfill, the center includes a sports park, commercial development, and public golf course.

Government

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). ...

, West Covina is split between and . In the California State Assembly, it is 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 ...

, West Covina is in .

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Public schools in West Covina administered by the Covina-Valley Unified School District include: * Grovecenter Elementary School * Mesa Elementary School * Rowland Avenue Elementary School * Workman Avenue Elementary School * Traweek Middle School * South Hills High School Public schools in West Covina administered by the Rowland Unified School District include: * Hollingworth Elementary * Telesis Academy * Giano Intermediate Public schools in West Covina administered by the West Covina Unified School District include: * California Elementary * Cameron Elementary * Merced Elementary * Merlinda Elementary * Monte Vista Elementary * Orangewood Elementary * Vine Elementary * Wescove Elementary * Edgewood Middle School * Hollencrest Middle School * Walnut Grove Intermediate * Coronado High School * Edgewood High School * MT. SAC Early College Academy * West Covina High School Charter School (Standalone) * San Jose Charter Academy

Infrastructure

Transportation

Foothill Transit Foothill Transit is a public transit agency that is government funded by 22 member cities in the San Gabriel and Pomona valleys. It operates a fixed-route bus public transit service in the San Gabriel Valley region of eastern Los Angeles Cou ...

, based in West Covina, provides services across San Gabriel Valley with buses going to Downtown Los Angeles and Montclair. In addition to the bus services provided by Foothill Transit, the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Agency, commonly known as Metro, provides services from El Monte Station to Cal Poly Pomona. The city operates the Go West shuttle bus system, with three routes that provide transportation to several West Covina destinations. The city also provides a free shuttle bus to the Baldwin Park Metrolink station.

Healthcare

Emanate Health Queen of the Valley Hospital in West Covina offers the following services: emergency room, surgery, maternity care, pediatrics, neurology, and diagnostic imaging.

Notable people

* Former Major League Baseball pitcher Dan Haren grew up in West Covina, California. * Major League Baseball pitcher Rick Aguilera, a three-time All-Star who played in two World Series, attended Edgewood High School in West Covina. * National Football League quarterback and broadcaster Troy Aikman was born at Queen of the Valley Hospital in West Covina, but moved to Oklahoma as a child. * Drag queen Jackie Beat. * Major League Baseball outfielder and coach Tom Brunansky attended West Covina High School. * Actor

Robert Buckley Robert Earl Buckley (born May 2, 1981) is an American actor, known for his roles as Kirby Atwood on the NBC dramedy series '' Lipstick Jungle'', Clay Evans on The CW drama series '' One Tree Hill'', Brian Leonard on the ABC horror-drama series ' ...

was born in West Covina. * Jeff Cox attended South Hills High School. He has been a Major League Baseball player and coach. *

Electronic Dance Music Electronic dance music (EDM), also referred to as dance music or club music, is a broad range of percussive electronic music genres originally made for nightclubs, raves, and List of electronic dance music festivals, festivals. It is generally ...

producer and DJ Deorro currently resides in West Covina. * Major League Baseball pitcher Joey Eischen was born in West Covina and graduated from West Covina High School and is from the Class of 1988. * Baseball pitcher Carlos Fisher was born in West Covina. He pitched for the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...

. * Major League Baseball outfielder Jeremy Giambi attended South Hills High School. * Major League Baseball first baseman Jason Giambi was born in West Covina and attended South Hills High School. * Chinese Basketball Association basketball player

Jonathan Gibson (basketball) Jonathan Mychal Gibson (born November 8, 1987) is an American professional basketball player for the Sagesse Sports Club of the Lebanese Basketball League. He played college basketball for New Mexico State before playing professionally in Turkey ...

was born in West Covina. * Rock star

Joan Jett Joan Jett (born Joan Marie Larkin; September 22, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actress. Often referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music#J, Godmother of Punk", she is regarded as a Pop icon, rock icon and ...

, although born in Pennsylvania, moved with her family to West Covina when she was 15. * Major League Baseball outfielder Jay Johnstone, although born in Connecticut, graduated Edgewood HS in 1960. * Mystery novelist Lee Charles Kelley lived in West Covina from age 4 to 15. * Major League Baseball infielder Mike Lamb was born in West Covina. * Major League Baseball pitcher Cory Lidle attended South Hills High School. He was killed in a plane crash in 2006. * Major League Baseball pitcher Jim Merritt attended Edgewood High School. * Actress

Nia Peeples Virenia "Nia" Peeples (born December 10, 1961) is an American R&B and dance music singer and actress. Peeples is known for playing Nicole Chapman on the TV series ''Fame (1982 TV series), Fame''; Pam Fields on the drama ''Pretty Little Liars''; ...

was raised in West Covina; she attended and graduated from West Covina High School, class of 1980, and was also Homecoming Queen. * World record-breaking long jumper Mike Powell attended Edgewood High School. *

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

pitcher Jo-Jo Reyes was born in West Covina. He has pitched for numerous teams. * Actor and director

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 ...

was born in West Covina. His films include ''

The Shawshank Redemption ''The Shawshank Redemption'' is a 1994 American Prison film, prison Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Frank Darabont, based on the 1982 Stephen King novella ''Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption''. The film t ...

'', '' Mystic River'', ''

Bull Durham ''Bull Durham'' is a 1988 American romantic comedy sports film written and directed by Ron Shelton. The film stars Kevin Costner as "Crash" Davis, a veteran catcher from the AAA Richmond Braves, brought in to teach rookie pitcher Ebby Calv ...

'' and '' Dead Man Walking''. * Major League Baseball outfielder Gary Roenicke attended Edgewood High School. * Major League Baseball pitcher and manager Ron Roenicke attended Edgewood High School. * Major League Baseball pitcher Aaron Small attended South Hills High School. He pitched for seven MLB teams. * Brian Stewart defensive backs coach at the University of Nebraska, lived in West Covina from 1976 to 1982. * Major League Baseball pitcher and executive Bill Stoneman attended West Covina High School. * Chicano rapper

Mr. Capone-E Fahd Azam (born April 27, 1976), known professionally as Mr. Capone-E, is an American rapper. He is the owner of the record label Hi-Power Entertainment. Early life Fahd Azam was born in the Peshawar district of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provin ...

was born in

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

but he and his family moved to West Covina at an early age. * Mexican-American singer Larry Hernández lives in West Covina. *

Gabe York Gabriel Russell York (born August 2, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Zhejiang Golden Bulls of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He played college basketball for the Arizona Wildcats men's basketball, Arizona Wi ...

(born 1993), basketball player for Hapoel Tel Aviv of the

Israeli Basketball Premier League Ligat HaAl (, lit., ''Supreme League or Premier League''), or the Israeli Basketball Premier League, is a professional basketball league in Israel and the highest level of basketball in the country. The league's name is abbreviated as either BSL ...

* Professional tennis player Ernesto Escobedo resides in West Covina. * Television personality Scheana Shay was born in West Covina. * Songwriter Greg Camp was born in West Covina. * Artist Keith Parkinson was born in West Covina. * Swedish progressive rock musician and songwriter Nad Sylvan was born in West Covina. * Filipino-American basketball player Dwight Ramos was born in West Covina.

In popular culture

West Covina and the San Gabriel Valley are the setting for the US television series '' Crazy Ex-Girlfriend''. The 1997 Nickelodeon film ''

Good Burger ''Good Burger'' is a 1997 American teen comedy film directed by Brian Robbins, written by Dan Schneider with Kevin Kopelow and Heath Seifert, and starring Kenan Thompson, Kel Mitchell, and Abe Vigoda. The film is a spin-off of the "Good B ...

'' was mostly filmed in West Covina. The ''USS West Covina'' was a Federation California-class starship operated by

Starfleet Starfleet is a fictional organization in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise. Within this fictional universe, Starfleet is a uniformed space force maintained by the United Federation of Planets ("the Federation") as the principal means for conduct ...

in the late 24th century featured in '' Star Trek: Lower Decks''.

Sister cities

West Covina's

sister cities A sister city or a twin town relationship is International relations, 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 ar ...

are: * Fengtai (Beijing), China * Ōtawara, Japan *

Tainan Tainan (), officially Tainan City, is a Special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality in southern Taiwan, facing the Taiwan Strait on its western coast. Tainan is the oldest city on the island and commonly called the "Taiwan Prefecture, ...

, Taiwan

References

External links

* {{authority control Cities in Los Angeles County, California Communities in the San Gabriel Valley Incorporated cities and towns in California Populated places established in 1923 Chicano and Mexican neighborhoods in California