Valley Center, California
Encyclopedia
Valley Center is a census-designated place
Census-designated place
A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...

 (CDP) in San Diego County
San Diego County, California
San Diego County is a large county located in the southwestern corner of the US state of California. Hence, San Diego County is also located in the southwestern corner of the 48 contiguous United States. Its county seat and largest city is San Diego. Its population was about 2,813,835 in the 2000...

, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. The population was 9,277 at the 2010 census, up from 7,323 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Valley Center is located at 33.240485°N 117.014262°W.

According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, the CDP has a total area of 27.4 square miles (71 km²), all land.

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Valley Center had a population of 9,277. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 338.3 people per square mile (130.6/km²). The racial makeup of Valley Center was 6,785 (73.1%) White, 84 (0.9%) African American, 188 (2.0%) Native American, 295 (3.2%) Asian, 16 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 1,484 (16.0%) from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 425 (4.6%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2,581 persons (27.8%).

The Census reported that 9,243 people (99.6% of the population) lived in households, 27 (0.3%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 7 (0.1%) were institutionalized.

There were 3,000 households, out of which 1,120 (37.3%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 2,035 (67.8%) were opposite-sex married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 212 (7.1%) had a female householder with no husband present, 142 (4.7%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 127 (4.2%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships
POSSLQ
POSSLQ is an abbreviation for "Persons of Opposite Sex Sharing Living Quarters," a term coined in the late 1970s by the United States Census Bureau as part of an effort to more accurately gauge the prevalence of cohabitation in American households....

, and 21 (0.7%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 462 households (15.4%) were made up of individuals and 193 (6.4%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.08. There were 2,389 families
Family (U.S. Census)
A family or family household is defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes as "a householder and one or more other people related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption. They do not include same-sex married couples even if the marriage was performed in a state...

 (79.6% of all households); the average family size was 3.38.

The population was spread out with 2,250 people (24.3%) under the age of 18, 827 people (8.9%) aged 18 to 24, 1,942 people (20.9%) aged 25 to 44, 3,094 people (33.4%) aged 45 to 64, and 1,164 people (12.5%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.1 years. For every 100 females there were 100.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.4 males.

There were 3,228 housing units at an average density of 117.7 per square mile (45.4/km²), of which 2,419 (80.6%) were owner-occupied, and 581 (19.4%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.7%; the rental vacancy rate was 2.8%. 7,364 people (79.4% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 1,879 people (20.3%) lived in rental housing units.

2000

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 7,323 people, 2,415 households, and 1,919 families residing in the CDP. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 250.1 inhabitants per square mile (96.6/km²). There were 2,517 housing units at an average density of 86.0 per square mile (33.2/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 85.69% White, 0.52% African American, 2.84% Native American, 1.35% Asian, 0.19% Pacific Islander, 6.45% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 2.96% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 16.50% of the population.

There were 2,415 households out of which 38.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.4% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 6.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.5% were non-families. 15.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.01 and the average family size was 3.33.

In the CDP the population was spread out with 29.6% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 25.2% from 25 to 44, 27.4% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 102.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.1 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $64,649, and the median income for a family was $68,388. Males had a median income of $50,440 versus $35,199 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the CDP was $24,071. About 5.8% of families and 6.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.7% of those under age 18 and 13.6% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

In the state legislature
California State Legislature
The California State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members...

 Valley Center is located in the 36th Senate
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 state senators. The state legislature meets in the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...

 District, represented by Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 Dennis Hollingsworth
Dennis Hollingsworth
Dennis Clark Hollingsworth is an American politician who represented California's 36th State Senate district, which includes portions of San Diego and Riverside County, from 2002 to 2010. In 2000, Hollingsworth was elected to the Legislature as a member of the Assembly, and in 2002, Hollingsworth...

, and in the 66th and 74th Assembly
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature. There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately equal number of constituents, with each district having a population of at least 420,000...

 District, represented by Republicans Kevin Jeffries
Kevin Jeffries
Kevin Jeffries is an American politician from the State of California. He is currently a member of the California State Assembly representing the California's 66th Assembly district...

 and Martin Garrick
Martin Garrick
Martin W. Garrick represents the 74th district in the California State Assembly. He was elected to the Assembly in November 2006. Garrick served in the Reagan Administration and is a small business owner.-Background:...

 respectively. Federally, Valley Center is located in California's 49th congressional district
California's 49th congressional district
California's 49th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California that currently covers much of northern San Diego County and southwestern Riverside County.The district is currently represented by Republican Darrell E...

, which has a Cook PVI
Cook Partisan Voting Index
The Cook Partisan Voting Index , sometimes referred to as simply the Partisan Voting Index , is a measurement of how strongly an American congressional district or state leans toward one political party compared to the nation as a whole...

 of R +10 and is represented by Republican Darrell Issa
Darrell Issa
Darrell Edward Issa is the U.S. Representative for , and previously the 48th, serving since 2001. He is a member of the Republican Party. He was formerly a CEO of Directed Electronics, the Vista, California-based manufacturer of automobile security and convenience products...

.

Community character and culture

Valley Center is a community in transition from a small rural town to a suburban "bedroom" community. This transition has been underway for several years. This has resulted in some agriculture, such as large fruit orchards, giving way to housing development. The growth of Valley Center has been slowed by lower densities including a minimum of 2 acres (8,093.7 m²) being required for most parcels. However, with San Diego County's GP2020 Plan, currently being discussed, the densities in a few areas of Valley Center will be changed from a minimum of 2 acres (8,093.7 m²) per parcel to much higher densities. This would allow the population to expand, particularly in the town's central area. Even with current growth it is reasonable to characterize the town as "semi-rural".

Some changes in the community can be attributed to the expansion of Indian casinos in the area. There are currently two major casinos in the vicinity of Valley Center - Harrah's Rincon and Valley View; both were opened in 2001-02, bringing traffic and jobs to what used to be an out-of-the-way agricultural town. High traffic necessitated highway improvements, partially paid by casino contributions.

Despite these changes, there are still no chain department stores in the community; residents do their shopping in smaller "mom and pop" stores , and drive to Escondido
Escondido, California
Escondido is a city occupying a shallow valley ringed by rocky hills, just north of the city of San Diego, California. Founded in 1888, it is one of the oldest cities in San Diego County. The city had a population of 143,911 at the 2010 census. Its municipal government set itself an operating...

.

Agriculture

Traditionally, the town and the surrounding areas have largely been dedicated to agricultural uses. Various commercial crops include oranges
Orange (fruit)
An orange—specifically, the sweet orange—is the citrus Citrus × sinensis and its fruit. It is the most commonly grown tree fruit in the world....

, lemons, and avocados. More recently farmers have taken up other crops, including ornamental floral products such as lavender
Lavender
The lavenders are a genus of 39 species of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae. An Old World genus, distributed from Macaronesia across Africa, the Mediterranean, South-West Asia, Arabia, Western Iran and South-East India...

. Additionally, there is a thriving animal farming industry including egg-producing hens and llamas.

Western Days

Once a year, parts of the city are closed down for an event known as Valley Center Western Days
Valley Center Western Days
Valley Center Western Days, is a community involved event in Valley Center, California, produced annually by the Valley Center Chamber of Commerce and held at the Valley Center Community Center over Memorial Day weekend...

. This event is traditionally held over the Memorial Day
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...

 weekend and consists of a community parade, a festival at the Valley Center Community Center and a rodeo
Rodeo
Rodeo is a competitive sport which arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain, Mexico, and later the United States, Canada, South America and Australia. It was based on the skills required of the working vaqueros and later, cowboys, in what today is the western United States,...

.

Notable residents

  • Billy Cundiff
    Billy Cundiff
    William A. "Billy" Cundiff is an American football placekicker for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League. He was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2002...

     -NFL kicker
  • J.J. Cale
    J.J. Cale
    JJ Cale , born John Weldon Cale on December 5, 1938, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, is a Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter and musician. Cale is one of the originators of the Tulsa Sound, a loose genre drawing on blues, rockabilly, country, and jazz influences. Cale's personal style has...

    : musician who wrote hits such as "Call Me The Breeze
    Call Me the Breeze
    "Call Me the Breeze" is a song by J. J. Cale. It first appeared on his 1971 debut album, Naturally, as the opening track. The song consists of a 12-bar blues guitar shuffle over the backing of a primitive drum machine...

    ", "Cocaine
    Cocaine (song)
    "Cocaine" is a song written and recorded by JJ Cale in 1976 and most widely known in a cover version recorded by Eric Clapton. Allmusic calls the latter "among [Clapton's] most enduringly popular hits" and notes that "even for an artist like Clapton with a huge body of high-quality work, 'Cocaine'...

    " and "After Midnight". In 2006 he released the collaborative album "The Road to Escondido
    The Road to Escondido
    The Road to Escondido is an album by J. J. Cale and Eric Clapton. It was released on November 7, 2006. Contained on this album are the final recordings of Billy Preston, to whom the album is dedicated....

    " with Eric Clapton
    Eric Clapton
    Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...

    .
  • Gary Cooper
    Gary Cooper
    Frank James Cooper, known professionally as Gary Cooper, was an American film actor. He was renowned for his quiet, understated acting style and his stoic, but at times intense screen persona, which was particularly well suited to the many Westerns he made...

    -Actor
  • Irene Ryan
    Irene Ryan
    Irene Ryan was an American actress, one of the few entertainers who found success in vaudeville, radio, film, television and Broadway....

    -Granny on Beverly Hillbillies
  • Steve Reeves
    Steve Reeves
    Stephen L. Reeves was an American bodybuilder and actor. At the peak of his career, he was the highest-paid actor in Europe.-Childhood:...

    -Hercules Actor
  • June Allyson
    June Allyson
    June Allyson was an American film and television actress, popular in the 1940s and 1950s. She was a major MGM contract star. Allyson won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress for her performance in Too Young to Kiss . From 1959–1961, she hosted and occasionally starred in her own CBS anthology...

    -Actress
  • Dick Powell
    Dick Powell
    Richard Ewing "Dick" Powell was an American singer, actor, producer, director and studio boss.Despite the same last name he was not related to William Powell, Eleanor Powell or Jane Powell.-Biography:...

    -Actor
  • Benji
    Benji
    Benji is the name of a fictional dog who has been the focus of several movies from 1974 through the 2000s. It is also the title of the first film in the Benji series....

    - Acting Dog
  • Fred Astaire
    Fred Astaire
    Fred Astaire was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer and actor. His stage and subsequent film career spanned a total of 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute...

     Actor/Dancer
  • Jack Haley
    Jack Haley
    John Joseph "Jack" Haley was an American stage, radio, and film actor best known for his portrayal of the Tin Man and Kansas farmworker Hickory in The Wizard of Oz.-Career:...

    - Actor/Tin Man in Wizard of OZ
  • Bill Murray
    Bill Murray
    William James "Bill" Murray is an American actor and comedian. He first gained national exposure on Saturday Night Live in which he earned an Emmy Award and later went on to star in a number of critically and commercially successful comedic films, including Caddyshack , Ghostbusters , and...

    - Actor
  • Sean Salisbury
    Sean Salisbury
    Richard Sean Salisbury is an American football analyst, former NFL and CFL quarterback, and actor.-Early life:Salisbury attended Orange Glen High School in Escondido, California...

    -Television sports analyst
  • Glen Bell
    Glen Bell
    Glen William Bell, Jr. was an American businessman who founded the fast food chain Taco Bell.Born in Lynwood, California and growing up in California, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II. Bell left the military in 1946 and started his first hot dog stand, called Bell's Drive-In,...

    -Founded Taco Bell chain
  • John Wayne
    John Wayne
    Marion Mitchell Morrison , better known by his stage name John Wayne, was an American film actor, director and producer. He epitomized rugged masculinity and became an enduring American icon. He is famous for his distinctive calm voice, walk, and height...

    -Actor
  • Kevin Craft
    Kevin Craft
    Kevin Craft is a former college football quarterback at UCLA, who played for the Cougars de Saint-Ouen l'Aumône, France in France.-High school years:...

    - Former UCLA Quarterback
  • James Johnson
    James Johnson
    -Artists, authors, and musicians:*James B. Johnson , author of science fiction novels*James Johnson , English artist*James Johnson , late 18th-century Scottish musicologist*James P...

    - Current University of Washington (Huskies) Football player
  • Todd Seabaugh
    Todd Seabaugh
    Raymond Todd Seabaugh is a former American football linebacker who played professionally in the National Football League....

    - Former Pittsburgh Steelers Football player

External links

  • Valley Center Chamber of Commerce
  • Valley Roadrunner Weekly newspaper published for the Valley Center, Pala
    Pala, California
    Pala is a small, mostly Native American, community located in San Diego County, California near Fallbrook. It is east of Carlsbad in the San Diego-Carlsbad metro area. In the National Geographic Names Database it is officially catalogued as feature number 1661174...

     and Pauma Valley California areas.
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