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West Covina, California
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West Covina is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. Located some 20 miles east of Downtown Los Angeles in the eastern San Gabriel Valley, it is a suburb of Los Angeles. The estimated population for the city as of January 1, 2008 is 112,666.
Covina was incorporated as an independent city in 1923 to prevent the city of Covina from building a sewage farm in the area. West Covina began as an agricultural area harvesting mostly oranges and walnuts.
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Encyclopedia
West Covina is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. Located some 20 miles east of Downtown Los Angeles in the eastern San Gabriel Valley, it is a suburb of Los Angeles. The estimated population for the city as of January 1, 2008 is 112,666.
History
West Covina was incorporated as an independent city in 1923 to prevent the city of Covina from building a sewage farm in the area. West Covina began as an agricultural area harvesting mostly oranges and walnuts. Since its beginning, it has developed in to a suburban area with more than 90% of its land completely developed.
About West Covina Today
The City of West Covina is a medium-sized city in terms of area and population.
West Covina has very well-kept-up neighborhoods that attract many families. A large part of the city is middle class, with upper middle class and upper class neighborhoods in the South Hills area. West Covina boasts one of the San Gabriel Valley's top concentrations of households with annual income in excess of $78,000.
The South Hills area of West Covina is home to some of the largest and most expensive houses in the San Gabriel Valley. the South Hills Country Club is a private country club located at 2655 S Citrus St West Covina, CA 91791, adjacent to South Hills High School.
West Covina is a diverse city with a booming economy. The city has attracted many large businesses such as Mercedes-Benz, Regal Entertainment, and Big League Dreams Sportsplex. The city has two major shopping areas. One is on the west side and one on the east side of town: Westfield West Covina and Westfield Eastland. Westfield West Covina is a large regional mall located near the Civic Center. Close by are The Lakes Entertainment Center, which is home to Edwards 18 Cinemas; restaurants.
New and Current Projects
A new project nearing completion is the West Covina Sportsplex Project. It is made up of four components, which include the commercial development (completed), Big League Dreams Sports Park (completed), an 18-hole championship Public Golf Course, and a commercial office development. A new 2 1/2 star hotel Marriott Fairfield is being built in between the existing hotels The Hampton Inn, Holiday Inn, and Best Western.
Another Project is the complete renovation and expanstion to the Westfieid Shoppingtown at West Covina. It Includes a cosmetic renovation to the inside and outside of the mall that will include new Electronic Billboards and Signs, new paint, fixtures and accessories. It also will include a major expansion of the mall (a new North Wing) that will house new stores, restaurants, and a Best Buy.
Health Care in West Covina
West Covina has many Heath Care facilities including the main hospital Citrus Valley Medical Center -
Queen of the Valley Campus also know as Queen of The Valley Medical Center. Citrus Valley Medical Center — Queen of the Valley Campus is a comprehensive, full-service health care facility, well-known for its Family Birth & Newborn Center, with more deliveries than any other health care facility in the East San Gabriel Valley. The Level II Neonatal Intensive Care Unit has cared for more than 15,000 babies since opening in 1972. The Queen's Mammography Center provides low cost mammography screening and breast health education. "Queen of the Valley Campus" Emergency Department is one of the busiest in Southern California, with nearly 54,000 visits annually. Other services include an 18-bed Pediatrics Unit, Cardiac Services, a 12-bed Rehabilitation Unit, state-of-the-art MRI and Cat-Scan machines and Lithotripsy.
There are meny other private medical practices, and clinics that serve the city of West Covina. Kiser Permanente operates both the West Covina Medical Offices and West Covina Behavioral Health Offices. East Valley Community Health Center is a large free clinic for low income family's, focused on family planning and counseling services into a comprehensive health care provider and, some free medical services. East Valley accepts all public health insurance, such as MediCal (also known as Medicaid), Medicare, and Healthy Families (also known as SHIP), as well as private health insurance such as Blue Cross/Blue Shield, among others. Most importantly, if one's family is not covered by any health insurance plan, the East Valley Center will provide services to one according to one's ability to pay.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 105,080 people, 31,411 households, and 25,254 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,518.4/km˛ (6,524.6/mi˛). There were 32,058 housing units at an average density of 768.3/km˛ (1,990.5/mi˛). The racial makeup of the city was 23.0% White, 6.0% African American, 0.3% Native American, 32.0% Asian, 0.6% Pacific Islander, .2% from other races, and 2.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino mainly of any race were 35.7% of the population.
There were 31,411 households out of which 41.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.2% were married couples living together, 15.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.6% were non-families. 14.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.32 and the average family size was 3.67.
In the city the population was spread out with 28.5% under the age of 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 30.5% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 94.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $53,002, and the median income for a family was $57,614. Males had a median income of $38,160 versus $31,138 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,342. About 6.8% of families and 9.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.1% of those under age 18 and 7.3% of those age 65 or over.
Over the past two decades, West Covina has experienced significant demographic change. The Hispanic proportion of its population has increased from 21% in 1980 to 35.7% in 2000, while the white non-Hispanic proportion has decreased from 64.8% to 23% in that period. The proportion of the population that is Asian or Pacific Islander increased from 3.8% to 32.6% from 1980 to 2000. At the same time, the population of the city as a whole has grown:
- 1980 - 80,291
- 1990 - 96,086
- 2000 - 105,080
Politics
In the state legislature West Covina is located in the 24th Senate District, represented by Democrat Gloria Romero, and in the 57th Assembly District, represented by Democrat Edward P. Hernandez. Federally, West Covina is located in California's 32nd congressional district, which has a Cook PVI of D +17 and is represented by Democrat Hilda Solis.
West Covina is a general law city in which five city council members are elected at-large and serve four-year terms. Mayors serve one-year terms on a rotating basis. As of 2008, the City Council was made up of Steve Herfert, Roger Hernandez, Sherri Lane, Shelley Sanderson and Michael Touhey.
Education
Primary and secondary schools
Public schools
West Covina is mostly served by the West Covina Unified School District, which has 13 public and seven private elementary schools; three middle schools; one high school, West Covina High School; one continuation high school (Coronado High); and one adult school (Coronado Alt. High School). Coronado High School has moved to a new location at 1500 E Francisquito ave, West Covina,CA 91791. Approximately 35,000 students were enrolled in West Covina public schools during the 2001-2002 school year.
West Covina High School is 50 years old at this time and South Hills high is 40 years old. Half of the residents of the South Hills area have the option of both West Covina High School or South Hills High School, but the the rest are required to go to South Hills High School. Some portions of West Covina are also served by the Covina Valley Unified School District (including students who attend South Hills High School, Traweek Middle School, and Mesa Elementary School). Some students from West Covina—those who attend Nogales High School, Rincon Intermediate, Giano Intermediate, and Hollingworth Elementary Schools—are served by the Rowland Unified School District.
International Polytechnic High School (I-Poly), a public school located at Cal Poly Pomona University, is also available to high school students who go through an application process.
Colleges and universities
While there are no universities within the city, there are several colleges and universities within a few miles of the city including Azusa Pacific University; Citrus College; Mt. San Antonio College; Pasadena City College; Whittier College; University of the West; and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
Business
As part of the pro-active redevelopment efforts of the city's business districts, it has successfully attracted many popular restaurant chains such as Hooters, Elephant Bar, TGI Friday's, and Chili's.
There are also many auto dealers like (Chevrolet, Ford, Cadilac, Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Scion, Hummer, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Smart Car, Buick, Pontiac, GMC, and Mazda).
The city also contains two large shopping malls, Westfield West Covina and Westfield Eastland, both of which are owned by Westfield Shoppingtown. A Hong Kong Supermarket replaced a Ralphs supermarket and strip mall and was completely remodeled to include many Asian cuisine restaurants — mostly Chinese with some Filipino, Indonesian, Malaysian, Thai, and Vietnamese — and shops. Similar developments have occurred in other parts of the city, albeit with more Filipino businesses centered in the intersection of Amar and Azusa Ave. The BKK Landfill on Azusa Avenue was closed in the early 1990s. The former BKK Landfill is now home to the Big League Dreams Sportsplex and the Heights at West Covina Shopping Center. The shopping center includes a Home Depot store and a Target store.
West Covina's Restaurant Row, located east of Citrus Avenue and north of the San Bernardino Freeway, contains a mixture of restaurants, including Hooter's. The city's Farmers Market is held every week in the parking lot of West Covina Parkway strip mall (where chain stores Good Guys and Pier 1 Imports used to anchor before now a Fresh&easy), across from Westfield Shoppingtown and Firestone Tire.
The City operates the Go West shuttle system that provides transportation to several West Covina destinations. The City also provides a free shuttle to the Baldwin Park Metrolink station.
Noteable people from West Covina
-Terrelle Smith fullback for the Arizona Cardinals.
-Cynthia Kadohata Author of Newberry Award winning book, Kira-Kira, and many others
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