LA HABRA, CA

La Habra (archaic spelling of La Abra, ) is a city in the northwestern corner of Orange County, California, United States. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 60,239. A related city, La Habra Heights, is located to the north of La Habra, and is in Los Angeles County.

History

Origin of name

The name referred to the “Pass Through the Hills,” the natural pass through the hills to the north first discovered and used by Spanish explorers of the Portola expedition on July 30, 1769.

In 1839, when the area was part of Alta California, vast herds of cattle and horses grazed over the hills and valleys of Southern California. Mariano Reyes Roldan was granted in that year and named his land Rancho Cañada de La Habra. In the 1860s, Abel Stearns purchased Rancho La Habra.

Historical information

La Habra was founded in 1896. The first post office in the town was established in 1898 in a corner of Coy's Store at Central (now La Habra Boulevard) and Euclid Street.

The city was incorporated under general law on January 20, 1925, with a population of 3,000. The police force was organized in 1926 and employed a chief, traffic officer and patrolman. By 1928, the city was the largest avocado center in Southern California. In 1930, the first fire department building was constructed followed by the original City Hall in 1935. By 1950, the population reached nearly 5,000. The Civic Center took shape when the existing County Library was dedicated in 1966, followed by the present administration building in 1969.

For more than 70 years, La Habra was known as the city just south of La Habra Heights where the Hass avocado, of the Hass Avocado Mother Tree, was planted by Rudolph Hass in the 1920s. The fruit from this tree has since become one of the most popular avocado cultivars worldwide. The Hass Mother Tree succumbed to root rot in 2002.

The La Habra Stakes, run since 1973 at the Santa Anita Park Thoroughbred race track, is named for La Habra.

Although La Habra lies within Orange County, the city contracts with the Los Angeles County Fire Department for EMS and fire protection.

Law enforcement is provided by the La Habra Police Department, which in 2008 employed about 70 officers. From 2004 to 2008, they ranked third in the number of officer-involved shootings among twenty Orange County municipal police departments. One case among these, the 2007 death of Michael Cho, resulted in a wrongful death lawsuit against the city which was settled in September 2010 for $250,000.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , 99.92% of it land and 0.08% of it water.

It is bordered by La Habra Heights on the north, Brea on the east, Fullerton on the south and southeast, La Mirada on the west and southwest and East Whittier on the west, Whittier on the northwest and a small unnamed section of unincorporated Los Angeles County on the northeast.

Climate

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, La Habra has a Hot-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csa" on climate maps.

Demographics

2010

At the 2010 census La Habra had a population of 60,239. The population density was 8,166.8 people per square mile (3,153.2/km). The racial makeup of La Habra was 35,147 (58.3%) White (30.2% Non-Hispanic White), 1,025 (1.7%) African American, 531 (0.9%) Native American, 5,653 (9.4%) Asian, 103 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 15,224 (25.3%) from other races, and 2,556 (4.2%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 34,449 persons (57.2%).

The census reported that 59,899 people (99.4% of the population) lived in households, 169 (0.3%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 171 (0.3%) were institutionalized.

There were 18,977 households, 7,937 (41.8%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 10,078 (53.1%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 2,905 (15.3%) had a female householder with no husband present, 1,327 (7.0%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 1,158 (6.1%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 119 (0.6%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 3,651 households (19.2%) were one person and 1,440 (7.6%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 3.16. There were 14,310 families (75.4% of households); the average family size was 3.58.

The age distribution was 16,062 people (26.7%) under the age of 18, 6,353 people (10.5%) aged 18 to 24, 17,349 people (28.8%) aged 25 to 44, 13,926 people (23.1%) aged 45 to 64, and 6,549 people (10.9%) who were 65 or older. The median age was 33.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.0 males.

There were 19,924 housing units at an average density of 2,701.2 per square mile, of the occupied units 10,941 (57.7%) were owner-occupied and 8,036 (42.3%) were rented. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5%; the rental vacancy rate was 6.2%. 33,609 people (55.8% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 26,290 people (43.6%) lived in rental housing units.

According to the 2010 United States Census, La Habra had a median household income of $60,954, with 14.0% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

2000

At the 2000 census there were 58,974 people in 18,947 households, including 14,020 families, in the city. The population density was 8,045.8 inhabitants per square mile (3,106.4/km). There were 19,441 housing units at an average density of 2,652.3 per square mile (1,024.0/km). The racial makeup of the city was 41.40% White, 1.40% Black or African American, 0.96% Native American, 6.00% Asian, 0.22% Pacific Islander, 2.20% from other races, and 4.67% from two or more races. 49.00% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 19,042 households, 39.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.5% were married couples living together, 13.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.0% were non-families. 21.0% of households were one person and 8.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 3.08 and the average family size was 3.56.

The age distribution was 29.1% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 31.7% from 25 to 44, 18.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% 65 or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.7 males.

The median household income was $47,652 and the median family income was $51,971. Males had a median income of $36,813 versus $30,466 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,923. About 19.1% of families and 22.9% of the population were below the poverty line.

Economy

Top employers

According to the city's 2009 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:

Retail

The site of the former La Habra Fashion Square is now a retail power center, La Habra Market Place. Since 1962 Whittier Boulevard has been home to the second El Cholo Spanish Cafe.

Government

La Habra's mayor is rotated among current city council members. The current Mayor is Jose Medrano as of 2022. Current council members include Rose Espinoza, James Gomez, Steve Simonian and Daren Nigsarian. Though he has previously served as mayor several times, Gomez is often mistaken as the incumbent mayor of La Habra because of his nickname "Mr. La Habra" and community fame.

In the California State Legislature, La Habra is in , and in .

In the United States House of Representatives, La Habra is in California's 39th congressional district, which has a Cook PVI of EVEN and is currently represented by .

Politics

According to the California Secretary of State, as of October 22, 2018, La Habra has 27,439 registered voters. Of those, 10,369 (37.79%) were registered Democrats, 8,745 (31.87%) were registered Republicans, and 7,150 (26.06%) have declined to state a political party/are independents.

Education

The city of La Habra is mainly served by the La Habra City School District for elementary and middle school students and the Fullerton Joint Union High School District for high school students, but portions of La Habra are also redirected to other school districts closer to homes of some residents.

Public schools:

Private schools:

Transportation

Though La Habra has no freeways, three California State Highways SR 39 (covers Whittier and Beach Boulevards), SR 90 (Imperial Highway), and SR 72 (Whittier Boulevard) serve the city. The four major thoroughfares include Whittier Boulevard, Beach Boulevard, Imperial Highway, and Harbor Boulevard. Idaho Street, Euclid Street, and Palm Street are local north–south arterials and La Habra Boulevard and Lambert Road are local west–east arterials.

Notable people