Garden Grove, California

Infobox Settlement
official_name = City of Garden Grove, California
settlement_type = City


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mapsize = 250x200px
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mapsize1 =
map_caption1 =
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_name1 = California
subdivision_name2 = Orange
government_type =
leader_title = Mayor
leader_name = William Dalton
incorporated = 1956
area_magnitude = 1 E8
area_total_km2 = 46.7
area_land_km2 = 46.6
area_water_km2 = 0.1
area_total_sq_mi = 18.0
area_land_sq_mi = 18.0
area_water_sq_mi = 0.0
elevation_m = 27
elevation_ft = 89
latd = 33 |latm = 46 |lats = 44 |latNS = N
longd = 117 |longm = 57 |longs = 37 |longEW = W
population_as_of = 2000
population_total = 165196
population_footnotes =
population_density_km2 = 3540
timezone = PST
utc_offset = -8
timezone_DST = PDT
utc_offset_DST = -7
latitude = 33°46'26" N
longitude = 117°56'26" W
website = http://www.ci.garden-grove.ca.us/
postal_code_type = ZIP codes
postal_code = 92840-92846
area_code = 714
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 06-29000
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 1660662
footnotes =

Garden Grove is a city located in northern Orange County, California, United States. In 2004, the city's population was 170,000. State Route 22, also known as the Garden Grove Freeway, passes through the city running east-west. Garden Grove is home to a substantial Vietnamese-American population, forming the northern edge of Orange County's Little Saigon, and also to a large Korean-American population centered along Garden Grove Boulevard west of Brookhurst Street. The city is known outside the Southern California area for being the home of Robert H. Schuller's Crystal Cathedral, from which religious broadcasts are made.

The city has a distinct community within it, West Garden Grove, which is located in the westernmost portion of the city.

History

Garden Grove was founded by Alonzo Cook in 1874. A school district and Methodist church were organized that year. It remained a small rural crossroads until the arrival of the railroad in 1905. The rail connection helped the town prosper with crops of oranges, walnuts, chili peppers and -- later -- strawberries. In 1933, much of the town's central business district was destroyed by the Long Beach earthquake, and one person was killed. The post-World War II boom led to rapid development, and Garden Grove was incorporated as a city in 1956 with about 44,000 residents.

By 1960, population had grown to 85,000; by 1970 it was 120,000. In the late Seventies and Eighties a significant Asian population (primarily Vietnamese and Korean) began to locate in the area. In recent years, Harbor Boulevard has become a booming entertainment and tourism area, served by nine high-rise hotels. Well-known Garden Grove residents include actor Steve Martin, adventurer Steve Fossett and baseball stars Lenny Dykstra and Alan Trammell. Garden Grove also lends its name to a song by the famous Southern California band Sublime, on their eponymous album.

The annual Strawberry Festival, over Memorial Day weekend, is one of the largest community festivals in the western United States, attracting an estimated 250,000 visitors. It celebrates the city's agricultural past, which include crops such as chili peppers, eggs, oranges, walnuts and strawberries. One strawberry field remains within city limits, at Euclid Street and Hazard Avenue.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 46.7 km² (18.0 mi²). 46.7 km² (18.0 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.11%) is water.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 165,196 people, 45,791 households, and 36,449 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,539.5/km² (9,165.2/mi²). There were 46,703 housing units at an average density of 1,000.7/km² (2,591.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 46.88% White, 30.92% Asian, 1.31% Black or African American, 0.76% Native American, 0.65% Pacific Islander, 15.35% from other races, and 4.12% from two or more races. 32.45% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 45,791 households out of which 42.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.7% were married couples living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.4% were non-families. 15.2% 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 3.56 and the average family size was 3.90.

In the city the population was spread out with 28.5% under the age of 18, 9.2% from 18 to 24, 33.4% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 9.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 100.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $47,754, and the median income for a family was $49,697. Males had a median income of $33,295 versus $26,709 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,209. About 10.5% of families and 13.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.1% of those under age 18 and 10.0% of those age 65 or over.

Government & Politics

Local

Of the 65,208 registered voters in Garden Grove; 39.8% are Republicans and 38.7% are Democrats. The remaining 21.5% either declined to state political affiliation or are registered with one of the many smaller political parties.

The city's current mayor is William Dalton, and its city council members are Mayor Pro Tempore Mark Rosen, Dina Nguyen, *Bruce A. Broadwater and Steve Jones. The City Council meets on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month.

The headquarters of the Government of Free Vietnam, a self-styled anti-Communist group, is in Garden Grove.

Emergency services

Fire protection in Garden Grove is provided by the Garden Grove Fire Department with ambulance transport by Care Ambulance Service. The Garden Grove Police Department provides law enforcement.

State and federal

In the state legislature Garden Grove is located in the 34th and 35th Senate Districts, represented by Democrat Lou Correa (Santa Ana) and Republican Tom Harman (Huntington Beach) respectively, and in the 67th, 68th, and 69th Assembly District, represented by Republicans Jim Silva and Van Tran and Democrat Jose Solorio respectively. Federally, Garden Grove is located in California's 40th, 46th, and 47th congressional districts, which have Cook PVIs of R +8, R +6, and D +5 respectively [cite web | title = Will Gerrymandered Districts Stem the Wave of Voter Unrest? | publisher = Campaign Legal Center Blog | url=http://www.clcblog.org/blog_item-85.html | accessdate = 2008-02-10] and are represented by Republicans Ed Royce and Dana Rohrabacher, and Democrat Loretta Sanchez respectively.

Arts and culture

Garden Grove is home to three stage theaters, the Garden Grove Playhouse, Gem Theater and the Festival Amphitheater. The Amphitheater hosts Shakespeare Orange County, which presents an annual Shakespeare Festival each summer. All venues are owned by the City of Garden Grove, but operated by outside entities. The Garden Grove Playhouse is operated by a non-profit group of the same name. The Gem Theater is currently operated by Damien Lorton and Nicole Cassesso of 'One More Productions'. The Festival Amphitheater is managed by Thomas Bradac, the producing artistic director of Shakespeare Orange County.

Notable natives and residents

Entertainment

* Michaela Gallo - Child actress
* Wally George - Former talk-show host
* Scott Klopfenstein - Back-up singer, keyboardist, trumpeter and guitarist for the ska-punk band Reel Big Fish.
* Dexter Holland - Lead singer, The Offspring
* Steve Martin - Actor, comedian and writer
* Jennette McCurdy - Actress
* D.C. Niehaus - Artist
* Bradley Nowell - Lead singer, Sublime, also wrote the song "Garden Grove" about the town
* Monique Powell - Lead singer, Save Ferris
* Eunice Pringle - Actress notorious for accusing movie mogul Alexander Pantages in 1929 of rape.
* Monica Ratliff- Artist
* Kevin 'Noodles' Wasserman - Lead guitarist, The Offspring

Sports

*Bert Blyleven - Former Major League Baseball pitcher and color commentator, graduate of Santiago High School
* Lorrin "Whitey" Harrison (1913-1993)- Legendary surfer and surfing innovator
* Norm Johnson- Former NFL kicker
*Darryl Kile- Former Major League Baseball pitcher
*John Matua - martial artist who fought in UFC 6
*Leah O'Brien- Softball infielder, Olympics gold 96
*Craig Paquette- Former Major League Baseball third baseman, graduate of Rancho Alamitos High School
*Troy Polamalu- NFL Football player, currently with the Pittsburgh Steelers
*Ed Templeton - Professional Skateboarder and artist.
*Alan Trammell- Former player and manager of the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball
*Matt Treanor - Florida Marlins catcher
*Randy Vataha - Former football star at Stanford; Jim Plunkett's favorite receiver
*Lenny Dysktra - Former Major League baseball player with Mets, Phillies; graduate of Garden Grove High School

Politics

*Bruce A. Broadwater- Former Mayor (1994 - 2004)
*Robert K. Dornan- Former U.S. Congressman
*Janet Nguyen - Orange County supervisor
*Loretta Sanchez - U.S. Congresswoman
*Curt Pringle - former state assemblyman, Speaker of the Assembly, currently mayor of Anaheim

Others

*Vanessa Bryant- wife of NBA player Kobe Bryant
*Steve Fossett - Aviator and Adventurer
*Michael A. Monsoor - Navy SEAL, Medal of Honor recipient
*Ri - Mystery novelist, author of "Murder Inc."
*Tibor Rubin - Medal of Honor recipient

See also

* West Garden Grove, Garden Grove, California
* Garden Grove Unified School District

References

External links

* [http://www.ci.garden-grove.ca.us/ City of Garden Grove official website]
* [http://www.gardengroveplayhouse.com/ Garden Grove Playhouse - Founded in 1974, the Garden Grove Playhouse is the city's oldest theater group.]
* [http://www.ggjournal.com/ The Garden Grove Journal]
* [http://www.internationalwest.com/ International West - The City's convert|500|acre|km2|sing=on resort and tourist district]