Pasadena

Pasadena (PAS--DEE-n) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, 11 miles (18 km) northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Pasadena is known for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade. Its population was 138,699 at the 2020 census, making it the 44th largest city in California. Pasadena was incorporated on June 19, 1886, becoming one of the first cities to be incorporated in what is now Los Angeles county, following the city of Los Angeles (April 4, 1850). It is also home to many scientific, educational, and cultural institutions, including Caltech, Pasadena City College, Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine, Fuller Theological Seminary, ArtCenter College of Design, the Pasadena Playhouse, the Ambassador Auditorium, the Norton Simon Museum, and the USC Pacific Asia Museum. The oldest transportation route still in existence in Pasadena is the old Tongva foot trail, also known as the Gabrielino Trail, that follows the west side of the Rose Bowl and the Arroyo Seco past the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The Spanish first colonized the Los Angeles Basin in the 1770s as part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain and renaming the local Tongva people "Gabrielino Indians", after the name of the mission. In 1821, Mexico became independent of Spain and California came under control of the Mexican government.

History

The original inhabitants of Pasadena were members of the Native American Hahamog-na tribe, a branch of the Tongva Nation. The Spanish first colonized the Los Angeles Basin in the 1770s as part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. The oldest transportation route still in existence in Pasadena is the old Tongva foot trail, also known as the Gabrielino Trail, that follows the west side of the Rose Bowl and the Arroyo Seco past the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The trail has been in continuous use for thousands of years. Today, several bands of Tongva people live in the L.A. area. The town of Pasadena was founded in 1841 as a resort town. The city's name is derived from the word "Pasakeg-na" which means "peaceful" or "calm" in a Tongva language. It was named after the town of Pasakeg, which was once the home of the "Tongva" tribe. The name Pasadena was also used to refer to the city of Pasadena, California, in the 19th century. It is now the site of the University of California, Los Angeles, and the California Museum of Natural History, which is located on the campus of the California Institute of Technology. The University of Southern California is located in the heart of the city and is a major tourist attraction. The university is one of the largest universities in the U.S. and has a campus that is open to the public.

Geography

Pasadena has a Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csa), with typically hotter summers and slightly cooler winters than nearby coastal areas. Its location relative to the San Gabriel mountains allows the orographic lift to add several more inches of rainfall per year than nearby areas. The most rainfall in one month was 19.70 inches (500.4 mm) in February 1980. The wettest "rain year" was from July 1940 to June 1941 with 46.32 inches (1,176.5 mm) and the driest from July 1960 to June 1961 with 7.18 inches (182.4mm) The average highest temperature recorded each year is around 106 °F (41 °C) The hottest heatwaves of the year usually occur in mid to late September. The Santa Ana winds can produce heat, high winds, power outages, tree damage and an increased wildfire threat whenever they strike. The heaviest snowfall in Pasadena history occurred on January 11, 1949; 8 inches (20.3 cm) fell at Pasadena's city hall and more than 14 inches (35.6cm) fell in the foothills above the city. The city has a total area of 23.1 square miles (60 km²), over 99% of it land; 0.68% is water. It rarely rains during the summer and fall months, and only does when the remnants of hurricanes and tropical storms pass by. It is not impossible to go 6 months without measurable precipitation.

Demographics

The 2010 U.S. Census reported that Pasadena had a population of 137,122. The racial makeup of Pasadena was 76,550 (55.8%) White, 14,650 (10.7%) African American, 827 (0.6%) Native American, 19,595 (14.3%) Asian, 134 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 18,675 (13.6) from other races, and 6,691 (4.9%) from two or more races. Non-Hispanic whites were 38.8% of the population, down from 70.4% in 1970. There were 59,551 housing units at an average density of 2,574.8 per square mile (994.1/km²), of which 24,863 were owner-occupied, and 30,407 were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.3%; the rental vacancy ratewas 6.6%. 64,306 people (46.9% of. the population) lived in owner- occupied housing units and 69,323 people (50.6%). Pasadena has a median household income of $69,302, with 13.2% of its population living below the federal poverty line. For people ages 25 and over, 88.3% had a high school degree or higher while 52.3%. had a Bachelor's degree or more. The median age of Pasadena is 37.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.1 males. The average household size is 2.42.

Economy

Pasadena is home to the annual Rose Bowl Flea Market. The city is also home to one of the world's most popular tourist attractions, the California State Fair. It is also the site of one of Los Angeles' most popular nightlife destinations, the Rose Bowl, and the California Museum of Natural History. The City's economy is strong, and many businesses are based in the city. It also has some of the most popular attractions in the world, such as the State Fair of California and the Los Angeles County Museum of Nature and Science, as well as a number of national parks and beaches. It has a population of more than 1.5 million, making it the second largest city in the state after Los Angeles. It was the site for the opening of the California state fair in 1967, and has been the center of the event for more than 50 years. It's also the location of the National World War II Memorial, which was built in honor of the U.S. Army's 4th of July celebration. The Rose Bowl flea market is held every year on the second Sunday of the month, and attracts thousands of visitors. It features a wide variety of vendors, including local restaurants, shops, and a variety of art galleries. The festival is the largest of its kind in the United States, with more than 20,000 people attending each year. There is also a large number of restaurants and bars, many of which are located on the grounds of the state fair, which is located in Pasadena.

Arts and culture

Pasadena is home to the Tournament of Roses Parade, held each year on January 1 (or on January 2, if the 1st falls on a Sunday) The first parade was held in 1890 and was originally sponsored by the Valley Hunt Club, a Pasadena social club. The Rose Bowl, a National Historic Landmark, is host of the first and most famous college football postseason bowl game, the Rose Bowl Game, every New Year's Day. The legendary Pasadena Playhouse, the State Theater of California, is a member supported theater company that celebrated their centennial season in 2018. The Pasadena Symphony, founded in 1928, offers several concerts a year at the Ambassador Auditorium and the Pasadena Pops plays at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden. The Civic Center also holds a few traveling Broadway shows each year.

Sports

The Rose Bowl is a stadium in Pasadena, California. It is the home of the UCLA Bruins football team. The stadium is also home to the U.S. National Diving Team. It has also hosted the 1994 and 2000 World Cups. It was the home ground of the Los Angeles Galaxy from 1996 to 2003. It also hosts the annual Rose Bowl football game on New Year's Day. The Rose Bowl has been home to a number of professional sports teams, including the LA Galaxy, the LA Kings, and the San Francisco 49ers, among others. The venue was also the site of the 1998 World Cup, which was won by the United States. It hosted the 2002 World Cup in the same stadium, which won the gold medal for the USA. It's also the home stadium of the American Futsal Team, which has won the World Cup three times, including in 2002 and 2003. The city of Pasadena also has its own version of the Rose Bowl, which is known as the Pasadena Rose Bowl and is located on the banks of the San Diego River. The town's name comes from the city's name, Pasadena, which means "beautiful city" in Spanish, and "rose" in English. The name "Rose Bowl" is also used to refer to the city of Los Angeles, where the stadium was built in the 1930s. It stands for Rose Bowl Park, which stands for "Rose Avenue" or "Rose Street" in Pasadena. The site is also known as "Preston Park" because of its location on the San Gabriel River.

Government

Pasadena has a city council/manager form of government. The city manager oversees 13 departments including Water and Power and Human Services. The Pasadena Fire Department is an ISO Class 1 department, consisting of 181 full-time employees (161 shift personnel, 20 administrative personnel) and eight modern fire stations that serve an area in a radius of 60 miles (97 km) Unincorporated portions of the city are part of Los Angeles County and are served by the LA County Sheriff's Department (LASD) The city is one of three city members of the Burbank-Glendale-Pas Pasadena Airport Authority, which is a joint powers agency that owns Hollywood Burbank Airport. In 2016, the Pasadena Public Health Department received accreditation by the national Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) The L.A. County Department of Health Services operates the Monrovia Health Center, serving portions of Pasadena. In 1967, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWDSC or "MetC") was formed. The charter for the MWDSC was signed on November 6, 1928. The Water Department operates a number of wells, has a spreading ground for the capture of the surface water from the Arroyo Seco, and a chlorine generation plant. In 1915, the Water Department added chlorine generation (from the Electro Beaching Gas Company of New York) to disinfect water taken from the Colorado River and lead from the New York City area. In the late 1920s, Pasadena took the initiative to obtain water from Colorado River.

Education

The California Institute of Technology is in the southern-central area of Pasadena. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (managed for NASA by Caltech) is also in Pasadena. Until about 1970, the Rose Parade Queen's court was exclusively selected from its students. The Pasadena Unified School District encompasses 76 square miles (200 km²) and includes Pasadena, Altadena and Sierra Madre. There are 17 K-5 elementary schools, one K-8 school, five middle schools, two 6-12 (secondary) schools, and two high schools in the city. Private elementary schools located in Pasadena include Judson International School, Walden, Mayfield Junior School, Chandler School, Polytechnic School, Westridge School, St Andrew's Catholic Church, St. Phillip the Apostle School, and Sequoyah School. The world's first tuition-free online university which awards accredited degrees, University of the People, is located on Lake Avenue. In 2018, it announced plans to move to Pomona by the summer of 2021. However, in 2019, It announced the campus would remain in Pasadena in 2020. The school is highly competitive. For the 2021 admissions cycle, Kaiser Permanente's medical school had the lowest acceptance rate among all American medical schools. In 2005, Caltech dedicated an on-campus weather station honoring the late Nobel laureate geneticist and meteorologist Ed Lewis. The Ed Lewis Memorial Weather Station generates weather information for KNBC and thousands of other Web sites on school campuses in Pasadena and all over the nation.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Pasadena, Los Angeles County, California = 1. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 52. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 10. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Pasadena = 6.2 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 138,699 individuals with a median age of 37.6 age the population grows by 10.31% in Pasadena, Los Angeles County, California population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 6,141.5 residents per square mile of area (2,371.24/km²). There are average 2.52 people per household in the 57,111 households with an average household income of $59,858 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 9.70% of the available work force and has dropped -6.24% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 17.82%. The number of physicians in Pasadena per 100,000 population = 213.2.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Pasadena = 20.1 inches and the annual snowfall = 0.1 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 41. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 286. 89 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 43 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 47, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Pasadena, Los Angeles County, California which are owned by the occupant = 43.15%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 49 years with median home cost = $497,080 and home appreciation of -9.39%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $7.73 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $5,277 per student. There are 21.7 students for each teacher in the school, 3591 students for each Librarian and 850 students for each Counselor. 6.18% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 23.24% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 17.75% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).