Irvine, California

Area notes
Sphere of Influence	25.6 miles
Misc. Information
City flower	Lily of the Nile
City tree	Camphor
City insect	Western Swallowtail Butterfly

Website: http://www.ci.irvine.ca.us/

A satellite view of Irvine. The "pendant" described above is formed by Culver Drive and University Drive/Jeffrey Road. UCI is located at the bottom of the image, John Wayne Airport is located at the left, and El Toro MCAS is located at the right.

Irvine is an incorporated city in Orange County, California, United States. It is a planned city, mainly developed by the Irvine Company since the 1960s. Formally incorporated in 1971, the 46-square mile city has a population of 199,755 (as of 2006). It currently has plans to annex an undeveloped area to the north, and has already annexed the former El Toro Marine Corps Air Station, most of which is to be made into a park called the Orange County Great Park.

The city is notable for its well-regarded public elementary and high schools and exceptionally low crime rate (as of 2005, the FBI considers Irvine the safest city in the US). ^[1]

Irvine is home to the University of California, Irvine (UCI), the Orange County Center of University of Southern California, Irvine Campus of Alliant International University, Concordia University, and Irvine Valley College.

Irvine is also home to a number of corporations, particularly in the technology sector. The city's two biggest employers are UCI and Verizon Wireless [5][6].

1 A planned city
- 1.1 The Villages
2 Demographics
3 Emergency services
4 Education
5 Sister city controversy
6 Famous people from or in Irvine
7 Points of interest
8 Business
9 Twinning or Sister cities
10 Notes and references
11 External links

[edit] A planned city

The layout of Irvine was designed by Los Angeles architect William Pereira, and is nominally divided into townships called villages. The townships are separated by six-lane streets. Each township includes a spectrum of similar types of dwellings, along with shopping, religious institutions and schools. Commercial districts are checker-boarded in a periphery around the central townships.

Pereira originally envisioned an Atlantis-like circular plan with numerous man-made lakes and the university in the center. When the Irvine Company refused to relinquish valuable farmland in the flat central region of the ranch for this plan, the University site was moved to the base of the southern coastal hills. Pereira associate Raymond Watson drafted the current design which he based on the shape of a necklace (with the villages strung along two parallel main streets, which terminate at UCI, the "pendant") ^{[citation needed]}. Traces of the original circular design are visible in the layout of the UCI campus and the two man-made lakes at the center of Woodbridge, one of the central villages.

All streets have landscaping allowances. Rights-of-way for powerlines also serve as bicycle corridors, parks and greenbelts to tie together ecological preserves. The greenery is irrigated with reclaimed water.

The homeowners' associations that govern the villages exercise varying degrees of control on the appearances of homes. In more restrictive areas, houses' roofing, paint-colors, and landscaping are regulated. Some associations also restrict what types of vehicles people are allowed to park outside their homes.

The city also played host to the Boy Scouts of America's 1953 National Scout Jamboree. Jamboree Road, an important street that now stretches from Newport Beach to Orange, was created for this event.

The Ayn Rand Institute is centered in Irvine.

[edit] The Villages

Each of the villages was initially planned to have a distinct architectural theme, though many have been clouded by later development. They are listed below, from north to south. Villages currently in development are listed in bold text.

Orchard Hills (future village)
Portola Springs (2006 - ) (Spanish/Tuscan)
West Irvine (1995-1998) (California Modern)
Northwood (1971-2006) (Bungalow, Craftsman)
Northpark (1998-2002) (Spanish Mission)
Woodbury (2005- ) (Tuscan/Spanish/French)
Woodbury East (future village)
College Park (1976-1999)
The Colony
Deerfield (1964-1976) (Mixed Styles)
Walnut (1970-2004) (Prairie Style)
El Camino Real (1971-1979) (Spanish/Neo-Eclectic)
Westpark (1985-1998) (Italian Riviera/Mediterranean)
Woodbridge (1975-1992) (Atlantic Coast)
Rancho San Joaquin (1974-1979) (Shed style)
Oak Creek (1998-2003) (mixed styles)
University Park (1965-1975) (California Modern)
Quail Hill (2000- ) (Spanish/Tuscan)
The Ranch
Turtle Rock (1968-1985) (mixed styles)
Turtle Ridge (1999- ) (Tuscan)
Shady Canyon (2000- ) (Tuscan Ranch)
University Town Center (1985-1995) (mixed styles)

Note: University Hills is subsidized (20-30% below market pricing) for professors and retired professors. It is the first such community of its kind in the nation.

[edit] Demographics

The Irvine Business Complex as seen from Newport Coast Road

The census^GR2 of 2000 found there were 143,072 people, 51,199 households, and 34,354 families in the city. The population density is 1,196.2/km² (3,098.0/mi²), as of the census. There are 53,711 housing units at an average density of 449.1/km² (1,163.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 61.06% White, 1.45% Black or African American, 0.18% Native American, 29.83% Asian American, 0.14% Pacific Islander, 2.54% from other races, and 4.82% from two or more races. 7.37% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 51,199 households out of which 36.0% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.8% are married couples living together, 9.8% have a female householder with no husband present, and 32.9% are non-families. 22.8% of all households are made up of individuals and 5.0% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.66 persons and the average family size is 3.17.

In the city the population is spread out with 23.5% under the age of 18, 14.4% from 18 to 24, 32.3% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 7.2% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 33 years. For every 100 females there are 93.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 90.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $85,624, and the median income for a family is $97,592. 9.1% of the population and 5.0% of families are below the poverty line. Of the total population, 6.1% of those under the age of 18 and 5.6% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

In 2000, the median gross rent paid for housing was $1,272 a month. This was the highest of any place in the United States of more than 100,000 people.^[2] The skyrocketing high cost of housing is a major issue in Irvine and Orange County, while the city council is on a frantic pace to approve future income-subsizided housing projects to meet the demands of working-class citizens to live and work in Irvine or elsewhere in Orange County.

Irvine has one of the largest Asian-American percentages of any US city, a great percentage are immigrants or second generation Americans. There are Chinese, Taiwanese, Filipino, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Indians, Pakistanis, Iranian and Arab American communities. Most minority group Chinese residents belong to the upper-middle class and are arriving to Irvine from urban areas like South Los Angeles. There is relatively low racial tension in a tolerant city like Irvine. ^{[citation needed]} Most resident voters are registered in the Republican Party.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Emergency services

Fire protection in Irvine is provided by the Orange County Fire Authority with ambulance service by Doctor's Ambulance. Law enforcement is provided by the Irvine Police Department serves a suburban city rated sixth safest US city in the 2006 FBI crime statistic survey [7].

[edit] Education

Most of Irvine is part of the Irvine Unified School District. The four high schools in the city are University High School, Irvine High School, Northwood High School, and Woodbridge High School. University High School is recognized as one of the nation's best public high schools; as a result, housing prices near the school have skyrocketed. Northwood High was also honored recently for excellent performance, as it was ranked in the top 21 best public high schools. All four schools earned a six-year accredidation in 2006, the best possible.

All the high schools in Irvine have consistently made Newsweek's list of Top High Schools. In 2003, University High School ranked 58th[8]out of the top 804 high schools in the nation while Northwood High School ranked 404th[9], Irvine High School ranked 505th[10], and Woodbridge High School ranked 803rd[11].

In 2005, University High School ranked 117th[12] out of the top 1000 high schools with Northwood High School ranking 389th[13], Irvine High School ranking 816th[14], and Woodbridge High School ranking 1040th[15].

In Newsweek's current 2006 list, University High School ranks at 156th[16] out of 1,200 top high schools while Northwood High School ranks at 296th[17], Irvine High School ranks at 1044th[18], and Woodbridge High School rank at 1156th[19].

Also the elementry and middle schools are some of the best in the nation, including two alternative, year round, open enrollment K-8 schools (Plaza Vista and Vista Verde). ^{[citation needed]} Currently the district is constructing a new larger high tech campus for Vista Verde in the village of Turtle Ridge. The district also has a renowned music program starting in the 4th grade. Parts of the north and west of the city are served by the Tustin Unified School District.

[edit] Sister city controversy

On May 30, 2006, Irvine signed a sister-city memorandum with Xuhui district of Shanghai, which disavowed the legitimacy of Taiwan’s sovereignty. The contract barred Irvine officials from making official trips to Irvine’s sister city Taoyuan, Taiwan.

The memorandum is automatically unenforceable because Irvine is not allowed to enter into international treaties that run counter to the official United States stance on the Taiwan sovereignty issue.

After the memorandum was made public, an uproar arose from the Irvine Taiwanese American community, numbering approximately 10,000. Around 200 protesters arrived at the Irvine council meeting on June 27, 2006, demanding that the memorandum be voided.

Irvine has drafted a new agreement that is almost identical to the original memorandum, with the section renouncing Taiwan’s sovereignty removed. Xuhui District has yet to respond to the amended memorandum. If an agreement is not found, Irvine will terminate the memorandum entirely. ^[3] ^[4]