Brea, California

(Redirected fromBrea Canyon)

Brea(/ˈbrə/;[7]Spanishfor 'tar') is a city in northernOrange County, California.The population as of the2010 censuswas 39,282. It is 33 miles (53 km) southeast ofLos Angeles.Brea is part of theLos Angeles metropolitan area.

Brea, California
Market City Cafe in Brea downtown
Market City Cafe in Brea downtown
Flag of Brea, California
Official seal of Brea, California
Location of Brea in Orange County, California.
Location of Brea in Orange County, California.
Brea is located in California
Brea
Brea
Location within the state of California
Brea is located in the United States
Brea
Brea
Location within the United States
Brea is located in North America
Brea
Brea
Location within North America
Coordinates:33°55′24″N117°53′20″W/ 33.92333°N 117.88889°W/33.92333; -117.88889
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
CountyOrange
IncorporatedFebruary 23, 1917[1]
Named forSpanish for "natural asphalt" or "tar"
Government
• TypeCouncil-Manager
MayorChristine Marick
City Council[4]Blair Stewart
Cecilia Hupp
Marty Simonoff
Steven Vargas
City treasurerRick Rios[2]
City managerBill Gallardo[3]
Area
• Total
12.21 sq mi (31.61 km2)
• Land12.17 sq mi (31.51 km2)
• Water0.04 sq mi (0.10 km2) 0.26%
Elevation361 ft (110 m)
Population
• Total
47,325
• Density3,889.30/sq mi (1,501.72/km2)
Time zoneUTC−8(PST)
• Summer (DST)UTC−7(PDT)
ZIP codes
92821–92823
Area codes657/714,562
FIPScode06-08100
GNISfeature IDs1660373,2409897
Websitewww.cityofbrea.net

The city began as a center ofcrude oilproduction, was later propelled bycitrusproduction. It is a significant retail center, including theBrea Malland downtown Brea. The city has an extensivepublic artprogram which began in 1975 and continues today with over 140 artworks in the collection placed and located throughout the city.[8]

History

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Indigenous

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The area began as part of the homelands of theTongva,who lived in the area for thousands of years before any contact was made with Europeans.[9]The tribe established numerous villages in the area interconnected by extensive trails for travel and trade with neighboring Indigenous nations. The closest known village site to the city of Brea today isHutuknga.[10]

Spanish era

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The area was visited on July 29, 1769, by the SpanishPortolá expedition– the first Europeans to see inland parts ofAlta California.The party camped in Brea Canyon, near a large native village and a small pool of clean water.[11]A historical marker dedicated to his visit stands in Brea Canyon just north of town.

Oil fieldsof the Brea area, early 1900s

The village ofOlindawas founded in present-day Carbon Canyon at the beginning of the 19th century and many entrepreneurs came to the area searching for "black gold" (petroleum).

American era

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In 1894, the owner of the land,Abel Stearns,sold 1,200 acres (4.9 km2) west of Olinda to the newly createdUnion Oil Company of California,and by 1898 many nearby hills began sporting wooden oil drilling towers on the newly discoveredBrea-Olinda Oil Field.In 1908 the village of Randolph, named for railway engineerEpes Randolph,was founded just south of Brea Canyon for oil workers and their families. Baseball legendWalter Johnsongrew up in Olinda at the start of the 20th century where he worked in the surroundingoil fieldsas a youth.[12]

TheSpanish Colonial Revival-style former Brea City Hall in the 1940s.

The villages of Olinda and Randolph grew and merged as the economy boomed. On January 19, 1911, the town's map was filed under the new name of Brea, from the Spanish language word fornatural asphalt, also called bitumen, pitch or tar.With a population of 752, Brea wasincorporatedon February 23, 1917, as the eighth official city ofOrange County.

As oil production declined, some agricultural development took place, especially lemon and orange groves. In the 1920s, the BreaChamber of Commercepromoted the city with the slogan “Oil, Oranges, and Opportunity.”[13]

In 1950, Brea had a population of 3,208, which is 641 more than ten years prior. The citrus groves gave way gradually to industrial parks and residential development. In 1956,Carl N. Karcheropened the first twoCarl's Jr.restaurants inAnaheim, Californiaand Brea, California. The opening of theOrange Freeway(57) and theBrea Mallin the 1970s spurred further residential growth, including large planned developments east of the 57 Freeway in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s.

In the late 1990s, a 50-acre (200,000 m2) swath of downtown Brea centered on Brea Boulevard and Birch Street was heavily redeveloped into a shopping and entertainment area with movie theaters, sidewalk cafes, a live comedy club fromThe Improvchain, numerous shops and restaurants, and a weekly farmer's market. It is locally known and signed as Downtown Brea. The downtown area opened in 2000.

Sunsetmagazine named Brea one of the five best suburbs to live in the Western United States in early 2006.[14]

Geography

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According to theUnited States Census Bureau,the city has an area of 12.1 square miles (31 km2). 12.1 square miles (31 km2) of it is land and 0.26% is water.

It is bordered by unincorporatedOrange CountyandLos Angeles Countyto the north and east,La Habrato the west,Fullertonto the southwest,Placentiato the south,Chino Hillsto the northwest, andYorba Lindato the southeast.

Climate

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According to theKöppen Climate Classificationsystem, Brea has ahot-summer Mediterranean climate,abbreviated "Csa" on climate maps.[15]

Climate data for Brea, California
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 21
(69)
21
(70)
22
(72)
23
(74)
24
(76)
27
(80)
29
(85)
30
(86)
30
(86)
27
(81)
24
(75)
21
(69)
25
(77)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 8
(47)
9
(48)
10
(50)
11
(52)
14
(57)
16
(60)
18
(64)
18
(64)
17
(62)
14
(57)
11
(51)
8
(46)
13
(55)
Averageprecipitationmm (inches) 64
(2.5)
79
(3.1)
69
(2.7)
28
(1.1)
5.1
(0.2)
0
(0)
0
(0)
10
(0.4)
7.6
(0.3)
7.6
(0.3)
30
(1.2)
61
(2.4)
361.3
(14.2)
[citation needed]

Government

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Brea City Hall, Civic & Cultural Center
The old Brea City Hall in the 1940s.

Local

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Brea is governed by acouncil-managersystem. The five-member city council is elected to four-year terms in elections held every two years to fill alternately two and three seats.[16]The council is made up of the mayor, the mayor pro tem and three councilmembers.[17]The council elects a mayor from the serving councilmembers to serve a one-year term as mayor. The city council hires a city manager to direct the city's departments and advise the council. The council appoints members of the Planning Commission; Parks, Recreation and Human Services Commission; Cultural Arts Commission, and Traffic Committee.[16]

City services

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Fire protection for Brea is provided by theBrea Fire Department(BFD)[18]and law enforcement is provided by theBrea Police Department.Within Carbon Canyon,[19]in theOlindaneighborhood of Brea,[20]is situatedOlinda Landfill,[21]a major waste management facility serving a large part of Orange County.[22]

Management of the city and coordination of city services is provided by:[23]

State and federal representation

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In theCalifornia State Legislature,Brea is inthe 29th Senate District,represented byDemocratJosh Newman,and inthe 55th Assembly District,represented byDemocratIsaac Bryan.[24]

In theUnited States House of Representatives,Brea is split betweenCalifornia's 45th congressional district,represented byRepublicanMichelle Steel,[25]andCalifornia's 40th congressional district,represented byRepublicanYoung Kim.[26]

Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note
19201,037
19302,435134.8%
19402,5675.4%
19503,20825.0%
19608,487164.6%
197018,447117.4%
198027,91351.3%
199032,87317.8%
200035,4107.7%
201039,28210.9%
202047,32520.5%
U.S. Decennial Census[27]

2010

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The2010 United States Census[28]reported that Brea had a population of 39,282. The population density was 3,243.9 inhabitants per square mile (1,252.5/km2). The racial makeup of Brea was 26,363 (67.1%)White(52.7% Non-Hispanic White),[29]549 (1.4%)African American,190 (0.5%)Native American,7,144 (18.2%)Asian,69 (0.2%)Pacific Islander,3,236 (8.2%) fromother races,and 1,731 (4.4%) from two or more races.HispanicorLatinoof any race were 9,817 persons (25.0%).

The census reported that 39,213 people (99.8% of the population) lived in households, 69 (0.2%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.

There were 14,266 households, out of which 5,043 (35.3%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 8,132 (57.0%) wereopposite-sex married couplesliving together, 1,605 (11.3%) had a female householder with no husband present, 632 (4.4%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 569 (4.0%)unmarried opposite-sex partnerships,and 100 (0.7%)same-sex married couples or partnerships.3,070 households (21.5%) were made up of individuals, and 1,265 (8.9%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75. There were 10,369families(72.7% of all households); the average family size was 3.23.

The population was spread out, with 9,057 people (23.1%) under the age of 18, 3,654 people (9.3%) aged 18 to 24, 10,669 people (27.2%) aged 25 to 44, 10,952 people (27.9%) aged 45 to 64, and 4,950 people (12.6%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.

There were 14,785 housing units at an average density of 1,221.0 units per square mile (471.4 units/km2), of which 9,266 (65.0%) were owner-occupied, and 5,000 (35.0%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.3%; the rental vacancy rate was 5.3%. 26,889 people (68.5% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 12,324 people (31.4%) lived in rental housing units.

According to the 2010 United States Census, Brea had a median household income of $82,055, with 5.6% of the population living below the federal poverty line.[29]

2000

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There were 13,067 households, out of which 34.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.6% were married couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.8% were non-families. 23.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.21.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 25.6% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $64,820, and the median income for a family was $68,423. Males had a median income of $50,500 versus $35,674 for females. The per capita income for the city was $26,307. About 3.4% of families and 5.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.7% of those under age 18 and 5.2% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

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Brea is traditionally a Republican stronghold at the presidential level; however, Democratic candidateJoe Bidencarried the city in 2020.[citation needed]According to theCalifornia Secretary of State,as of October 22, 2018, Brea has 24,775 registered voters. Of those, 9,991 (40.33%) are registered Republicans, 7,370 (29.75%) are registered Democrats, and 6,466 (26.10%) have declined to state a political party or are independents.[30]

Brea city vote
by party in presidential elections
Year Democratic Republican Third Parties
2020[31] 50.52%12,801 47.54%12,046 1.95%493
2016[32] 44.55%8,724 48.17%9,432 7.28%1,426
2012[33] 39.66%7,197 57.89%10,504 2.45%444
2008[34] 41.70%7,625 56.26%10,287 2.05%374
2004[35] 33.35%5,722 65.56%11,248 1.08%186
2000[36] 34.59%5,408 61.71%9,649 3.70%579
1996[37] 34.70%4,931 55.40%7,872 9.90%1,407
1992[38] 28.91%4,686 48.09%7,796 23.00%3,728
1988[39] 27.82%4,061 71.06%10,372 1.12%164
1984[40] 21.26%2,976 77.96%10,913 0.79%110
1980[41] 20.79%2,660 71.03%9,088 8.18%1,046
1976[42] 33.24%2,983 65.24%5,855 1.48%133

Economy

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Top employers

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According to the city's 2023 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report,[43]the top employers in the city are:

# Employer # of employees
1 Albertsons 1,206
2 Beckman Coulter 837
3 Brea Olinda Unified School District 621
4 Nationwide 460
5 Service Champions Plumbing, HVAC 406
6 Bristol Industries 405
7 Nordstrom 250
8 24 Hour Fitness 201
9 Acosta Sales & Marketing 163
10 The Olive Garden 122

Education

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The city is primarily served by theBrea Olinda Unified School Districtwhich operates six elementary schools, one junior high school (Brea Junior High School), one high school (Brea Olinda High School) and one continuation high school (Brea Canyon High School). A small portion of Brea is also directed toSonora High SchoolinLa Habrain theFullerton Joint Union High School District.That small portion is also directed to theLa Habra City School District.In addition, students can also take an assessment to place in nearbyTroy High SchoolinFullerton,also part of the Fullerton High School District.

There are many private schools in Brea, the Brea Head Start (Pre) Brea Olinda Friends School (Pre-6), Brea Congregational Pre-School, Brea Foursquare Church (Pre-5), Brea United Methodist Pre-School ( "BUMPS" ), Carbon Canyon Christian School (K-12), Christ Lutheran School (Pre-8), St. Angela Merici Parish School (TK-8), and Montessori of Brea (K-6). Brea is also home to the Southern California College of Business and Law and the Southern California extension ofGolden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary.

School awards

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Edwards Cinemas movie theater in downtown Brea

Local schools have won several awards. Brea Olinda High School and Olinda Elementary School have been namedBlue Ribbon Schools.Additionally, Arovista Elementary, Country Hills Elementary, Fanning Elementary, Mariposa Elementary, Olinda Elementary, Brea Junior High and Brea Olinda High schools have been namedCalifornia Distinguished Schools.[44]Laurel Elementary received a Title I Academic Achievement Award. Brea Junior High School and Brea Olinda High School have been namedCalifornia Gold Ribbon Schools.[45]

Notable people

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Sister cities

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Brea istwinnedwith:[47]

References

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  1. ^"California Cities by Incorporation Date".California Association ofLocal Agency Formation Commissions.Archived fromthe original(Word)on November 3, 2014.RetrievedAugust 25,2014.
  2. ^"City Treasurer".Brea, CA.RetrievedFebruary 8,2015.
  3. ^"City Manager's Office".Brea, CA.RetrievedJune 3,2019.
  4. ^"City Council".Brea, CA.RetrievedJune 3,2019.
  5. ^"2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files".United States Census Bureau.RetrievedOctober 30,2021.
  6. ^"Brea".Geographic Names Information System.United States Geological Survey,United States Department of the Interior.RetrievedApril 13,2015.
  7. ^Gudde, Erwin G. (1998).California Place Names: The Origin and Etymology of Current Geographical Names(4th ed.).University of California Press.p.46.ISBN978-0-520-26619-3.
  8. ^Epting, Chris (2008).Vanishing Orange County.Charleston, SC: Arcadia Pub. p. 95.ISBN978-0-7385-5974-2.OCLC310982718.
  9. ^"A Condensed History".City of Brea.2017.
  10. ^Koerper, Henry; Mason, Roger; Peterson, Mark (2002).Catalysts to complexity: late Holocene societies of the California coast.Jon Erlandson, Terry L. Jones, Jeanne E. Arnold, Cotsen Institute of Archaeology at UCLA. Los Angeles: Cotsen Institute of Archaeology at UCLA. pp. 64–66, 79.ISBN978-1-938770-67-8.OCLC745176510.
  11. ^Bolton, Herbert E. (1927).Fray Juan Crespi: Missionary Explorer on the Pacific Coast, 1769-1774.HathiTrust Digital Library. pp. 142–143.
  12. ^Dufresne, Chris (June 2, 2008)."The year the Big Train stopped in Brea, and brought the Babe".Los Angeles Times.RetrievedJune 2,2008.
  13. ^"Brea Chamber History".Brea Chamber of Commerce. Archived fromthe originalon September 14, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 26,2016.
  14. ^"Brea Wins Acclaim, Best Place To Live".Sunset.Archived fromthe originalon July 1, 2012.RetrievedAugust 5,2007.
  15. ^"Brea, California Travel Weather Averages (Weatherbase)".Weatherbase.RetrievedAugust 13,2016.
  16. ^ab"City Council".City of Brea. Archived fromthe originalon October 11, 2006.RetrievedOctober 27,2006.
  17. ^"Brea City Council - 2005-2006".City of Brea. Archived fromthe originalon October 26, 2006.RetrievedOctober 27,2006.
  18. ^"Fire Services".City of Brea. Archived fromthe originalon October 26, 2006.RetrievedOctober 27,2006.
  19. ^Hills For Everyone - Friends of Puente-Chino Hills Wildlife Corridor."Olinda Landfill at Hills For Everyone".Archived fromthe originalon July 26, 2011.RetrievedDecember 30,2010.
  20. ^City of Brea."Olinda Landfill at City of Brea official website".Archived fromthe originalon March 11, 2011.RetrievedDecember 30,2010.
  21. ^California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle)."Olinda Landfill at CalRecycle".Archived fromthe originalon August 3, 2010.RetrievedDecember 30,2010.
  22. ^Orange County Waste & Recycling Department."Olinda Landfill at Orange County Waste & Recycling Department".Archived fromthe originalon July 3, 2010.RetrievedDecember 30,2010.
  23. ^City of Brea WebsiteArchivedJune 25, 2009, at theWayback Machine.Retrieved August 26, 2015
  24. ^"Statewide Database".UC Regents. Archived fromthe originalon February 1, 2015.RetrievedDecember 14,2014.
  25. ^"California's 35th Congressional District - Representatives & District Map".Civic Impulse, LLC.
  26. ^"California's 40th Congressional District - Representatives & District Map".Civic Impulse, LLC.
  27. ^"Census of Population and Housing".Census.gov.RetrievedJune 4,2015.
  28. ^"2010 Census Interactive Population Search: CA - Brea city".U.S. Census Bureau. Archived fromthe originalon July 15, 2014.RetrievedJuly 12,2014.
  29. ^ab"Brea (City) QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau".Archived fromthe originalon April 17, 2015.RetrievedDecember 12,2013.
  30. ^"CA Secretary of State – Report of Registration – October 22, 2018"(PDF).ca.gov.RetrievedFebruary 16,2019.
  31. ^"Precinct results"(PDF).ocvote.2020.RetrievedNovember 27,2020.
  32. ^"CERTIFIED STATEMENT OF THE VOTES CAST at the PRESIDENTIAL GENERAL ELECTION November 8, 2016 in the County of Orange, State of California"(PDF).
  33. ^"CERTIFIED STATEMENT OF THE VOTES CAST at the GENERAL ELECTION November 6, 2012 in the County of Orange, State of California"(PDF).
  34. ^"Orange County Statement of Votes"(PDF).
  35. ^"Orange County Statement of Votes"(PDF).
  36. ^"ORANGE COUNTY Statement of Votes GENERAL ELECTION"(PDF).
  37. ^California. Secretary of State (March 30, 1968)."Statement of vote".Sacramento, Calif.: The Secretary – via Internet Archive.
  38. ^California. Secretary of State (March 30, 1968)."Statement of vote".Sacramento, Calif.: The Secretary – via Internet Archive.
  39. ^Statement of the Vote.Sacramento, Calif.: The Secretary. 1968.
  40. ^Statement of the Vote.Sacramento, Calif.: The Secretary. 1968.
  41. ^Statement of the Vote.Sacramento, Calif.: The Secretary. 1968.
  42. ^Statement of the Vote.Sacramento, Calif.: The Secretary. 1968.
  43. ^"City of Brea ACFR".RetrievedAugust 14,2024.
  44. ^Leal, Fermin (March 29, 2012)."42 O.C. schools named state's best".Orange County Register.Archivedfrom the original on April 4, 2020.RetrievedApril 4,2020.
  45. ^Whitehead, Brian (April 19, 2017)."29 Orange County schools receive California Gold Ribbon honors".Orange County Register.Archivedfrom the original on April 4, 2020.RetrievedApril 4,2020.
  46. ^Chawkins, Steve (June 25, 2015)."JoAnn Dean Killingsworth dies at 91; Disneyland's first Snow White".Los Angeles Times.RetrievedJuly 22,2015.
  47. ^"Brea Sister City Program".ci.brea.ca.us.City of Brea.RetrievedJanuary 13,2021.
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