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El Segundo
   
El Segundo is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located on the Santa Monica Bay, it was incorporated on January 18, 1917, and is one of the Beach Cities of Los Angeles County and part of the South Bay Cities Council of Governments. The population was 16,033 at the 2000 census.
History
The El Segundo and Los Angeles coastal area was first settled by the Tongva (or Gabrieleños) and Chumash Native American tribes hundreds of years ago. The area was once a part of Rancho San Pedro and later became Ranch Sausal Redondo ("Round Willow Patch Ranch"). Rancho Sausal Redondo extended from Playa Del Rey in the North to Redondo Beach in the South. Originally a Spanish land grant, the rancho was later purchased by a Scottish baronet named Sir Robert Burnett. After his return to Scotland, the property was purchased by then current manager of the rancho, Daniel Freeman. Daniel Freeman sold portions of the rancho to multiple owners. George H. Peck (1856-1940) of land the Chevron Refinery now sits on. Peck also developed land in neighboring El Porto where a street still stands to his name. The city earned its name ("the second" in Spanish) as it was the site of the second Standard Oil refinery on the West Coast (the first was at Richmond n northern California), when Standard Oil of California purchased the 840 acres (3.4 km2) of farm land in 1911. The company was renamed Chevron in 1984, and the El Segundo refinery will soon enter its second century of operation. The city was incorporated in 1917. owned the 840 acres (3.4 km
Overview
In 2006, El Segundo won an Eddy award for being the most business-friendly city in L.A. County. El Segundo is in transition from being a predominantly blue-collar 'company town' to being a 'corporate' town where the tax base relies on a non-resident working population. Pollution and toxic waste cleanup remain issues as El Segundo converts industrial sites to shopping malls and sports facilities. The north and south boundaries of the town are the LAX airport and Manhattan Beach, with the Pacific Ocean as the western boundary. The most prominent feature of the town is the massive oil refinery which borders the town center and the massive sewage treatment facility on the west side of the town. The sewage treatment facility is the cause of a major odor issue, causing the city to frequently smell like raw sewage. Office towers are not a prominent feature of this town from any but a very select vantage point. Aircraft noise from LAX is a major issue for residents on the north side of El Segundo. Residents are currently active in tree-planting along Imperial Highway.
Economy
El Segundo has many aviation-related and petroleum-related industries and operations. In 1911, Chevron began its second refinery; the name El Segundo, Spanish for "The Second," came from the second oil refinery. In 1928 William Mines, an immigrant from Canada, leased land for a flying field. Los Angeles International Airport, opened north of El Segundo; its presence led to the concentration of aerospace and aviation-related firms in the El Segundo area.
In 1930 Los Angeles Municipal Airport, later Many large aerospace companies have facilities in El Segundo, including Boeing, Raytheon, Lockhead Martin, Northrop Grumman, and The Aerospace Corporation, which is headquartered there. It is also home to the Los Angeles Air Force Base and the Space and Missile Systems Center (SMC), which is responsible for space-related acquisition for the military. In addition to the Chevron oil refinery, El Segundo is also home to the El Segundo power plant Hyperion sewage treatment plant. Toy manufacturer Mattel satellite TV provider The DirecTV Group, medical company DaVita, IT services firm Computer Sciences Corporation, power semiconductor company International Rectifier, grocery chain Fresh and Easy, the Internet company Internet Brands (parent company of CarsDirect), the vulnerability assessment company Rapid7, Teledyne Controls, contractor Wyle Laboratories and other companies are in El Segundo.
Demographics
As of the 2000 Census, the population density was 2,894.6 inhabitants per square mile (1,117.4/km²). There were 7,261 housing units at an average density of 1,310.9 per square mile (506.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 83.61% White, 1.17%Black or African American, 0.47% Native American, 6.41% Asian, 0.29% Pacific Islander 3.51% from other races, and 4.55% from two or more races. 11.01% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 7,060 households out of which 28.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.5% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.6% were non-families. 34.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.7% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 38.7% from 25 to 44, 22.9% from 45 to 64, and 9.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 98.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $61,341, and the median income for a family was $74,007. Males had a median income of $52,486 versus $41,682 for females. The per capita income for the city was $33,996. About 3.1% of families and 4.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.7% of those under age 18 and 6.0% of those age 65 or over.
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