Garden Grove is a city located in northern Orange County, California, United States. In 2009, the city's population was estimated at 174,715. State Route 22, also known as the Garden Grove Freeway, passes through the city running east-west. 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 orange, 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, 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 sq mi) 0.11% of which is water.

Climate

Garden Grove, like the rest of the Los Angeles basin is well-known for its year-round pleasant weather:
-On average, the warmest month is August.
-The highest recorded temperature was 110°F in 1985.
-On average, the coolest month is December.
-The lowest recorded temperature was 22°F in 1950.
-The maximum average precipitation occurs in January.

Garden Grove has a Mediterranean climate or Dry-Summer Subtropical (Köppen climate classification Csb on the coast, Csa inland), enjoying plenty of sunshine throughout the year, with an average of 263 sunshine days and only 35 days with measurable precipitation annually.

The period of April through November is warm to hot and dry with average high temperatures of 71 - 79°F and lows of 50 - 62°F. Due to the moderating effect of the ocean, temperatures are cooler than more inland areas of Los Angeles, where temperatures frequently exceed 90°F (32°C) and occasionally reach 100°F (38°C) in inland areas (due to the moderating effect of the ocean).

The period of November through March is somewhat rainy, as shown in the table to left.

The Los Angeles area is also subject to the phenomena typical of a microclimate. As such, the temperatures can vary as much as 18°F (10°C) between inland areas and the coast, with a temperature gradient of over one degree per mile (1.6 km) from the coast inland. California has also a weather phenomenon called "June Gloom or May Grey", which sometimes brings overcast or foggy skies in the morning on the coast, but usually gives way to sunny skies by noon, during late spring and early summer.

The Los Angeles region averages 15 inches (385 mm) of precipitation annually, which mainly occurs during the winter and spring (November through April) with generally light rain showers, but sometimes as heavy rainfall and thunderstorms. Coastal areas receive slightly less rainfall, while the mountains receive slightly more. Snowfall is extremely rare in the city basin, but the mountains within city limits typically receive snowfall every winter.

The greatest snowfall recorded in downtown Los Angeles was 2 inches (5 cm) in 1932.

Demographics

As of the census 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

Local Government

According to the city’s most recent Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the city’s various funds had $206.0 million in Revenues, $193.0 million in expenditures, $1,098.9 million in total assets, $251.5 million in total liabilities, and $196.3 million in cash and investments. 

The structure of the management and coordination of city services is: 

Politics

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 J. Dalton, and its city council members are Mayor Pro Tempore Steve Jones, Bruce A. Broadwater (former mayor), Dina Nguyen and Andrew Do. The Garden Grove 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 and are represented by Republicans Ed Royce and Dana Rohrabacher, and Democrat Loretta Sanchez respectively.

Economy

According to the City's 2008 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report,  the top employers in the city are:

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.