Torrance, California
City
Torrance Beach
Flag Seal Logo
Motto:  "A Balanced City"
Location of Torrance in the County of Los Angeles
Torrance, California Location in the contiguous United States
Coordinates: 33°50′05″N 118°20′29″W / 33.83472°N 118.34139°W / 33.83472; -118.34139
Country	United States
State	California
County	Los Angeles
Incorporated	May 12, 1921[1]
Named for	Jared Sidney Torrance
Government
• Type	Council-manager[2]
• Mayor	George Chen
• City council[3]	Jon Kaji - District 1 Bridgett Lewis - District 2 Asam Sheikh - District 3 Sharon Kalani - District 4 Aurelio Mattucci - District 5 Mike Griffiths - District 6
• City treasurer	Tim Goodrich[3]
• City clerk	Rebecca Poirier[3]
Area [4]
• Total	20.53 sq mi (53.18 km2)
• Land	20.50 sq mi (53.10 km2)
• Water	0.03 sq mi (0.08 km2)  0.37%
Elevation [5]	89 ft (27 m)
Population  (2020)[6]
• Total	147,067
• Rank	8th in Los Angeles County 41st in California 187th in the United States
• Density	7,200/sq mi (2,800/km2)
Time zone	UTC−8 (Pacific)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−7 (PDT)
ZIP Codes	90277, 90278, 90248, 90501,[7] 90503–90510
Area codes	310/424
FIPS code	06-80000
GNIS feature IDs	1652802, 2412087
Website	www.torranceca.gov

Torrance is a coastal city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, located in southwest Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay region of the metropolitan area. A small section of the city, 1.5 miles (2.4 km), abuts the Pacific Ocean. Torrance has a moderate year-round climate with average rainfall of 12 inches (300 mm) per year.^[8] Torrance was incorporated in 1921, and at the 2020 census had a population of 147,067 residents.^[6] Torrance has a beachfront and has 30 parks located around the city.^[8] It is also the birthplace of the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO).

History

Pre-colonial era

For thousands of years, the area where Torrance is located was part of the Tongva Native American homeland. The land that is now part of the City of Torrance and much of the modern South Bay was part of the extensive marshlands.

Spanish and Mexican eras

In 1784, the Spanish Crown deeded Rancho San Pedro (including present-day Torrance), a tract of over 75,000 acres (300 km²) in the Province of Las Californias of New Spain, to soldier Juan José Domínguez.^[9][10] It was later divided in 1846, with Governor Pío Pico granting Rancho de los Palos Verdes to José Loreto and Juan Capistrano Sepulveda in the Alta California territory of independent Mexico.^[11][12]

Modern Era

In the early 1900s, real estate developer Jared Sidney Torrance and other investors saw the value of creating a mixed industrial–residential community south of Los Angeles. They purchased part of an old Spanish land grant and hired landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. to design a planned community.^[13] The resulting town was founded in October 1912 and named after Torrance. The city of Torrance was formally incorporated in May 1921, the townsite initially being bounded by Western Avenue on the east, Del Amo Boulevard on the north, Crenshaw Boulevard on the west, and on the south by Plaza del Amo east of where it meets Carson Street, and by Carson Street west of where it meets Plaza del Amo.^[14]

The first residential avenue created in Torrance was Gramercy and the second avenue was Andreo. Many of the houses on these avenues reached the centennial mark in 2012. Both avenues are located in the area referred to as Old Torrance. This section of Torrance is under review to be classified as a historical district.^[15] Some of the early civic and residential buildings were designed by the renowned and innovative Southern California architect Irving Gill, in his distinctive combining of Mission Revival and early Modernist architecture.^[16]

Historic Olmstead District

Torrance was planned as a new prototype of a balanced industrial city based on the principles of the Garden City Movement. The original tract developed by the Olmstead Brothers consists of 109 city blocks divided into three sub-districts: residential, commercial, and industrial. The plan is most notable for its axial landscaped downtown commercial neighborhood aligned to have a view of Mount San Antonio in the San Gabriel Mountains. The Olmsted Tract includes a number of buildings designed by the noted Southern California Architect Irving Gill, including the original train depot.^[17]

The footprint of the downtown neighborhood, now called Old Torrance, was designed on a diagonal to allow the trade breezes coming from the Pacific Ocean to keep the air clean from industrial pollution for the residential and commercial neighborhoods. The industrial sections of the city were placed on the eastern side of the original tract.

Public transportation played a key role in the founding of Torrance. The Pacific Electric Red Car connected downtown Los Angeles to the new development of downtown Torrance. Designed in 1912 by Irving Gill, the terminus depot of the Red Car line was designed in a Spanish revival style popularized during this era.^[18] In May 1913, the Pacific Electric Railroad Bridge was built. Often called the "El Prado Bridge", it further expanded the industrial heart of the South Bay. The concrete double-tracked arch bridge was the Pacific Electric Railway's first interurban line that connected north/south to San Pedro via the Gardena Line.^[19] The bridge was used for transporting freight and commuting workers to Torrance factories. The Red Car line connected under the bridge as it connected to the train depot located on Cabrillo Avenue. The bridge no longer carries any rail cars, with Pacific Electric closing the Red Car line to Torrance in the 1940s. The bridge became the city of Torrance's second entry in the National Register of Historic Places on July 13, 1989 and is used as a logo for the city's new wayfinding signage and city materials.^[20]

Geography

Torrance is a coastal community in southwestern Los Angeles County sharing the climate and geographical features common to the Greater Los Angeles area. Its boundaries are: Redondo Beach Boulevard and the cities of Lawndale and Gardena to the north; Western Avenue and the Harbor Gateway neighborhood of Los Angeles to the east; the Palos Verdes Hills with the cities of Lomita, Rolling Hills Estates and Palos Verdes Estates on the south; and the Pacific Ocean and the cities of Redondo Beach and Carson to the west.^[21]

The western portion of Torrance is in ZIP Code 90277 which is a city of Redondo Beach postal address.^[22] It is about 20 miles (32 km) southwest of Downtown Los Angeles.^[23]

Torrance Beach lies between Redondo Beach and Malaga Cove on Santa Monica Bay.^[24] The southernmost stretch of Torrance Beach, on a cove at the northern end of the Palos Verdes peninsula, is known to locals as Rat Beach (Right After Torrance).

An urban wetland, the Madrona Marsh is a nature preserve on land once set for oil production and saved from development, with restoration projects enhancing the vital habitat for birds, wildlife, and native plants.^[25][26]

A nature center provides activities, information, and classes for school children and visitors of all ages.^[27]

Climate

Torrance has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen: Csb), bordering with a semi-arid climate (Bsk). The rainy season is November through March, as shown in the adjacent table.^[28] Summers tend to be warm and humid due to Torrance's proximity to the coast.^[29]

The Los Angeles area is also subject to the phenomenon typical of a microclimate. As such, the temperatures can vary by as much as 18 °F (10 °C) between inland areas and the coast, with a temperature gradient of over 1 °F per mile (0.3 °C/km) from the coast inland. California has also a weather phenomenon called "June Gloom" or "May Gray", which sometimes brings overcast or foggy skies in the morning on the coast, followed by sunny skies by noon during late spring and early summer.^{[citation needed]}

Demographics

2010

The 2010 United States Census^[33] reported that Torrance had a population of 145,438. The population density was 7,076.1 inhabitants per square mile (2,732.1/km²). The racial makeup of Torrance was 74,333 (51.1%) White (42.3% Non-Hispanic White), 50,240 (34.5%) Asian, 3,955 (2.7%) African American, 554 (0.4%) Native American, 530 (0.4%) Pacific Islander, 7,808 (5.4%) from other races, and 8,018 (5.5%) from two or more races. There were 23,440 Hispanic or Latino residents, of any race (16.1%).

The Census reported that 144,292 people (99.2% of the population) lived in households, 506 (0.3%) homeless who lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 640 (0.4%) were institutionalized.

There were 56,001 households, out of which 18,558 (33.1%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 29,754 (53.1%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 6,148 (11.0%) had a female householder with no husband present, 2,510 (4.5%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 2,152 (3.8%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 309 (0.6%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 14,472 households (25.8%) were made up of individuals, and 5,611 (10.0%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58. There were 38,412 families (68.6% of all households); the average family size was 3.14.

The population was spread out, with 31,831 people (21.9%) under the age of 18, 10,875 people (7.5%) aged 18 to 24, 38,296 people (26.3%) aged 25 to 44, 42,710 people (29.4%) aged 45 to 64, and 21,726 people (14.9%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.8 males.

There were 58,377 housing units at an average density of 2,840.3 per square mile (1,096.6/km²), of which 31,621 (56.5%) were owner-occupied, and 24,380 (43.5%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.8%; the rental vacancy rate was 5.3%. 85,308 people (58.7% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units, and 58,984 people (40.6%) lived in rental housing units.

As of March 2019, Torrance had a median household income of $85,070 and a median family income of $102,637.^[34]

It also has the second-highest percentage of residents of Japanese ancestry in California (8.9%), after the neighboring city of Gardena.^[35]

2000

As of the census^[36] of 2000, there were 137,946 people, 54,542 households, and 36,270 families residing in the city. The population density was 6,715.7 inhabitants per square mile (2,592.9/km²). There were 55,967 housing units at an average density of 2,724.7 per square mile (1,052.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 59.2% White, 28.6% Asian, 2.2% Black or African American, 0.4% Native American, 0.4% Pacific Islander, 4.6% from other races, and 4.7% from two or more races. 12.8% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 54,542 households, out of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.1% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.5% were non-families. 27.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 23.0% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 32.4% from 25 to 44, 23.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city in 2008 was $79,312, and the median income for a family was $98,473.^[37] Males had a median income of $50,606 versus $36,334 for females. The per capita income for the city was $39,118. About 4.7% of families and 5.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.7% of those under age 18 and 7.4% of those age 65 or over.

Japanese-Americans

As of 2014, the City of Torrance has the second largest concentration of ethnic Japanese people of any U.S. city, after Honolulu. The city has headquarters of Japanese automakers and offices of other Japanese companies.^[23] Because of this, many Japanese restaurants and other Japanese cultural offerings are in the city, and Willy Blackmore of L.A. Weekly wrote that Torrance was "essentially Japan's 48th prefecture".^[38] A Mitsuwa supermarket, Japanese schools, and Japanese banks serve the community.^[23]

In the pre-World War II period, the South Bay region was one of the few areas that allowed non-U.S. citizens to acquire property, so a Japanese presence came. According to John Kaji, a Torrance resident quoted in Public Radio International who was the son of Toyota's first American-based accountant, the Japanese corporate presence in Torrance, beginning with Toyota, attracted many ethnic Japanese. Toyota moved its operations to its Torrance campus in 1982 because of its proximity to the Port of Long Beach and Los Angeles International Airport, and many other Japanese companies followed suit. In 2014, Toyota announced it was moving its U.S. headquarters to Plano, Texas.^[23]

Korean-Americans

As of 1992^[update], about 60% of the Korean population in the South Bay region lived in Torrance and Gardena.^[39] In 1990, 5,888 ethnic Koreans lived in Torrance, a 256% increase from the 1980 figure of 1,652 ethnic Koreans.^[39]

Homelessness

In 2022, Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority's Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count counted 306 homeless individuals in Torrance.^[40]

Economy

Torrance is home to the U.S. headquarters of Japanese automaker American Honda Motor Company and its luxury vehicle division, Acura. Robinson Helicopters are designed and built in Torrance as are Honeywell's Garrett turbochargers, used on automobile engines worldwide. Alcoa Fastening Systems (now known as Arconic) is headquartered in Torrance, producing aerospace fasteners. Pacific Sales, Pelican Products, Virco, and Rapiscan Systems are among the other companies based in Torrance.

According to the city's 2021 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report,^[41] the city's top 10 employers (by number of employees) are: