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City of Irvine
Seal
Motto: Innovation. Integrity. Professionalism. Flexibility. Responsiveness.
Location of Irvine within Orange County, California.
Coordinates: 33°41′3″N 117°47′33″W / 33.68417, -117.7925
Country	United States
State	California
County	Orange
Government
- Mayor	Beth Krom
- City Council	Sukhee Kang Larry Agran Dr. Steven Choi Christina Shea
- City Manager	Sean Joyce
Area
- Total	46.5 sq mi (180.5 km²)
- Land	46.2 sq mi (179.7 km²)
- Water	0.3 sq mi (0.8 km²)
Elevation	45 ft (17 m)
Population (2007)
- Total	202,079
- Density	2,912.4/sq mi (1,124.5/km²)
Time zone	PST (UTC-8)
- Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP code	92602, 92603, 92604, 92606, 92612, 92614, 92616, 92618, 92619, 92620, 92623, 92697, 92709, 92710
Area code(s)	714 and 949
FIPS code	06-36770GR2
GNIS feature ID	1660804GR3
Area notes Sphere of Influence 25.6 miles Misc. Information City flower Lily of the Nile City tree Camphor City insect Western Swallowtail Butterfly City vegetable Asparagus
Website: http://www.ci.irvine.ca.us/

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 on December 28, 1971, the 69.7 square mile (180.5 km²) city has a population of 202,079 (as of 2007). It has annexed in the past an undeveloped area to the north, and has also 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. Currently, Irvine is larger in land area than any other city in Orange County, because when Irvine annexed the southern and eastern unincorporated areas, it surpassed the size of Anaheim and became the county's largest city based on area^{[citation needed]}. In June 2007, it was named The Safest City in the United States (Irvine has held the title since 2005).^[1].

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

Irvine is also home to a number of corporations, particularly in the technology sector.

Contents 1 History 2 Government 2.1 City Council 2.2 City Departments 2.3 Services 2.3.1 Emergency services 3 Geography 4 Climate 5 A planned city 5.1 The Villages 6 Demographics 7 Education 7.1 Colleges and universities 7.2 Libraries 8 Economy 8.1 Top Employers 9 Arts and culture 9.1 The Irvine Global Village Festival 9.2 Irvine Community Television 10 Parks and recreation 10.1 Community Parks 10.2 Neighborhood Parks 11 Transportation 11.1 Transit Services 11.2 Bikeways 12 Sister city controversy 13 Notable Residents 14 Points of interest 15 Business 16 Twinning or Sister cities 17 Filming location 18 References 19 External links

Evidence of early campsites and rock shelters in the undeveloped parts of the city puts prehistoric man in the Irvine area at least 12,000 years ago. Irvine was inhabited by the Gabrielino Indians about 2,000 years ago. Gaspar de Portola, a Spanish explorer, came to the area in 1769. This brought on the establishment of forts, missions and herds of cattle. The King of Spain parceled out land for missions and private use.

After Mexico's independence from Spain in 1821, the Mexican government secularized the missions and assumed control of the lands. It began distributing the land to Mexican citizens who applied for grants. Three large Spanish/Mexican grants made up the land that later became the Irvine Ranch: Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana, Rancho San Joaquin and Rancho Lomas de Santiago.

In 1864, Jose Sepulveda, owner of Rancho San Joaquin sold 50,000 acres (200 km²) to Benjamin and Thomas Flint, Llewellyn Bixby and James Irvine for $18,000 to resolve debts due to the Great Drought. In 1866, Irvine, Flint and Bixby acquired 47,000-acre (190 km²) Rancho Lomas de Santiago for $7,000. After the Mexican-American war the land of Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana fell prey to tangled titles. In 1868, the ranch was divided among four claimants as part of a lawsuit: Flint, Bixby and Irvine. The ranches were devoted to sheep grazing. However, in 1870, tenant farming was permitted.

In 1878, James Irvine acquired his partners' interests for $150,000. His 110,000 acres (450 km²) stretched 23 miles (37 km) from the Pacific Ocean to the Santa Ana River. James Irvine died in 1886. The ranch was inherited by his son, James Irvine, Jr. who incorporated it into The Irvine Company. James, Jr. shifted the ranch operations to field crops, olive and citrus crops.

By 1918, 60,000 acres (240 km²) of lima beans were grown on the Irvine Ranch. Two Marine Corps facilities were built on the ranch during World War II and sold to the government.

James Irvine, Jr. died in 1947 at the age of 80. His son, Myford, assumed the presidency of The Irvine Company. He began opening small sections of the Irvine Ranch to urban development. Myford died in 1959. The same year, the University of California asked The Irvine Company for 1,000 acres (4 km²) for a new university campus. The Irvine Company gave away the requested land and the State purchased an additional 500 acres (2 km²).

William Pereria, the University's consulting architect, and The Irvine Company planners drew up master plans for a city of 50,000 people surrounding the new university. The area would include industrial, residential and recreational areas, commercial centers and greenbelts. The villages of Turtle Rock, University Park, Culverdale, the Ranch and Walnut were completed by 1970.

On December 28, 1971, the residents of these communities voted to incorporate a substantially larger city than the one envisioned by the Pereira plan. By January 1999, Irvine had a population of 134,000 and a total area of 43 square miles (111 km²).^[2]

Irvine is a charter city, operating under a Council/Manager form of government.

The City Council consists of the Mayor and four City Council members. The Mayor serves a two year term and Council members serve 4 year terms. The city has a two term limit for elected officials. Elections are held every two years, on the even year. During each election, two Council members and the Mayor's seat is up for consideration. The City Council appoints the City Manager, who functions as the chief administrator of the city. The City Council sets the policies for the city, and the City Manager is responsible for implementing the policies.The City Council appoints volunteers that serve on various advisory boards, commissions and committees.

The City of Irvine is served by seven departments. These departments are responsible for managing and performing all of the business of the City Hall and its services:

• City Manager
• City Clerk
• Administrative Services
• Community Development
• Public Safety
• Public Works
• Redevelopment

Irvine has three independent districts: Educational, Library and Utilities. Other government services are:

• Animal control
• Building and safety regulation and inspection
• General administrative services
• Planning and zoning
• Police
• Public facility/capital improvement construction
• Recreation and cultural programs
• Refuse collection and recycling
• Street lighting
• Street maintenance
• Landscape maintenance and transportation management

Irvine contracts with the County of Orange for fire and medical 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 the safest US city in the 2007 FBI crime statistic survey [1].

Irvine is located at 33°41′11″N, 117°47′33″W (33.684065,-117.792581)^GR1

According to the United States Census Bureau, the City has a total area of 120.4 km² (46.5 mi²). 119.61 km² (46.2 mi²) of it is land and 0.8 km² (0.3 mi²) of it is water.

The cities bordering Irvine include Tustin, Santa Ana, Lake Forest, Aliso Viejo, Costa Mesa, Newport Beach.

The average January temperature is 56 degrees Fahrenheit, whereas, the average August temperature is 71 degrees Fahrenheit. ^[3]

Irvine, as well as most of coastal Southern California, generally has a Mediterranean climate. The name derives from its similarity to the climate of areas along the Mediterranean Sea. Summers are warm to hot, and winters are cool, rarely falling below freezing. Precipitation in Irvine occurs predominantly during the winter months.

The layout of Irvine was designed by Los Angeles architect William Pereira and Irvine Company employee Raymond Watson, 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. The design that ended up being used was 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 which govern some village neighborhoods exercise varying degrees of control on the appearances of homes. In more restrictive areas, houses' roofing, paint colors, and landscaping are regulated.

The Irvine Ranch played host to the Boy Scouts of America's 1953 National Scout Jamboree. Jamboree Road, an important street which now stretches from Newport Beach to the City of Orange, was named in honor of this event.

Each of the villages was initially planned to have a distinct architectural theme, though many have been clouded by later development.

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.

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 2.70 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.

According to a 2006 estimate, the median income for a household in the city is $84,270, and the median income for a family is $103,604.[2] 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 2006, the median gross rent paid for housing was $1,660 a month. This was the highest of any place in the United States of more than 100,000 people.^[4] 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-subsidized housing projects to meet the demands of working-class citizens to live and work in Irvine or elsewhere in Orange County. Like much of Orange County, more resident voters are registered in the Republican Party than the Democratic Party ^[5].

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. All four are recognized as some of the nation's best public high schools. All four schools earned a six-year accreditation in 2006, the best possible.

All the high schools in Irvine have consistently made Newsweek's list of Top High Schools. In 2003, ranked 58th[3]out of the top 804 high schools in the nation while Northwood High School ranked 404th[4], Irvine High School ranked 505th[5], and Woodbridge High School ranked 803rd[6].

In 2005, University High School ranked 117th[7] out of the top 1000 high schools with Northwood High School ranking 389th[8], Irvine High School ranking 816th[9], and Woodbridge High School ranking 1040th[10].

In Newsweek's current 2006 list, University High School ranks at 156th[11] out of 1,200 top high schools while Northwood High School ranks at 296th[12], Irvine High School ranks at 1044th[13], and Woodbridge High School rank at 1156th[14]. All of these schools on the Newsweek's list were in the top 4 percent in the nation.

Also the elementary 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). [15][16] The district recently constructed a new larger high tech campus for Vista Verde School 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.

Irvine is home to University of California, Irvine, which is the second-newest campus (established 1965) in the UC system after University of California, Merced. Concordia University and Irvine Valley College are also in Irvine, while Chapman University and Soka University of America are in adjacent cities.

Irvine has two libraries: Heritage Park Regional Library and University Park Library. The Heritage Library serves as the regional reference library for Central Orange County and has a strong business focus while the University Park Library has 95,745 books including a substantial Chinese collection.^[6].

The majority of the Irvine's economic development is coordinated through the Destination Irvine program run by the Chamber of Commerce. The program provides information and assistance on business related incentives, demographics, development standards and various services such as affordable housing and childcare, schools.

Irvine is also considered a premier location for film projects due to its expansive areas and state of the art structure and facilities. It offers free or low-cost filming permits, location information and appealing and convenient visual opportunities.

Name	Sector	Employed
University of California, Irvine	Education	7645
Irvine Unified School District	Education	3707
St. John Knits	Knit Garments	2616
Irvine Company	Real Estate Owner/Developer	2600
Parker Hannifin	Aircraft Parts	1985
Allergan	Pharmaceutical	1922
Freedom Communications	Media	1875
New Century	Mortgage & Finance	1840
Parker Aerospace	Aerospace & Defense	1825
Option One Mortgage	Mortgage & Finance	1801
Edwards Lifesciences	Heart Valves	1723
Washington Mutual	Financial	1700
Verizon Wireless	Communications	1695
Albertsons - Sav-On	Grocery/Pharmacy Retail	1508
Claim Jumper	Restaurant Chain	1400
Broadcom	Semiconductor	1313
Western National Group	Apartments	1100
In-N-Out Burger	Restaurant Chain	1041

Source^[7]

Every September, Irvine hosts the Irvine Global Village Festival to celebrate the diversity of the citizens of Irvine and Orange County. The festival consists of exhibits from local merchants, entertainment from diverse cultures, sampling foods from various regions of the world.^[8]

The Irvine Community Television (ICTV) produces and broadcasts television programs on news, sports, arts, culture, safety for the Irvine community. The motto of ICTV is For You, About You. ICTV can be viewed within the city of Irvine on Cox Communications channel # 30. ICTV is also available to view online at ICTV Live Streaming.^[9]

Irvine has Community Parks and Neighborhood Parks. The Community Parks have public facilities located on each site. Neighborhood Parks provide open space and some recreational amenities within the various villages of Irvine.

The Transit Services Program maintains the transit service programs which include the Irvine Transportation Center and the Bus Shelter/Bus Bench programs.

Irvine offers a system of bicycle lanes and trails to encourage the use of bikes as a means of transportation. There are 44.5 miles (71.6 km) of off-road bicycle trails and 282 miles (454 km) of on-road bicycle lanes in Irvine. ^[10]

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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 which 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 which 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. ^[11]

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2007)

• Larry Agran - politician
• Brady Anderson - Major League Baseball player
• Garret Anderson - Major League Baseball player
• Garrett Atkins - Major League Baseball player
• Amanda Beard - Olympic swimmer
• Ca$his - Rapper
• Steven Choi - politician
• Tim Commerford - bassist for Rage Against the Machine, former bassist for Audioslave
• Lindsay Davenport - Professional tennis player
• Anthony Davis- Former National Football League player
• Zack de la Rocha - lead singer for Rage Against the Machine
• Jack DeSena - sketch comedy actor on Nickelodeon's All That
• Tom Dumont - Guitarist for No Doubt
• East West - Christian rapcore band
• Jim Edmonds - Major League Baseball player
• Will Ferrell - Actor and comedian
• Shawn Green - Major League Baseball player
• Shane Haboucha - Actor
• Hugh Hewitt - author and radio talk show host
• Quinton Jackson - UFC Light-Heavyweight Champion
• Adam Keefe - National Basketball Association player
• Martin Leung - pianist
• Jason Lezak - Olympic swimmer
• Doug Linton - Major League Baseball pitcher
• Ben Maller - Sports radio personality
• Chris Mandeville - former National Football League defensive back
• Mark McGwire - former Major League Baseball player
• Beverly Oden - Olympic volleyball player
• The Offspring - Punk/alternative band
• Leonard Peikoff - Intellectual heir to novelist-philosopher Ayn Rand
• Aaron Piersol - Olympic swimmer
• Chris Pronger - National Hockey League player
• Jimmy Raye - former National Football League player
• Jim Rome - Sports radio personality
• Thrice - Post-hardcore band
• Dita Von Teese - Burlesque performer

• Ayn Rand Institute
• Boomers! (formerly Palace Park)
• California State University Fullerton, Irvine Campus
• Concordia University, Irvine
• Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, Orange County Campus
• Heritage Park
• Irvine Fine Arts Center
• Irvine Ranch Land Reserve
• Irvine Spectrum Center
• Islamic Center of Irvine
• John Wayne Airport
• Mariners Church, 2nd Largest Christian Church in Orange County
• Marymount-Webster University, Irvine Campus
• Mason Park
• Old Town Irvine
• Orange County Great Park
• Pao Fa Temple
• Strawberry Farms Golf Club
• The Market Place (Tustin and Irvine)
• University of California, Irvine
• University of California, Irvine, Arboretum
• Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
• Wild Rivers

The following companies are headquartered in Irvine:

• Allergan, Inc.
• Arbonne International
• AskMeNow Inc.
• ATEN Technology, Inc. (a division of ATEN International, Inc.)
• BAX Global
• Blizzard Entertainment
• Broadcom Corporation
• Conexant Systems
• Edwards Lifesciences LLC
• Epicor Software Corporation
• Fisker Coachbuild
• GameSpy (a division of IGN Entertainment, Inc.)
• Gateway, Inc.
• iLounge
• Kofax
• In-N-Out Burger
• LA Fitness
• Linksys (a division of Cisco Systems)
• Maruchan, Inc. (a division of Toyo Suisan)
• Meade Instruments Corporation
• O'Neill, Inc.
• Printronix
• Saleen Inc.
• Superformance, LLC
• Taco Bell (a division of Yum! Brands, Inc.)
• Ultimate Ears
• Verizon Wireless

The following international companies have their North American headquarters in Irvine:

• Atlus
• BenQ Corporation
• Kia Motors
• Mazda Motor Corporation
• Samsung Group
• Shimano
• Toshiba Corporation

Irvine is twinned with:

- Hermosillo (Sonora, Mexico) - Tsukuba (Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan) - Taoyuan, (Taoyuan County, Taiwan)

According to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB), the following productions have either been partially or entirely filmed in Irvine:^[12]

• City of Irvine - Homepage
• Orange County Great Park information
• Photos of Irvine, California
• Irvine World News

• Irvine, California is at coordinates 33°41′03″N 117°47′33″W / 33.684065, -117.792581Coordinates: 33°41′03″N 117°47′33″W / 33.684065, -117.792581

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