City, Los Angeles County
© McCormack's Guides
Zip Codes: 90701, 90702
Small bedroom city, blue collar, bordered on three sides by Cerritos, a middle affluent city. Both are located a few miles north of Long Beach. Artesia has its modest homes but its newer housing is stepping up in quality. Population 17,552. www.mccormacks.com
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Median age of residents is 34. Under 18 years, 27 percent. Over 55 years, 21 percent.
Crime rate low. School rankings low-middling to very high.
Artesia’s not easy to classify. About 5 percent of its housing was built before 1940, about 34 percent in the late 1940s and the 1950s, about 28 percent in the 1960s. A lot of old suburbia, two and three bedrooms, some of it showing its age.
But almost side-by-side with the older housing, large new homes, some of them custom designed, have been erected and Artesia has its blocks that come across as middle-class comfortable.
Cerritos, its neighbor, has a good deal of new middle-class-plus housing and this may be having the effect of pushing Artesia’s new housing up the scale. www.mccormacks.com
The state in 2008 counted 4,713 housing units: 3,224 single homes, 327 single attached, 1,066 multiples, 96 mobiles.
Education by the ABC Unified School District, which also includes Cerritos and has some of the highest-scoring schools in the state. Sample academic rankings: Burbank Elementary, 40th to 60th percentile, Neimes Elementary, 10th to 40th percentiles, Artesia High, 40th percentile. For Kennedy Elementary, another Artesia school, 60th and 70th percentiles. Scores reflect the diversity of the town. Voters in 1997 approved a $59 million bond to renovate the schools. See Schools.
One homicide each in 2005, 2004 and 2003, four in 2002, three in 2001, zero in 2000, two in 1999. Counts for previous years are 7, 1, 0, 3, 1, 3, 4, 6, 1. Artesia contracts with sheriff’s department for police protection. Sheriff's deputy slain in 2003 while making an arrest. Suspect shot dead. See Crime.
Library, three parks, close to Cerritos Community College, which offers many classes and activities at low prices. Town borders upscale mall with a Nordstrom and Macys.
About 19 miles to downtown L.A. Highway 91 crosses the city and Interstate 605 is located a few miles to the west. For the lucky residents who work in the Long Beach area, which has many jobs, the commute will be short. www.mccormacks.com
Railroad crosses south side of town. Check out noise.
Town was named by Artesia Water Company, which in the 19th century drilled artesian wells for farmers.
For orientation on cities, towns and neighborhoods of Los Angeles County, see County Overview.
Chamber of commerce: (562) 924-6397.
City web site: www.cityofartesia.us
