Thousand Oaks

Thousand Oaks is the second-largest city in Ventura County, California, United States. It is in the northwestern part of Greater Los Angeles, approximately 15 miles (24 km) from the city of Los Angeles. The population was 126,966 at the 2020 census, up from 126,683 at the 2010 census. The city was incorporated in 1964, but has since expanded to the west and east. Two-thirds of master-planned community of Westlake and most of Newbury Park were annexed by the city during the late 1960s and 1970s. The region's recorded history dates to 1542, when Spanish explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo landed at Point Mugu and claimed the land for Spain. The Chumash people were the first to inhabit the area, settling there over 10,000 years ago. It was the Spaniards who first named it Conejo Valley, or Valley of Rabbits, in 1803. In 1822, Mexican territory became a Mexican territory, becoming a territory of Alta California. In the 1920s came talks of coming up with a name for the specific area of Thousand Oaks. A local name contest was held, where 14-year-old Bobby Harrington's name suggestion won: Thousand Oaks, after the many oak trees present in the area. The valley is characterized by its tens of thousands of oak trees (50,00060,000 in 2012). An overwhelming majority87%of the city's 19,000 residents voted for the name Thousand Oaks during the September 29, 1964, election.

Etymology

Conejo Mountain Valley was used by the founder of Newbury Park, Egbert Starr Newbury, in the 1870s. A local name contest was held, where 14-year-old Bobby Harrington's name suggestion won: Thousand Oaks. The valley is characterized by its tens of thousands of oak trees (50,00060,000 in 2012) A petition was signed by enough residents to put Thousand Oaks on the ballot. An overwhelming majority87%of the city's 19,000 residents voted for the name Thousand Oaks during the September 29, 1964, election. The Janss Corporation suggested the name Conejo City (City of Cone jo) when the city was incorporated in 1964. The name was adopted by the City of Thousand Oaks in 1966, when it was incorporated as a city. The city's name was changed to Thousand Oaks when it became a city in 1967, and the name was officially adopted in 1968. It is located in the Los Angeles County foothills, near the San Francisco Bay Area and the Santa Catalina Mountains. It was once home to 100 residents. During the 1920s, today's Thousand Oaks was home to more than 1,000 people. It has a population of 19,500 people and is home to 50,000 oak trees, which make it one of the largest cities in the U.S. in terms of number of tree-dwelling areas. It also has a large population of Latinos, who make up more than half of the area's residents.

History

Chumash people were the first to inhabit the area, settling there over 10,000 years ago. The region's recorded history dates to 1542, when Spanish explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo landed at Point Mugu and claimed the land for Spain. The Spaniards and indigenous Chumash clashed numerous times in disputes over land. In the late 19th century, Newbury Park was on the stagecoach route between Los Angeles and Santa Barbara. Conejo Valley is now a California Historical Landmark and is home to a museum and a Norwegian Colony, which was established in the late 1890s and known as Norwegian Colony. The town of Thousand Oaks was founded in 1876 and is now home to the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza and the Newbury park library. The city's name is derived from Cone joe, which means " valley of rabbits" or "valley of Rabbits" and refers to the area's name as a Spanish polity in North America. It was also known as the Valley of the Rabbits or Valley of The Rabbits, and was part of Alta California from 1804 to 1848. In 1803, Jose Polanco and Ignacio Rodriguez were granted 48,671.56 acres of land by Governor José Joaquín de Arrillaga. The land grant was known as El Rancho C onejo and stretched from Old Town in Thousand Oaks to Old Town Newbury in 1874. The first post office in the valley was set up in 1875: Newbury Valley Post Office.

Geography

The city of Thousand Oaks is situated in the Conejo Valley in southeastern Ventura County, halfway between Los Angeles and Santa Barbara. It is home to 5060,000 oak trees, and the city is characterized by its many oak trees and rolling green hills. The elevation ranges from 500 feet in the northwest to the 2,403 feet Simi Peak. The city is larger in area than Long Beach, CA, and 20 percent larger than San Francisco. The area has slightly cooler temperatures than the surrounding areas, as it receives cooler air from the ocean through various hill and mountain passes. On March 10 and 11, 2006, snow fell on the peak of Boney Mountain, the first snow to fall in the area in about 20 years. In line with the rest of coastal California, temperatures at solar noon tend to fluctuate between 70 and 80 °F (2126 °C) during summer, and rarely drop below 6065 °C (1518 °F) during winter. Wetlands include Lake Eleanor, Paradise Falls in Wildwood Regional Park, Twin Ponds in Dos Vientos and the 7-acre Hill Canyon Wetlands. The region experiences a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Csa in the Köppen climate classification) with hot, sunny, dry summers and mild winters with moderate rainfall. Many housing tracts are surrounded by walls. This design is meant to keep heavy traffic away from residential roads. The large housing districts near Lynn Road to the north and west are an example of this sprawl, despite attempts by Ventura County planners to reduce it.

Demographics

The 2010 United States Census reported that Thousand Oaks had a population of 126,683. The largest ancestry group is German-Americans 20,381 (15.8%), followed by Mexican 16,640 (12.9%), English 15,092 (11.7%), Irish 13,802 (10.7%) and Russian 4,385 (3.4%) The median income for a household in the city was $121,088. There were 47,497 housing units at an average density of 860.8 per square mile (332.4/km²), of which 33,501 (73.1%) were owner-occupied, and 12,335 (26.9%) were occupied by renters. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.3 males. The city neighborhoods were built for the blue- and white-collar class in the 1950s. Today it is an upscale city with highly educated residents. The population was spread out, with 30,076 people under the age of 18, 10,226 people. aged 18 to 24, 29,853 people (23.6%) aged 25 to 44, 37,964 people (30.0%) aged 45 to 64, and 18,564 people. (14.7) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.5 years. The census reported that 124,941 people (98.6% of the population) lived in households, 1,390 (1.1%), and 352 (0.3%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters.

Government

Thousand Oaks does not directly elect its mayor; instead, council members take turns rotating into the position. More than 15,000 acres (61 km²) have been preserved as open space, containing more than 75 miles (121 km) of trails. All new development is described as slow-growth in order to be accepted by the community. As of 2007, Thousand Oaks had three registered Republican voters for every two Democrats. 45.8% of voters were registered Republicans in 2008. By 2018, the party registrations for Thousand Oaks residents were 38% Republican, 33.7% Democrat, and 25% no preference, with the remainder split among other parties. The Republican Club at California Lutheran University has gained national prominence by having "the highest ratio of club members to number of students of any College Republican club in California." The largest donor has been the Prudential Company which developed the community of Westlake and eventually gave more than 3,000acre (1,200 ha) The city is located adjacent to Simi Valley, often nicknamed "Reagan Country", where the former president is buried at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library near the Thousand Oaks border. The city's most recent (2019) Comprehensive Annual Financial Report Fund financial statements had $175.9 million in revenues, $169.8 million in expenditures, $1.01 billion in total assets, $176.3 million in total liabilities, and $27 million in investments. The City Manager's post is charged with coordinating City Council policies and direction, and provides overall management administration of the city's ten departments.

Economy

The city's economy is based on a range of businesses including biotechnology, electronics, automotive, aerospace, telecommunications, healthcare, and financing. Besides Amgen, other companies with corporate headquarters in the city include Teledyne Technologies, SAGE Publications, and Skyworks Solutions. J.D. Power and Associates is headquartered in Thousand Oaks. The communities of Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village, and Agoura Hills are served by the Greater Conejo Valley Chamber of Commerce, one of the few in California to receive four-star accreditation from the United States Chamber of commerce. The city was also the former home to the corporate offices of Wellpoint and GTE, which later became Verizon, which relocated in the last decade. The two medical cannabis dispensaries that opened in February 2022 requested that the city amend the ordinance to allow them to sell recreational cannabis due to competition from dispensaries in other communities that sell both and delivery services. City voters approved a marijuana business tax, Measure P, in November 2018. In 2002, more and more of the local labor force was living within 20 miles (32 km) of their place of work, and fewer Thousand Oaks residents were making the commute to Los Angeles. Over 40 percent of residents are employed as executives or business professionals. According to the city's 2020 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the City are: J. D. Power, Verizon, Verizon Wireless, Volkswagen, Audi, General Motors, BMW, Silver Star Automotive Group, and Anthem Blue Cross.

Arts and culture

Conejo Valley Art Museum has showcased collections from artists such as Elizabeth Williams, David Rose and Howard Brodie. American Radio Archive is a museum at Grant R. Brimhall Library dedicated to the history of radio. Conejo Players Theatre has over 200 active members and was established in 1958. OakHeart Country Music Festival is an annual outdoor country music concert held in June at the C onejo Creek Park fields. The annual Scandinavian Festival offers foods, folk dances, music, literature and art from Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Finland and the Faroe Islands. On September 22, 2018, the City of Thousand Oaks hosted its first, intersectional LGBTQ+ event outside of the Mary and Richard Carpenter Civic Arts Plaza Park. The Festival also featured mental and physical health services, LGBTQ+ non-profits, supportive religious organizations, local business vendors, a tribute to the 1969 Stonewall Riots, youth arts/crafts, and more. The festival's organizers hope to make this an annual tradition. The first Scandinavian Festival was held in 1974 and was attended by over a thousand visitors. It was established to boost cultural ties between California Lutheran College and the Nordic countries. It is put on by the Borderline Bar and Grill and the Rotary Club. Previous performances include Rodney Atkins, Tyler Farr, Justin Moore, Josh Turner, Big & Rich, Jana Kramer, as well as other major names in country music. The city is home to two theaters: the 1,800-seat Fred Kavli Theatre and Ray Scherr Forum Theatre. The 1876 Stagecoach Inn is a California Historical Landmark.

Public safety

Ventura County Fire Department provides fire protection and emergency medical services for the city and surrounding areas. The city's police department was established on July 1, 1965, with a personnel complement of twelve persons and two patrol vehicles. The portion of the Ventura Freeway that passes through the city has been named in honor of Ventura County Sheriff Sergeant Ron Helus, who was killed after entering the Borderline Bar & Grill to confront the perpetrator of a mass shooting event in November 2018. In October 2013, Thousand Oaks was ranked the fourth safest city with a population over 100,000 in America, according to an annual report by the FBI. Despite a significant population growth since 1990, the city experienced its first homicide in four years in October 2014. In 2015, there were 1,05 violent crimes per 1,000 residents, up from 099 in 2014. Petty theft was the most-reported crime category in 2013, accounting for 40% of all crimes. It has one of the lowest crime rates in California. The company Niche ranked Thousand Oaks as America's second-safest city in October 2013. It was ranked No. 1 in the nation in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015, with an overall rating of No. 4. The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has a field office in the city, which is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The Conejo Valley Fire Department is based in Lake Sherwood, California.

Education

Thousand Oaks is served by the Conejo Valley Unified School District. Academic scores in public schools are high. Several schools are scoring in the top ten percent of schools in California. California Lutheran University has been ranked among "Top 25 Universities in the Western United States" by U.S. News & World Report published by America's Best Colleges Guide. It was ranked 14th as of 2018. The Thousand Oaks Library system is consistently ranked as one of the best public libraries in California, with a 22,000-square-foot (2,000 m2) children's library. Both the main library and Newbury Park Branch offer free wireless Internet access. It is located in Ventura County, but some students matriculate from elsewhere in the county, such as Oaks Christian High School, which is located outside Ventura County. It also has a private Roman Catholic, all-girls junior/senior high school, La Reina High School. The library system has a 3800-gallon, salt-water aquarium; quiet study rooms; a technology training room; a children's programming room; and additional seating and shelving capacity for both the children's services area and adult services area. It has a main library, a branch library, and a satellite library in Los Cerritos, which offers free wireless internet access. The main library is located at 62,000 square feet (5,800 m2), while the branch library is in Newbury park at 50,000 sq ft (3,500 m2). It has two branches: Grant R. Brimhall Library in Thousand Oaks and the NewburyPark Branch Library.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Thousand Oaks, Ventura County, California = 24. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 44. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 80. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Thousand Oaks = 6 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 126,966 individuals with a median age of 39.6 age the population grows by 7.59% in Thousand Oaks, Ventura County, California population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 2,300 residents per square mile of area (880/km²). There are average 2.75 people per household in the 44,908 households with an average household income of $95,861 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 8.60% of the available work force and has dropped -6.07% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 19.26%. The number of physicians in Thousand Oaks per 100,000 population = 190.7.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Thousand Oaks = 21.6 inches and the annual snowfall = 0.1 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 32. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 268. 81 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 41 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 49, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Thousand Oaks, Ventura County, California which are owned by the occupant = 72.95%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 30 years with median home cost = $532,220 and home appreciation of -3.97%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $7.62 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $4,692 per student. There are 22.8 students for each teacher in the school, 7425 students for each Librarian and 771 students for each Counselor. 7.92% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 26.50% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 15.73% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).