Norco

Norco, California
—  City  —
Location in Riverside County and the state of California
Coordinates: 33°55′38″N 117°33′41″W / 33.92722°N 117.56139°W / 33.92722; -117.56139
Country	United States
State	California
County	Riverside
Area
- Total	14.4 sq mi (37.2 km2)
- Land	14.1 sq mi (36.5 km2)
- Water	0.3 sq mi (0.7 km2)
Elevation	640 ft (195 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	24,157
- Density	1,677.6/sq mi (649.4/km2)
Time zone	PST (UTC-8)
- Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP code	92860
Area code(s)	951
FIPS code	06-51560
GNIS feature ID	1652819

Norco is a city in Riverside County, California, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 24,157. The city's name is an abbreviation of "North Corona."

Geography

Norco is located at 33°55′38″N 117°33′41″W / 33.92722°N 117.56139°W / 33.92722; -117.56139 (33.927124, -117.561326)^[1].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 14.3 square miles (37.1 km²) of which 14.1 square miles (36.5 km²) is land and 0.3 square miles (0.7 km²), or 1.81%, is water.

Demographics

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 24,157 people, 6,136 households, and 4,945 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,714.8 people per square mile (662.0/km²). There were 6,277 housing units at an average density of 445.6/sq mi (172.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 82.44% White, 6.13% African American, 0.75% Native American, 1.16% Asian, 0.14% Pacific Islander, 6.37% from other races, and 3.01% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 22.78% of the population.

There were 6,136 households out of which 37.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.7% were married couples living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.4% were non-families. 13.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.15 and the average family size was 3.43.

In the city the population was spread out with 22.4% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 37.7% from 25 to 44, 24.5% from 45 to 64, and 6.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 128.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 137.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $62,652, and the median income for a family was $66,204. Males had a median income of $41,599 versus $30,652 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,710. About 3.3% of families and 5.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.9% of those under age 18 and 2.2% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

In the state legislature Norco is located in the 37th Senate District, represented by Republican John J. Benoit, and in the 71st Assembly District, represented by Republican Jeff Miller. Federally, Norco is located in California's 44th congressional district, which has a Cook PVI of R +6^[3] and is represented by Republican Ken Calvert.

City politics can be quite heated, with long time friends and allies becoming outspoken critics of one another in the biannual City Council Elections.^{[citation needed]}

In 2003 Norco became a Charter City for the express purpose of protecting and preserving animal keeping rights. The Charter was not extensive, maintaining all aspects of California's General Law provisions except in three areas: horse trails, lot size, and animal keeping rights. To change any ordinances in Norco relating to those three topics requires a supermajority (4/5 ths) vote of the City Council.

Major employers

According to the City of Norco, the major area employers are Corona-Norco Unified School District with 5,215 employees, California Rehabilitation Center with 1,146 employees, and Naval Surface Warfare Center with 1,010 employees.^[4]

Horse community

This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2009)

As a horse community, there are few sidewalks in the city of Norco; instead there are horse trails. Riders can ride to town and tie their horses at the many hitching rails and corrals placed close to businesses. There are many associations that are a part of the city, including the Norco Horsemen's Association and the Norco Junior Horsemen's Association. Politics in Norco also are dominated by concerns about horses and animal-keeping vs. suburbanization, a battle that has played out over development in the Norco Hills. In that area, which borders eastern Corona and Riverside, an influx of Orange County commuters are buying homes for $500,000 and up that have few provisions for animal-keeping—regarded by longtime residents^[who?], who believe their town's character is in jeopardy, as an affront. The original spirit of the town's incorporation was to promote "City living in a rural atmosphere".

In 2006 Norco began promoting itself as "Horsetown U.S.A". A large cement mural with this logo and reliefs of horses can be seen on the freeway near the I-15 southbound onramp at 6th St. The nickname can also be found on stickers and other promotional items sold around town.

Norco is also the home of the Norco Animal Rescue Team (NART). NART was founded after the October 2003 wildfires that savaged San Bernardino County and San Diego County. During the fires, Norco citizens banded together to provide a place of refuge for horses and other animals being evacuated from the fire areas. In the aftermath of these fires, the community of Norco recognized a need for an organized group to assist in the evacuation of mainly large animals from floods, fires and other dangers. NART's main purpose is to rescue large animals, mainly horses, from dangerous situations such as being stranded in areas where they cannot remove themselves from, such as canyons or ravines, using the Anderson Sling and a helicopter. Such major rescues have been accomplished twice and NART has mobilized during every major fire that has hit southern California since 2004.

The largest event highlighting Norco's tight-knit community and animal keeping lifestyle is the Norco Valley Fair. This event is held each year on Labor Day weekend. Tickets for the fair are in the form of colorful button pins. Each year a contest is held to design the button. The winning design goes on that year's Fair Button. Buttons are sold in the weeks before the Fair by teenage girls competing to be the next Miss Norco. Buttons must be worn at all time by patrons of the Fair or they risk being locked in 'jail' by the Fair's marshals.

The Norco Valley Fair begins on Thursday evening, kicked off by the Miss Norco Contest and continues until Monday. Events included at the Fair are the Rodeo, Rodeo Dance, Calf Dressing Competition, Cowboy Poker, Wild Cow Milking, Snail Races, and Talent Show, Pet Parade, and Family Fun Day. The Fair concludes on Monday with a parade marching east down Sixth Street, with large groups of horses representing the horse-keeping lifestyle that is so cherished in Norco. For years children have lined Sixth Street hoping to catch candy being thrown by the parade entrants. Norco is one of the few cities in California that still allows its parade participants to throw candy.

Besides hosting the annual Fair, George Ingalls Park at 6th St. and Crestview is a popular location for weekend horse shows, community events, and is now home to the California Finals Rodeo. Plans are underway to expand the equestrian center to include a second covered horse arena and other amenities. The arena is open for free public riding to Norco residents several nights a week.

Public safety

This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2009)

Norco contracts out for law enforcement services with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department through a regional station off Hamner Street, but maintains its own fire department.

The Norco Fire Department operates out of two stations --- one located on Sixth Street and Hillside Avenue, where the Fire Chief's office is; and one located on Corydon Avenue adjacent to Wayne Makin little league fields and Shearer soccer fields. The Norco Fire Department staffs its fire engines with four professional firefighters: a captain, an engineer, and firefighter, and a firefighter/paramedic. By having four firefighters on an engine, the Norco Fire Department is compliant with the "2 in/2 out" safety standard accepted by both state and national professional firefighters organizations. "2 in / 2 out" allows for two firefighters to be inside a burning building while two are outside the fire to maintain water pressure and to respond to any emergencies that may threaten the lives of the firefighters inside the burning building.

Norco bank robbery shootout

See Norco shootout

References

External links

Inland Empire portal

• Norcolive.com - Norco Local Events, News, Information and Photo Gallery
• Norco city website

• Norco, California is at coordinates 33°55′38″N 117°33′41″W / 33.927124°N 117.561326°W / 33.927124; -117.561326 (Norco, California)Coordinates: 33°55′38″N 117°33′41″W / 33.927124°N 117.561326°W / 33.927124; -117.561326 (Norco, California)
• Key to the City-Norco Community Page
• Lake Norconian Club Website

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Riverside County, California County seat: Riverside Cities Banning | Beaumont | Blythe | Calimesa | Canyon Lake | Cathedral City | Coachella | Corona | Desert Hot Springs | Hemet | Indian Wells | Indio | La Quinta | Lake Elsinore | Menifee | Moreno Valley | Murrieta | Norco | Palm Desert | Palm Springs | Perris | Rancho Mirage | Riverside | San Jacinto | Temecula | Wildomar CDPs Bermuda Dunes | Cabazon | Cherry Valley | East Blythe | East Hemet | El Cerrito | Glen Avon | Highgrove | Home Gardens | Homeland | Idyllwild-Pine Cove | Lakeland Village | Lakeview | March ARB | Mecca | Mira Loma | Murrieta Hot Springs | Nuevo | Pedley | Romoland | Rubidoux | Sedco Hills | Sunnyslope | Thousand Palms | Valle Vista | Winchester | Woodcrest Unincorporated communities Aguanga | Anza | Box Springs | Chiriaco Summit | Desert Center | Eastvale | Edgemont | El Cariso | Lost Lake | Mountain Center | Ripley | River Bend Lodge | Sun City Palm Desert | Thermal | White Water Ghost towns Eagle Mountain | Midland | North Shore | Pinacate | Terra Cotta

v • d • e Inland Empire Metropolitan Area Counties Riverside • San Bernardino Major Cities Riverside • San Bernardino Cities and towns 100k-200k Corona • Fontana • Moreno Valley • Murrieta • Ontario • Rancho Cucamonga • Temecula • Victorville. Cities and towns 25k-100k Apple Valley • Cathedral City • Chino • Chino Hills • Colton • Menifee • Hemet • Hesperia • Highland • Montclair • Indio • Lake Elsinore • Palm Desert • Palm Springs • Perris • Redlands • Rialto • Rubidoux • San Jacinto • Upland • Valle Vista • Wildomar • Yucaipa Cities and towns 10k-25k Adelanto • Banning • Barstow • Beaumont • Big Bear Lake • Bloomington • Blythe • Cabazon • Canyon Lake • Coachella • Crestline • Desert Hot Springs • Glen Avon • Grand Terrace • La Quinta • Loma Linda • Mira Loma • Norco • Pedley • Rancho Mirage • Twentynine Palms • Yucca Valley Cities and towns under 10k Big Bear City • Calimesa • Devore • El Cerrito • Oak Glen • Highgrove • Home Gardens • Indian Wells • Joshua Tree • Lake Arrowhead • Mentone • Muscoy • Needles •Romoland • San Antonio Heights • Sunnyslope • Wrightwood • Woodcrest Regions Coachella Valley • Colorado Desert • Cucamonga Valley • Greater San Bernardino Area • High Desert • Morongo Basin • San Jacinto Valley • Victor Valley