Westlake (Los Angeles)
Westlake is a district of the Californian metropolis Los Angeles .
location
Westlake is located in Central Los Angeles and borders the neighborhoods of Downtown Los Angeles , East Hollywood , Echo Park , Koreatown , Pico-Union and Silver Lake .
population
According to the 2000 census, Westlake had a population of 103,839. The vast majority (73.4%) stated that they were Latino . The next largest group were people of Asian descent (16.5%). 67.6% said they were not born in the United States in the census . According to estimates by the Los Angeles City Council, by 2008 the population had risen to 117,756. The average age is relatively low at 27 years.
history
The name of the neighborhood was derived from a lake to the west of the city in what is now MacArthur Park . The lake was not named after its location, but after the doctor Henricus Wallace Westlake. The lake was alkaline from tributaries . In the drought period from 1862 to 1864 the lake dried up and left a lake bed covered with a whitish substance. An attempt to sell the site at auction in 1865 was unsuccessful. The water and the surrounding wetland were then only used as a garbage dump .
The 1880s sparked a construction boom in Los Angeles County . This led to the settlement of surrounding areas. Owners began to view the dumped wetland as a drag on the value of their properties. In 1885, Los Angeles Mayor William H. Workman , who owned the land there, began a campaign to turn the area into a public park. The following year it was decided to dedicate the area of the lake to the first public park in Los Angeles. Westlake Park was opened in 1890 .
