Westchester / Playa Del Rey Facts

About Our Community

Our Town

51,255 people live in our town1. Our town has 41,516 adults and 9,739 are kids! We have 19 schools, 17 religious institutions, 1 big park, 1 public swimming pool, 2 public libraries, a university and the Pacific Ocean as our beach. 

 

Our Town Has People 
of all Backgrounds1

  • American Indian 0.2%
  • Asian 8.8%
  • Black/African Am 14.7%
  • Hispanic 15.5%
  • Pacific Islander 0.4%
  • White Non Hispanic 56.4%
  • Other Race 0.3%
  • Multi Racial 3.7%

On This Page

Residential Districts

Community Landmarks

Significant Achievers
 

Our Residential Districts

  • Business District
  • Kentwood
  • Loyola Village
  • Manchester Square
  • Osage
  • Westport
  • The 'Jungle'


Reference: http://www.lacity.org/pln/C2K/CPMp/MpCTswch.gif

 
Our Community Features & Landmarks
Who's Who of Westchester & Playa Del Rey
(Sports) Adam Naeve - US Olympic Volleyball Team (outside hitter, 6' 10"). Adam played on two #1 NCAA National Championship teams with UCLA as a middle hitter.  Adam Naeve attended Westchester Neighborhood School and was raised in Kentwood.

(Sports) Josh O'Brien - US Men's National Team & US Olympic Soccer Team (midfielder, 5'8 145lbs). Josh O'Brien was raised in Playa Del Rey.

(Philanthropy, Business) Michael Josephson - Founder of the nonprofit Joseph & Edna Josephson Institute of Ethics, which he named for his parents. Through the Institute, based in Marina del Rey, California, Michael Josephson founded the CHARACTER COUNTS! a partnership of over 400 educational and youth-serving organizations that together can reach millions of young people. Michael Josephson was a graduate of Westchester High School.

(Sports) Al Scates - Men's UCLA Volleyball Coach - Graduated from Westchester High School in 1957. Al Scates’ winning record is a phenomenal 85.8 percent, but on the rafters of Pauley Pavilion are where the real treasures hang. Since 1970, Scates has led UCLA to 18 NCAA titles, with the latest in 2000. (ref: Santa Monica Mirror )

(Sports) Jill Kinmont2 - Jill graduated at Westchester High School in 1953 and was a shoe-in for the US Olympic team. Jill crashed in the Big Snow Cup race in Alta, UT in 1955 and was the focus of the book and film The Other Side of the Mountain.

(Music) Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan (AKA Flo and Eddie) of the 60's and 70's rock band The Turtles. Among The Turtles hits were 'Happy Together','Elenore' and ,  It ain't Me Babe'. Mark Volman went to Orville Wright Junior High (Middle School) and attended Westchester High School with Howard Kaylan.

(Entertainment) Phil Hartman of Saturday Night Live went to Westchester High School.

(Entertainment) Todd Turquand - A show business veteran at the age of twelve, Todd appeared in numerous television shows including Carol Burnett, Kojak, Dick Cavett Special, Backlot, U.S.A. and movies for television, as well as a half dozen commercials and the movie Burnt Offerings.  His first legitimate stage role was Winthrop in The Music Man at the Morgan Theatre. From there he went on to appear in The Sound of Music, All My Sons and The Miracle Worker at the Westchester Playhouse. Todd was a Mouseketeer in the New Mickey Mouse Club (1977). (Ref: The New Mickey Mouse Club Funbook, Copyright © 1977, Walt Disney Productions)

 

Westchester/Playa Del Rey Photo Archive

01.29.52 Hughes Site aerial 1024.jpg (242679 bytes) 1952 Aerial View of Hughes Aircraft and later Hughes Helicopters. Home of the HK-1 (aka The Spruce Goose), OH-6 Helicopter and the  AH-64 Apache Helicopter 
(Click on image for larger view)
11.06.51 Slick 1024.jpg (208580 bytes) 1951 Photo of Slick Airways Aircraft in a Hughes Aircraft hanger.
(Click on image for larger view)
Hughes_XV-9A.jpg (33435 bytes)

1964 A Hughes XV-9A hot-cycle experimental helicopter

Ref: Little Known Airfields

HK-1 was built at the Hughes Aircraft Company Site by Howard Hughes and Henry J Kaiser.
On Nov.2, 1947 the plane made it's one and only flight. 
Hughes_XV-17.jpg (23851 bytes)

1952 The first helicopter produced by Hughes, the giant XH-17 Flying Crane.

 Ref: Little Known Airfields
Of course Westchester and Playa Del Rey isn't all about aircraft and aerospace! If you have any old pictures from our communities past please send scanned images of them to kidspage@westchesterkids.org so that we can share them all the families of our community.
Did You Know...?

PLAYA DEL REY was formerly known as Port Ballona, it became an unsuccessful real estate venture in 1887. It was revived and renamed in 1902 (LA Almanac)

 

If you know of people who "grew up here and might be described as hero's, celebrities or otherwise reached the upper pinnacles of success in sports, entertainment, business, education, science, politics, military or other major fields",  please email me their names, a short summary of their achievements and the approximate timeframe.  I'm not looking for the infamous or people who arrived here after they achieved their milestone, but people whose personality and character were shaped by our community as they grew up here.  Contributors will be acknowledged on a special page.

References: 
1http://www.lacity.org/pln/c2k/C2KCurrent.htm 2000 census
 2 I'm still checking the facts on these entries 

A View From Space!  Click on picture for larger image.

Here is a daytime picture of our community taken by the International Space Station. See how many features you can find. Another angle looking at us from the International Space Station.

Find more of these images from the International Space Stations and NASA Space Shuttles at the Gateway To Astronaut Photography
Here is how we look just after dark with just a glint of sunlight. Westchester is over on the left near the small boat harbor, Marina del Rey.  

More to come!