Mecca, California
Encyclopedia
Mecca is a census-designated place
(CDP) in Riverside County
, California
, United States
. The population was 8,577 at the 2010 census, up from 5,402 at the 2000 census.
The unincorporated community is served by State Route 111, a north-south highway on the eastern shore of the Salton Sea
.
Rapid growth in population, development and employment in the 2000s gave Mecca a new identity as the fastest growing area in California. A new public school complex, tens of thousands of new homes, a proposed commercial aviation airport in nearby Thermal
and economic development as part of the Coachella Valley Free Enterprise Zone is positively contributing to living there.
About two-thirds of the local population are in the federal poverty range, the majority are migrant laborers and every May, the population triples to 25,000 to 40,000 gave Mecca the distinction as the highest population density of any community in rural California (about 15,000 per square mile).
A 2006 documentary film, Mecca: A Legacy of Cesar Chavez, reveals details about the area. It was distributed nationwide by the National Educational Telecommunications Association and discusses poverty, health care, and farmworker history of the area.
Recently, the Torres-Martinez Band of Mission Indians of the Cahuilla
tribe who got federal monetary damage payments from land loss by the creation of the Salton Sea in 1905, opened a new gaming operation: Red Earth Casino to generate employment and recreation desperately needed in Mecca and the Salton Sea area.
On March 3, 2008, twenty-two cars of a sixty-three unit Union Pacific freight train running between Colton
and El Centro
derailed near Mecca, causing a long-term evacuation of forty homes and precipitating the long-term closure of both the railroad and State Route 111
due to the leakage of both hydrochloric acid
and phosphoric acid
. Closure of the highway greatly affected travel between the eastern Coachella Valley
and eastern Imperial County.
Mecca was a featured location in Roger Corman's 1966 film The Wild Angels, starring Peter Fonda, Nancy Sinatra and Bruce Dern. This film inspired the outlaw biker film genre, and marks Peter Fonda's first appearance as a biker - three years prior to Easy Rider.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the CDP has a total area of 7 square miles (18.1 km²), all of it land.
was 1,232.5 people per square mile (475.9/km²). The racial makeup of Mecca was 2,686 (31.3%) White, 40 (0.5%) African American, 47 (0.5%) Native American, 17 (0.2%) Asian, 7 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 5,543 (64.6%) from other races
, and 237 (2.8%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8,462 persons (98.7%).
The Census reported that 8,577 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.
There were 1,854 households, out of which 1,374 (74.1%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 1,185 (63.9%) were opposite-sex married couples
living together, 339 (18.3%) had a female householder with no husband present, 175 (9.4%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 142 (7.7%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships
, and 10 (0.5%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 98 households (5.3%) were made up of individuals and 26 (1.4%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.63. There were 1,699 families
(91.6% of all households); the average family size was 4.70.
The population was spread out with 3,372 people (39.3%) under the age of 18, 1,141 people (13.3%) aged 18 to 24, 2,353 people (27.4%) aged 25 to 44, 1,368 people (15.9%) aged 45 to 64, and 343 people (4.0%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23.7 years. For every 100 females there were 111.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 110.8 males.
There were 2,020 housing units at an average density of 290.3 per square mile (112.1/km²), of which 815 (44.0%) were owner-occupied, and 1,039 (56.0%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.1%; the rental vacancy rate was 8.7%. 3,978 people (46.4% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 4,599 people (53.6%) lived in rental housing units.
of 2000, there were 5,402 people, 1,049 households, and 958 families residing in the CDP. Mecca is predominately an agricultural community - with a large portion of its population consisting of migrant farm-workers employed throughout the Coachella Valley
. The population density
was 4,167.1 people per square mile (1,604.4/km²). There were 1,059 housing units at an average density of 816.9 per square mile (314.5/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 24.1% White, 0.1% African American, 1.0% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 70.7% from other races
, and 3.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 98.0% of the population.
There were 1,049 households out of which 67.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.4% were married couples
living together, 13.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 8.6% were non-families. 4.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 1.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 5.0 and the average family size was 5.0.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 39.8% under the age of 18, 14.4% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 13.1% from 45 to 64, and 3.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23 years. For every 100 females there were 128.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 135.0 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $22,973, and the median income for a family was $21,250. Males had a median income of $16,897 versus $11,901 for females. The per capita income
for the CDP was $6,389. About 43.0% of families and 45.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 52.1% of those under age 18 and 16.8% of those age 65 or over.
Mecca is located in the 40th Senate
District, represented by Democrat
Denise Moreno Ducheny
, and in the 80th Assembly
District, represented by Democrat
Manuel Perez
. Federally, Mecca is located in California's 45th congressional district
, which has a Cook PVI
of R +3 and is represented by Republican Mary Bono Mack.
Census-designated place
A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...
(CDP) in Riverside County
Riverside County, California
Riverside County is a county in the U.S. state of California. One of 58 California counties, it covers in the southern part of the state, and stretches from Orange County to the Colorado River, which forms the state border with Arizona. The county derives its name from the city of Riverside,...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 8,577 at the 2010 census, up from 5,402 at the 2000 census.
The unincorporated community is served by State Route 111, a north-south highway on the eastern shore of the Salton Sea
Salton Sea
The Salton Sea is a shallow, saline, endorheic rift lake located directly on the San Andreas Fault, predominantly in California's Imperial Valley. The lake occupies the lowest elevations of the Salton Sink in the Colorado Desert of Imperial and Riverside counties in Southern California. Like Death...
.
Rapid growth in population, development and employment in the 2000s gave Mecca a new identity as the fastest growing area in California. A new public school complex, tens of thousands of new homes, a proposed commercial aviation airport in nearby Thermal
Thermal, California
Thermal is a census-designated place located approximately 25 miles southeast of Palm Springs and about 9.5 miles north of the Salton Sea. Although one can find sunny skies most days, residents occasionally endure strong winds and sizzling summer temperatures well above 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The...
and economic development as part of the Coachella Valley Free Enterprise Zone is positively contributing to living there.
About two-thirds of the local population are in the federal poverty range, the majority are migrant laborers and every May, the population triples to 25,000 to 40,000 gave Mecca the distinction as the highest population density of any community in rural California (about 15,000 per square mile).
A 2006 documentary film, Mecca: A Legacy of Cesar Chavez, reveals details about the area. It was distributed nationwide by the National Educational Telecommunications Association and discusses poverty, health care, and farmworker history of the area.
Recently, the Torres-Martinez Band of Mission Indians of the Cahuilla
Cahuilla
The Cahuilla, Iviatim in their own language, are Indians with a common culture whose ancestors inhabited inland areas of southern California 2,000 years ago. Their original territory included an area of about . The traditional Cahuilla territory was near the geographic center of Southern California...
tribe who got federal monetary damage payments from land loss by the creation of the Salton Sea in 1905, opened a new gaming operation: Red Earth Casino to generate employment and recreation desperately needed in Mecca and the Salton Sea area.
On March 3, 2008, twenty-two cars of a sixty-three unit Union Pacific freight train running between Colton
Colton, California
Colton is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States. The city is located in the Inland Empire region of the state and is approximately 57 miles east of Los Angeles. The population of Colton is 52,154 according to the 2010 census, up from 47,662 at the 2000 census.Colton is the...
and El Centro
El Centro, California
El Centro is a city in and county seat of Imperial County, the largest city in the Imperial Valley and the east anchor of the Southern California Border Region, and the core urban area and principal city of the El Centro metropolitan area which encompasses all of Imperial County. El Centro is also...
derailed near Mecca, causing a long-term evacuation of forty homes and precipitating the long-term closure of both the railroad and State Route 111
California State Route 111
State Route 111 is a state highway in the U.S. state of California. It is the main north/south state highway and retail corridor through the Coachella Valley, a part of the Colorado Desert in the southeastern corner of the state and famous as a resort destination...
due to the leakage of both hydrochloric acid
Hydrochloric acid
Hydrochloric acid is a solution of hydrogen chloride in water, that is a highly corrosive, strong mineral acid with many industrial uses. It is found naturally in gastric acid....
and phosphoric acid
Phosphoric acid
Phosphoric acid, also known as orthophosphoric acid or phosphoric acid, is a mineral acid having the chemical formula H3PO4. Orthophosphoric acid molecules can combine with themselves to form a variety of compounds which are also referred to as phosphoric acids, but in a more general way...
. Closure of the highway greatly affected travel between the eastern Coachella Valley
Coachella Valley
Coachella Valley is a large valley landform in Southern California. The valley extends for approximately 45 miles in Riverside County southeast from the San Bernardino Mountains to the saltwater Salton Sea, the largest lake in California...
and eastern Imperial County.
Mecca was a featured location in Roger Corman's 1966 film The Wild Angels, starring Peter Fonda, Nancy Sinatra and Bruce Dern. This film inspired the outlaw biker film genre, and marks Peter Fonda's first appearance as a biker - three years prior to Easy Rider.
Geography & Climate
Mecca is located at 33°34′24"N 116°4′25"W (33.573388, -116.073536).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the CDP has a total area of 7 square miles (18.1 km²), all of it land.
2010
The 2010 United States Census reported that Mecca had a population of 8,577. The population densityPopulation density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,232.5 people per square mile (475.9/km²). The racial makeup of Mecca was 2,686 (31.3%) White, 40 (0.5%) African American, 47 (0.5%) Native American, 17 (0.2%) Asian, 7 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 5,543 (64.6%) from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 237 (2.8%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8,462 persons (98.7%).
The Census reported that 8,577 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized.
There were 1,854 households, out of which 1,374 (74.1%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 1,185 (63.9%) were opposite-sex married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 339 (18.3%) had a female householder with no husband present, 175 (9.4%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 142 (7.7%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships
POSSLQ
POSSLQ is an abbreviation for "Persons of Opposite Sex Sharing Living Quarters," a term coined in the late 1970s by the United States Census Bureau as part of an effort to more accurately gauge the prevalence of cohabitation in American households....
, and 10 (0.5%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 98 households (5.3%) were made up of individuals and 26 (1.4%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.63. There were 1,699 families
Family (U.S. Census)
A family or family household is defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes as "a householder and one or more other people related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption. They do not include same-sex married couples even if the marriage was performed in a state...
(91.6% of all households); the average family size was 4.70.
The population was spread out with 3,372 people (39.3%) under the age of 18, 1,141 people (13.3%) aged 18 to 24, 2,353 people (27.4%) aged 25 to 44, 1,368 people (15.9%) aged 45 to 64, and 343 people (4.0%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23.7 years. For every 100 females there were 111.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 110.8 males.
There were 2,020 housing units at an average density of 290.3 per square mile (112.1/km²), of which 815 (44.0%) were owner-occupied, and 1,039 (56.0%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.1%; the rental vacancy rate was 8.7%. 3,978 people (46.4% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 4,599 people (53.6%) lived in rental housing units.
2000
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 5,402 people, 1,049 households, and 958 families residing in the CDP. Mecca is predominately an agricultural community - with a large portion of its population consisting of migrant farm-workers employed throughout the Coachella Valley
Coachella Valley
Coachella Valley is a large valley landform in Southern California. The valley extends for approximately 45 miles in Riverside County southeast from the San Bernardino Mountains to the saltwater Salton Sea, the largest lake in California...
. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 4,167.1 people per square mile (1,604.4/km²). There were 1,059 housing units at an average density of 816.9 per square mile (314.5/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 24.1% White, 0.1% African American, 1.0% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 70.7% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 3.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 98.0% of the population.
There were 1,049 households out of which 67.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.4% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 13.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 8.6% were non-families. 4.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 1.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 5.0 and the average family size was 5.0.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 39.8% under the age of 18, 14.4% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 13.1% from 45 to 64, and 3.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23 years. For every 100 females there were 128.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 135.0 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $22,973, and the median income for a family was $21,250. Males had a median income of $16,897 versus $11,901 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the CDP was $6,389. About 43.0% of families and 45.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 52.1% of those under age 18 and 16.8% of those age 65 or over.
Politics
In the state legislatureCalifornia State Legislature
The California State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members...
Mecca is located in the 40th Senate
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature. There are 40 state senators. The state legislature meets in the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The Lieutenant Governor is the ex officio President of the Senate and may break a tied vote...
District, represented by Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Denise Moreno Ducheny
Denise Moreno Ducheny
Denise Moreno Ducheny is a California State Senator who represents Senate District 40, which includes southern San Diego County, part of Riverside County, and all of Imperial County. Ducheny is a Democrat. She lives with her husband, Al, in San Diego, California.-Background:Ducheny was born in...
, and in the 80th Assembly
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature. There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately equal number of constituents, with each district having a population of at least 420,000...
District, represented by Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Manuel Perez
Manuel Perez (politician)
V. Manuel Pérez is a Democratic Assemblymember from California's 80th State Assembly district from Coachella, California, United States.-Biography:...
. Federally, Mecca is located in California's 45th congressional district
California's 45th congressional district
California's 45th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California based in Riverside County. The district includes the communities of Palm Springs, Moreno Valley, Palm Desert, Hemet, Cathedral City, Temecula, Blythe, Rancho Mirage, Murrieta, Indio, Indian Wells,...
, which has a Cook PVI
Cook Partisan Voting Index
The Cook Partisan Voting Index , sometimes referred to as simply the Partisan Voting Index , is a measurement of how strongly an American congressional district or state leans toward one political party compared to the nation as a whole...
of R +3 and is represented by Republican Mary Bono Mack.