Interest in the Area:
The Koreatown neighborhood of Los Angeles is mostly known as a cultural and business space for immigrants. I am intrigued by the Koreatown neighborhood, mainly because it is symbolized as a space for Koreans and Asian Americans, when in actuality the majority of the residents are Latino.

My interest is to learn what conditions make Koreatown a favorable place to live for various Latino ethnic subgroups, especially low-income residents.

Currently, Koreatown is home to many low-income Latino immigrant residents in Los Angeles. However, the affordable rents and a lively nightlife are beginning to appeal to the artsy types of Los Angeles that are moving in and displacing many of the current residents.

Selection Criteria:
1. Included high percentages of Latino and Asian population
2. Boundaries recognized by LA Times, Korean American Coalition, and other sources.
3. Major streets such as Beverly and Olympic are major commercial corridors and include a large amount of Korean businesses that cater to the Korean community (however, this is starting to change).
4. Uncertainty about boundaries-the study area I chose was an amalgamation of the three boundaries cited by LA Times, Korean American Coalition, and other sources. I am not sure if my boundary should extend all the way to Pico because it covers such a large amount of land…I don’t know how this would play out in redistricting. Given that this could dilute Latino or Asian votes.

Trends in the Area:
The variables that I will look at:
-demographics of Latino ethnic groups, 1990 & 2000
-demographics of the Asian racial group, 1990 & 2000
-housing trends for the Koreatown Study Area, 1990
-poverty level data for the Koreatown Study Area, 1990
 

Table 1: 1990 and 2000 Census Demographics

*Acronym for Asian and Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander

As seen in Table 1, Koreans and Asian and Pacific Islanders made up a greater portion of the population in the 1990 decennial census counts, respectively at 21% and 38% within the K-town Neighborhood study area. In comparison, the Latino population numbered around 36%, with the Mexican ethnic group composing the largest of all Latino ethnic groups at 11%. In 2000, Latinos at 41% surpassed the Asian Pacific Islander majority at 39% within the K-town Neighborhood. Yet, the Korean population at 25% was slightly larger than the Mexican population at 13%. Thus, both racial groups continue to make up a significant amount of the population within the K-town Neighborhood area. Given that some of the boundaries I have included in my study area are those that are recognized as the Koreatown boundaries by the Korean American Coalition and the LA Times, demonstrates the complexity of redistricting of this council district area and ensuring there is no dilution of the Asian or Latino vote.

However, the adjacent area tells us a different story. In 1990, Latinos made up the majority in the adjacent area at 48% and Mexicans at 17%. Whereas, Asian Pacific Islanders numbered around 29% and Koreans numbered around 17%.  In 2000, Latinos continue to grow and make up the majority at 53%, with Mexicans numbering around 23%. Whereas, the API population slightly decreased to 28% but the Korean population increased to 20%. At the Los Angeles County level, both racial groups grew significantly within the past decade, with the Latino population increasing from 37% to 45% respectively from 1990 to 2000, and the Asian and Pacific Islander population increasing from 11% to 12%.

Table 2: 1990 Poverty Status

As Table 2 shows, persons within the Koreatown neighborhood and adjacent area had a higher rate of persons below poverty in comparison to the rest of Los Angeles County. Persons below poverty within the K-town neighborhood numbered 20% and persons within the adjacent area numbered 26%, whereas the LA County average was 15%.
 

Table 3: 1990 and 2000 Housing Characteristics

In Table 3, the numbers clearly illustrate how the Koreatown neighborhood and adjacent area is a majority of renters, not owners.  In 1990, homeownership rates were low with 16% in the Koreatown neighborhood and 10% in the adjacent area owning their own homes. Clearly, the K-town and adjacent area have a significantly higher rate of renter occupied units at 84% and 91% respectively, in comparison to the LA County average of 49%. This trend has continued into 2000, where the majority of persons living in Koreatown and the adjacent area are renters instead of homeowners. The number of renters has decreased since 1990 but only slightly from 84% to 82% in the K-town neighborhood and from 91% to 85% in the adjacent area. This might be explained by the amount of vacant land used towards housing. The vacancy rate decreased from 7% to 3% from 1990 to 2000 in Koreatown, and decreased from 9% to 4% within the adjacent areas.