Editing California City, California (section)

==History==

=== Early ===
Padre [[Francisco Garcés]], a [[Franciscans|Franciscan]] [[missionary]], camped at Castle Butte (what is now California City) during the [[Juan Bautista de Anza]] expedition of [[Alta California]] (1776).

In the late 19th century, the [[Twenty-mule team|Twenty-Mule Team]] Trail, which carried loads of [[borax]] to the railhead in [[Mojave, California|Mojave]] from [[Harmony Borax Works]]' mines to the east, ran through the California City area.<ref name=MojaveHistory>{{cite web |last=Deaver |first=W. |url=http://www.mojave.ca.us/history_IL.htm |title=Mojave's History |work=Mojave Chamber of Commerce |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060925113109/http://www.mojave.ca.us/history_IL.htm |archive-date=September 25, 2006 |access-date=September 6, 2019}}</ref>

===Military===
The Mojave Gunnery Range "C" was used from August 1944 until January 1959, when it became California City land; this had included [[bombing range]]s and [[strafing]] targets, such as a vehicle convoy. It was also used for [[Unmanned aerial vehicle|pilotless aircraft]] just after [[World War II]]. Unexploded [[Aircraft ordnance|ordnance]] and [[toxic waste]] is associated with the site; the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers|Army Corps of Engineers]] began surveying the site in 1999 and, by 2001, the range was described as encompassing {{convert|20908|acre}} southwest of the California City center.<ref name="proj_Bomb">{{Cite web |title=Bombs in Your Backyard: MOJAVE GUNNERY RANGE: CA99799FA26200 |work=ProPublica |access-date=August 7, 2020 |url=https://projects.propublica.org/bombs/installation/CA99799FA262009799 |archive-date=September 7, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210907103404/https://projects.propublica.org/bombs/installation/CA99799FA262009799 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="spl._Bomb">{{Cite web |title=Bombing Range #73 |work=spl.usace.army.mil |access-date=August 7, 2020 |url=https://www.spl.usace.army.mil/Missions/Formerly-Used-Defense-Sites/Mojave-Gunnery-Range-C/Bombing-Range-73/ |archive-date=October 17, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201017170942/https://www.spl.usace.army.mil/Missions/Formerly-Used-Defense-Sites/Mojave-Gunnery-Range-C/Bombing-Range-73/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="spl._Moja">{{Cite web |title=Mojave Gunnery Range "C" |work=spl.usace.army.mil |access-date=August 7, 2020 |url=https://www.spl.usace.army.mil/Missions/Formerly-Used-Defense-Sites/Mojave-Gunnery-Range-C/ |archive-date=October 18, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201018162611/https://www.spl.usace.army.mil/Missions/Formerly-Used-Defense-Sites/Mojave-Gunnery-Range-C/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="spl_pdf_plan">{{Cite web |title=PROPOSED PLAN FOR REMEDIAL ACTION FORMER MOJAVE GUNNERY RANGE "C" MUNITIONS RESPONSE SITES/AREAS OF INTEREST, KERN COUNTY, CALIFORNIA |work=spl.usace.army.mil |date=February 2013 |access-date=August 7, 2020 |url=https://www.spl.usace.army.mil/Portals/17/docs/FUDS/MGRC_ProposedPlan.pdf?ver=2017-12-22-004201-943 |archive-date=July 21, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721113728/https://www.spl.usace.army.mil/Portals/17/docs/FUDS/MGRC_ProposedPlan.pdf?ver=2017-12-22-004201-943 |url-status=live }}</ref> Site surveys in 1999 found [[Heckler & Koch Mark 23|MK 23]] 3-pound practice bombs with unfired signal cartridges and 20&nbsp;mm target practice projectiles, along with 2.25", 2.75" and 5" practice rockets, undetonated bombs and small arms ammunition (from .22 to .50 caliber). The largest fuzed and most dangerous bombs discovered were a pair of 100-pound [[general purpose bomb]]s.<ref name="spl_pdf_plan" />

=== Town ===
[[File:California City Central Park.jpg|thumb|California City Central Park]]
The city was formed in 1958, when developers purchased {{convert|82000|acre}}, 128 square miles or 332 square km of western [[Mojave Desert]]. The new city was aggressively marketed.<ref name="news_17Ma">{{Cite web |title=Classifieds, Page 37 |work=The San Bernardino County Sun |date=May 17, 1958 |page=37 |access-date=August 10, 2020 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/57062088/california-city-hiring-real-estate/ |archive-date=September 7, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210907103405/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/57062088/california-city-hiring-real-estate/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="news_6Apr">{{Cite web |title=California City Advertorial |work=Los Angeles Times |date=April 6, 1958 |access-date=August 14, 2020 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/381002762/?terms=Mendelsohn%2BAND%2B%22california%2Bcity%22 |archive-date=September 7, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210907103405/https://www.newspapers.com/image/381002762/?terms=Mendelsohn%2BAND%2B%22california%2Bcity%22 |url-status=live }}</ref> Developers pitched the city as a northern alternative to [[Los Angeles]], which the developers argued could not handle the post-war population-boom, and the region needed other communities to share the increase.<ref name=":02">{{Cite web |last=Karoff |first=Timothy |date=November 12, 2023 |title=California's third largest city is mostly empty roads |url=https://www.sfgate.com/travel/article/california-city-planned-community-explained-18476273.php |access-date=December 1, 2023 |website=SFGATE |language=en}}</ref> Instead of being built piecemeal, the whole city would be developed simultaneously.<ref name=":02" /> The city was designed to be a [[planned community]].<ref name=":02" /> The masterplan was prepared by [[Smith and Williams]] and architect [[Garrett Eckbo]] at the behest of real estate developer and [[sociology]] professor Nat Mendelsohn.<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 15, 2010 |title=Nat Mendelsohn |url=https://bldgblog.com/tag/nat-mendelsohn/ |access-date=January 8, 2024 |website=BLDGBLOG |language=en-US}}</ref> The city included a central park with a {{convert|26|acre|adj=on}} manmade lake, two [[golf course]]s, and a new [[Holiday Inn]].<ref name="hugedebt">{{Cite web |title=GWU Stock Plunge Linked to Huge Debt |first=Jack |last=Phinney |work=Denver Post |date=March 8, 1972 |access-date=August 15, 2020 |url=https://mountainscholar.org/bitstream/handle/10217/202884/AGWS3-1204_209.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |archive-date=July 21, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721113536/https://mountainscholar.org/bitstream/handle/10217/202884/AGWS3-1204_209.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |url-status=live }}</ref> Mendelsohn was then president of a corporation called the California City Development Company. There were conflicting reports that the city was built over a large [[aquifer]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Desert Water Claim Contested|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/9491208/59mar22independetwaterclaim/|date=March 22, 1959|author=Warren Walters|work=Independent Press-Telegram|location=Long Beach, California|access-date=August 9, 2020|archive-date=September 7, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210907103407/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/9491208/59mar22independetwaterclaim/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Sufficient Water Under Desert to Serve All, Engineer Believes|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56956073/water-for-all-california-city-mojave/|date=March 8, 1959|author=Warren Walters|work=Independent Press-Telegram|location=Long Beach, California|access-date=August 9, 2020|archive-date=September 7, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210907103407/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56956073/water-for-all-california-city-mojave/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="adc-_Mixe">{{Cite web |title=Mixed-Use Developments · Outside In: The Architecture of Smith and Williams · UCSB ADC Omeka |work=adc-exhibits.museum.ucsb.edu |access-date=August 8, 2020 |url= http://www.adc-exhibits.museum.ucsb.edu/exhibits/show/smithandwilliams/developments |quote=California City was chosen as a building site because of its proximity to highways, railroads, military bases, and mining. It also was purported to sit on top of an underground aquifer that would never run dry.}}</ref> The city was originally designed to accommodate 400,000 people, with a downtown center capable of holding 80,000–100,000, and [[Suburb|satellite suburbs]] housing the rest.<ref name=":02" />

A [[post office]] opened in 1960,<ref name=CGN>{{California's Geographic Names|1010}}</ref> and the city incorporated in 1965, when it had {{convert|158|sqmi}} of land, 5,900 landowners, 817 residents, and 232 homes.<ref name="ccbi"/><ref name="lat"/><ref name="news_13Se">{{Cite web |title=Big 'City' Seeking to Incorporate |work=Santa Maria Times |date=September 13, 1965 |access-date=August 14, 2020 |url= https://www.newspapers.com/image/569514380/?terms=%22california%2Bcity%2Bdevelopment%2Bcorporation%22}}</ref>

[[File:California City land speculation neighborhoods.jpg|thumb|Unbuilt neighborhoods in California City]]
By 1965, population growth was less than the developer's projection,<ref name="news_3Nov">{{Cite web |title=3 Nov 1969, 87 - The Los Angeles Times at Newspapers.com |work=Newspapers.com |access-date=August 14, 2020 |url= https://www.newspapers.com/image/385825125/?terms=%22great%2Bwestern%2Bcities%22%2BAND%2Bboron}}</ref><ref name="lat"/><ref name="time_TheH"/><ref name="lfo"/> and by 1969 only about 1,300 people lived in the city.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Hardy |first=Michael |title=The Unbuilt Streets of California's Ghost Metropolis |language=en-US |magazine=Wired |url=https://www.wired.com/story/california-ghost-metropolis-gallery/ |access-date=December 1, 2023 |issn=1059-1028}}</ref> The [[Federal Trade Commission]] began inspecting the development company in 1969, and [[Ralph Nader]]'s 25-person California task force (part of "Nader's Raiders") published ''Power and Land in California'' in 1971. Part of the book focused on California City, calling it a fraud and "a particularly stark study of government failure."<ref name="news_26Au">{{Cite web |title=Nader Charges Speculators Carve Up Wilds Uselessly |author=Ron Taylor |work=The Sacramento Bee |date=August 26, 1971 |access-date=August 14, 2020 |url= https://www.newspapers.com/image/619777959/?terms=%22ralph%2Bnader%22%2B%22california%2Bcity%22 |page=D1}}</ref><ref name="lat"/><ref name="time_TheH"/><ref name="lfo"/> By the 1970s, over 50,000 lots had been sold and the market declined. The Federal Trade Commission filed a [[cease and desist]] against the home seller for misleading advertising about the city,<ref name="lovestory">{{Cite web |title=A sugar company 'love story' |work=[[Scottsbluff Star-Herald]] |date=November 18, 1971 |access-date=August 15, 2020 |url=https://mountainscholar.org/bitstream/handle/10217/203914/AGWS3-1119_05.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |archive-date=July 21, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721113635/https://mountainscholar.org/bitstream/handle/10217/203914/AGWS3-1119_05.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |url-status=live }}</ref> and in 1977, over 14,000 landowners receiving partial refunds from a $4 million pool, the largest FTC settlement to date. The sales company was also required to invest $16 million in long-promised infrastructure in various cities.<ref name="lat"/><ref name="time_TheH">{{Cite web |title=The Hunts, Sugar and Great Western United; Earnings Soar and Troubles Multiply |author=Robert A. Wright |work=timesmachine.nytimes.com |date=November 24, 1974 |access-date=August 8, 2020 |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1974/11/24/issue.html}}</ref><ref name="moun_bgr">{{Cite web |title=GREAT WESTERN UNITED CORPORATION Background Report |work=mountainscholar.org |date=January 1969 |access-date=August 8, 2020 |url=https://mountainscholar.org/bitstream/handle/10217/200126/AGWS3-0520.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |archive-date=July 21, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721113754/https://mountainscholar.org/bitstream/handle/10217/200126/AGWS3-0520.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="lfo">{{cite web|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/24453511/1977gwc-4m-payout-for-not-following/|title=Land firm ordered to refund $4 million|author=Paul Lewis|work=The Morning News (Wilmington)|date=January 27, 1977|access-date=August 13, 2020}}</ref><ref name="alter">{{Cite web |title=7 land sales subsidiaries told to alter recruiting, ads |author=Phil Hilts |work=Rocky Mountain News |date=September 7, 1972 |access-date=August 15, 2020 |url=https://mountainscholar.org/bitstream/handle/10217/204120/AGWS3-1210_50.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |archive-date=July 21, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721113630/https://mountainscholar.org/bitstream/handle/10217/204120/AGWS3-1210_50.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |url-status=live }}</ref>

California City had a population of 3,200 in 1985 and over 14,000 in 2018, clustered around the west end.<ref name="lat"/>

In 2015, it was reported that California City's water usage had exceeded expectations, increasing by 28% in May of that year.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=July 28, 2015 |title=California City: How A Developer's Failed Dream Became The State's Biggest Water Waster - CBS Sacramento |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/california-city-how-a-developers-failed-dream-became-the-states-biggest-water-waster/ |access-date=December 1, 2023 |work=CBS News |language=en-US}}</ref> The rapidly increasing water usage was blamed on aging pipes beneath undeveloped portions of the city, faulty pumps reporting exaggerated figures, and the large number of inmates and workers at [[California City Correctional Facility]].<ref name=":1" />

In June 2016,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cannabis |url=https://www.californiacity-ca.gov/CC/index.php/community/local-news/172-medical-marijuana |access-date=December 1, 2023 |website=www.californiacity-ca.gov}}</ref> California City became the first city of [[Kern County, California]], to allow commercial [[cannabis cultivation]]. The city anticipated an eventual profit of $10 million+ a year in [[tax revenue]] from the new policy; by the first quarter of 2023, the city had made around $98,000 in cannabis-related revenues.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Orr |first=Patti |date=December 1, 2023 |title=California City residents concerned with Cannabis Enforcement and Odor |url=http://www.desertnews.com/news/article_82df90ea-8d63-11ee-9f1a-fbe8a938a443.html |access-date=December 1, 2023 |website=Mojave Desert News |language=en}}</ref>