Northeast Torrance

You can exactly divide the box which is this neighborhood into four smaller boxes with Van Ness and W 182nd Street being the bisectors. (The parameter is made up of Artesia on the north, Crenshaw on the west, 190th on the south, and Western Ave. on the east.)

The primarily residential area is on the northwestern section of the neighborhood. It is made up of fairly average looking Ranch homes and is for all intents the same as it was some fifty years ago when Torrance was finishing off its big population boom following WWII. The homes here are rather bland, with nothing particularly good or bad about them. There has been a murder here in the past few years—a case of gang violence spillover—but this area of Torrance, like most of Torrance itself, is pretty safe, with this occasion being the exception that proves the rule.

The homes in the north of this northwest section of Northeast Torrance, tend to have slightly newer Ranch homes, along more pleasantly planned areas. Along Artesia Blvd. there are more strip malls with rather bland selections.

Power lines also cut across the northern end of the neighborhood. Underneath theses are planted a number of what appear to be crop rows. They act like a physical barrier however between the slightly nicer homes on the far north and older homes to the south.

The Ranch homes on the northeastern end quickly give way to trailer parks on the far east of the neighborhood. The area is still technically middle class, although this is by far one of the least affluent areas in Torrance. In addition, with the high crime areas of Gardena, Compton and Carson right on the border here, this is also one of less safe areas of Torrance.

North High School is located in the southwest section of Northeast Torrance. It is a solid school, light years ahead of the Gardena High to the north which is atrocious, but still one of the worst schools in Torrance. Put simply, it is mediocre. SAT scores are almost exactly equal to statewide tests, about a third of students are proficient in math and despite the lack of ethnic diversity at this school, only 2/3 of students pass the English section. All of these are okay and would be great for some areas, but they are on the lower edge of expectations for Torrance as whole.

The Honeywell Aerospace company takes up the portion of this area that sits to the south of freeway. I believe they are the fourth largest employer based in Torrance, employing more than a thousand workers.

The southeastern portion of Northeast Torrance is largely made up of the same kinds of older Ranch homes that make up the rest except for the small section cut off by the 405 freeway. It is some kind of factory area—I believe it is the headquarters of Toyota America another big employer in Torrance.

Overall, this is not one of the better parts of Torrance, though a still a step up from its northern neighbors.