Livingston, California

Livingston is a city in Merced County, California, United States. Livingston is located west-northwest of Atwater, at an elevation of .

Agriculture

Livingston lies in the fertile San Joaquin Valley. Like the rest of the valley, it has long, dry summers and depends on irrigation water. The winters are mild, alternating between fog, rain, and sun, with occasional frost. The growing season is long, and there is a low risk of mold, drought, or bad weather interfering with crops. Due to deposits from the Merced River, Livingston's soil is unusually sandy, distinguishing it from the clay-based soils predominant in most of the valley. Sweet potatoes and grapes are one of the most fertile crop in Livingston, and almonds are a fertile crop in the spring.

Livingston and Merced County are a center of the agriculture industry. Livingston's largest businesses are agriculture-related. Among these are the largest poultry producer in the western United States, Foster Farms, and a dairy, Joseph Gallo Farms, which owns the largest dairy herd in the United States. Ninety percent of the sweet potatoes grown west of the Rockies are grown and packed in and around Livingston.). Other crops are farmed in smaller quantities, including alfalfa, corn, soybeans, peaches, melons, berries,

The League of Independent Workers of the San Joaquin Valley and United Farm Workers are active in the area.

Schools

Livingston Union School District serves 2,400 children in and around Livingston. The district operates three elementary schools, Campus Park Elementary School, Selma Herndon Elementary School, and Yamato Colony Elementary School. Most elementary-age children are within walking distance of each school. All three elementary schools offer some form of two-way immersion instruction designed to build proficiency in both English and Spanish. Livingston Middle School serves grades 6–8.

Livingston High School is part of Merced Union High School District and serves all of Livingston as well as students from the nearby towns of Ballico and Cressey. In years past, most students from Delhi attended Livingston High School until Delhi opened its own high school, Delhi High School, in 1998. Livingston High School's foreign language department offers classes in Spanish and Punjabi. Longview Mennonite School serves many Mennonite students in the area.

In the 1990s, Livingston schools were at the center of a controversy involving Sikh students' right to wear ceremonial daggers known as kirpans under clothing while at school. In 1995, a Federal appellate court affirmed the right to wear the kirpan if certain safety precautions are followed.

Newspapers

The Livingston Chronicle is a weekly newspaper delivered on Saturdays. The Chronicle publishes local happenings, especially Livingston High School academic and athletic events. The Merced Sun-Star and Modesto Bee are also widely read and cover Livingston news and events. All three newspapers are owned by the McClatchy Company. The San Francisco Chronicle is also available throughout the city.

Churches

Places of worship in Livingston and the immediately surrounding area include St. Jude's Thaddeus a Catholic church, an Apostolic Assembly, an Assemblies of God church, a Southern Baptist church, a Church of Christ, Lutheran and United Methodist churches, a Mennonite church, a United Pentecostal Church, and two Sikh Gurdwaras.

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition

{| class="wikitable"

|+Livingston, California – Racial and Ethnic Composition<br> (NH = Non-Hispanic)<br><small></small>

!Race / Ethnicity

!Pop 2000

!Pop 2010

!Pop 2020

!% 2000

!% 2010

!% 2020

|White alone (NH)

|1,065

|1,039

|930

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|62

|60

|95

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|34

|37

|52

|Asian alone (NH)

|1,487

|2,193

|2,978

|Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|16

|19

|Some Other Race alone (NH)

|51

|28

|34

|Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH)

|250

|138

|128

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|7,521

|9,547

|9,936

|Total

|10,473

|13,058

|14,172

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Livingston had a population of 14,172 and a population density of .

The age distribution was 28.1% under the age of 18, 10.6% aged 18 to 24, 27.9% aged 25 to 44, 22.4% aged 45 to 64, and 10.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.3 males age 18 and over.

There were 3,644 households, out of which 55.1% included children under the age of 18. Of all households, 60.0% were married-couple households, 6.3% were cohabiting couple households, 22.0% had a female householder with no partner present, and 11.7% had a male householder with no partner present. 9.6% of households were one person, and 4.8% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 3.89. There were 3,159 families (86.7% of all households).

There were 3,706 housing units at an average density of , of which 3,644 (98.3%) were occupied. Of the occupied units, 61.6% were owner-occupied and 38.4% were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.7%, and the rental vacancy rate was 0.6%.

2010 census

At the 2010 census Livingston had a population of 13,058. The population density was . The racial makeup of Livingston was 5,263 (40.3%) White, 106 (0.8%) African American, 348 (2.7%) Native American, 2,223 (17.0%) Asian, 18 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 4,547 (34.8%) from other races, and 553 (4.2%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9,547 persons (73.1%).

The census reported that 13,054 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 4 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and no one was institutionalized.

There were 3,156 households, 1,907 (100%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 2,014 (63.8%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 501 (15.9%) had a female householder with no husband present, 288 (9.1%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 199 (6.3%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 19 (0.6%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 277 households (8.8%) were one person and 112 (3.5%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 4.14. There were 2,803 families (88.8% of households); the average family size was 4.32.

The age distribution was 4,254 people (32.6%) under the age of 18, 1,783 people (13.7%) aged 18 to 24, 3,605 people (27.6%) aged 25 to 44, 2,499 people (19.1%) aged 45 to 64, and 917 people (7.0%) who were 65 or older. The median age was 27.4 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.0 males.

There were 3,320 housing units at an average density of 893.6 per square mile, of the occupied units 1,923 (60.9%) were owner-occupied and 1,233 (39.1%) were rented. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.1%; the rental vacancy rate was 3.7%. 7,849 people (60.1% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 5,205 people (39.9%) lived in rental housing units.

Government

Livingston uses a council–manager form of government with a five-member city council, including the mayor of the city. As of March 2024, the current mayor of Livingston is Jose A. Moran.

In the California State Legislature, Livingston is in , and in .

In the United States House of Representatives, Livingston is in .

Sister city

- Oga, Akita Prefecture, Japan
frameless|29x29px frameless|1x1pxChurintzio, Michoacan, Mexico