ARTESIA

Bulls and Cows Shouts of ole! can be heard coming from the crowds that fill one of the few bullrings north of the border where bloodless bullfighting takes place. The sport, which originated in Portugal, takes place in areas with large numbers of Portuguese immigrants, such as Artesia. It is part of the flavor and tradition of this tiny bedroom community of 15,000, says City Manager B. Eugene Romig. The Portuguese, who came as dairymen in 1920s, built the Divino Espirito Santo hall in the early 1970s, with the arena in the rear for religious festivities and other celebrations. Dutch dairymen came in the 1930s. The dairies are gone now, replaced by a neat residential area, some light industry and small commercial development. The main business district along Pioneer Boulevard is being revitalized by merchants from India.

FOCUS City Services City Hall 865-6262 18747 Clarkdale Ave. Police (business) 866-9061 5130 N. Clark Ave., Lakewood Fire (business) 865-3714 19030 Pioneer Blvd., Cerritos Post Office 860-6694 11721 East 183rd St. Library 865-6614 18722 S. Clarkdale Ave. In Emergency, Dial 911 Government City Council: Dennis Fellows (mayor), Ronald Oliver (mayor pro tem), Robert Jamison, Jim Van Horn, Gretchen Whitney City Manager: B. Eugene Romig Fire Chief: John Englund Sheriff’s Cmdr.: Stephen Batchelor Area Lawmakers Congress: Esteban E. Torres, Democrat, 34th District; 8819 Whittier Blvd., No.101, Pico Rivera 90660; (213) 695-0702 State Assembly: Wayne Grisham, Republican, 63rd District; 13710 Studebaker Road, No. 202, Norwalk 90650; (213) 929-1797 State Senate: Paul B. Carpenter, Democrat, 33rd District; 5400 Orange Ave., No. 203, Cypress 90630; (714) 952-3201 County Supervisor: Deane Dana; 4th District; Hall of Administration, Room 822, 500 W. Temple St., Los Angeles 90012; (213) 974-1044 Statistics Population: 15,089 Area: 1.62 square miles Incorporation: May 29, 1959 Median household income: $26,209 Median home value: $75,285 Median age: 29.6 years Racial/ethnic mix: white, 76.1%; Latino, 36.7%; black, 2.6%; other, 21.1% (Total is more than 100% because racial/ethnic breakdowns overlap) Statistics: Donnelley Demographics (1985 estimates)