Located 60-miles east of Los Angeles, Riverside, California is the county seat of Riverside County, named for its location along the Santa Ana River. It is the fourth largest inland California city and the birthplace of the state’s citrus industry: the first orange trees were planted in 1871 but the real history began in 1874 when the first three orange trees were planted in Riverside and the citrus industry boomed from there.

Education takes the top two employer slots, with University of California Riverside and Riverside Unified School District employing roughly 12,000 people combined. Kaiser Permanente, the City of Riverside and Alvord Unified School District round out the top five employers in Riverside. The area is also well-frequented by Hollywood producers for filming of television and movies.

Riverside has a municipal airport, local bus service, two commuter rail lines and is served by Amtrak Southwest. The area is served by three major highways: I-215, State Route 60 and State Route 91. Riverside is considered one of America’s most traffic-congested cities.

Riverside has a semi-arid climate with hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters. It is considered in the smog-belt with above-average air pollution, pushing the city to go green and reduce emissions wherever possible in recent years.

Riverside is also home to the famous and historic Mission Inn, the historic landmark hotel considered the largest Mission Style Revival building in the U.S. It has been patronized by numerous U.S. presidents (Richard and Pat Nixon were married there, Ronald and Nancy Reagan honeymooned there). The city is also home to numerous churches and religious groups, as well as Inland Empire Atheists and Agnostics, an organization of over 500 non-religious individuals.

Riverside offers a mix of cultural and entertainment opportunities, including museums, centers for performing arts, libraries and a children’s theater. There is a series of holiday events from Thanksgiving through December centered around the Mission Inn, and a literary festival each February to enhance a sense of community among residents and provide family oriented, educational events.

Riverside has 28 neighborhoods within city limits with numerous annexes proposed to local government every year. These neighborhoods include Airport, Alessandro Heights, Arlanza, Arlington, Arlington Heights, Arlington South, Canyon Crest, Casa Blanca, Downtown, Eastside, Grand, Hawarden Hills, Hillside Hunter Industrial Park, La Sierra, La Sierra Acres, La Sierra Hills, La Sierra South, Magnolia Center, Mission Grove, Northside, Orangecrest, Presidential Park, Ramona, Sycamore Canyon Park, Sycamore Canyon Springs, University, Victoria, and Wood Streets.

The Alessandro Boulevard/Chicago Avenue area is a suburban setting of mostly single family homes, some mobile homes and row houses, and some small apartment buildings. This is considered one of the city’s wealthiest areas.

Prenda has lower cost living compared to most of the state, and is a suburban area of single family homes with some complexes and high rises. Urban sophisticates in this section comprise a mix of owners and renters.

La Sierra Heights is a densely populated urban area with low cost housing compared to the rest of the state. There is a mix of single family homes and high rises in this mostly walkable neighborhood.