Bell, California

Bell, California
Bell, California
City
	Images, from top and left to right: James George Bell House, Bell Public Library, City of Bell Police sign
	Flag
	Location of Bell in Los Angeles County, California.
	Bell Location in California Bell Bell (California) Bell Bell (the United States)
	Coordinates: 33°59′N 118°11′W / 33.983°N 118.183°W
Country	United States
State	California
County	Los Angeles
Incorporated	November 7, 1927
Named for	The family of James George Bell
Government
• Mayor	Ali Saleh
• Vice Mayor	Monica Arroyo
• City Council	Ana Maria Quintana ; Alicia Romero ; Francis Flores
• City Manager	Michael L. Antwine II
Area
• Total	2.63 sq mi (6.80 km2)
• Land	2.51 sq mi (6.50 km2)
• Water	0.12 sq mi (0.31 km2) 4.53%
Elevation	141 ft (43 m)
Population (2020)
• Total	33,559
• Density	13,380.78/sq mi (5,166.23/km2)
Time zone	UTC-8 (PST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-7 (PDT)
ZIP Code	90201, 90202, 90270
Area code	323
FIPS code	06-04870
GNIS feature IDs	1660322, 2409816
Website	www.cityofbell.org

Bell is an incorporated city in Los Angeles County, California, near the center of the former San Antonio Township (abolished after 1960). Its population was 35,477 at the 2010 census, down from 36,664 in the 2000 census.^[6] Bell is located on the west bank of the Los Angeles River and is a suburb of the city of Los Angeles. At 2.5 square miles (6.5 km²), Bell is the thirteenth-smallest city in the United States with a population of at least 25,000.^[7]^[6]

In 2007, the U.S. Census Bureau ranked Bell's land area at 1245 out of 1257 cities (defined as incorporated areas) and two unincorporated areas that had a population of at least 25,000 in year 2000. Ten cities in the list of 1267 cities had no land area data (e.g., Goleta, California).

City residents voted to become a charter city in a special municipal election on November 29, 2005. Fewer than 400 voters turned out for that special election.^[8] More than half of those votes were dubiously obtained absentee votes.^[9] Being a charter city meant that city officials were exempt from state salary caps.^[10] A scandal ensued, in which several city officials were indicted for giving themselves extraordinarily high salaries.^[11]

^ "California Cities by Incorporation Date". California Association of Local Agency Formation Commissions. Archived from the original (Word) on November 3, 2014. Retrieved August 25, 2014.
^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
^ "Bell". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
^ "USPS - ZIP Code Lookup - Find a ZIP+ 4 Code By City Results". Retrieved January 17, 2007.
^ "Number Administration System - NPA and City/Town Search Results". Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved January 18, 2007.
^ ^a ^b "Cities with 25,000 population or more: C-1. Area and Population". County and City Data Book: 2007. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on March 5, 2008. Retrieved July 23, 2010.
^ "Smallest Cities in the United States". Geography.about.com. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
^ Vives, Ruben (July 21, 2010). "Bell council seeks resignations of 3 city officials". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 22, 2010. Retrieved July 26, 2010.
^ "AG Jerry Brown subpoenas Bell officials, sets up voter fraud hotline | Los Angeles Wave - Community News, Sports & Entertainment | News". Wavenewspapers.com. August 10, 2010. Archived from the original on July 22, 2011. Retrieved August 17, 2010.
^ "Charter Cities". League of California Cities. May 9, 2007. Retrieved April 17, 2008.
^ Cite error: The named reference CNN was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[1] "California Cities by Incorporation Date". California Association of Local Agency Formation Commissions. Archived from the original (Word) on November 3, 2014. Retrieved August 25, 2014.

[CenPopGazetteer2020-2] "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 30, 2021.

[3] "Bell". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved October 11, 2014.

[4] "USPS - ZIP Code Lookup - Find a ZIP+ 4 Code By City Results". Retrieved January 17, 2007.

[5] "Number Administration System - NPA and City/Town Search Results". Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved January 18, 2007.

[census2007-6] "Cities with 25,000 population or more: C-1. Area and Population". County and City Data Book: 2007. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on March 5, 2008. Retrieved July 23, 2010.

[7] "Smallest Cities in the United States". Geography.about.com. Archived from the original on June 27, 2012. Retrieved July 26, 2010.

[latimes1-8] Vives, Ruben (July 21, 2010). "Bell council seeks resignations of 3 city officials". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 22, 2010. Retrieved July 26, 2010.

[9] "AG Jerry Brown subpoenas Bell officials, sets up voter fraud hotline | Los Angeles Wave - Community News, Sports & Entertainment | News". Wavenewspapers.com. August 10, 2010. Archived from the original on July 22, 2011. Retrieved August 17, 2010.

[10] "Charter Cities". League of California Cities. May 9, 2007. Retrieved April 17, 2008.

[CNN-11] Cite error: The named reference CNN was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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