Despite Claims By 'Family-Friendly' Forces, West Hollywood is Getting Older (Older!), Not Younger

By Patrick Range McDonald Fri., Apr. 29 2011 at 10:40 AM

Ted Soqui

WeHo City Councilman John Heilman

Update: NBCLosAngeles.com runs with WeHo Patch billboard story with no hard facts. More after jump.

We keep hearing how West Hollywood needs to be more "family-friendly" -- from WeHo's Arts and Cultural Affairs commissioners to West Hollywood City Council members to a recent post on West Hollywood Patch that suggests Sunset Boulevard billboards are too "risque" for kids.

In a kind of logic often cited by family-friendly forces, WeHo Patch writes: "Given that West Hollywood's demographic has changed dramatically in recent years and now includes increasing numbers of families with young children, perhaps it is time to open up a debate on whether these [billboard] images should be so readily visible to all."

2010 U.S. Census numbers, though, show West Hollywood has not transformed itself into a metropolis filled with young people. Quite the contrary.

As is often the case with the family-friendly crowd, whose powerful leader is longtime West Hollywood City Councilman John Heilman, the WeHo Patch column neglects to back up its reasoning with any real numbers.

In fact, as far as we can see, an exact breakdown of age groups in West Hollywood for 2010 has yet to be released by the U.S Census Bureau.

But, we can make a comparison between the number of West Hollywood residents who are 18 years old and older in 2000 and that same population in 2010 -- that statistic has been reported by the feds.

Guess what? Ten years later, West Hollywood's population has gotten older (older!), not younger.

In 2000, with a population of 35,716, there were 33,682 residents 18 years old or older. So, there were 2,034 people 17 years old or younger.

In 2010, with a population of 34,399, there were 32,821 residents 18 years old or older. That makes for 1,578 people 17 years old or younger.

That's a loss of 456 young people under the age of 18 in West Hollywood! Or a huge drop of 22 percent.

Not only that, only 4.6 percent of the 2010 population is 17 years old or younger. And 95.4 percent is 18 years old or older -- a jump of 1.1 percent compared to 2000. That year, the 18-and-over crowd made up 94.3 percent of the population.

Whoever says West Hollywood is getting younger with more kids so we need more family-friendly policies like taking down "risque" billboards (hello, WeHo Patch) or moving an alcohol and drug abuse treatment center out of a city-owned building to be replaced by a childcare center (hello, John Heilman) is full of baloney -- and doesn't have his or her facts straight.

Which begs the questions: Why are people at West Hollywood City Hall and other quarters pushing phony statistics that just aren't there? And why do they make such a big deal about accommodating a shrinking youth population often times to the annoyance and detriment of the older 95 percent?

It seems odd, don't it?

Update: Add NBCLosAngeles.com to the list of ill-informed media outlets that don't really know who's living in West Hollywood.

NBC repeats what WeHo Patch wrote without digging into U.S. Census numbers, quoting Patch's logic that there are more kids in West Hollywood and asking if "graphic" billboards should be regulated on Sunset Boulevard. Let's hope that if a media storm gets brewing, reporters will do a better job of looking into the facts.

WeHo Patch's column, by the way, doesn't give the names of the parents who supposedly complained about the billboards, and the piece isn't signed by a writer. The whole post is done very anonymously.

Contact Patrick Range McDonald at pmcdonald@laweekly.com.

Tags:

2010 census, billboards, family-friendly, John Heilman, Patrick Range McDonald, West Hollywood Patch

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woodymcbreairty

I have long felt John Heilman is a manipulator and not a leader. I think his determination to have things his way is a scary thing in a politician, especially in a city as small as West Hollywood, and only lately do I feel he has been watched closely enough that he came close to losing the last election to Steve Martin within about 250 votes, and I think with the growing momentum against John Heilman and what I perceive as his control freak tactics, he would have lost handily had the election been held a little further out. It seems to be he cannot be elected to higher office and therefore has made West Hollywood his political playground , to the dismay of many. Someone tried to push the idea years ago that West Hollywood was losing it's gay demographic. Certain city council people stated that gay people were "assimilating" with non gay people in West Hollywood and "could now live comfortably anywhere", therefore were moving away to other places and "blending in", a theory that is ludicrous on it's face. Even slightly effeminate gay people are still scoffed at in many if not most places and certainly drag queens and transexuals are not going to "assimilate" if they choose to move to Fresno or somewhere in Wisconson or Deleware where a transgender woman was recently attacked and severly beaten at a McDonalds. Anti gay statements recently by Republican politicians are rampant, a candidate for governor of New York in the last election called for barring gay people from teaching school; in fact, homophobic attacks are on the rise even in New York City. Our so called "leadership" who are trying to push this "you've been accepted, now move on" agenda should be called out on it and required to clearly state their case before they ask to be returned to their seats as public servants in upcoming elections. This is not the kind of digressive "leadership" that we need.The demographics of West Hollywood do not have to change to suit somone's opportunistic political ambitions- or their business success for that matter. I discussed the subject with one city council member a year or so ago and they said "The predicted shift in the gay population in We Ho simply never happened." So leave it alone already. Whoever is trying to manipulate the demographics in We Ho should be exposed. I do not understand why gay people and others let this stuff slide by unchallenged. Social engineering was never part of the vision for West Hollywood that I've ever been aware of. Politicians are not forced to seek political office and those who are not happy with the present demographic make up of West Hollywood should feel free to move on. They are not indispensable, as they seem to think they are. Woody McBreairty

woodymcbreairty

I also feel that in the name of transparency and public awareness, the members of commissions who are propagandizing, whether at the bidding of their city council appointer, or not, should be required to testify before the people and explain their personal agenda and/or the agenda that was laid upon them by the city council or any other public servant, elected or appointed. Allotting 2 minutes for "public comment" at Planning Commission meetings is not sufficient. There is too much secrecy in the West Hollywood government and too many personal agendas trying to be pushed through under the cover of darkness. The last election should be a heavy indicator that the people were not happy with that a secret society in our local government and we want it changed.Woody McBreairty

Brett Hampton

Dishonesty at West Hollywood City Hall? Say it ain't so!

jimmy palmieri

developers like the term "family" , so it would seem, given that fact that if these numbers are true facts, msleading numbers and claims must be publicly made to bring in "family-friendly" sized housing and of course lure them with "family-friendly" ammenities. Much to the detriment of the true demographic.