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56,315 Koreans live in heart of LA: US Census Bureau

December 20, 2013

For 90010 zip code, two out of three residents are Koreans

The 38th Korean Parade took place in Koreatown of Los Angeles in September of last year. (Korea Times file)

By Jung Gu-hoon

The number of Koreans living in Los Angeles downtown has almost doubled in the past 10 years and nearly 60,000 Koreans live in the heart of Los Angeles, according to the recent U.S. Census Bureau report.

The U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) released on Tuesday showed a total of 56,315 Koreans living in Koreatown and eight surrounding zip codes (90004, 90005, 90006, 90010, 90019, 90020, 90036, 90057), which represents 14.2% of the total population for the area.

The most noticeable increases appeared in three zip codes – 90014, 90015, 90017 – along the 110 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles. The Korean population in these areas jumped from 2,327 in 2010 report to 3,947, which is an increase of 170%.

The zip code with the most Koreans in the Koreatown area was 90020 – with 12,579 Korean residents. The total population for this area – between Third Street and Sixth Street, and Hoover Street and Highland Avenue – is 41,086, meaning Koreans make up 30.6% of the population in this area.

The 90005 area – which is just south of the 90020 area, between Sixth Street and Olympic Boulevard, had the second highest number of Koreans with 9,636. The 90006 area (between Olympic Boulevard and Washington Boulevard, and from Burlington Avenue to Western Avenue) was third with 8,396.

The highest Korean population was actually found in the 90010 area along Wilshire Boulevard – 2,433 of the total 3,835 residents are Koreans. That means for every three residents, two are Koreans in this neighborhood.