Among Glendale's bragging rights over the years: The fact that the city, at around 200,000 strong, is the third largest in Los Angeles County, behind only L.A. and Long Beach.
Well, that's about to change, as Santa Clarita goes on an annexation spree. According to the Glendale News-Press, as Santa Clarita gobbles up more surrounding unincorporated area, its population is set to surpass Glendale:
On Wednesday, a county commission in charge of annexing unincorporated land approved adding seven more communities to Santa Clarita, bringing the city's population of 176,000 to roughly 192,000, in line with Glendale.
And by year's end, Santa Clarita is slated to annex more land, boosting its population to just above 200,000, a marker Glendale had claimed for years.
The U.S. Census had pegged Glendale's population at 194,973 as far back as 2000, but the California Department of Finance, using estimations in the interim, long had the figure above 200,000. That all changed after the 2010 Census results were released.
Glendale will still be a prominent regional player among city governments, but it stands to lose a long held byname. Glendale officials have repeatedly referred to the city's No. 3 ranking when touting its political importance, and it has appeared in nearly every major community description for years.
Glendale, are you going to take this lying down? Or are you going to finally annex La Crescenta? Go go go!
