It’s doubtful that Ben Weingart and his...

It’s doubtful that Ben Weingart and his cohorts could have imagined that their postwar boomtown one day would provide a seminal plan for hundreds of other nascent municipalities long on ambition but short on cash.

But that’s the legacy of the Lakewood Plan, which was drafted by the community’s first city attorney, John Sanford Todd. He outlined a system whereby cities could contract with existing police, fire and trash pickup districts so they could receive immediate service without a huge capital outlay.

Developers Weingart, Mark Taper and Lou Boyar cleared the way for returning World War II GIs to use their low-interest loans to purchase $8,525 homes. With that, Lakewood started on the path to fulfill its promise of “Tomorrow’s City Today.”

Efficiency was the key to the city’s development.

In 1948, after the super-builders purchased 3,375 acres of sugar beet and bean fields for $8.8 million, tracts of land were divided around a regional shopping mall--the centerpiece of the new “dream city.”

Construction crews paved 133 miles of streets. Machines gouged foundation trenches in 15 minutes. Lumber arrived pre-cut for each home. Conveyor belts carried shingles to the roofs.

In one week, work started on 567 homes; a record-breaking 107 homes were reportedly sold in a single hour. Overnight, little neighborhoods popped up like irrepressible bursts of spring flowers.

The home-building frenzy in Lakewood was described by Time magazine in 1951 as “the biggest U.S. housing project.” In assembly-line fashion, 17,000 houses went up in two years.

The vast tracts of housing and Lakewood Center Mall soon became a tempting prize, and Long Beach launched a move to annex them. A struggle ensued and residents won the right to remain an unincorporated area of Los Angeles County.

Soon, a move for cityhood took root. Lakewood incorporated in 1954, becoming the first city to contract with the county for fire, sheriff’s and other services.

Today, Lakewood has a stable population, relatively little crime, plenty of adequate housing, a flagship park (Mayfair) and the mall, the money machine that made it all work.

LAKEWOOD TIDBITS

A First: In 1953, Harold Butler and Ed Jezak founded the first Denny’s (then called Danny’s Donut Shop).

Sex, Lives and . . . : Lakewood High became nationally known three years agofor the busy sex lives of its Spur Posse, a group of high school athletes who competed for points attained through sexual conquests.

Name Game: Many think that the city’s name comes from Bouton Lake, which was formed in 1895 when oil workers drilled into an artesian well and is now part of Lakewood Country Club. However, because many early residents hailed from the East Coast, others believe that the community was named after Lakewood, N.J.

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By The Numbers

City Business

Incorporated: April 16, 1954

Area in square miles: 9.5

Number of parks: 10

Number of city employees: 164

1995-96 budget: $27.5 million

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People

Population: 75,557

Households: 26,202

Average household size: 2.80

Median age: 33.9

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Ethnic Breakdown

Asian: 9%

Black: 3%

Latino: 15%

White: 72%

Other: 1%

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Money and Work Median household income: $44,700

Median household income / L.A. County: $34,965

Median home value: $213,500

Employed workers (16 and older): 37,519

Percentage of women employed: 59%

Percentage of men employed: 79%

Self-employed: 2,215

Car- poolers: 4,228

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Retail Stores

Number of stores: 571

Number of employees: 5,593

Annual sales: $471.2 million

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Families:

Married couples with children: 30%

Married couples with no children: 33%

Non-family households: 23%

Other types of families: 14%

Source: Claritas Inc. Household expenses are averages for 1994. All other figures are for 1990. Percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole number.