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Aliso Viejo is a city in Orange County, California, United States. It has a population of 40,166 as of the 2000 census and an estimated population as of 2007 of 41,424. It became Orange County's 34th city on July 1, 2001, the only city in the county to incorporate since 2000. It is bordered by the cities of Laguna Beach on the west and southwest, Laguna Hills on the east, Laguna Niguel on the southeast, and Laguna Woods on the north.

Aliso Viejo had been an unincorporated community since around 1990, and incorporated as a city in 2001 due to the efforts of the Aliso Viejo Cityhood 2000 Committee, which was responsible for introducing an initiative on the ballot for the 2001 special election. Voters passed the initiative with 93.3% in favor of incorporation. Carmen Vali-Cave, the co-founder and president of the Committee, became the new city's first mayor.

The original city council consisted of Carmen Vali-Cave, Cynthia Pickett, Bill Phillips, Karl Warkomski, and Greg Ficke. The council selected Vali-Cave to serve as the city's first mayor, and Pickett as the city's first mayor pro tem. Vali-Cave and Pickett served as the mayor and mayor pro tem from 2001 to 2002. In 2003, Pickett became mayor with Phillips as mayor pro tem.

In 2004, City Councilmen Karl Warkomski, Bill Phillips, and Greg Ficke faced re-election. All three candidates were re-elected for four more years on council. Other candidates included Todd Gillespie and Don Garcia. In 2004, Phillips served as the city's mayor with Warkomski as mayor pro tem. In 2005, Warkomski served as mayor with Carmen Vali-Cave as mayor pro tem. In 2006, Vali-Cave served as mayor with Cynthia Pickett-Adams as mayor pro tem. In November 2006, Carmen Vali-Cave and Cynthia Pickett-Adams were re-elected to four-year terms.

In January 2007, Adams again assumed office as the city's mayor with Vali-Cave, again, as the city's mayor pro tem. In February 2007, Councilman Warkomski resigned from office unexpectedly and the council appointed Don Garcia to his position. In March 2007, Phillip Tsunoda was appointed to fill the vacancy left by the departure of Cynthia Adams. Vali-Cave was made mayor and Bill Phillips mayor pro tem after Adams' departure. In 2008, Bill Phillips assumed office as mayor with Don Garcia serving as mayor pro tem. Don Garcia became the mayor in 2009 with Phillip Tsunoda as mayor pro tem.

Aliso Viejo is a general law city with a council-manager system of government. Day-to-day operations are handled by a professional city manager overseen by a volunteer city council.

The City Council of Aliso Viejo consists of five members serving staggered four-year terms. Each year, the Council votes for its next Mayor and Mayor pro tem.

The Seal of the City of Aliso Viejo was adopted in 2001 at incorporation. The seal features several mountains, a boat, a tree, and several buildings. Also, the seal features the slogan "Since 2001", in celebration of the city's incorporation date.

Aliso Viejo is located at 33°34′30″N 117°43′32″W? / ?33.575°N 117.72556°W? / 33.575; -117.72556 (33.575096, -117.725431) in the San Joaquin Hills of Orange County. According to the Censis Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 26.5 km² (10.2 mi²), all of which is land. Aliso Viejo is one of several cities bordering Aliso and Wood Canyons Regional Park. Aliso Creek forms part of the city's boundary with Laguna Niguel to the south, and Wood Canyon Creek forms part of the city's western boundary. Much of the city rests on the east slope of the San Joaquin Hills, which are a coastal mountain range extending for about 15 miles (24 km) along the Pacific coast.

Southern California is well-known for year-round pleasant weather:

• On average, the warmest month is August.
• The highest recorded temperature was 108°F in 1963.
• On average, the coolest month is December.
• The lowest recorded temperature was 21°F in 1949.
• The maximum average precipitation occurs in February.

The period of April through November is warm to hot and dry with average high temperatures of 74 – 84°F and lows of 52 – 64°F. Due to the moderating effect of the ocean, temperatures are cooler than more inland areas of Los Angeles and Orange County, where temperatures frequently exceed 90°F (32°C) and occasionally reach 100°F (38°C).

The period of November through March is somewhat rainy, as shown in the table to right.

The Los Angeles area is also subject to the phenomena typical of a microclimate. As such, the temperatures can vary as much as 18°F (10°C) between inland areas and the coast, with a temperature gradient of over one degree per mile (1.6 km) from the coast inland. California has also a weather phenomenon called "June Gloom or May Gray", which sometimes brings overcast or foggy skies in the morning on the coast, but usually gives way to sunny skies by noon, during late spring and early summer.

The greater Los Angeles area averages 15 inches (385 mm) of precipitation annually, which mainly occurs during the winter and spring (November thru April) with generally light rain showers, but sometimes as heavy rainfall and thunderstorms. Coastal areas receive slightly less rainfall, while the mountains receive slightly more. Snowfall is extremely rare in the city basin, but the mountains within city limits typically receive snowfall every winter.

As of the census of 2000, there were 40,166 people, 16,147 households, and 10,689 families residing in what was, at the time, a Census Designated Place (CDP). The population density was 1,516.0/km² (3,927.7/mi²). There were 16,608 housing units at an average density of 626.8/km² (1,624.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 78.16% White, 11.65% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race, 10.99% Asian, 2.06% Black or African American, 0.39% Native American, 0.22% Pacific Islander, 3.51% from other races, and 4.66% from two or more races.

There were 16,147 households out of which 37.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.7% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.8% were non-families. 23.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 1.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.01.

The population was distributed with 26.1% under the age of 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 48.8% from 25 to 44, 16.3% from 45 to 64, and 3.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 93.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males.

According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the CDP was $92,280, and the median income for a family was $99,853. Males had a median income of $61,316 versus $44,190 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $35,244. About 2.3% of families and 2.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.5% of those under age 18 and 2.8% of those age 65 or over.

As of 2007, the Census Bureau estimates the population of the Aliso Viejo CDP to be 41,424.

In the state legislature Aliso Viejo is located in the 33rd Senate District, represented by Republican Dick Ackerman, and in the 70th and 73rd Assembly Districts, represented by Republicans Chuck DeVore and Diane Harkey respectively. Federally, Aliso Viejo is located in California's 48th congressional district, which has a Cook PVI of R +8 and is represented by Republican John Campbell.

Aliso Viejo is known for having the headquarters of many large companies, including:

• 3tera, a cloud computing software vendor
• AND1, an athletic shoe manufacturer
• Airbag Industries, a web design & development company
• Buy.com, an online retailer
• Centon Electronics Inc., a computer Memory manufacturer as well as flash based storage devices
• eEye Digital Security, a digital security company
• Fluor Corporation, an international construction contractor for petrochemical, infrastructure, and environmental projects, headquartered in Aliso Viejo until it was relocated to the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex suburb of Irving, Texas in March 2006. Some divisions still reside in Aliso Viejo.
• Ketel One, a vodka company
• Marie Callender's, a restaurant chain
• Pacific Life, an insurance company
• QLogic, a network storage manufacturer
• Quest Software, a software manufacturer
• Smith Micro Software, a software developer
• Tamiya Corporation, a manufacturer of model cars, headquartered in Aliso Viejo until it was relocated to Irvine, CA.
• UST Global, an IT services and business process outsourcing company
• USWeb, an Internet marketing company
• Valeant, a pharmaceutical company

• Renaissance ClubSport, is a $65 million property which opened in July 2008. The Renaissance ClubSport is Marriott's very first fitness resort and was created in conjunction with Nate Inc. (ClubSport) to fulfill the growing demand by local residents and hotel guests for a healthier lifestyle.
• The Aliso Viejo Town Center (or as locals call it, the Town Center) is the main gathering place for both the young and old residents. It features a movie theater, a wide variety of casual dining restaurants, PetSmart, a Barnes & Noble, Ralphs as well as other shops.

The Orange County Gladiators are an American Basketball Association (ABA) expansion team starting in November 2007. They will play their home games at Aliso Niguel High School.

Aliso Viejo city officials famously came close to banning polystyrene cups in 2004 after hearing that "dihydrogen monoxide" was used in their production, neglecting the fact that this substance is actually plain water. A paralegal working for the city found the dhmo.org website and subsequently proposed the ban.

In October 2005, the city gained national media attention once again when 19 year old resident William Freund donned a cape and mask and murdered two of his neighbors before killing himself. Freund was an alumnus of Aliso Viejo's only high school, Aliso Niguel High School, and he had recently been diagnosed with Asperger syndrome. On November 17, 2006, the family of the two victims sued Freund's parents for "wrongful death and emotional distress."

In September 2006, Charles Salter, the principal of Aliso Niguel High School, Aliso Viejo's high school, gained widespread media attention when he infamously banned all school dances until further notice. Salter came under fire for his decision. His decision was based on the school's "Welcome Back Dance", at which several students arrived intoxicated, while others engaged in "freak dancing", which Salter views as inappropriate at a school dance. At the end of the month, Salter stood his ground and cancelled the school's annual Homecoming Dance, which gained both Salter and the school notoriety. A story on the school was featured on the national television program, Geraldo at Large and the BBC also covered the dance ban. In late November, it was announced that the dances would return to the school, but under new rules that banned "freak dancing."

In 2008-early 2009, Aliso Viejo residents were protesting the postal service plan to build a large mail processing center. It was in the Aliso Viejo News often. It was then voted that the processing center would not go through due to environmental concerns and traffic in the area.

Fire protection in Aliso Viejo is provided by the Orange County Fire Authority with ambulance service by Doctor's Ambulance. Law enforcement is provided by the Orange County Sheriff's Department.

The city is served by Capistrano Unified School District, which includes these schools:

Elementary

• Canyon Vista Elementary School
• Don Juan Avila Elementary School
• Oak Grove Elementary School
• Wood Canyon Elementary School

Middle school

• Aliso Viejo Middle School
• Don Juan Avila Middle School

High school

• Aliso Niguel High School

Aliso Viejo also has two private secondary schools, St. Mary and All Angels School, Aliso Viejo Christian School, and a university, Soka University of America.

• Chris Robertson, Oscar Winning actor
• Farzad Bonyadi, professional poker player
• Ryan Coiner, Major League Soccer player for the Columbus Crew
• Robert Krantz, actor in Back to the Future, producer of "Do you want to dance?"
• Ryan Getzlaf, center for the Anaheim Ducks
• Jim Gilchrist, politician and founder of the Minuteman Project
• Kenneth Kizer, CEO and former Secretary of Health in the United States Department of Veterans Affairs
• Ivan Koumaev, contestant on the reality series So You Think You Can Dance
• Marc Maiffret, computer security expert/computer hacker
• Toni Turner, author
• Alisa Valdez-Rodriguez, author
• Tyler Needham, Author of The Mystery of the Missing Wanakia Statuette, Creator of glossary of history terms
• Alicia Leigh Willis, American actress who plays Courtney Matthews on General Hospital.
• Dennis Cisterna III, record-breaking game show contestant on 1 vs. 100 and Wheel of Fortune