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The City of Lake Elsinore incorporated on April 9th, 1888.

With a 2023 population of 75,797, it is the 123rd largest city in California and the 528th largest city in the United States. Lake Elsinore is currently growing at a rate of 2.49% annually and its population has increased by 7.87% since the most recent census, which recorded a population of 70,265 in 2020.

The average winter low temperature is 35.8 degrees, while the average summer high is 98.4 degrees. The community enjoys a yearly average daily temperature of 78.5 degrees.

Lake Elsinore is the largest natural lake in Southern California at approximately 3,000 surface acres.

Lake Elsinore offers hang gliding, sky diving and a myriad of water sports in our 3,300 acre lake. In the nearby Cleveland National Forest visitors can enjoy mountain biking and hiking. During baseball season visitors are encouraged to head over to Diamond Stadium to watch the Lake Elsinore Storm, the local Class A affiliate of the San Diego Padres.

Lake Elsinore is located on the I-15 corridor at the intersection of State Route 74, 20 miles south of State Route 91. We are approximately a one-hour drive east from metropolitan Orange County and forty-five minutes southwest from Riverside. San Diego is approximately a one-hour-and-fifteen-minute drive south on I-15. Highway 74 connects westward over the Ortega Mountains to Orange County beach communities and eastward to mountain and desert cities in Riverside County. Lake Elsinore is 73 miles east of Los Angeles and 74 miles North of San Diego.

The city is served by the Riverside Transit Agency (RTA) for local bus service. Major air travel service is provided at Ontario, Orange County/John Wayne, San Diego, and LAX International Airports. French Valley Airport provides charter air service. AMTRAK, Metrolink and Greyhound Bus services are located nearby. Enterprise Rent-A-Car has an outlet in the city.

$600,000

The average rental rate for a single family home in the city of Lake Elsinore is $1,600. The average apartment rental rate is $1,000.

• Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District: $55
• Southern California Edison – Electric: $125
• Southern California Gas Company – Gas: $25
• Verizon – Telephone: $45
• CR&R – Refuse Disposal: $18
• Time Warner – Cable TV: $80

A variety of youth and adult sports leagues compete at local park sites in the city. We have many service organizations in Lake Elsinore, including Rotary, Cop4Kids and the Lake Elsinore Historical Society. At Lake Community Center a variety of sports activities are offered.

The Lake Elsinore Unified School District covers 140 square miles and serves more than 22,000 students in 15 elementary, 5 middle, 3 high schools and 4 alternative schools. The district’s newest campus, Earl Warren Elementary School in the Rosetta Canyon development opened in August, 2007. Over the last several years, the district has achieved unprecedented success on standardized tests. In 2006, the Lake Elsinore Unified School District was the second highest-improving district out of 23 Riverside County school districts. And because of the hard work of students, their teachers and administrators, the district now ranks sixth in the county on standardized tests – up two spots from 2005. Two of the district’s high schools, Elsinore High School and Temescal Canyon High School, were recently named California Distinguished Schools by state education officials. They join Luiseno Elementary School as three of only four Southwest Riverside County schools to receive the prestigious designation the last two years. Currently there are 27 schools in the district educating 22,000 students. The Lake Elsinore Unified School District proudly holds an average API score of 800.

Mt. San Jacinto Community College began classes in a temporary facility in the city in the fall of 1996. A full 100-acre campus is expected within five years. The city is also served by Lake Elsinore Unified School District has been recognized as one of the most progressive educational districts in Riverside County, offering strong academic curricula, vocational and advanced technology programs, and featuring magnet schools in fine and performing arts. Mt. San Jacinto Community College, Menifee Valley Campus, located within 15 minutes of Lake Elsinore, offers a variety of courses, including customized industry training and a two-year academic program with course requirements transferable to the Cal State and University of California systems. The area is also served by University of California at Riverside, University of California at San Diego, San Diego State University, Cal State San Marcos, California State Polytechnic University at Pomona, Cal State Fullerton, University of California at Irvine, Cal State San Bernardino, Palomar Community College and Riverside Community College, all within an hour’s drive.

Southwest Healthcare is comprised of five acute care hospitals — Corona Regional Medical Center, Palmdale Regional Medical Center, Southwest Healthcare Rancho Springs Hospital, Southwest Healthcare Inland Valley Hospital and Temecula Valley Hospital — and several non-hospital access points, including:

1. Temecula Valley Day Surgery*, a multi-specialty ambulatory surgical center.
2. A+ Urgent Care Centers** in Murrieta, Lake Elsinore, and Menifee Lakes.
3. Riverside Medical Clinic**, which provides comprehensive, multi-specialty medical services for individuals, business, and industry in the greater Riverside region.

The City contracts for fire protection services with the Riverside County Fire Department and the California Department of Forestry. Nearby Cleveland National Forest is protected by the U.S. Forest Service.

The City contracts for police services with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, and a new, state-of-the-art police station is located in the city as well as a satellite substation. The excellence of our police protection services is demonstrated by an approximate 65% decrease in the local crime rate over the past 7 years.