About Hemet

Many residents throughout the Southern California area strive to live in a comfortable, stable community that is affordable and safe. Many people would like to live outside of large cities, such as Los Angeles and San Diego, to provide their children with a better quality of life. Hemet, an affordable, vibrant city has many of the same amenities of a large city, without many of the negative aspects. The founding of Hemet predates the formation of Riverside County. The formation of Lake Hemet helped the city to grow and stimulated agriculture in the area. 

Hemet Real Estate

Extremely affordable, Hemet has a number of real estate options for those looking to purchase property. There are many affordable single family dwelling options, for those with a family. Many single family houses are made of Spanish stucco, while others have a classic, modern contemporary look and feel. There are a number of one story and two story houses, depending on the size of your family. Others with smaller families or who cannot withstand the maintenance of a house can choose to live in a spacious condo. There are many affordable condominiums with the city, especially around the downtown area.

Hemet Arts and Culture

The City of Hemet has two museums and an outdoor amphitheater. The Hemet Museum is located at the intersection of State Street and Florida Avenue in downtown. It is a museum of local history, and features photographs of old Hemet, historic photographs from the Ramona Pageant, as well as Native American artifacts and agriculture displays. Hemet is also home of the Western Science Center, located in the southern part of the city at the intersection of Domenigoni Parkway and Searl Parkway. It features exhibits of Ice Age mammals, including ‘Max’, the largest mastodon found in the Western United States, and as ‘Xena’, a Columbian mammoth. Along with the two museums, science center and theater, close to Hemet there sits an outdoor amphitheater, the privately owned Ramona Bowl is a natural amphitheater located nearby in the Riverside county foothills. 

Parks and Recreation

In addition to Diamond Valley Lake, Hemet has five large parks throughout the city.

Weston Park

Weston Park was established in 1921 and was dedicated to John B. Weston, who was president of the board of trustees from 1914 to 1920. It contains shuffleboard courts, restrooms, playground, basketball court, and turf area for passive uses and games. It is located in the downtown area west of Santa Fe Street, and has an area of 4 acres (20,000 m2).

Simpson Park

Dedicated to James Simpson, Hemet City Council 1947–48, and mayor 1950 to 1966. Simpson Park is a wilderness park located in the Santa Rosa Hills southeast of Hemet with sheltered picnic area and tables, barbecues, restrooms, and hiking trails. At an elevation of 2,500 feet (760 m), it provides an expansive view of San Jacinto Valley, as well of nearby towns of Winchester (Menifee) and Rancho California (Temecula, California), and it has an area of 438 acres (1.8 km2).

Mary Henley Park

Dedicated to Mary Henley, born in Hemet and served as Hemet City Clerk from October 1951 to March 1975, and is the first Hemet Park named after a real person. The park contains two playground areas, half basketball court, picnic tables, shade structures, restrooms and a large turf area. There is a marked walking path/sidewalk of 0.75 miles (1.2 km) around the perimeter of the park. It has an area of 16 acres (65,000 m2), and was established in 1993.

Gibbel Park

Gibbel Park contains a large children’s play area, ball field, a half basketball court, restrooms, two lighted tennis courts, a lawn bowling green, horseshoe pits, picnic areas, and a large turf area for passive uses. The park also features a memorial of military branches of the United States. It has an area of 11 acres (45,000 m2), and was established in 1970.

Valley Wide Community Sports Park

The Valley Wide Community Sports Park opened in September 2009. The park, part of the eastern recreation area of Diamond Valley Lake, hosts eight baseball fields, eight lighted baseball fields, eight soccer fields, four basketball courts, six tennis courts, seven volleyball courts, two pickle ball courts, fitness trails, three play areas, four restrooms, and three picnic areas. The park is also adjacent to an aquatic center.