Berkeley Lake, Georgia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Berkeley Lake is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States. The population was 1,695 at the 2000 census.

[edit] Geography

Berkeley Lake is located at 33°59′7″N, 84°11′0″W (33.985333, -84.183382)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.0 km² (1.1 mi²). 2.6 km² (1.0 mi²) of it is land and 0.4 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (12.28%) is water.

Established in 1956, the City of Berkeley Lake began as a subdivision laid out around 88-acre Lake Berkeley. For many years, it was a summer retreat of fishing cabins and a few permanent homes. The almost 1,700 Berkeley Lake residents have controlled growth and guarded their calm and quiet by purchasing an undeveloped land tract that serves as both buffer and green space.

The City has a charter from the State of Georgia and most city services, which are managed by an elected Mayor, elected City Council and appointed City Clerk, are contracted out and include public works, public safety, fire services, engineering services and enforcement services.

The city is most proud of an area called the greenspace. The greenspace was purchased to provide a buffer for the community. The city placed the land in a permanent land trust that forever protects the greenspace and prohibits the city or anyone else from using or disposing of a valuable Gwinnett County asset.

They city owns and maintains a large earthen dam. The lake itself is privately owned and maintained by the Berkeley Lake Homeowners Association. Only members of the association can use the lake, however, membership is open to any city resident for a modest yearly fee.

"isn't the lake toxic" said a reporter from CNN

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 1,695 people, 601 households, and 504 families residing in the city. The population density was 648.0/km² (1,682.8/mi²). There were 610 housing units at an average density of 233.2/km² (605.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 80.94% White, 4.07% African American, 0.18% Native American, 11.80% Asian, 1.65% from other races, and 1.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.65% of the population.

There were 601 households out of which 43.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 77.2% were married couples living together, 5.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 16.1% were non-families. 12.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.82 and the average family size was 3.11.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.7% under the age of 18, 3.5% from 18 to 24, 32.7% from 25 to 44, 28.8% from 45 to 64, and 7.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 93.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $109,401, and the median income for a family was $115,548. Males had a median income of $84,708 versus $51,750 for females. The per capita income for the city was $43,439. About 2.7% of families and 2.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.8% of those under age 18 and 4.9% of those age 65 or over.