Brentwood, California
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Brentwood, California | |
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| Coordinates: | |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Contra Costa |
| Government | |
| - Mayor | |
| - State Senate | Tom Torlakson (D) |
| - State Assembly | Guy Houston (R) |
| - U. S. Congress | Jerry McNerney (D) |
| Area [1] | |
| - Total | 11.66 sq mi (30.2 km²) |
| - Land | 11.64 sq mi (30.1 km²) |
| - Water | 0.01 sq mi (0 km²) 0.1% |
| Elevation [2] | 79 ft (24 m) |
| Population (2000)[1] | |
| - Total | 23,302 |
| - Density | 2,001.2/sq mi (772.7/km²) |
| Time zone | PST (UTC-8) |
| - Summer (DST) | PDT (UTC-7) |
| ZIP code | 94513 |
| Area code(s) | 925 |
| FIPS code | 06-08142 |
| GNIS feature ID | 277479 |
| http://www.ci.brentwood.ca.us/ | |
Brentwood is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States. It is located in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 23,302 at the 2000 census.
The downtown is centered around the intersection of Oak Street and First Street, just off Highway 4 (Brentwood Blvd). It is the site of offices, restaurants, a movie theatre and small stores. City Park, City Hall, Brentwood Library and the U. S. Post Office are located along Oak Street.
Over the past several years a great deal of what could be described as "big-box" retail has been introduced in the area of the Brentwood/Antioch border on Lone Tree Way, about 3.5 miles from downtown Brentwood. This includes major tenants such as Kohl's, Trader Joe's, Home Depot, Lowes, Mervyns, Target, Sport Chalet and Barnes & Noble. A new shopping center, Streets of Brentwood, is under construction as of April 2008.
Brentwood began as a farming community in the late 1800s, and is known throughout the Bay Area for its agriculture, primarily its cherries, corn and peaches. Brentwood is increasingly residential, with the rate of residential growth in the triple digits during the 1990s and 69% from 2000-2005. The historic water tower on Walnut Street symbolizes this transition in the city's character. It no longer serves its original purpose, but now hosts a large number of cell phone transmitters.
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[edit] Geography
Brentwood is located at (37.935311, -121.709536)[3]. It has a total area of 11.67 sq mi (30.2 km²), of which 11.64 sq mi (30.1 km²) is land and 0.01 sq mi (0.03 km²) or 0.1% is water.[1] The landscape is marked by rolling hills, native grasses, oak trees and fruit orchards, with a number of public golf courses.
[edit] Name origin
Brentwood was originally laid out on land donated from property owned by John Marsh, an East Contra Costa County pioneer who acquired Rancho Los Meganos, the land grant that Brentwood is built upon, in 1837 from Jose Noriega. Brentwood was named after Marsh's ancestral home, the town of Brentwood in County Essex, England.[4]
[edit] Education
Brentwood's public education system has about 7 elementary, 2 middle, and 3 high schools. The city is served by the Brentwood Union School District, Knightsen School District and the Liberty Union High School District. California Miramar University(Formerly Pacific Western University.), an unaccredited distance learning institution, was located in Brentwood from 1977 to 1997.
Los Medanos College operates a satellite facility on Sand Creek Road and Brentwood Blvd. (Highway 4).
[edit] Demographics
As of the 2000 census[1], there were 23,302 people, 7,497 households, and 6,127 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,001.2/sqmi (774/sqkm). There were 7,788 housing units at an average density of 668.8/sqmi (259/sqkm). The racial makeup of the town was 75.38% White, 9.40% African American, 0.75% Native American, 6.99% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 5.96% from other races, and 1.43% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.34% of the population. There were 23,700 households out of which 45.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 69.2% were married couples living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.4% were non-families. 19.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 2.93. In the town the population was spread out with 22.9% under the age of 18, 3.2% from 18 to 24, 19.4% from 25 to 44, 33.4% from 45 to 64, and 21.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48 years. For every 100 females there were 96.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.7 males. The median income for a household in the town was $84,722, and the median income for a family was $71,893. Males had a median income of $58,059 versus $39,585 for females. The per capita income for the town was $33,621. About 5.4% of families and 9.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.3% of those under age 18 and 3.5% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Economics
Brentwood underwent a severe boom and bust cycle from 2000 through 2008. Population expanded from 23,000 to 48,000 from 2000 to 2006, then abruptly leveled off after the subprime mortgage crisis. The change caused a sharp downturn in retail sales, and in city government, which was dependent on new construction permit fees as an income source. As of May, 2008 1/16 of all households had defaulted on their home loans. Median home resale prices decreased 33%, far more than the rest of the Bay Area.[5]
[edit] Transportation
Public transportation is very limited, so the principal roads leading into the city are very congested with commuter traffic. No freeways serve Brentwood directly, although a bypass was expanded in February 2008 to connect one of the city's main roads directly with State Route 4. Local bus service is provided by Tri Delta Transit company. This company also operates express bus service to BART stations in Dublin and Bay Point Monday through Friday, twice a day.
There is no passenger rail service to Brentwood.
Commercial airports serving this area are:
- Oakland International
- San Francisco International
- San Jose (Mineta)
- Sacramento
- Stockton
Other nearby airports serving private aircraft are:
- Byron
- Livermore
- Concord (Buchanan Field)
[edit] Agriculture-related attractions
- The Brentwood "Cornfest" occurs one weekend in July each year, culminating in a concert that features the popular local band Public Eye, and includes at least one headline band. Past performers include Eddie Money and Eric Burdon.
- Numerous local farms operate produce stands or offer "U-Pick" opportunities.
- A farmer's market is held on First Street in downtown Brentwood on Saturdays during the summer.
[edit] Points of interest
- East County Historical Society
- John Marsh House
- Los Vaqueros Reservoir
- Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta
[edit] Communities
- Apple Hill
- Brentwood Hills
- Deer Creek
- Deer Ridge
- Valley Green
- Dream Catcher Ridge
- Garin Ranch
- Havenwood Village
- Meridian Pointe
- Monte Verde
- Laurelwood Estates
- Parkside Brentwood
- Ponderosa Crossroads
- Shadow Lakes
- Sterling Preserve
- Visions (of Brentwood)
- Grant Street Projects
- Arroyo Secco (founding place of L.R.H.)
- Brentwood Park
- Rose Garden
- Lyon Grove
- Sycamore Square
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ USGS GNIS: Brentwood
- ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ Gudde, Erwin; revised by William Bright (1998). California Place Names, 4th edition, Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. ISBN 0520213165.
- ^ James Temple. "Brentwood the poster child for housing bust", San Francisco Chronicle, May 11, 2008.
[edit] External links
- City of Brentwood website
- Brentwood Chamber of Commerce
- Brentwood Local News (Brentwood Press)
- Brentwood's Boy Scout Troop
- Brentwood, California is at coordinates Coordinates:
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