Lakewood, Colorado
| City of Lakewood | |
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| — City — | |
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| Coordinates: | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  State of Colorado |
| County | Jefferson County[1] |
| Founded | 1889 |
| Incorporated | 1969[2] |
| Government | |
| - Type | Home Rule Municipality[1] |
| - Mayor | Bob Murphy |
| Area | |
| - Total | 42.5 sq mi (110.0 km2) |
| - Land | 41.6 sq mi (107.7 km2) |
| - Water | 0.9 sq mi (2.3 km2) |
| Elevation[3] | 5,480 ft (1,682 m) |
| Population (2008)[4] | |
| - Total | 140,989 |
| - Density | 3,465.3/sq mi (1,338.0/km2) |
| Time zone | MST (UTC-7) |
| - Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) |
| ZIP codes | Denver 80214-80215, 80226-80228, 80232, 80235-80236 Golden 80401 Littleton 80123 |
| Area code(s) | Both 303 and 720 |
| FIPS code | 08-43000 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0181620 |
| Highways | I-70, US 6, US 40, US 285, SH 8, SH 95, SH 121, SH 391, SH 470 |
| Website | City of Lakewood |
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Lakewood is a Home Rule Municipality that is the most populous city in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. Lakewood is the fourth most populous city in the State of Colorado and the 172nd most populous city in the United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that in 2008-07-01 the population of the City of Lakewood was 140,989 [4]. Lakewood is west of Denver and is part of the Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Before incorporation in 1969, Lakewood was an urban sprawl community with policing provided by the Jefferson County Sheriff, a volunteer fire service, and with few street lights and sidewalks. Many of the older residents appreciated the absence of municipal taxes. The City of Lakewood was incorporated in 1969. At the time of incorporation the city population was already over 90,000, making Lakewood one of the largest cities, at the time of original incorporation, in the history of the United States.
The urban/suburban development of the community known as Lakewood was begun in 1889 by Charles Welch and W.A.H. Loveland, who platted a 13-block area along Colfax Avenue west of Denver in eastern Jefferson County. Loveland, the former president of the Colorado Central Railroad, retired to the new community of Lakewood after many years of living in nearby Golden.
Lakewood also houses the prestigious Lakewood High School, ranked number one in the state by Newsweek, and the only International Baccalaureate school in Jefferson County. Lakewood is also home to Colorado Christian University.
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Geography
Lakewood is located at .[5]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 42.5 square miles (110.0 km²), of which, 41.6 square miles (107.7 km²) of it is land and 0.9 square miles (2.3 km²) of it (2.05%) is water.
Demographics
As of the of 2000 [4], there were 144,126 people, 60,531 households, and 36,500 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,465.3 people per square mile (1,338.0/km²). There were 62,422 housing units at an average density of 1,500.8/sq mi (579.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 87.15% White, 1.48% African American, 1.11% Native American, 2.72% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 4.88% from other races, and 2.58% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 14.54% of the population.
There were 60,531 households out of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.1% were married couples living together, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.7% were non-families. 30.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.92.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.2% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 32.4% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 12.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 97.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $48,109, and the median income for a family was $57,171. Males had a median income of $39,800 versus $31,128 for females. The per capita income for the city was $25,575. About 4.8% of families and 7.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.5% of those under age 18 and 4.7% of those age 65 or over.
Municipal government
Until 1969, the area known as Lakewood had no municipal government, relying instead on several water districts, several fire districts, and the government of Jefferson County. However, the community had already existed for about 80 years.
Lakewood maintains a council/manager form of government. Citizens elect a City Council consisting of the Mayor, who is elected at-large, and 10 City Council members, two from each of the city's five geographical wards. The mayor and the council members assert the policies for the operation of the city government.
Mayor: Bob Murphy
Ward 1: Councilmember Vicki Stack and Councilmember Karen Kellen
Ward 2: Councilmember Scott Koop and Councilmember Cindy Baroway
Ward 3: Councilmember Sue King and Councilmember Ed Peterson
Ward 4: Councilmember David Wiechman and Councilmember Adam Paul
Ward 5: Councilmember Diana Allen and Tom Quinn.
State representation
Almost the entirety of the City of Lakewood falls into Colorado House District 26. Lakewood is represented in the state House by Rep. Andy Kerr.[6]
Sister cities
Lakewood has four sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International:
, 
Chester, United Kingdom- , Portsmouth, United Kingdom also a Friendship City
Stade, Germany[7]
Sutherland Shire, Australia
Economy
Lakewood's economy is diverse while the largest employers are government. The Denver Federal Center employs about 6,200 people and The Jefferson County R-1 school district employs 3,930. Caridian, a medical devices manufacturer, employs 1,654 people.[8]
Culture and contemporary life
Lakewood never had a traditional downtown area. West Colfax Ave from Harlan west to Kipling and beyond had most commercial establishment. In addition to the Jewish Consumptive Relief Society (JCRS) for TB patients and the small frame Methodist Church, there emerged by the 1950s grocery and drug stores, gas stations, restaurants & taverns, several motels, a movie theater, roller rink and bowling alley, and used car lots. Several multi-business "shopping centers" developed followed by much larger centers at JCRS and Westland. The Villa Italia Mall on Alameda Blvd. 20 blocks south of Colfax, reflected the southward expansion of Lakewood settlement. It housed a larger concentration of retail space. As the mall went into decline the Lakewood City Council developed a plan to demolish the Villa Italia Mall and replace it with a new development called Belmar. Belmar is a modern downtown area with a diverse mix of residential, retail and cultural establishments.
Shopping
In addition to the Belmar retail district, Lakewood has a shopping mall called Colorado Mills which is near I-70 and Colfax Avenue.
Landmarks
Landmarks and historical points of interest include:
- The old Lakewood school complex at Wadsworth Blvd and 10th Avenue. The old building facing on Wadsworth was the Lakewood Grade School dating from the 1920s.
- Harley-Davidson dealership on Colfax Ave. is housed in what was originally the Lakewood movie theater dating from the early 1950s.
- Belmar is a new modern downtown with a mix of retail and residential buildings that replaced the old Villa Italia Mall. Belmar is home to The Laboratory of Art and Ideas at Belmar.
- Casa Bonita, a local Mexican restaurant in Lakewood, where a South Park episode took place.
- Denver Federal Center is the largest concentration of Federal agencies outside of Washington, DC.
- Lakewood Cultural Center features a theater, gallery space, and art classrooms.
- Lakewood Heritage Center is a museum with several historic buildings and is located near Kountze Lake which formerly housed the Belmar Mansion.
See also
- Colorado municipalities
- Denver-Aurora Metropolitan Statistical Area
- Denver-Aurora-Boulder Combined Statistical Area
- Front Range Urban Corridor
- Jefferson County, Colorado
- State of Colorado
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Active Colorado Municipalities". State of Colorado, Department of Local Affairs. http://www.dola.state.co.us/dlg/local_governments/municipalities.html. Retrieved 2007-12-07.
- ↑ "Colorado Municipal Incorporations". State of Colorado, Department of Personnel & Administration, Colorado State Archives. 2004-12-01. http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/muninc.html. Retrieved 2007-09-02.
- ↑ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Annual Estimates of the Population for Incorporated Places in Colorado, April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2008
- ↑ "US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2005-05-03. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ↑ "State House District 26". COMaps. http://comaps.org/district26h.html. Retrieved 2009-01-21.
- ↑ Stade is located on the German Framework Road
- ↑ ""Employment in Lakewood for Selected Businesses with 250 Employees or More"". The City of Lakewood. http://www.lakewood-colorado.org/business_climate/employers.asp. Retrieved 2007-06-04.
External links
- City of Lakewood website
- CDOT map of the City of Lakewood
- Lakewood Heritage Center
- [1] (Newsweek Numbers)
- Belmar
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