Kenner, Louisiana

City of Kenner
City
Seal
Motto: America's City; Everything's Right Here
Country United States
State Louisiana
Parish Jefferson
Elevation 3 ft (0.914 m) [1]
Coordinates
Area 15.2 sq mi (39.4 km2)
 - land 15.1 sq mi (39 km2)
 - water 0.1 sq mi (0 km2), 0.66%
Population 66,702 (2010)
Density 4,659.0 / sq mi (1,798.8 / km2)
Founded March 2, 1855
 - Incorporated 1867
 - Reincorporated April 1, 1873
 - Reincorporated December 13, 1913
Mayor Michael S. Yenni
Timezone CST (UTC-6)
 - summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)
Area code 504
Location of Kenner in Louisiana
Location of Louisiana in the United States
Website: http://www.kenner.la.us

Kenner (historically French: Cannes-Brûlées) is a city in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, United States, and a suburb of New Orleans. The population was 66,702 at the 2010 census.

Kenner is represented in the Louisiana House of Representatives by the Republican attorney Tom Willmott. The state senator is Republican Danny Martiny, a former state House member. Martiny's predecessor in the House is Kernan "Skip" Hand, a retired district court judge from Kenner. Martiny's predecessor in the state Senate, Metairie attorney Art Lentini, also resides in Kenner.

Contents

History

Originally, inhabited by the Chapitoulas Indians, the area along the Mississippi River was the first land in the New Orleans Metropolitan Area on which Europeans set foot. René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle landed here in 1682. In 1855, Kenner was founded by Minor Kenner on land that consisted of three plantation properties that had been purchased by the Kenner family. At the time, all land north of what is now Airline Hwy was swampland.

During 1915-1931 a New Orleans streetcar line operated between New Orleans and Kenner. The line ran between the intersection of Rampart and Canal in New Orleans and the intersection of Williams Blvd and Jefferson Hwy in Kenner.

In 1960, Kenner had a population of 17,037.

Kenner's growth began in the late 1950s when developers began subdividing, draining and filling the swampland in the northern half of the city. During the 1960s, the construction of Interstate 10 and improvements to Veterans Memorial Highway aided the rapid development of Kenner as a suburb of New Orleans.

By 1979, Kenner's population was 60,524 making it the 6th largest city in state.

In 1982, Pan Am flight 759 crashed in a residential area of Kenner. A total of 154 people were killed (all 146 on board and 8 on the ground). Six houses were completely destroyed; five houses were substantially damaged.

Geography

Kenner's coordinates are (30.009610, -90.250585)[2] and has an elevation of 0 ft (0 m).[3]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.2 square miles (39 km2), of which, 15.1 square miles (39 km2) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km2) of it (00.7%) is water.

Kenner is located on the west side of the New Orleans Metropolitan Area, in Jefferson Parish. Its boundaries are Lake Pontchartrain to the north; the Mississippi River to the south; the unincorporated areas of Metairie and River Ridge to the east; and St. Charles Parish to the west.

Demographics

Historical populations
Census Pop.
1920 1,882
1930 2,440 29.6%
1940 2,375 −2.7%
1950 5,535 133.1%
1960 17,037 207.8%
1970 29,858 75.3%
1980 66,382 122.3%
1990 72,033 8.5%
2000 70,517 −2.1%
2010 66,702 −5.4%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 70,517 people, 25,652 households, and 18,469 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,659.0 people per square mile (1,798.3/km²). There were 27,378 housing units at an average density of 1,808.8 per square mile (698.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 68.12% White, 22.55% African American, 0.40% Native American, 2.84% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 3.80% from other races, and 2.24% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 13.62% of the population.

There were 25,652 households out of which 36.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.9% were married couples living together, 16.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.0% were non-families. 23.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.23.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.3% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 30.5% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 8.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $39,946, and the median income for a family was $45,866. Males had a median income of $34,964 versus $24,051 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,615. About 11.0% of families and 13.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.7% of those under the age of 18 and 12.0% of those 65 and older.

According to Census 2000, Kenner had 32 houses valued at $1,000,000 or more.

Places of interest

Kenner is home to the following:

The toy train museum closed in 2009.[5]

Government and infrastructure

The United States Postal Service operates two post offices.[6] They are the Kenner Post Office and the North Kenner Post Office.[7][8]

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Kenner is served by the Jefferson Parish Public School System.

The only high school in Kenner is Alfred Bonnabel High School, which is located on the border between Metairie and Kenner.

Middle Schools in Kenner include:

Elementary Schools include:

Catholic, Private, and Preparatory Schools Include:

Library and planetarium

Jefferson Parish Library operates the North Kenner Library.[9]

Kenner also has the Louis J. Roussel, Jr., Laser Planetarium, named for the New Orleans businessman and political kingmaker Louis J. Roussel, Jr..

References

  1. ^ "Kenner, Louisiana". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. June 4, 1980. http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=gnispq:3:::NO::P3_FID:558246. Retrieved 2007-12-12. 
  2. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
  3. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  4. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  5. ^ Ross, Bob. "Economy shutters Kenner's Toy Train Museum." New Orleans Time-Picayune. October 12, 2009. Retrieved on March 7, 2010.
  6. ^ "Contact Us." City of Kenner. Retrieved on September 28, 2010.
  7. ^ "Post Office™ Location - KENNER." United States Postal Service. Retrieved on September 27, 2010.
  8. ^ "Post Office™ Location - NORTH KENNER." United States Postal Service. Retrieved on September 28, 2010.
  9. ^ "North Kenner Library." Jefferson Parish Library. Retrieved on September 29, 2010.

External links