Modesto, California

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Modesto, California
Nickname(s): Motown
Motto: Water Wealth Contentment Health
Location in Stanislaus County and the state of California
Coordinates: 37°39′41″N 120°59′40″W / 37.66139°N 120.99444°W / 37.66139; -120.99444Coordinates: 37°39′41″N 120°59′40″W / 37.66139°N 120.99444°W / 37.66139; -120.99444
Country United States
State California
County Stanislaus
Incorporated 1884
Government
 - Mayor Jim Ridenour
Area
 - City 39.0 sq mi (93.1 km2)
 - Land 35.8 sq mi (92.7 km2)
 - Water 0.2 sq mi (0.4 km2)
Elevation 92 ft (28 m)
Population ((January 1,2009))
 - City 210,096
 - Density 5,277.3/sq mi (2,037.4/km2)
 - Metro 516,784
Time zone PST (UTC-8)
 - Summer (DST) PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP codes 95350-95358
Area code(s) 209
FIPS code 06-48354
GNIS feature ID 0277609
Website http://www.modestogov.com/

Modesto is the county seat of Stanislaus County, California, United States. As of January 1, 2009 the estimated population is 210,096. Modesto is the principal city of the Modesto Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which includes all of Stanislaus County. As of the 2000 census, the MSA had a population of 446,997. Current 2009 estimates placed the population at 516,784. Its population has boomed for the last decade, becoming the seventeenth largest city in the state and the sixth largest inland city in the state behind Stockton, Bakersfield, Riverside, Sacramento, and Fresno. The proximity to major business centers has turned the agriculturally based city into a bedroom community. Over twenty percent of the workforce travels outside of the county to their place of employment. The area is plagued by some of the worst air quality in the nation, on occasion surpassing even that of Los Angeles. Modesto had the highest auto theft per capita rate in the United States five of the last six years. Its suburbs are among the most impoverished in the nation, ranking sixth poorest out of the 100 largest metro areas. It is a major meth distribution hub and was considered for many years to be the "Methamphetamine Capital of the World." In 2007, Modesto was named last in a list of best American cities in Cities Ranked & Rated, 2nd Edition[1] Number 23 on the top 400 most dangerous metropolitan areas in 2007 Morgan Quitno[2] (it ranked 16th in 2006[3] and 39th in 2008[4]). In 2009, Forbes Magazine ranked Modesto the worst metro area with over 500,000 residents[5] just months after placing it 5th on the list of most miserable American cities.[6]

Contents

[edit] Climate

Modesto has cool, wet winters and very warm, dry summers. Typical of the Central Valley, the community often has dense ground fog during the winter months.

Average January temperatures are a maximum of 53.7°F and a minimum of 37.6°F. Average July temperatures are a maximum of 94.2°F and a minimum of 59.9°F. There are an average of 80.0 days with highs of 90°F (32°C) or higher and an average of 20.3 days with lows of 32°F (0°C) or lower. The record high temperature of 113°F was on July 23, 2006. The record low temperature of 18°F occurred on December 13, 1932, and January 11, 1949.

Average annual rainfall is 12.22 inches, falling on an average of 51 days annually. The summer months are usually very dry except for rare thunderstorms. The wettest year was 1983 with 27.39 inches of rain and the dryest year was 1929 with 5.70 inches of rain. The most rain in one month was 8.80 inches in February 1988. The most rain in 24 hours was 2.72 inches on March 4, 1978. Snow is very rare in Modesto, but 1.5 inches fell on January 21, 1962.[7]

[edit] History

Modesto, originally a stop on the railroad connecting Sacramento to Los Angeles, was founded in 1870 and was to be named for William C. Ralston, financier of many projects in early California. However, he declined the suggestion and a Spanish-speaking railroad worker at the naming ceremony said that Ralston was "Muy modesto" (very modest). Thus, the town was named Modesto.[citation needed] It is unknown at this time if this story is mere folklore or actual fact, but considering that to the north there is a city named Manteca (Lard in Spanish) and to the south a city named Los Banos (The Bathroom), Modesto was very fortunate with its naming. But the fact is no one seems to know for certain how Modesto got its name. The city was incorporated in 1884 in which it had over 1000 in 1880. By 1900 its population was over 4,500. For the next decades Modesto's population boomed to over 100,000 in 1980 and over 200,000 in 2001.

Modesto's official slogan is "Water Wealth Contentment Health," which is emblazoned on a large arch downtown that has been immortalized in many photographs. A contest was run in 1911 to determine the slogan. The original winning slogan was: "Nobody's got Modesto's goat". The second place entry was the final winner.

[edit] Sights

Modesto is known for the following tourist attractions and historical sites.

The McHenry Mansion.
  • McHenry Mansion Built by hand in the early 1880s by Robert McHenry, a local rancher and banker. The mansion is included on the National Register of Historic Places. Tours are given.
  • McHenry Museum Across the street from the McHenry Mansion. Filled with tidbits from Modesto's history.
  • George Lucas Plaza American Graffiti inspired bronze statue made in the honor of Modesto filmmaker George Lucas, located at Five Points (the intersections of McHenry Avenue, "J" Street, 17th Street, Downey and Needham).
  • Gallo Center for the Arts , Center for performing arts recently opened and is located in downtown Modesto at 1000 "I" Street.
  • Downtown Modesto is known for having a variety of restaurants and night life.
  • The State Theatre Dating back to the 1920s, it was recently renovated and serves as a local performance arts center and as a theater specializing in independent and foreign films.
  • John Thurman Field Home of the Modesto Nuts baseball team (single "A" affiliate of the Colorado Rockies MLB team).

The 1973 movie, "American Grafitti", starring Ron Howard, Richard Dreyfuss and Cindy Williams was set in 1962 Modesto; however, the actual filming location of the scenes of the weekend cruising was actually filmed elsewhere in California.

[edit] Transportation

Modesto is served by one of the busiest rail corridors in the country. The Amtrak San Joaquins make ten daily stops on the route between Oakland and Bakersfield, and two stops daily on the route between Sacramento and Bakersfield.

[edit] Air

Modesto is served by the Modesto City-County Airport that lies east of California State Route 99 within the city limits. SkyWest Airlines (operating as United Express) provides air service to San Francisco International Airport. The airport is used for manufacturing and the shipping industries throughout California and the United States.

[edit] Land

Interstate 5 and California State Route 99 provide major highway access to Modesto. California State Route 132 links the city to Interstate 580, providing commuter access to highways into the Bay Area. California State Route 108 connects to Oakdale, California and east to the foothills.

[edit] Public Transit

Three public transit systems serve Modesto: Modesto Area Express (MAX), Stanislaus Regional Transit (StaRT), and the San Joaquin Regional Transit District along the northern edge of the city on McHenry Avenue. MAX is the local system with additional connections to the Altamont Commuter Express train station in Lathrop and the Dublin/Pleasanton BART station. MAX also provides a paratransit "dial-a-ride" service which specifically caters to seniors and the disabled. It is open to the general public only during certain times [8]. StaRT connects Modesto to the county's other populated centers.

The large industrial region south and east of the city is served by the Modesto and Empire Traction Railroad, a 5-mile (8-km) short line with a web of industry tracks and many customers.

At one time, the city was the operational center of the Tidewater Southern Railway, which had its mainline down the center of Ninth Street, a major north-south road. A law passed by the city kept electric wire over this section of street running long after the railroad converted to steam power. In 2000, the last trains ran down Ninth Street and now the railroad (owned by the Union Pacific Railroad since 1983) is severed through Modesto.

[edit] Education

[edit] City schools

The local school district was established for students in the community in 1871.The District is composed of an elementary district (K-8) and a high school district (9-12) with a common Board of Education and administration.The current enrollment is approximately 32,000 students. The district operates 23 elementary schools (K-6), four junior high schools (7-8), six comprehensive high schools (9-12), and an alternative education program which includes an opportunity and continuation school, independent study and adult evening high school. A seventh comprehensive high school, Joseph Gregori High School, is planned. The district has 3,200 employees and an annual budget in excess of $205 million dollars.

[edit] Elementary Schools [K-6]

[edit] Junior High Schools [7-8]

[edit] High School [9-12]

[edit] Higher Education

  • Modesto Junior College is a two year junior college in Modesto and has over 20,000 students enrolled and 21 inter-collegiate sports teams.It offer coures for high students as well as open any age who want go back get college credits.

[edit] Water

Although the city is surrounded by the Tuolumne River and Stanislaus River, it has no operating port for oceangoing ships due to the depth of the rivers. Rivers and lakes near Waterford are wide enough to be accessible for small boats and ferries. The nearest large operating port is the Port of Stockton, used for oceangoing ships that transport goods, particularly agricultural products, overseas.

[edit] Future Expansion of State Route 132

The city has plans to build an expressway that would expand State Route 132's expressway status from Interstate 580 to State Route 99. The proposed expressway would follow Kansas Avenue from the recently built Kansas-Needham Overpass and a proposed new Hwy. 99 Interchange. It would later go out of Modesto and to Interstate 580. The city is also planning to add more ramps on the Central Modesto exit in SR 99 for less traffic coming in and out of downtown.

[edit] Industry

Modesto has a large agricultural industry which is based on the fertile farmland surrounding the city. Blue Diamond Growers, an almond factory in Salida, is a major nut supplier. Modesto is also home to the second largest winery in the world: E & J Gallo Winery. The Gallo Glass Company, a company of Gallo Winery, is the largest wine bottle manufacturing company in the world. The company provides thousands of office and manufacturing jobs to Stanislaus County residents. The canneries downtown produce food which is usually shipped to Sacramento and Fresno for transfer to rail or ship. Ceres has a few cereal and snack factories in the area. Downtown there are several steelworking companies. In mid-2008, a number of road projects were being constructed, repaved or repaired, with an estimated total cost of nearly $120,000,000.

[edit] Planning and environmental

In the late 1980s Modesto embarked on an update to the city's General Plan pursuant to requirements of the State of California. The result was a comprehensive evaluation of alternative population and land use projections along with associated environmental impact analysis. Some of the environmental factors assessed were air quality, water quality, environmental noise, soil contamination and visual impacts.

Much of the soils in Modesto are classified as part of the Hanford series: (HbpA) fine sandy loam, moderately deep over silt. These soils are well-drained, moderately coarse textured soils derived from alluvium from granitic rock. The Hanford soils are important for the production of a wide variety of irrigated orchard, field, and truck crops.

Vicinity watercourses include the Stanislaus River, the Tuolumne River and Dry Creek empties into the Tuolumne River. Area groundwater, which is the principal source of water supply in the city (Stanislaus,1987), has been historically impaired in a fashion that is spatially variable. In various parts of the city and its perimeter the following water pollutants have occurred from time to time: nitrates, dibromochloroethane, volatile organics, salinity, total dissolved solids and other pesticides.(Torrey, 1989) Each of these contaminants is not present citywide.

[edit] Downtown Revitalization

Famous attractions downtown are:

  • State Theatre
  • Gallo Center for the Arts
  • Brenden Theatres

[edit] Entertainment and Culture

In the past 10 years, Modesto has hosted many music festivals such as SummerFest, the Downtown Summer Concert Series featuring Chris Isaak, Hootie and the Blowfish, The Doobie Brothers and Styx, and the most notable of all X-Fest.

X-Fest, deriving from its real name Xclamation Festival, is a 21 and over music festival in downtown Modesto. Starting in 1999, X-Fest has evolved into a large outdoor event stretching 15 blocks and featuring the Worlds Largest Disco which covers four blocks on its own. In 2008 X-Fest featured 50 bands and a crowd of 15,000 people. Although some business owners and citizens of Modesto complain of its rowdy and often drunk Mardi Gras atmosphere, much of the profits end up in local non-profit charities.

Located in downtown Modesto is the locally iconic State Theater, one of the many hot spots for music acts and independent films.

[edit] Music and performing arts

Modesto is home to the YES (Youth Entertainment Stage) company, a nationally recognized program founded in 1992, which performs at Gallo Center for the Arts. Modesto is also home to Townsend Opera Players, founded by late performer Buck Townsend, and Modesto Performing Arts, as well as the Gallo Center for the Arts [9]

Modesto was the home of the indie rock band Grandaddy.

[edit] Modesto Shopping

Vintage Faire Mall in Modesto is an enclosed 2-level shopping mall and is home to more than 125 stores and five major department stores. Recently remodeled, Vintage Faire Mall offers something for everyone, with stores like Macy’s, JC Penny, Sears as well Taxi’s Hamburgers, SweetRiver Grill & Bar or Charley’s Mimmi cafe for dining.

Vintage Commons close to Vintage Faire Mall and has stores such as Target, Best Buy, and Borders, Bed Bath & Beyond as well new Costco center featuring Pier One Imports, Cost Plus, Starbucks and Jamba Juice on Pelandale and Sisk Road.

Plaza Parkway in modesto offers stores such as Wal-Mart and Kohl’and John’s Incredible pizza

McHenry Avenue offers Mervyns, Burlington Coat Factory and Barnes and Noble .Modesto offers more then 200 restaurants, cafes, coffee houses and other nightlife clubs.

[edit] Demographics

Historical populations
Census Pop.  %±
1880 1,693
—
1890 2,024 19.6%
1900 4,034 99.3%
1910 4,500 11.6%
1920 9,241 105.4%
1930 13,842 49.8%
1940 16,830 21.6%
1950 22,592 34.2%
1960 36,585 61.9%
1970 61,712 68.7%
1980 106,963 73.3%
1990 164,730 54.0%
2000 188,856 14.6%

As of the census[10] of 2000, there were 188,856 people, 64,959 households, and 46,640 families residing in the city. The population density was 5,277.3 people per square mile (2,037.4/km²). There were 67,179 housing units at an average density of 1,877.2/sq mi (724.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 69.58% White, 25.58% Hispanic or Latino, 3.97% African American, 1.24% Native American, 6.03% Asian, 0.50% Pacific Islander.

There were 64,959 households out of which 38.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.5% were married couples living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% were non-families. 22.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.86 and the average family size was 3.36.

In the city the population was spread out with 30.1% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 20.3% from 45 to 64, and 11.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $40,394, and the median income for a family was $45,681. Males had a median income of $38,595 versus $26,989 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,797. About 12.2% of families and 15.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.9% of those under age 18 and 7.4% of those age 65 or over.

AS of Jan. 1,2009 estimates place it as 210,096 residents which has finally reached a peak of over 210,000 people due to new houses being built for the past year. Projections say it could be at least 212,000-215,000 people from 2010-2015.Metropolitian area could be to 517,000-525,000 people. Modesto grows about 100-2000 people per year and 4,000-25,000 residents per decade.

[edit] Government

Modesto is governed via the mayor-council system. The Mayor is elected by the entire City. The six members of the city council are elected from districts by the voters within the respective district.

[edit] Politics

In the state legislature Modesto is located in the 12th and 14th Senate district, represented by Republicans Jeff Denham and Dave Cogdill respectively, and in the 25th and 26th Assembly districts, represented by Republicans Tom Berryhill and Bill Berryhill respectively. Federally, Modesto is located in California's 18th and 19th congressional districts, which have Cook PVIs of D +4 and R +9[11] respectively and are represented by Democrat Dennis Cardoza and Republican George Radanovich respectively.

[edit] Media

[edit] Notable residents

[edit] Sister Cities

Modesto has five sister cities:[13]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Sperling, Bert; Sander, Peter (2007). Cities Ranked & Rated: More than 400 Metropolitan Areas Evaluated in the U.S. and Canada. Wiley. ISBN 0470068647. 
  2. ^ "City Crime Rankings by Population Group". Morgan Quitno. 2007. http://www.statestats.com/cit07pop.htm#25. 
  3. ^ "City Crime Rankings by Population Group". Morgan Quitno. 2006. http://www.statestats.com/cit06pop.htm#METRO. 
  4. ^ "City Crime Rankings by Population Group". Morgan Quitno. 2008. http://os.cqpress.com/citycrime/MetroCrime2008_Rank_Rev.pdf. 
  5. ^ Greenburg, Zack O'Malley (April 1, 2009). "America's Most Livable Cities". Forbes. http://www.forbes.com/2009/04/01/cities-city-ten-lifestyle-real-estate-livable-cities.html. 
  6. ^ Badenhausen, Kurt (February 6, 2009). "America's Most Miserable Cities". Forbes. http://www.forbes.com/2009/02/06/most-miserable-cities-business-washington_0206_miserable_cities.html. 
  7. ^ http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/cliMAIN.pl?ca5738
  8. ^ "Dial-A-Ride Information". Modesto Area Express. http://www.modestoareaexpress.com/dar_information.htm. 
  9. ^ "Gallo Center for the Arts". http://www.gallocenter.org. 
  10. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved on 2008-01-31. 
  11. ^ Hinckley, Catie; Walker, John (November 1, 2006). "Will Gerrymandered Districts Stem the Wave of Voter Unrest?". Campaign Legal Center Blog. http://www.clcblog.org/blog_item-85.html. Retrieved on 2008-02-10. 
  12. ^ "Mark Spitz". www.jewishsports.net. http://www.jewishsports.net/BioPages/MarkSpitz.htm. Retrieved on 2008-08-31. 
  13. ^ Modesto Sister Cities

[edit] Bibliography

  • Stanislaus County General Plan, (1987)
  • John Torrey, Paul Awosika et al., Expanded initial study, Boulder Creek subdivision, Stanislaus County, Earth Metrics, Report 7999: California State Clearinghouse, Sacramento, November, 1989.

[edit] External links

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