|
| |
Santa Cruz is the county seat and most-populated city of Santa Cruz County, California, United States.
As of the 2000 U.S. Census, Santa Cruz had a total population of 54,593.
It is located on the northern edge of the Monterey Bay, about 72 mi (115 km) south of San Francisco.
|
| |
Geography
Santa Cruz is located at 36°58'19?N, 122°1'35?W (36.972050, -122.026252)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 40.4 km˛ (15.6 mi˛). 32.5 km˛ (12.5 mi˛) of it is land and 8.0 km˛ (3.1 mi˛) of it (19.67%) is water.
Santa Cruz exhibits a Mediterranean climate, with mild summers due to coastal fog.
Winters tend to be rainy, although periodic droughts have occurred in recent decades.
|
| |
Demographics
Recorded from the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 54,593 people total with 20,442 households and 10,404 families residing in the city. The population density includes 1,682.2/km˛ (4,356.0/mi˛). There were 21,504 housing units at an average density of 662.6/km˛ (1,715.8/mi˛).
The racial makeup of the city represents 78.74% White, 1.73% African American, 0.86% Native American, 4.90% Asian, 0.13% Pacific Islander, 9.14% from other races, and 4.50% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 17.39% of the population.
There were 20,442 households out of which 25.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.0% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 49.1% were non-families. 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the city the population was spread out with 17.3% under the age of 18, 20.5% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 8.5% who were 65 years of age or older.
The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 99.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $50,605, and the median income for a family was $62,231.
Males had a median income of $44,751 versus $32,699 for females. The per capita income for the city was $25,758. About 6.6% of families and 16.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.5% of those under age 18 and 4.8% of those age 65 or over.
|
| |
Education
Santa Cruz is home to the University of California, Santa Cruz, which was built starting in the 1960s as an 'alternative' campus with a residential college system based on the British system, (see University of Cambridge or University of Oxford). There are ten colleges, each with a different theme and architectural look.
Overlooking Monterey Bay among the redwood trees, UCSC is arguably the most beautiful of the University of California campuses. UCSC originally did not use letter grades and had no organized sports teams, although both of these have been changed and students are now faced with the same choices as any other campus.
There are now also a number of NCAA division III sports programs, including tennis, waterpolo, swimming, diving, basketball, rugby, and soccer. The mascot, the banana slug, was established by students on an informal basis, and recognizes an indigenous creature that can be found throughout the campus.
The campus administration attempted to make the sea lion as the mascot in the early 1980s.
However, after a 1986 student referendum voted overwhelmingly in favor of the slug, the then-Chancellor declared the slug the official UCSC mascot. |
| |
Recreation
Santa Cruz is well-known for watersports such as sailing, diving, paddling and surfing. It is the home of O'Neill Wetsuits and Santa Cruz Surfboards, as well as Santa Cruz Skateboards and Santa Cruz Bicycles. The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk is California’s oldest amusement park and a designated State Historic Landmark.
Home to two National Historic Landmarks, a 1911 Charles I. D. Looff Carousel and 1924 Giant Dipper roller coaster, the Boardwalk has been owned and operated by the Santa Cruz Seaside Company since 1915.
Santa Cruz is the reputed site of the first surfing in California in 1885, when three Hawaiian princes surfed on locally milled redwood boards at the mouth of the San Lorenzo River, but there were no witnesses and scant circumstantial evidence to prove it.
Santa Cruz has 11 world-class surf breaks, including the point breaks over rock bottoms near Steamer's Lane and Pleasure Point, which create some of the best surfing waves in the world. Home to the Santa Cruz Surfing Museum at Steamer Lane, which continues to be staffed by docents such as Harry Mayo and others from the Santa Cruz Surfing Club who have surfed Santa Cruz waves since the 1930s, Santa Cruz hosts several surf contests drawing international participants each year, including the O'Neill Cold Water Classic, the International Longboard Association contest, and many others.
The Santa Cruz Wharf is known for fishing, viewing marine mammals and other recreation.
Many outdoor sports are popular in the area such as cycling, camping, hiking, and rock climbing.
In addition to its reputation in surfing and skateboarding, Santa Cruz is known for other alternative sports such as disc golf. The De Laveaga Disc Golf Course hosts PDGA tournaments, including the annual Masters Cup.
De Laveaga was the disc golf and discathon venue for the WFDF-sanctioned World Disc Games overall event held in Santa Cruz in July 2005.
Santa Cruz provides many great opportunities for birding (see bird list) and butterfly watching.
Many local shops and local color can be seen by spending an afternoon strolling Pacific Street, the heart of downtown Santa Cruz.
Representing an aspect of the "Keep Santa Cruz weird" contingent is Robert Steffen, a gentleman who spends his weekday afternoons walking very slowly down Pacific Street while dressed entirely in pink women's clothing and maekup, including an umbrella even in the middle of California's "dry season", thereby attaining the moniker "The Pink Umbrella Man".
Santa Cruz is also home to KSCO 1080 AM, one of the last independent commercial radio stations in the country.
Shakespeare Santa Cruz holds an annual summer festival at UC Santa Cruz. The festival typically performs two Shakespeare plays and one other play every summer, many of which are performed in a unique outdoor space among the redwoods.
Santa Cruz is also home to the Cabrillo Music Festival.
Camper Van Beethoven was formed in Santa Cruz, as was the famous Ska band Slow Gherkin and the Brazilian band Sambada. Keyboardist Derek Sherinian grew up in Santa Cruz. Childhood home of actress ZaSu Pitts.
|
| |
Economy
The principal industries of Santa Cruz are agriculture, tourism, education (UCSC) and high technology.
Santa Cruz is a center of the organic agriculture movement, and many specialty products. Tourist attractions include the classic Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk on the beach, the redwood forests, and unspoiled Monterey Bay, which is protected as a marine sanctuary.
The best known local high-tech companies are The Santa Cruz Operation (SCO) (now Tarantella, Inc.) and Plantronics. Giro bicycle helmets, The Santa Cruz Guitar Company, the Good Earth Tea and Erik's Deli Cafe are also headquartered in Santa Cruz.
|
| |
Transportation
Highways 1 and 17 are the main roads in and out of Santa Cruz. Geographically constrained between the Santa Cruz Mountains and the Monterey Bay, the narrow transportation corridor served by Highway 1 suffers severe congestion.
Alternative transportation is actively promoted by the City Council, and several transit improvements are underway.
The Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District provides bus service throughout Santa Cruz County. Metro also operates bus service between Santa Cruz (city) and San Jose, thanks to a partnership with the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority and Amtrak California; connections are possible in San Jose. (Complete transit itineraries between Santa Cruz and San Francisco Bay Area cities and major airports are available from iridethebus.org; see External Links, below.)
Greyhound Lines bus service is another option for visiting Surf City.
No. 7 Sonora Class C Shay
Big Trees RailroadThe Santa Cruz, Big Trees and Pacific Railway operates diesel-electric tourist trains between the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk and Roaring Camp in Felton, through Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park.
Their year-round trains, which take excursion groups through the Redwoods to the mountain top, are two, 3-cylinder Shay Steam Locomotives, which are gear-driven.
The county of Santa Cruz is in the process of buying the Santa Cruz branch rail right-of-way belonging to Union Pacific Railroad from Davenport to Watsonville. Several uses for the right-of-way are proposed, including a tourist train connecting Aptos with Capitola, California.
Santa Cruz has an extensive network of bike lanes and bike paths. Most major roads have bike lanes, and wide, luxurious bike lanes were recently installed on Beach Street, near the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Additionally, there are levee bike paths along the San Lorenzo River. A Rail Trail -- a bicycle and pedestrian path beside the train right-of-way -- is under development.
The county has one public use general aviation airport and several for private use, as shown in the list of Santa Cruz airports. The nearest airports for commercial travel include San Jose International Airport, Monterey Peninsula Airport, San Francisco International Airport, and Oakland International Airport.
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
