Alachua, Florida

Alachua, Florida
City

Alachua City Hall
Motto: The Good Life Community

Location in Alachua County and the state of Florida
Coordinates: 29°46′45″N 82°28′47″W / 29.77917°N 82.47972°W / 29.77917; -82.47972Coordinates: 29°46′45″N 82°28′47″W / 29.77917°N 82.47972°W / 29.77917; -82.47972
Country  United States
County  Alachua
Settled 1884
Incorporated (city) 12 April 1905
Government
  Type Commission-Manager
  Mayor Gib Coerper
  City Manager Traci Cain
Area[1]
  Total 35.13 sq mi (90.98 km2)
  Land 34.75 sq mi (90.00 km2)
  Water 0.38 sq mi (0.98 km2)  0.11%
Elevation 138 ft (42 m)
Population (2010)
  Total 9,059
  Density 260.7/sq mi (100.65/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
  Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP codes 32615-32616
Area code(s) 386, 352
FIPS code 12-00375[2]
GNIS feature ID 0307629[3]
Website www.cityofalachua.com

Alachua is a city in Alachua County, Florida, United States. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city's population was 9,059 [4] The city is part of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which was home to 264,275 people at the 2010 census.[5]

History

Alachua was established in 1884 on a railroad line, after the railroad had bypassed nearby Newnansville. Alachua got a post office in 1887 and was incorporated as a city on 12 April 1905, at which time it had a population of 526 people.

Geography

Alachua is located at 29°46′45″N 82°28′47″W / 29.77917°N 82.47972°W / 29.77917; -82.47972 (29.779286, -82.479849).[6] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 35.1 square miles (91.0 km2). 34.7 square miles (90.0 km2) of it is land and 0.39 square miles (1.0 km2) of it (1.08%) is water.[4]

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1910610
192077827.5%
193086511.2%
19401,08125.0%
19501,1163.2%
19601,97476.9%
19702,25214.1%
19803,56158.1%
19904,52927.2%
20006,09834.6%
20109,05948.6%
Est. 20149,561[7]5.5%
U.S. Decennial Census[8]

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 6,098 people, 2,348 households, and 1,751 families residing in the city. The population density was 211.0 per square mile (81.5/km²). There were 2,501 housing units at an average density of 86.5 per square mile (33.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 67.56% White, 29.08% African American, 0.15% Native American, 1.12% Asian, 1.13% from other races, and 0.97% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.61% of the population.

There were 2,348 households out of which 34.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.5% were married couples living together, 19.0% 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 7.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.8% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 26.9% from 25 to 44, 25.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 87.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $38,075, and the median income for a family was $49,542. Males had a median income of $36,315 versus $28,018 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,299. About 14.0% of families and 16.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.3% of those under age 18 and 11.6% of those age 65 or over.

The largest Hare Krishna community in the Western Hemisphere is located in Alachua, with satellite communities throughout North Florida.

Education

Alachua is served by the School Board of Alachua County, which operates two elementary schools, W.W. Irby Elementary (K-2), Alachua Elementary (3-5), A.L. Mebane Middle School and Santa Fe High School in the city,[9] and the Alachua County Library District, which operates a branch library in the city.[10]

Media

Print

The newspaper Alachua County Today has its headquarters in Alachua city. The paper serves all of the communities within Alachua County, but it focuses on smaller municipalities outside of Gainesville.[11] Good Life Community is a life-style magazine which is also headquartered in Alachua. It covers Gainesville and the communities of northwestern Alachua County.[12]

References

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Friday, January 15, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.