San Diego is a coastal southern California city located in the southwestern corner of the continental United States. It is the county seat of San Diego County. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 1,223,400; as of 2005, the California Department of Finance estimated the city to have 1,305,736 residents. The city is the second-largest in California and the seventh-largest in the United States and is noted for its temperate climate and many beaches. It is also the home of many U.S. military facilities, including U.S. Navy ports, Marine Corps bases, and Coast Guard stations. It is the home port of the largest naval fleet in the world, including two Navy supercarriers (the USS Nimitz and the USS Ronald Reagan) five amphibious assault ships, several Los Angeles-class submarines, and many smaller ships. One of the Marine Corps' two Recruit Depots is located here. San Diego is also known as the "birthplace of naval aviation," though Pensacola, Florida makes a rival claim.
Several Navy vessels have been named USS San Diego in honor of the city.
As of the census of 2000, there are 1,223,400 people, 450,691 households, and 271,315 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,456.4/km2 (3,771.9/mi2). There are 469,689 housing units at an average density of 559.1/km2 (1,448.1/mi2). The racial makeup of the city is 47.18% White, 9.86% African American, 1.62% Native American, 13.65% Asian, 0.48% Pacific Islander, 12.39% from other races, and 4.83% from two or more races. 25.40% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race. The city's Asian ethnicities breakdown accordingly: Filipino (6.1%), Vietnamese (2.2%), Chinese (1.9%), Other Asian (1.5%), Japanese (0.8%), Korean (0.6%), Asian Indian (0.6%).
There are 450,691 households out of which 30.2% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.6% are married couples living together, 11.4% have a female householder with no husband present, and 39.8% are non-families. 28.0% of all households are made up of individuals and 7.4% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.61 and the average family size is 3.30.
In the city the population is spread out with 24.0% under the age of 18, 12.4% from 18 to 24, 34.0% from 25 to 44, 19.1% from 45 to 64, and 10.5% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 32 years. For every 100 females there are 101.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 100.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $45,733, and the median income for a family is $53,060. Males have a median income of $36,984 versus $31,076 for females. The per capita income for the city is $23,609. 14.6% of the population and 10.6% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 20.0% of those under the age of 18 and 7.6% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
Tagged as one of six centers of innovation, San Diego community business entrepreneurs and civic entrepreneurs are building one of the great technology regions of the twenty-first century.
In 1976, Price Club, now Costco, launched a new concept in retail distribution, the warehouse club with its first location on Morena Boulevard.
San Diego's leaders made a commitment in the 1980s to diversify the economy and encourage the growth of high technology companies. They were motivated by the desire to move away from the boom or bust cycles that dependency on just two core industries had created. No one could have predicted the success with which the region has developed key technology industries. Developing in parallel, and in today's technology environment, finding more and more cross-fertilization opportunities, San Diego's core technology sectors have become leading centers for biotechnology, communications and software development.
Life Sciences In June 2004 San Diego was ranked as the No. 1 biotech cluster in the U.S. by the Milken Institute. The honor was bestowed for the region's climate of innovation and its success in bringing products to market, establishing new companies and creating jobs. Recently, Biosite Inc.'s Triage Cardio ProfilER and Biogen IDEC's Zevalin have joined Agouron (now Pfizer) Pharmaceuticals' Viracept, Ligand Pharmaceuticals' Targretin, and Biogen IDEC's Rituxan as successful products developed in San Diego. Corporate giants Merck, Pfizer, Dow, Novartis and others have developed key partnerships with local biotech pioneers, fostering growth while providing companies with the financial freedom to develop innovative new products.
Fueled by the research being done at San Diego's world class universities and institutes, and supported by a business-friendly public sector while having the highest number of science-based Nobel winners in the world who call San Diego home, the San Diego region is now recognized as a hotbed for new companies. San Diego's biotechnology community is the third largest in the country. San Diego's communications industry is one of the fastest growing in the country and has earned the title of wireless communications capital of the world.
The economy of San Diego is also influenced by its port, which includes the only major shipbuilding yard on West Coast, as well as the naval base.
The area has long been inhabited by the Kumeyaay people. The first European to visit the region was Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo who claimed the region for Spain in 1542. Yet, the actual name of the city was given by Sebastian Vizcaino when he was mapping the coastline of Alta California for the Viceroyalty of New Spain in 1602.
In 1769, the Presidio of San Diego (military post) was established almost at the same time as the Mission San Diego de Alcala by the Franciscan friars led by Junpero Serra. By 1797 the mission had become the largest in California, with over 1,400 natives associated with it, but the its fortune had turned for the worst by the 1830s when the locality lost its township status.
With the end of the Mexican-American War and the the gold rush of 1848, San Diego was designated the seat of the newly-established San Diego County and was incorporated as a city in 1885.
Significant U.S. Naval presence began in 1907 with the establishment of the Navy Coaling Station, which gave further way to the development of the town. Furthermore, San Diego hosted two World's Fairs, the Panama-California Exposition in 1915 and the California Pacific International Exposition in 1935.
Since World War II, the military played an increasing role in the local economy. Following the end of the Cold War the military presence has diminished considerably. San Diego has since become a center of the emerging biotech industry and is home to telecommunications giant Qualcomm.
A series of scandals have developed in the city in the last years. With mounting pressure, Mayor Dick Murphy, in April 2005, announced his intent to resign by mid-July. A few days after his resignation two city councilmembers, Ralph Inzunza and deputy mayor Michael Zucchet, who was to take Murphy's place, were convicted for taking bribes in a scheme to get the city's "no touch" laws at strip clubs repealed. Both subsequently resigned.
Beyond the issues regarding the city government, San Diego has seen some intrigue on the Federal level as well. On November 28, 2005, former member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Randy "Duke" Cunningham, resigned after a bribery scandal. Cunningham represented California's 50th congressional district, one of San Diego's congressional districts.
San Diego has been enjoying of a urban renewal since the decade of 1980s with the opening of Horton Plaza, the revival of the Gaslamp Quarter, and the construction of the San Diego Convention Center. A recent boom on the construction of condos and skyscrapers, a gentrification frenzy, and the inauguration of PETCO Park highlight the continuing blossoming of downtown.
Source:
SanDiego-USA.com
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