City Of Concord, California

Concord is the largest city in Contra Costa County, California, USA, and the 202nd largest in the U.S. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 121,780. Originally founded in 1869 as the community of Todos Santos by Salvio Pacheco, the name was changed to Concord within months. The city is a major regional suburban East Bay center within the San Francisco Bay Area, and is located just 31 miles (50 km) east of San Francisco.

In terms of travelling distance on the ground, it is 29 miles (47 km) northeast of San Francisco, 22 miles (35 km) northeast from Oakland, 65 miles (105 km) southwest of Sacramento, and 51 miles (82 km) north of San Jose.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 30.1 square miles (78.1 km²), all of it land.

The focal point of downtown Concord is Todos Santos Plaza, which encompasses an entire city block and is known for its farmers market, free summer concerts, and large number of surrounding restaurants. Much of the area immediately around downtown has recently been redeveloped, with new high-density apartment and condominium projects to take advantage of the close proximity to public transportation and the vibrant area surrounding the park. Despite this, some crime and homelessness remain issues in the downtown area.

To the north and east of downtown is the older residential area of Concord, with many homes dating back to before World War II. In the far northern edge of town is a primarily industrial area, dominated by the Tesoro Golden Eagle refinery (which is actually not located within city limits). The southeastern area of the city, centered along Clayton Road, is primarily residential and was mostly developed in the 1960s and 1970s. In the southwest area of the city is the primarily Latino neighborhood known as Four Corners, centered around the intersection of Monument Boulevard and Oak Grove Road.

Concord is bordered on the west by Pleasant Hill and the unincorporated community of Pacheco, on the south by Walnut Creek, on the southeast by Clayton, on the northeast by Pittsburg and the unincorporated community of Bay Point, and on the north by the unincorporated community of Clyde. Though it shares no border with Concord, Martinez (the county seat) is located almost immediately adjacent to Concord on the northwest.

Official data from the National Weather Service cooperative station in Concord shows average January temperatures are a maximum of 57.2°F and a minimum of 41.6°F. Average July temperatures are a maximum of 87.8°F and a minimum of 58.2°F. There are an average of 45.0 days with highs of 90°F (32°C) or higher and 3.8 days with lows of 32°F (0°C) or lower. The highest recorded temperature was 110°F on July 23, 2006. The lowest record temperature was 24°F on December 23, 1998.

Average annual precipitation is 18.31 inches, falling on an average of 57 days annually. The wettest year was 1995 with 26.62 inches and driest year was 2007 with 10.57 inches. The most rainfall in one month was 11.79 inches in December 2005, which included the 24-hour maximum rainfall of 3.95 inches on December 31.

The valleys north of Mount Diablo were inhabited by the Miwok people, who hunted elk and fished in the numerous streams flowing from the mountain into the San Francisco Bay. In 1772 Spanish explorers began to cross the area, but did not settle here. In 1834 the Mexican land grant Rancho Monte del Diablo at the base of Mount Diablo was granted to Salvio Pacheco (for whom the nearby town of Pacheco is named).

Concord was founded under the name of Todos Santos ("all saints"; a name still borne by the central city plaza and park between Willow Pass Road and Salvio Street), on the initiative of Pacheco in 1869. It achieved prominence in the 19th century as a result of most residents of Pacheco relocating to Concord to avoid the devastation of fire and flood which crippled Pacheco's formerly booming economy. Concord was incorporated on February 5, 1905.

The area around Concord in the surrounding Ygnacio and Clayton Valleys was a large agricultural area. Crops that were grown included grapes, walnuts, wheat, hay, and even tomatoes. The area to the east (site of the Concord Naval Weapons Station) was the site of a few enormous wheat ranches over 5,000 acres (20 km2), and was almost a sea of wheat all the way to the marshes bordering Suisun Bay. During Prohibition, many vineyards were removed and replaced with walnut orchards. The town of Cowell now incorporated into Concord, produced cement.

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 121,780 people, 44,020 households, and 30,329 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,041.0 people per square mile (1,560.0/km²). There were 45,083 housing units at an average density of 1,496.0/sq mi (577.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city is 70.71% White, 3.04% Black or African American, 0.76% Native American, 9.39% Asian, 0.50% Pacific Islander, 9.65% from other races, and 5.94% from two or more races. 21.81% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 44,020 households out of which 34.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.4% were married couples living together, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.1% were non-families. 23.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.22.

In the city the age of the population was spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 32.8% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 97.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $55,597, and the median income for a family was $62,093. Males had a median income of $45,734 versus $34,860 for females. The per capita income for the city was $24,727. About 5.2% of families and 7.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.0% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.

As of 2005, the racial makeup of the city had changed to: 63.9% White, 2.6% Black or African American, 0.1% Native American, 12.0% Asian, 0.8% Pacific Islander, 15.4% from other races, and 5.2% from two or more races. 26.3% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Concord has been primarily a bedroom community for San Francisco and Oakland over the last forty years, but during the last decades, jobs within the city have increased.[15] Corporations with strong Bay Area regional ties, such as Chevron and Bank of America, have established extensive back-office operations there, diversifying the local economy. Concord also has a strong retail sector including the Sunvalley Mall, one of the 50 largest malls in the USA, auto dealerships, Costco, and Fry's Electronics. Prior to its dissolution, Atrivo was headquartered in Concord.

Until 1995 the city was the eastern terminus of the Concord line of Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) commuter train system; the line has since been extended eastward to Pittsburg/Bay Point. The County Connection provides limited public transportation in the city and to other points in the county. Buses run from the North Concord BART station to Martinez, the county seat.

Main thoroughfares include Willow Pass Road, Concord Avenue, Concord Boulevard, Clayton Road, Ygnacio Valley Road and Treat Boulevard. The city is also served by Interstate 680, and state highways 4 and 242.

Buchanan Field Airport is a public county-owned airfield in the City of Concord. It currently does not have any scheduled passenger service, but was once served by WestAir, Pacific Southwest Airlines, and later U.S.

Concord is served by the Mount Diablo Unified School District. Concord's Clayton Valley High School is home to several acclaimed California academies, specifically ClaytonArts Academy, a four year English, social studies and arts based program with an emphasis on cross curriculur projects. Concord is also home to Mt. Diablo High School, opened in 1905, and home to the Digital safari, a three-year program involving the integration of multimedia with the core curriculum through integrated, project-based learning. Concord's De La Salle High School is home of the record winning streak of 151 games set by the football team between 1992 and 2004. During that span, De La Salle won 12 California North Coast sectional championships, and was named national champion five different times (once by ESPN, four times by USA Today).

• Ygnacio Valley High School won the 1987 Northern California Boys Division I Basketball Championship, Coached by Jim Grace.
• De La Salle High School (a private Catholic High School) is bordered by its sister school Carondelet High School and Ygnacio Valley High School.
• The headquarters of the Kabul Soccer Club is located in Concord.
• California State University, East Bay has a campus in Concord.

The Concord Library of the Contra Costa County Library is located in Concord. The library is adjacent to the Concord Civic Center.