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Renting an Apartment in Chula Vista
What You Should Know
Chula Vista is a city in San Diego County, California, United States. As of
2005, the city population was 217,543.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of
132.7 km� (51.2 mi�). 126.6 km� (48.9 mi�) of it is land and 6.1 km� (2.4 mi�)
of it (4.61%) is water.
Demographics
As of 2005 there were 217,543 people, 57,705 households, and 43,567 families
residing in the city. The population density was 1,370.9/km� (3,550.9/mi�).
There were 59,495 housing units at an average density of 469.9/km�
(1,217.2/mi�). The racial makeup of the city was 31.70% White, 4.62% African
American, 0.78% Native American, 10.98% Asian, 0.58% Pacific Islander, 22.13%
from other races, and 5.85% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any
race were 49.59% of the population.
There were 57,705 households out of which 40.7% had children under the age of 18
living with them, 55.7% were married couples living together, 14.9% had a female
householder with no husband present, and 24.5% were non-families. 19.5% of all
households were made up of individuals and 7.9% had someone living alone who was
65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.99 and the average
family size was 3.44.
In the city the population was spread out with 28.7% under the age of 18, 9.4%
from 18 to 24, 31.6% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65
years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there
were 94.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $44,861, and the median income
for a family was $50,136. Males had a median income of $36,812 versus $28,430
for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,556. About 8.6% of
families and 10.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including
13.0% of those under age 18 and 9.2% of those age 65 or over. According to
estimates by the San Diego Association of Governments, the median household
income of Chula Vista in 2005 was $64,110 (not adjusted for inflation). When
adjusted for inflation (1999 dollars; comparable to Census data above), the
median household income was $52,084.
History
The history of the area known as Chula Vista, can be traced back millions of
years through prehistoric fossils of both land and sea types. Around 3000 B.C.,
Yuman-speaking people began moving into the area. Many of the Native American
Indians in San Diego today are descendants of the Kumeyaay tribe who roamed here
for hundreds of years.
In 1542, a fleet of three small ships sailed into San Diego Harbor commanded by
Juan Rodr�guez Cabrillo. These explorations led the Spanish to claim the land.
In 1795, Chula Vista became a part of a Spanish land grant known as Rancho del
Rey or "The King's Ranch." When Mexico formed its own government in 1831, Rancho
del Rey became known as Rancho del la Nation or National Ranch. The ranch
encompassed the area now known as National City, Chula Vista, Bonita, Sunnyside
and the Sweetwater Valley. Rancho del la Nation was used by the Spanish as
grazing land for their cattle and horses until 1845 when it was granted to John
Forster, the son-in-law of Mexican governor Pio Pico.
The United States claimed California following the Mexican-American War in 1847.
Even though California became a state in 1850, land grants were allowed to
continue as private property under American law.
Forster continued to operate the ranch for ten years until he sold it to a
French developer. The land was then again sold to the Kimball brothers in 1868
for $30,000. Frank, Warren and Levi Kimball intended to develop the land into
productive American-style cities and farms. Frank Kimball is also responsible
for bringing the Santa Fe Railroad to San Diego, with its first terminus in
National City.
Several directors of the Santa Fe Railroad and Colonel W.G. Dickerson, a
professional town planner, formed the San Diego Land and Town Company. The
company set out to develop lands of the National Ranch for new settlers. They
issued promotional material to attract settlers that read: "Upon the best part
of this tract, 5,000 acres (20 km�) are being subdivided into five acre (20,000
m�) lots with avenues and streets 80 feet in width running each way, the steam
motor road passing though the center. This tract, known as Chula Vista, lies but
a mile from the thriving place of National City." With this announcement, the
boom of the 1880s was on.
These five-acre (20,000 m�) lots sold for $300 per acre ($740 per hectare) in
1887. The purchaser was required to build a home within six months on the
parcel. By 1889, ten houses were under construction and land sales were
excellent. And thus, the City of Chula Vista was created.
A resident, James D. Schulyer, suggested the name Chula Vista for the town and
the San Diego Land and Town Company adopted it. Chula Vista can be roughly
translated in Spanish as "beautiful view."
In 1888, the Sweetwater Dam was completed to bring water to Chula Vista
residents and their farming lands. Frank Kimball became the State Commissioner
of Agriculture and discovered citrus trees to be the most successful crop for
the area. Chula Vista eventually became the largest lemon-growing center in the
world for a period of time.
A railroad was built to connect San Diego, National City, Chula Vista and Otay.
This railroad, know as the National City and Otay Railroad, flourished for many
years.
On October 17, 1911, an election was held in Chula Vista to incorporate and the
people voted in its favor. The State of California approved this Act of
Incorporation in November. The Board of Trustees of Chula Vista held an election
at the office of the People's State Bank and E.T. Smith was elected President.
Local farmers continued to grow lemons as their primary crop and used over eight
packing houses in the city. However, terrible weather came to the area in the
following years causing severe damage. Crops suffered from a severe freeze in
1913 and droughts in 1914 and 1915. The Floods of 1916 caused major damage with
a break in the Lower Otay Dam causing millions of gallons or liters of water to
empty out in two and a half hours. Railroad tracks near Second Avenue were swept
away, 23 homes were destroyed and more than 20 people were killed.
In February 1916, the Hercules Powder Company began the design and construction
of a kelp processing plant covering a 30 acre (12 hectare) plot of land in Chula
Vista. Kelp was an ideal source of materials used in the production of
explosives. The plant produced potash and acetone to make cordite, a smokeless
powder used extensively by the British armed forces in World War I. Hercules
produced 46,000,000 lb (21,000,000 kg) of cordite for the British government
during the war, making it the largest kelp harvesting fleet in the world at the
time. The plant was located on what is now known as Gunpowder Point currently
the home of the Chula Vista Nature Center.
Although the Great Depression affected Chula Vista significantly, agriculture
still provided considerable income for the residents. In 1931, the lemon
orchards produced $1 million dollars in revenue and the celery fields
contributed $600,000.
World War II ushered in changes that would affect the City of Chula Vista
forever. The principal reason was the relocation of Rohr Aircraft Corporation to
Chula Vista in early 1941, just months before the attack on Pearl Harbor. Rohr
employed 9,000 workers in the area at the height of its wartime production. With
the demand for housing, the land never returned to being orchard groves again.
The population of Chula Vista tripled from 5,000 residents in 1940 to more than
16,000 in 1950.
After the war, many of the factory workers and thousands of servicemen stayed in
the area resulting in the huge growth in population. During those years,
numerous schools, homes, banks, restaurants, gas stations and shopping centers
opened to accommodate the growing number of residents. The last of the citrus
groves and produce fields disappeared as Chula Vista became one of the largest
communities in San Diego.
During the next decades, Chula Vista continued to expand eastward. Plans called
for a variety of housing developments such as EastLake, Rancho del Rey and Otay
Ranch neighborhoods. In 2003, Chula Vista had 200,000 residents and was the
second largest city in San Diego County. As the city continues to grow, it
strives for a balance of attractive neighborhoods and strong business base but
holds fast to maintaining a sense of community and small town values upon which
it was founded.
In 2006, the San Diego Chargers football team is believed to be in negotiations
with the City of Chula Vista to build a new stadium; the Chargers have been
contemplating leaving their current home field, Qualcomm Stadium, for years. On
May 30, officials from Chula Vista and the Chargers met to potentially discuss
building a stadium, and sometime in the near future the Chargers will scout for
locations.
Notable Natives
Mike Jacobs - Major League Baseball player for the Florida Marlins
Adrian Gonzales - Major League Baseball player for the San Diego Padres
Todd Pratt baseball player Major League Baseball for the Atlanta Braves.