Featured Apartment:
San Diego -
NO FEE - Clean quiet building in solid early San Diego
design. Studio, one and two bedroom apartments with newer refrigerators, 40 inch
gas range, tile counter tops, built in ironing board, walk-in closet and lots of
cabinet space. The buildings facilities include a large on site laundry room
with newer machines, gated front entrance and (available for small monthly fee)
reserved covered parking in gated area. Its central midtown location is 5 blocks
to light rail, post office, bank, grocer, co-op, hospital and many restaurants.
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Renting an Apartment in Imperial Beach
What You Should Know
Imperial Beach is a city in San Diego County, California, United States. The
population was 26,992 at the 2000 census.
Geography
Imperial Beach is located at 32�34′42″N, 117�7′2″W (32.578255, -117.117111)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.7
km� (4.5 mi�). 11.1 km� (4.3 mi�) of it is land and 0.6 km� (0.2 mi�) of it
(5.53%) is water.
The city occupies the extreme southwest corner of the continental United States,
being bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean, and Mexico on the south.
Imperial Beach is unique among beach cities in Southern California in that it is
still affordable for working class and middle class families. Known as a biker
town for its rough atmosphere and seedy beachfront area throughout the 70s,
Imperial Beach has undergone a significant makeover in the last ten years.
However, the town is still a low-key beach community, with a growing population
of Latinos who make up the majority of the population, despite having no voice
in local political affairs. For years the town was controlled by pro-growth
elected officials, but over the years environmentalists and other activists
helped elect a group of smart-growth and no-growth elected officials. The City
of Imperial Beach is now implementing an ambitious community redevelopment plan
to improve the badly developed commercial corridor along Palm Avenue.
Imperial Beach was the location of fierce environmental battles in the 1970s and
1980s over plans to develop the Tijuana Estuary and build a breakwater to
control beach erosion. Former Mayor Brian Bilbray, who later became a U.S.
Congressman, lost both battles and the Tijuana Estuary is now a National
Estuarine Research Reserve and State Park. The cessation of plans to build the
breakwater was officially the first major victory of the then fledgling
Surfrider Foundation, now an international organization with 45,000-members. The
biggest obstacle to the renewal of Imperial Beach is the continued pollution of
the Tijuana River and beach closures that resulted in Imperial Beach being named
the most polluted beach in California.
Surfing is popular in Imperial Beach with activities concentrated north and
south of the Imperial Beach Pier and in front of the Tijuana Estuary at the
famed Boca Rio beachbreak. The Tijuana Sloughs, a fabled big-wave surf spot is
now almost unrideable due to raw toxic sewage that flows into the break from the
Tijuana River.
Demographics (2000 census)
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 26,992 people, 9,272 households, and
6,453 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,440.7/km�
(6,324.2/mi�). There were 9,739 housing units at an average density of 880.6/km�
(2,281.8/mi�). The racial makeup of the city was 62.26% White, 5.26% African
American, 1.10% Native American, 6.55% Asian, 0.60% Pacific Islander, 17.77%
from other races, and 6.45% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any
race were 40.08% of the population.
There were 9,272 households out of which 40.2% had children under the age of 18
living with them, 45.2% were married couples living together, 18.1% had a female
householder with no husband present, and 30.4% were non-families. 21.4% of all
households were made up of individuals and 5.5% had someone living alone who was
65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.84 and the average
family size was 3.30.
In the city the population was spread out with 29.4% under the age of 18, 13.9%
from 18 to 24, 32.3% from 25 to 44, 16.8% from 45 to 64, and 7.5% who were 65
years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there
were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $35,882, and the median income
for a family was $37,352. Males had a median income of $29,692 versus $24,201
for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,003. About 14.1% of
families and 18.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including
23.7% of those under age 18 and 9.2% of those age 65 or over.
Current estimates
According to estimates by the San Diego Association of Governments, the median
household income of Imperial Beach in 2005 was $49,104 (not adjusted for
inflation). When adjusted for inflation (1999 dollars; comparable to Census data
above), the median household income was $39,874.
Famous residents
* Author Robert Clark Young grew up in Imperial Beach.
* Teenage entrepreneur and fraudster Barry Minkow lives in Imperial Beach.
* Film actor (Full Metal Jacket,Vision Quest and Memphis Belle) Matthew Modine
attended High School in Imperial Beach.