Imperial, California

City of Imperial
City
Location in Imperial County and the state of California Location in Imperial County and the state of California
City of Imperial Location in the United States
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	California
County	Imperial
Incorporated	12 July 1904
Government
• Mayor	Mark Gran
Area
• Total	5.856 sq mi (15.168 km2)
• Land	5.856 sq mi (15.168 km2)
• Water	0 sq mi (0 km2)  0%
Elevation	-59 ft (-18 m)
Population (April 1, 2010)
• Total	14,758
• Estimate (2013)	16,184
• Density	2,500/sq mi (970/km2)
Time zone	Pacific (PST) (UTC-8)
• Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP code	92251
Area code	442/760
FIPS code	06-36280
GNIS feature IDs	1652726, 2410097
Website	www.cityofimperial.org

Imperial is a city in Imperial County, California. Imperial is located 4 miles (6.4 km) north of El Centro. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 14,758. It is part of the El Centro metropolitan area. Nearby recreation facilities transform the desert into a popular Valley tourist destination due to availability of activities. Three year-round golf courses are within minutes of Imperial. The sand dunes provide a place for campers and dune buggy enthusiasts. This region is well known for its abundance of bird species such as dove, quail, ducks, pheasant and geese.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.9 square miles (15 km²), all land.

Climate

Imperial has an arid desert climate, and is one of the hottest cities in the United States. In January, the normal high temperature is 70 degrees with a low of 42. In July, the normal high temperature is 110 degrees with a low of 82.

History

Imperial was created by the Imperial Land Company and was named by George Chaffey. The first post office at Imperial opened in 1901. Imperial incorporated in 1904. The first Mayor of Imperial was Allison Peck.

In June 2014 a McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II from Marine Corps Air Station Yuma crashed in a residential area. The pilot ejected safely.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1910	1,257		—
1920	1,885		50.0%
1930	1,943		3.1%
1940	1,493		−23.2%
1950	1,759		17.8%
1960	2,658		51.1%
1970	3,094		16.4%
1980	3,451		11.5%
1990	4,113		19.2%
2000	7,560		83.8%
2010	14,758		95.2%
Est. 2014	16,811		13.9%
U.S. Decennial Census

2010

The 2010 United States Census reported that Imperial had a population of 14,758. The population density was 2,519.9 people per square mile (973.0/km²). The racial makeup of Imperial was 9,298 (63.0%) White, 331 (2.2%) African American, 154 (1.0%) Native American, 370 (2.5%) Asian, 13 (0.1%) Pacific Islander, 3,783 (25.6%) from other races, and 809 (5.5%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 11,046 persons (74.8%).

The Census reported that 14,727 people (99.8% of the population) lived in households, 0 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 31 (0.2%) were institutionalized.

There were 4,405 households, out of which 2,464 (55.9%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 2,669 (60.6%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 697 (15.8%) had a female householder with no husband present, 255 (5.8%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 268 (6.1%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 27 (0.6%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 621 households (14.1%) were made up of individuals and 181 (4.1%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.34. There were 3,621 families (82.2% of all households); the average family size was 3.69.

The population was spread out with 4,927 people (33.4%) under the age of 18, 1,376 people (9.3%) aged 18 to 24, 4,618 people (31.3%) aged 25 to 44, 2,881 people (19.5%) aged 45 to 64, and 956 people (6.5%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29.9 years. For every 100 females there were 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.3 males.

There were 4,751 housing units at an average density of 811.2 per square mile (313.2/km²), of which 3,130 (71.1%) were owner-occupied, and 1,275 (28.9%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 4.5%; the rental vacancy rate was 4.5%. 10,692 people (72.4% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 4,035 people (27.3%) lived in rental housing units.

2000

As of the census of 2000, there were 8,100 people, 2,308 households, and 1,911 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,932.2 people per square mile (746.5/km²). There were 2,385 housing units at an average density of 609.6 per square mile (235.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 58.5% White, 2.7% Black or African American, 0.8% Native American, 2.7% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 30.9% from other races, and 4.3% from two or more races. 61.1% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,308 households out of which 53.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.9% were married couples living together, 13.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 17.2% were non-families. 14.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.3 and the average family size was 3.6.

In the city the population was spread out with 35.3% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 33.8% from 25 to 44, 16.8% from 45 to 64, and 6.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 96.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $49,451, and the median income for a family was $53,053. Males had a median income of $37,373 versus $27,778 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,538. About 8.9% of families and 11.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.2% of those under age 18 and 5.2% of those age 65 or over.

Government

In the California State Legislature, Imperial is in the 40th Senate District, represented by Democrat Ben Hueso, and the 56th Assembly District, represented by Democrat Eduardo Garcia.

In the United States House of Representatives, Imperial is in California's 51st congressional district, represented by Democrat Juan Vargas.

Notable people

• Charles Harris Garrigues, newspaperman
• Ben Hulse, member of the California State Senate
• Royce Freeman, football player for the University of Oregon Ducks

Events

Imperial has the annual California Mid-Winter Fair & Fiesta in February (formerly the Imperial County Fair) which receives over 100,000 visitors: either are locals, from nearby Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico and numerous "snowbirds" across Southern California and the country (U.S.) temporarily reside in Imperial.

See also

• San Diego–Imperial, California
• El Centro Metropolitan Area

External links

• Imperial Chamber