Anacortes

Anacortes is a city in Skagit County, Washington, United States. It is one of two principal cities of and included in the Mount Vernon-Anacortses Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city is known for the Washington State Ferries dock and terminal serving Lopez Island, Shaw Island, Orcas Island, and San Juan Island, as well as Victoria, British Columbia (via Sidney, Canadian Island) The city has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Csb) with cool, rainy winters and warm, dry summers. The weather is milder than other areas of the Pacific Northwest, because it lies within the shadow of the Olympic Mountain, which gets 21 inches of rain per year. The name Anacorte is an adaptation of the name of Anne Curtis Bowman, who was the wife of early Fidalgo Island settler Amos Bowman. In 1877, railroad surveyor and town founder Amos Bowman moved his family to the northern tip of Fidal go Island. The town failed to become the railroad terminus Bowman had envisioned. After the bust, the town became prominent for its fishing tradition, thriving canning industry, and timber mills. In 2010, there were 15,778 people, 6,980 households, and 4,461 families residing in the city. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city had a total area of 15.53 square miles (40.22 km²), of which 11.75 sq miles (30.43 km²) is land and 3.78sq miles (9.79km²) was water.

History

Anacortes is the primary city name, but also Decatur Is, Decatur Island are acceptable city names or spellings, Guemes, Guemes Island, Similk Beach on the other hand no longer accepted or obsolete and are no longer used as a designation. The official name is Anacortes, Washington. Anacortes was officially incorporated on May 19, 1891. It is within the historical territory of the Samish people. The town failed to become the railroad terminus Amos Bowman had envisioned. After the bust, the town became prominent for its fishing tradition, thriving canning industry, and timber mills. It was once known as the "New York of the West" because of Bowman's vision of a New York-style city. The city is now known for its canning, fishing and timber industry. It has a population of about 2,000 people, making it one of the smallest cities in Washington state. It also has the largest population of Native Americans in the state. The population of the town is about 1,500. It's located on the northern tip of Fidalgo Island, which is part of the state of Washington. In 1877, railroad surveyor and town founder Amos Bowman moved his family to the northern end of the island. Bowman began promoting the area as an obvious terminus for the Northern Pacific Railway as it was built through the north Cascades to the Pacific.Seattle and Northern Company began building a rail line from the town in 1888. Real estate and development boomed from 1888 to 1890 as a result of the railroad rumors, and the Oregon Improvement Company posted $15 million in bonds to develop the town. The real estate bubble burst in 1891 when the company could no longer afford to complete tracks over the Cascade. The company was unable to afford to finish the line.

Geography

Anacortes has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Csb) with cool, rainy winters and warm, dry summers. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.53 square miles (40.22 km²) The city is located on Fidalgo Island, which is part of the Mexican state of Baja California. The city has an estimated population of 2,816. It has a population density of 1,077.7 per square mile. The town has an area of 11.75 square miles, of which 3.78 square miles is land and 3.79 km² is water. The Köppen climate classification system has it as a Csb climate, which means it is warm and dry in the summer and cool in the winter. It also has a Csa climate, meaning it is cool and dry during the winter and wet during the summer. It is the only city in the state to have a name that means "city" or "town" in Spanish. It was founded in 1838. The U.N. World Heritage Site is located in the city, which was named after the Spanish town of Anacorte, which has a Spanish-speaking population of about 2,000. The Spanish name for the city is "Aguirre" (Spanish for "castle"). It is also known as "Alcaporte" (Catalan for "city") or "Alcatraz".

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 15,778 people, 6,980 households, and 4,461 families residing in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 91.5% White, 0.7% African American, 1.0% Native American, 1.9% Asian, 0,1% Pacific Islander, 1,6% from other races, and 3.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.0%. The city's median age was 47.2 years; 19.6% of residents were under the age of 18. The city has a population of 15,000, and its population density is 1,342.8 inhabitants per square mile (518.5/km²) The city is located in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers's National Defense Training Area, which is part of the Army National Guard. It is the only city in the National Guard Training Area that does not have its own military base. The U.N. District of Columbia has its own National Guard training area, which includes the Fort McHenry base, which was built in the 1940s. It was the site of the World War II Battle of the Bulge, which took place in the early 1950s. The town's name comes from the word "bulge" or "bullet" which means "to blow up" or to blow up, as in the Battle of Gettysburg, which occurred in the 1950s and 1960s.

Description

Anacortes was established with a name and a post office in 1879 in the vain hope that it would be selected as the western terminus of the transcontinental railroad. The town was officially incorporated in 1891 shortly after the railroad bust, and became a lumber and fishing center. Two of the five refineries operating in Washington are located near the town. Refining remains the area's largest industry, but the economic base now includes yacht construction/shipbuilding, tourism. The weather is milder than other areas of the Pacific Northwest, because it lies within the Olympic Mountain rain shadow. Fidalgo Island gets 21 inches of rain per year, only half as much as Seattle. The area is home to the U.S. Coast Guard, which has one of the largest bases in the United States, based in Anacorte, Washington. It is also the home of the Washington State Ferry Service, which ferries passengers between the mainland and the islands of Washington and Oregon. The ferry service is based in Seattle, Washington, and has a fleet of more than 1,000 vessels. It also has a ferry service between Seattle and San Diego, and a ferry link between the two cities to San Diego. It has a port on the Strait of Juan de Fierro, which is the only one of its kind in the world. The port has a population of about 2,000, the majority of whom live on the island. It was the site of the World War II Battle of the Bulge, which killed thousands of people.

Government

Anacortes has a mayorcouncil government with an elected mayor and seven city councilmembers. The city government operates a municipal broadband system that began operation as a pilot in late 2019 and will expand to the entire city in 2023. Three of the city council members are elected from single member wards. The remaining four are elected at-large. The mayor is a former mayor of the town of Anacorte, in the state of Baja California, where he was re-elected in 2010. He was first elected to the post in 1998, and served two terms before being re- elected in 2010 and 2012. He is the city's first openly gay mayor, and was elected in 2008, when he was in his third term. He has been in office since 2010, and has served three terms in the post since 2008, the fourth of which was in 2012. The current mayor is married to his wife, who is also a city council member, and they have a son, who was born in 2008. The couple has a daughter, who lives in the town's central area and is expected to grow up in the city in the coming years. It is the first time the city has had a female mayor in more than a decade. It also has a black mayor, who has served in the position since 2010. It has a Hispanic mayor and a Hispanic city council, both of whom were elected in 2006 and 2008. It was the first city in Baja to have a Hispanic-American mayor.

Recreation and tourism

Anacortes is a popular destination for boaters and those traveling on to the San Juan Islands. The city maintains a 220-acre (0.89 km²) city park on the northwestern end of Fidalgo Island named "Washington Park" The city is the western terminus of the Adventure Cycling Association's Northern Tier cross-country bicycle route, which ends in Bar Harbor, Maine. In adjacent Mount Erie Park, a number of rock climbing routes are popular on the cliffs of the south and west faces of Mount Erie. The Business, a record store and concert venue voted Washington's best record shop, is located in the Alfred Olson Building which is part of the National Register of Historic Places. Anacorte is home to 2,800 acres (11 km) of forest lands with 50 miles of mountain biking and hiking trails, which are a rare amenity in a city the size of Anacortses. The waters off of AnACortes and Fidal go Island are home to several varieties of marine-life, including three resident Orca pods. The most prominent view of Cypress Island is of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, which provides opportunities for whale-watching. The town is also home to many long-distance cyclists, including Bret Lunsford, Phil Elverum and Karl Blau, who have worked at The Business since 1978. It is located on the U.S. Coast Guard's Pacific Coast Highway, which runs between Seattle and Tacoma.

Festivals and celebrations

The Anacortes Farmers Market began in 1989 and occurs every Saturday from May to October, with a special holiday market the weekend before Thanksgiving and monthly winter markets from January to April. The city of Seattle hosts the largest bike rally in the U.S., with an estimated 15,000 bikes in attendance each year. The festival is held in the midst of blocked-off main street areas, and includes a full meal and a variety of live music. The event is free and open to the public, but donations can be made at www.anacorteartfestival.org or by calling 1-800-273-8255.

Sister cities

Anacortes' sister cities are: Comarnic, Romania, Lomonosov, Russia, Nikaho, Japan, Sidney, Canada and Vela Luka, Croatia. The city is located in the province of Huesca, in the north of the state of Hidalgo. The town has a population of 6,000 people. It is one of the smallest cities in Huesco state, with an estimated population of 2,000. It has a sister city with the city of Sidney, Canada, and one with the town of Comarnic. It also has sister cities with the cities of Nikaho, Russia and Lomonosova, Russia. It's also sister to Sylvia, in Canada, as well as Vela Luka, in Croatia. Anacorte's sister city is Comarni, Romania. Its sister city's name means "beautiful city" in Romanian. Its city name is "Comarni" and its sister town is "Carnic" It is also sister city to Lomonsov, in Russia, and to Nikkaho, in Japan. It has sister cities in Huesco, Canada, and Sydney, in Japan. Its sister city is "Sylva Luka," in Croatia, and it has sister cities with Silva Lukas in Croatia, and Sudbury, Canada.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Anacortes, Skagit County, Washington = 96.8. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 52. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 100. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Anacortes = 2.6 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 17,637 individuals with a median age of 44.4 age the population grows by 16.07% in Anacortes, Skagit County, Washington population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 1,498.16 residents per square mile of area (578.45/km²). There are average 2.36 people per household in the 7,095 households with an average household income of $52,302 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 9.20% of the available work force and has dropped -2.97% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 24.86%. The number of physicians in Anacortes per 100,000 population = 228.8.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Anacortes = 26.2 inches and the annual snowfall = 4.5 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 143. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 158. 72 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 35.1 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 77, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Anacortes, Skagit County, Washington which are owned by the occupant = 65.03%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 25 years with median home cost = $277,700 and home appreciation of -21.84%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $10.94 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $5,040 per student. There are 20.3 students for each teacher in the school, 451 students for each Librarian and 382 students for each Counselor. 7.54% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 20.02% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 8.32% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).