Monterey County was one of the original counties of California, created in 1850 at the time of statehood. Parts of the county were given toSan Benito County in 1874. The area was originally populated byOhlone,Salinan and theEsselen tribes.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 3,771 square miles (9,770 km2), of which 3,281 square miles (8,500 km2) is land and 491 square miles (1,270 km2) (13%) is water.[8] The county is roughly 1.5 times larger than the state ofDelaware, and roughly similar in population and the size toSanta Barbara County.
In October2019, theBureau of Land Management ended a five-year moratorium on leasing federal land in California to fossil fuel companies, opening 725,000 acres (1100 sq. miles; 29,000 ha) to drilling inSan Benito, Monterey, and Fresno counties.[9]
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 439,035, with a median age of 35.0 years; 25.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 14.2% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 100.6 males age 18 and older.[17]
85.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 14.3% lived in rural areas.[19]
There were 131,789 households in the county, of which 40.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 25.6% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 20.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[17]
There were 143,631 housing units, of which 8.2% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 50.9% were owner-occupied and 49.1% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.9% and the rental vacancy rate was 4.0%.[17]
Monterey County, California – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
Median Household Income across the populated northern half of Monterey County, as of 2014.Percent of affluent households (i.e. $150k annual income or higher) across census tracts in most populated area of the county.[27]
Generally, the western/southern parts of the Monterey Peninsula,Carmel Valley, Creekbridge (Salinas), and eastern parts ofPrunedale were the county's most affluent and educated (see dark blue on map). These areas had a median household income significantly above that of the California or the U.S. overall (typically above $95,000 vs. $60,000 for California and $52,000 for the U.S.)[28] and comprised roughly 8%-10% of neighborhoods (as defined by Census Block Groups).[29] Educational attainment was at least on part with, or above, state and national levels,[30] in these areas while the percentage of people living in poverty was typically a third or less than national and statewide average (with the exception of South Salinas).[31]
Social deprivation (poverty and low levels of educational attainment) was concentrated in the central and eastern parts of Salinas, and central areas of Monterey, Seaside, Marina, Soledad and King City. In central and eastern Salinas up to 46% of individuals lived below the poverty line and those without a secondary educations formed a plurality or majority of residents.[30][31] Overall, the Salinas metropolitan area, defined as coterminous with Monterey County, was among the least educated urban areas in the nation.
Roughly 8% of neighborhoods, as defined by Census Block Groups, had a median household income above $100,000 per year, about 60% above the national median. This coincided with the top 20 census block groups in the county listed below.[28][29]
Most affluent neighborhoods (Median Household Income above $100k/yr.)[29][32]
* Asterisk denotes a hypothetical rank among Monterey County's 226 Census Block Groups (e.g. if the U.S. overall was a Census Block Group in Monterey County, it would be the 141st most affluent of 226).
About 4.5% of neighborhoods, as defined by Census Block Groups, had a median household income below $30,000 per year, about 60% below the national median. This coincided with the 10 poorest of the 20 lowest income neighborhoods listed in the table below.[28][29]
Least affluent neighborhoods (Median Household Income of $34.1k or less)[29][32]
Rank
neighborhood
Census Reference/Geo-Unit
Median Household Income
1
Downtown Salinas
Block Group 1, Census Tract 13
$21,411
2
Central Seaside
Block Group 3, Census Tract 137
$22,994
3
East Salinas (Del Monte Ave.)
Block Group 1, Census Tract 7.01
$23,250
4
Downtown Monterey
Block Group 1, Census Tract 127
$24,911
5
Central Marina (Del Monte Blvd.)
Block Group 3, Census Tract 142.01
$25,464
6
Hebbron Heights, East Salinas
Block Group 2, Census Tract 5.01
$26,211
7
East Salinas (Del Monte Ave.)
Block Group 3, Census Tract 7.01
$26,771
8
East Salinas (Del Monte Ave.)
Block Group 2, Census Tract 7.02
$26,875
9
Hebbron Heights, East Salinas
Block Group 1, Census Tract 5.01
$28,750
10
Downtown Monterey
Block Group 2, Census Tract 127
$29,070
11
West Santa Rita, Salinas
Block Group 1, Census Tract 105.06
$30,250
12
North-Central Salinas/Chinatown
Block Group 2, Census Tract 18.02
$30,625
13
Central King City
Block Group 2, Census Tract 113.02
$31,579
14
Central King City
Block Group 1, Census Tract 113.02
$33,043
15
Central Soledad
Block Group 3, Census Tract 111.01
$33,110
16
East Seaside
Block Group 1, Census Tract 135
$33,242
17
East Salinas (Del Monte Ave.)
Block Group 3, Census Tract 7.02
$33,244
18
East Soledad
Block Group 1, Census Tract 111.02
$33,616
19
East Salinas
Block Group 3, Census Tract 8
$33,938
20
North Salinas (E. Bernal Drive./Natividad Rd.)
Block Group 3, Census Tract 4
$34,057
86*
United States
N/A
$53,046
118*
California
N/A
$61,094
73*
City of Salinas
N/A
$49,264
* Asterisk denotes a hypothetical rank among Monterey County's 226 Census Block Groups (e.g. if the U.S. overall was a Census Block Group in Monterey County, it would be the 86th poorest of 226).
The2010 United States census reported that Monterey County had a population of 415,057. The racial makeup of Monterey County was 230,717 (55.6%)White, 12,785 (3.1%)African American, 5,464 (1.3%)Native American, 25,258 (6.1%)Asian (2.8% Filipino, 0.7% Korean, 0.6% Chinese, 0.6% Japanese, 0.4% Vietnamese, 0.4% Indian), 2,071 (0.5%)Pacific Islander, 117,405 (28.3%) fromother races, and 21,357 (5.1%) from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 230,003 persons (55.4%); 50.2% of Monterey County is Mexican, 0.8% Salvadoran, and 0.5% Puerto Rican.[33]
As of thecensus[34] of 2000, there were 401,762 people, 121,236 households, and 87,896 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 121 people per square mile (47 people/km2). There were 131,708 housing units at an average density of 40 units per square mile (15 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 55.9%White, 3.8%Black orAfrican American, 1.1%Native American, 6.0%Asian, 0.5%Pacific Islander, 27.8% fromother races, and 5.0% from two or more races. 46.79% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race. 6.3% were ofGerman and 5.4%English ancestry according toCensus 2000. 52.9% spokeEnglish, 39.6%Spanish and 1.6%Tagalog as their first language.
There were 121,236 households, out of which 39.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.0% weremarried couples living together, 11.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.5% were non-families. 21.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.14 and the average family size was 3.65.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 28.4% under the age of 18, 10.9% from 18 to 24, 31.4% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 10.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 female residents there were 107.3 male residents. For every 100 female residents age 18 and over, there were 107.7 male residents.
The median income for a household in the county was $48,305, and the median income for a family was $51,169. Men had a median income of $38,444 versus $30,036 for the women. Theper capita income for the county was $20,165. About 9.7% of families and 13.5% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 17.4% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.
The government of Monterey County is defined and authorized under the California Constitution and law as a general law county. At the local level, Monterey County is governed by theMonterey County Board of Supervisors. Like allgoverning bodies in California, the Monterey County Board of Supervisors is empowered with bothlegislative andexecutive authority over the entirety of Monterey County and is the primary governing body for all unincorporated areas within the County boundaries. The Board has five elected members, each of whom represents one of five districts. Taken together, the five districts comprise the entirety of the county.[35]
The Monterey County Sheriff provides court protection, jail management, and coroner service for the entire county, in addition to patrol and detective services for the unincorporated areas of the county. Incorporated municipalities within the county that have their own municipal police departments are: Monterey, Pacific Grove, Salinas, King City, Marina, Seaside, Sand City, andGonzales.
According to the California Secretary of State, as of April 2008, Monterey County has 147,066 registered voters.[citation needed] Of those voters, 72,550 (49.3%) are registered Democratic, 42,744 (29.1%) are registered Republican, 5,488 (3.7%) are registered with other political parties, and 26,284 (17.9%) declined to state a political party. Except for Sand City, all of the other cities, towns, and the unincorporated area of Monterey County have more individuals registered with the Democratic Party than the Republican Party. In Sand City, the Republicans have the advantage by 1 voter.
In August 2018, it adopted a flag designed by aWatsonville resident.[55]
Television service for the community comes from the Monterey-Salinas-Santa Cruz designated market area (DMA). Radio stations Monterey-Salinas-Santa Cruz area of dominant influence (ADI) or continuous measurement market (CMM). Local newspapers include theMonterey County Herald,Monterey County Weekly,Salinas Californian and theCarmel Pine Cone.
As of December 2005, Monterey County ranked among America's ten most expensive counties, withSanta Barbara County topping the list with a median home price of $753,790. In Monterey County, the median home price was $699,900. In the northern, more densely populated part in the county, themedian home price was even higher, at $712,500, making it the fourth most expensive housing market in California. The disparity between themedian household income of roughly $48,305 and the median home price of $700k has been cause for recent concern over excluding potential home buyers from the market. The end of theUnited States housing bubble has caused prices to drop substantially, with median home prices having fallen to $280,000 as at September 2008.[59]
^abcU.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table B02001.U.S. Census website. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
