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Chandler, Arizona
Chandler is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, and is a prominent suburb of the Phoenix, Arizona Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). It is bordered to the north and west by Tempe, to the north by Mesa, to the west by Phoenix, to the south by the Gila River Indian Community, and to the east by Gilbert. The population was 240,595 according to the Census Bureau's 2006 estimate. It also has satellite locations for the technology companies Intel and Orbital Sciences Corporation. HistoryIn 1891, Dr. Alexander John Chandler, the first veterinary surgeon in Arizona Territory, settled on a ranch south of Mesa, studying irrigation engineering. By 1900, he had acquired 18,000 acres (73 km²) of land, and began drawing up plans for a townsite on what was then known as the Chandler Ranch. The townsite office opened on May 17, 1912, the same year that Chandler High School was established. By 1913, a town center had become established, featuring the luxurious Hotel San Marcos, the first golf resort in the state. Most of Chandler's economy was successfully sustained during the Great Depression (a second San Marcos hotel was canceled due to the Depression however), but the cotton crash a few years later had a much deeper impact on the city's residents. Later, the founding of Williams Air Force Base in 1941 led to a small surge in population, but Chandler still only held 3,800 people by 1950. By 1980, it had grown to 30,000, and it has since paced the Phoenix metropolitan area's high rate of growth, with vast suburban residential areas swallowing former agricultural plots. Some of this growth was fueled by the establishment of manufacturing plants for communications and computing firms such as Microchip, Motorola and Intel, but despite the inclusion of many large businesses, Chandler is often considered a bedroom community for the greater Phoenix metropolitan area. GeographyChandler is located at 33°18′12″N 111°50′29″W / 33.30333°N 111.84139°W / 33.30333; -111.84139 (33.303237, -111.841328). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 58.0 square miles (150.2 km²), of which, 57.9 square miles (149.9 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.3 km²) of it (0.17%) is water. Chandler has reached its physical limits save for some remaining county islands and cannot expand outward anymore due to being bound in by the Gila River Indian Community, Tempe, Mesa, Gilbert, and Phoenix. Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 176,581 people, 62,377 households, and 45,410 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,050.5 people per square mile (1,177.7/km²). There were 66,592 housing units at an average density of 1,150.4/sq mi (444.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 76.19% White, 3.48% Black or African American, 1.20% Native American, 4.22% Asian, 0.14% Pacific Islander, 10.76% from other races, and 3.01% from two or more races. 21.99% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Following the 2000 census, Chandler has remained one of the fastest growing cities in America, reaching population growth above 20% since this time. Growth is expected to subside within the next ten years due to fixed borders with Pinal County and the Gila River Indian Community to the south, Mesa and Tempe to the north, Phoenix to the west, and Gilbert to the northeast. There were 62,377 households out of which 41.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.5% were married couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.2% were non-families. 19.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.82 and the average family size was 3.26. In the city the population was spread out with 29.8% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 38.0% from 25 to 44, 17.8% from 45 to 64, and 5.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.9 males. The median income for a household in the city was $70,456, and the median income for a family was $81,720. Males had a median income of $44,578 versus $31,763 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,904. About 4.6% of families and 6.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.7% of those under age 18 and 8.0% of those age 65 or over. Elected officialsChandler is represented by a mayor, a vice mayor and council members. The vice mayor is elected by the city council from among its members. The mayor, vice mayor and council members represent the entire city and are not elected from districts or wards. Mayor: Boyd W. Dunn
Culture
Chandler is noted for its annual Ostrich Festival. Initially, agriculture was the primary business in Chandler, based on cotton, corn, and alfalfa. During the 1910s, there were ostrich farms in the area, catering to the demand for plumes used in women's hats of the era. This demand ebbed with the increasing popularity of the automobile, but the legacy of the ostrich farms would be commemorated by the Ostrich Festival. The Chandler Center for the Arts, a 1,500-seat regional performing arts venue, is located downtown, and the Arizona Railway Museum is at Tumbleweed Park. EconomyComputer chip manufacturer Intel has an influential role in city growth strategies with four locations in the municipal area, including its first factory to be designated "environmentally sustainable" under current Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design criteria. Other high-technology manufacturing firms have partnerships with the local government, their operations employing approximately twenty-five percent of non-government workers in 2007. Although per capita employment growth in the sector has been in decline in Arizona since 2000, semiconductor and other electronic component manufacturing was largely unaffected; a series of customized grants for the training of net new employees, incorporating the Phoenix urbanized area (twenty-seven thousand workers now commute to work in other communities), resulted in a larger market share of (Californian) industry. Since 2003, more than 2,900 jobs and investments totalling $3 billion have been created along the Price and Santan freeways, between Arizona Avenue and Gilbert Road in the so-called South Arizona Avenue Corridor. Three shopping malls provide a "strong attraction" to such an open-ended, high exposure trade area: the 1,300,000-square-foot (121,000 m2) Chandler Fashion Center, opened in 2001, has spurred on several courts and laneway developments. In the southern end of the Corridor, Wal-Mart is expected to draw business from as far south as the Hunt Highway, bringing with it a "large consumer population" which will improve "the image and perception of the area" in the mindset of many Greater Phoenix residents and state commercial retailers. The northern portion is "attractive and possesses the historic character" for success, which "can be grown to the south". EducationElementary and secondaryMost of Chandler is served by the Chandler Unified School District. Chandler west of Loop 101 is served by the Kyrene Elementary School District and the Tempe Union High School District. The area east of Loop 101 and north of Warner Road is served by Mesa Public Schools. The San Vincente neighborhood in Chandler is served by Gilbert Public Schools. Education alternatives include charter schools, Christian schools, parochial schools, magnet schools, as well as "traditional" academies. Post-secondaryThe two-year Chandler-Gilbert Community College, serving 13,000 students, is located in the east of the city near the Gilbert border. Private educational institutions Western International University and Apollo Group subsidiary University of Phoenix have locations here. Arizona State University is located 14 miles (23 km) from downtown in Tempe. Chandler Public LibraryThe Chandler Public Library serves Chandler and the greater Phoenix East Valley. The main library is located in downtown Chandler, with three branches located elsewhere in the city: Sunset, Basha (shared with Basha High School), and Hamilton (shared with Hamilton High School). As part of a family literacy project to encourage literacy and library use among families who live in public housing, the Chandler Public Library visited three public housing locations to offer a four-week series of programs at each. The Chandler Community Services Department serves Chandler residents in a variety of ways by providing recreation, fitness, cultural, artistic and educational opportunities along with classes, programs and special events. The Community Services Department, located in Old Downtown Chandler, operates the community center, senior center, dozens of local neighborhood and community parks, two recreation centers and six aquatic centers. Chandler's recreational offerings provide residents and visitors with different interests and skill levels with the facilities to participate in many sports, activities and hobbies. The department publishes a quarterly recreation magazine called Break Time that is distributed free at many city facilities, through a free subscription service, and online at www.chandleraz.gov/breaktime. A sampling of programs available through the City of Chandler Community Services Department and its Recreation and Aquatics Divisions include: swim lessons; Arizona Travel Series; junior tennis clinics and leagues; youth classes and programs; youth sports; after-school teen recreation centers; summer youth sports camps and arts camps; fitness classes; group aerobics and dance classes; nature and sustainable living courses; adult classes, sports leagues and outdoor recreation programs; senior adult classes and programs; therapeutic recreation and Special Olympics programs for disabled youths and adults. The City's regional Tumbleweed Park hosts a variety of special events throughout the year, including the annual Ostrich Festival, the Fourth of July Fireworks Festival and the third annual Day of Play, attended by an estimated 2,800 people, that was held Saturday, October 17, 2009. On July 23, 2009, the national non-profit organiztiona Kaboom! based in Washington, D.C. announced that Chandler was a 2009 Playful City USA community, marking the third consecutive year the city earned the distinction (one of just 22 U.S. cities to win three times in a row). Chandler was recognized for taking an innovative approaches to make play a priority throughout the city with its many recreational amenities, parks and aquatic centers. The Environmental Education Center at the Chandler Heights Community Facilities, a shared-use site with the Municipal Utilities Division and the Chandler Police Department, recently won Valley Forward's prestigious Environmental Excellence Award in the category of "Site Development and Landscape for Parks." in 2008, Chandler also received the American Crown Community Award for Outstanding Leadership in Local Government for Veterans Oasis Park, located at the northwest corner of Chandler Heights and Lindsay roads. The McCullough–Price House, a 1938 Pueblo Revival style home, was donated to the City by the Price-Propstra family in 2001. The City renovated and opened it to the public in 2007. As one branch of the Chandler Museums, it includes changing exhibits, the Chandler Visitors Center, and rental opportunities. On June 12, 2009, the McCullough-Price House was added to the National Register of Historic Places, the official listing of America’s historic and cultural resources worthy of preservation. The Chandler Museums Division operates the facility, which is located southwest of Chandler Fashion Center at 300 S. Chandler Village Dr. On August 28, 2009, Chandler's Community Services Department received three Arizona Parks & Recreation Association (APRA) awards - Outstanding Facility (Mesquite Groves Aquatic Center); Outstanding Community Special Event (Woofstock); and Outstanding Active Adult Program (Chandler Senior Center Patriot Project). On September 25, the Chandler Parks Division was honored for its efforts to preserve more than 250 native trees by transplanting and utilizing them for multiple park beautification efforts. The Arizona Community Tree Council, Inc., in cooperation with the Arizona State Land Department – Urban & Community Forestry, presented Chandler with its top award in the Municipal Government Agencies category at its annual meeting in September. The Council recognized 18 other individual, civic, and corporate entities for their efforts to enhance and beautify the local environment with trees. The ACTC noted that Chandler was creative and resourceful in transplanting native trees during the construction and grading for the first phase of Mesquite Groves Park and Aquatic Center. On September 25, 2009, The Phoenix New Times named Chandler's Playtopia playground at Tumbleweed Park, located at the southwest corner of McQueen and Germann roads, as the "Best Playground in Phoenix". Chandler's Hamilton Aquatic Center was named runner-up as "Best Kids Water Park or Pool" in the 2009 Arizona Republic Reader's Choice Awards. A list of the City of Chandler's other Recreational Division and Community Services Department facilities includes:
TransportationAddressingMost incorporated portions of Chandler, along with other East Valley cities Gilbert, Mesa, and Tempe have their own addressing system distinct from Phoenix and greater Maricopa County. The north-south meridian is Arizona Avenue, also known as State Route 87. Commonwealth Avenue, two blocks south of Chandler Boulevard is the east-west baseline. With the significant exception of the stretch of the city from Chandler Boulevard to Ray Road, address numbers follow in mile-long increments of 1000 along the grid. Modern remnants of county addressing from the city's rural agrarian days can be found in some neighborhood street names (90th Place, 132nd Street) and county islands surrounded by the city proper. AirportsChandler Municipal Airport is a two-runway general aviation facility located in the heart of the city south of Loop 202. Memorial Airfield in the Gila River Indian Community may serve the city in the future. The city is jockeying for membership in the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport Authority, several miles to the east, which offers service to 16 cities as of August 2009. Most area residents continue to use Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport 20 miles (30 km) from downtown Chandler. City busChandler has very limited bus service compared with other Valley Metro cities of similar size. Most local routes dead end a few miles from the city or have further limited service within its borders. Currently, two express bus routes leave from the city near downtown, and a new park and ride facility was recently completed further south. Faced with increasing congestion, the land-locked city is pursuing transportation alternatives including enhancement of the local bus system. This goal has partially been achieved through Proposition 400, which converts transit funding from city-based to county-based. The result has been increased frequencies on routes 72, 96 (since July 28, 2008), and 156, as well as Sunday bus service on these three routes. However, other routes have yet to be converted to "supergrid" status. FreewaysMain article: Metropolitan Phoenix Freeways
Chandler is served by three limited access highways:
RailroadsHeavy railChandler is served by two single-track branch lines of the Union Pacific Railroad. One generally traverses the Kyrene Road alignment and currently dead-ends at the Lone Butte Industrial Park. The other runs east of Arizona Avenue and dead-ends near the location of the former World War II company town of Goodyear. Commuter rail service on these lines is under study as of 2007. Light railNo light rail lines have been approved in the city, although high-capacity corridors including light rail have been identified in other regional and local plans. City officials joined the regional light rail authority, METRO Light Rail, in 2007, expecting service perhaps in 2020. The initial route through the city will most likely be the Tempe South light rail line on Rural Road.Radio and television licenses Chandler has only one radio license: KMLE. Famous people associated with Chandler, Arizona
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