Coordinates: 37°55′55″N 121°41′45″W / 37.93194°N 121.69583°W / 37.93194; -121.69583
Brentwood is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States. It is located in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. According to the Brentwood Chamber of Commerce, its population is about 50,000 as of 2009.[3]
The downtown is centered around the intersection of Oak Street and First Street, just off California State Route 4 (Brentwood Blvd). It is the site of offices, restaurants, a movie theatre and small stores. City Park, City Hall, Brentwood Library and the U. S. Post Office are located along Oak Street.
Over the past several years a great deal of big-box retail has been introduced in the area of the Brentwood/Antioch border on Lone Tree Way at the SR 4 Bypass, about 3.5 miles from downtown Brentwood. This includes major tenants such as Kohl's, Trader Joe's, Home Depot, Lowes. Slatten Ranch shopping center, actually on the Antioch side of Lone Tree Way, includes Target, Sport Chalet and Barnes & Noble. J. C. Penney opened its Slatten Ranch store in March 2008.
An upscale shopping center, Streets of Brentwood, opened in October 2008 at the intersection of Sand Creek Road and the SR 4 Bypass. Rave theater, a multi-screen movie theater is a major attraction.
History
Brentwood began as a farming community in the late 1800s, and is known throughout the Bay Area for its agricultural products, primarily its cherries, corn and peaches. Many of the old farms and orchards have been replaced by suburban developments since 1990. Brentwood is increasingly residential, with the rate of residential growth in the triple digits during the 1990s and 69% from 2000-2005. The historic water tower on Walnut Street symbolizes this transition in the city's character. It no longer serves its original purpose, but now hosts a large number of cell phone transmitters.
Brentwood was originally laid out on land donated from property owned by John Marsh, an East Contra Costa County pioneer who acquired Rancho Los Meganos, the land grant that Brentwood is built upon, in 1837 from Jose Noriega. Brentwood was named after Marsh's ancestral home, the town of Brentwood in the County of Essex, England.[4]
Brentwood's first post office was established in 1878.[5] The city incorporated in 1948.[5]
Geography
Brentwood has a total area of 11.67 sq mi (30.2 km2), of which 11.64 sq mi (30.1 km2) is land and 0.01 sq mi (0.03 km2) or 0.1% is water.[1] The landscape is marked by rolling hills, native grasses, oak trees and fruit orchards, with a number of public golf courses.
Education
Brentwood's public education system has about 7 elementary, 3 middle, and 3 high schools. The city is served by the Brentwood Union School District, Knightsen School District and the Liberty Union High School District. Los Medanos College operates a satellite facility at Sand Creek Road and Brentwood Blvd. (Highway 4).
Demographics
As of the 2000 census[1], there were 23,302 people, 7,497 households, and 6,127 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,001.2/sqmi (774/sqkm). There were 7,788 housing units at an average density of 668.8/sqmi (259/sqkm). The racial makeup of the town was 75.38% White, 9.40% African American, 0.75% Native American, 6.99% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 5.96% from other races, and 1.43% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.34% of the population. There were 23,700 households out of which 45.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 69.2% were married couples living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.4% were non-families. 19.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 2.93. In the town the population was spread out with 22.9% under the age of 18, 3.2% from 18 to 24, 19.4% from 25 to 44, 33.4% from 45 to 64, and 21.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48 years. For every 100 females there were 96.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.7 males. The median income for a household in the town was $87,068, and the median income for a family was $91,796[6]. Males had a median income of $58,059 versus $39,585 for females. The per capita income for the town was $33,621. About 5.4% of families and 9.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.3% of those under age 18 and 3.5% of those age 65 or over.
Economics
Agriculture remains important to the local economy, but has declined in relative importance as the city has become more suburban. There is no heavy industry and only a small light industry area in the northeastern part of the city. Brentwood underwent a severe economic boom from 2000 through 2008. Population expanded from 23,302 in 2000 to about 48,000 in 2006, a higher growth rate than other communities in the Bay Area. The boom stalled in 2009, paralleling the economic crisis that affected all of California.
Transportation
Public transportation is very limited, so the principal roads leading into the city are very congested with commuter traffic. No freeways serve Brentwood directly, although a bypass was expanded in February 2008 to connect one of the city's main roads directly with State Route 4. Local bus service is provided by Tri Delta Transit company. This company also operates express bus service to the Pittsburg/Bay Point and the Pleasanton/Dublin BART rail stations Monday through Friday, several a day, and only in the predominant commute direction*. It takes about one hour to reach Pittsburg/Bay Point BART.
There is no passenger rail service to Brentwood.
Commercial airports serving this area are:
Other nearby airports serving private aircraft are:
Agriculture-related attractions
- The Brentwood "Cornfest" occurs one weekend in July each year, culminating in a concert. Past performers include Eddie Money, Eric Burdon and The Fixx.
- Numerous local farms operate produce stands or offer "U-Pick" opportunities.
- A farmer's market is held on First Street in downtown Brentwood on Saturday mornings during the summer.
Points of interest
Communities
- Apple Hill
- Arroyo Secco
- Ashford Park
- Birchwood Estates
- Brentwood Hills
- Brentwood Park
- California Harvest
- Carmel Estates
- Confetti
- Deer Creek
- Deer Ridge
- Dream Catcher Ridge
- Garin Ranch
- Grant Street Projects
- Havenwood Village
- Laurelwood Estates
- Lyon Groves
- Meridian Pointe
- Monte Verde
- Parkside Brentwood
- Ponderosa Crossroads
- Rose Garden
- Sage Glen Estates
- Shadow Lakes
- Spinnaker Ridge
- Sterling Preserve
- Summerset I, II, III, and IV (55+ Community)
- Sycamore Square
- Towns & Country
- Valley Green
- Visions (of Brentwood)
Notable residents
References
External links
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