
Fairfield Courthouse
'Fairfield' is a city located northeast of the
San Francisco Bay Area in
Northern California,
USA. It is approximately 45 miles from both
San Francisco and
Sacramento. Fairfield was
founded in
1859 by clippership captain Robert H. Waterman, and named after his former hometown of
Fairfield, Connecticut.
It is the home of
Travis Air Force Base and the
Jelly Belly factory, and has a population of 101,935 as of a
July 1,
2002 Census estimate. It shares a border with its
sister city,
Suisun City.
Other nearby cities include
Vacaville,
Benicia and
Vallejo. Fairfield is the
county seat of
Solano County.
Geography
Fairfield is located at 38°15'28" North, 122°3'15" West (38.257763, -122.054256).
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 97.623
km² (37.7
mi²). 97.5 km² (37.7 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.05% water.
History
Fairfield became the county seat of Solano County in 1858.
Demographics
As of the
census of
2000, there are 96,178 people (Over 106,000 as of 2006), 30,870 households, and 24,016 families residing in the city. The
population density is 986.3/km² (2,554.2/mi²). There are 31,792 housing units at an average density of 326.0/km² (844.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 56.21%
White, 15.02%
Black or
African American, 0.77%
Native American, 10.89%
Asian, 0.93%
Pacific Islander, 8.77% from
other races, and 7.41% from two or more races. 18.77% of the population are
Hispanic or
Latino of any race.
There are 30,870 households out of which 43.1% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.4% are
married couples living together, 14.2% have a female householder with no husband present, and 22.2% are non-families. 17.0% of all households are made up of individuals and 5.5% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.98 and the average family size is 3.33.
In the city the population is spread out with 29.8% under the age of 18, 11.1% from 18 to 24, 31.3% from 25 to 44, 18.8% from 45 to 64, and 9.0% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 31 years. For every 100 females there are 99.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 97.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $51,151, and the median income for a family is $55,503. Males have a median income of $38,544 versus $30,616 for females. The
per capita income for the city is $20,617. 9.3% of the population and 7.1% of families are below the
poverty line. Out of the total population, 12.1% of those under the age of 18 and 5.2% of those 65 and older are living below the
poverty line.
Industry and Major Employers
★ Agriculture; see
Suisun Valley;
★
Anheuser-Busch; regional brewery
★
Copart Auto; worldwide headquarters
★
Edwards Cinema
★
Jelly Belly; worldwide headquarters and factory
★
Jimmy Doolittle Air & Space Museum; located on Travis AFB
★
Solano County Government Offices
★
Travis Air Force Base
★
Wal-Mart
★
Westfield Shopping Mall
Schools
Fairfield's public schools belong to the
Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District; (FSUSD) and the
Travis Unified School District; (TAFBUSD).
Area High Schools
★
Armijo High School;
★
Fairfield High School;
★
Angelo Rodriguez High School;
★
Sem Yeto Continuation School;
★
Mary Bird Community Day School;
★
Vanden High School;
★
★ Sem Yeto Continuation School and Mary Bird Community Day School are part of the FSUSD. Vanden High School is part of the TAFBUSD, and is located near Travis Air Force Base. All others are part of the FSUSD.
Universities nearby include
California Maritime Academy,
UC Davis,
UC Berkeley,
Sacramento State,
CSU East Bay,
Sonoma State,
Trinity College of Massage,
St. Mary's College,
University of Phoenix. The main campus of
Solano Community College is located in Fairfield.
Recreation
★
'Downtown Fairfield';
★
★ Offers shopping, community festivals and entertainment.
Parks
★ 'Rockville Hills Regional Park'
★
★ The Park is located on Rockville Road approximately 3/4 of a mile from the corner of Suisun Valley and Rockville Roads. Allows bicycling, hiking, and provides walking trails.
★ 'Fairfield Linear Park'
★
★ The Linear Park stretches throughout the city. Picnic tables and play equipment can be found along the route. Runners, walkers and bicyclist enjoy this route.
★ 'Alan Witt Park'
★
★ Contains the Fairfield Sports Center and City of Fairfield Rotary Skate Park. the park offers tennis courts, a recreation building, picnic area, ball fields, basketball courts, volleyball courts and horseshoe pits. Restroom facilities are available.
Golf Courses
★
★ Fairfield is home to three golf courses, two public and one private. Paradise Valley and Rancho Solano Golf Courses, both public, are rated in the Zagat Survey of “America’s Best Golf Courses,” rated 3 ½ stars by Golf Digest Magazine in 2004 and voted #1 & #2 golf courses in Solano County for consecutive years. This is where Kevin Truong played tennis with his cousins and brother.
Transportation Infrastructure
Major Highways
★
Interstate 80
★
Interstate 680
★
California State Route 12
Public Transportation
All of the following transit agencies provide service to or from Fairfield:
★
Vallejo Transit, which also operates the Baylink Ferry to San Francisco
★
Fairfield Suisun Transit
★
Benicia Breeze
★
Vacaville City Coach
★
Rio Vista Delta Breeze
Service also connects with
BART stations in Contra Costa County.
The Fairfield-Suisun
Amtrak Station provides long-distance intercity service, including
Capitol Corridor service.
External links
★
City Website
★ Fairfield-Suisun Chamber of Commerce http://www.ffsc-chamber.com/