Founding
city in Contra Costa County, California, United States
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Pinole (Spanish for "cornmeal") is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States. Its population was 19,022 at the 2020 census.
The Huchiun tribe lived in the region. In 1823, Ygnacio Martínez, commandant of the Presidio of San Francisco, received a land grant of Rancho El Pinole from the Mexican government. Martinez built a hacienda in Pinole Valley; this is land encompassed by Pinole Valley Park. During the 1850s, Bernardo Fernandez, a Portuguese immigrant, started a trading facility on the shores of San Pablo Bay. He built Fernandez Mansion, a historic building that still stands today at the end of Tennent Avenue. From these early beginnings, a small but thriving community developed into the city of Pinole.
The settlement's growth was stimulated by construction of the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1878 and the establishment of the California Powder Works in nearby Hercules. During this period, the city had an active waterfront and was a regional hub of commerce and banking. The first post office opened in 1878 when the railroad reached the community. The City of Pinole was incorporated in 1903.
During the post-World War II boom, Pinole and the surrounding area grew rapidly. Construction of Interstate 80 in 1958 stimulated developers to build new housing to satisfy demand, and the town evolved as a suburban bedroom community within the San Francisco/Oakland commuter belt. Much of its original industry was displaced during this time, and the town became predominantly residential.
Today, the town is locally known for its "big-box store" shopping district along Fitzgerald Drive, and Pinole Vista Shopping Center, which is contiguous with Richmond's Hilltop area. The downtown area still retains much of its turn-of-the-century building stock. The city's development agency is working to preserve this historic area as a tourist and community destination.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.8 square miles (31 km2), of which 6.7 sq mi (17 km2) (56.6%) are covered by water. The city of Pinole has habitat areas that support the endangered species Santa Cruz tarweed on the California coastal prairie ecosystem. A colony of this rare plant was discovered during preparation of an environmental impact report for a proposed shopping center on the east side of I-80 in the late 1980s. Subsequently, a plan was developed by the city to conduct replanting of this tarweed on the slopes within the right-of-way of the interstate. Also running through the city is Pinole Creek.
As of the 2020 census, Pinole had a population of 19,022. The population density was 3,726.9 inhabitants per square mile (1,439.0/km2). The median age was 43.8 years. The age distribution was 17.9% under 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 26.0% from 25 to 44, 27.3% from 45 to 64, and 21.4% were 65 or older. For every 100 females, there were 91.0 males, and for every 100 females 18 and over, there were 88.6 males 18 and over.
The census reported that 99.2% of the population lived in households, 0.3% lived in noninstitutionalized group quarters and 0.5% were institutionalized. In addition, all residents lived in urban areas, while none lived in rural areas.
Of the 6,860 households in Pinole, 29.6% had children under 18 living in them, 50.2% were married-couple households, 6.2% were cohabiting couple households, 15.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 22.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.8% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.75. There were 4,879 families (71.1% of all households).
The 7,106 housing units had an average density of 1,392.2 units per square mile (537.5 units/km2), of which 96.5% were occupied. Of occupied housing units, 71.0% were owner-occupied and 29.0% were renter-occupied. Of all housing units, 3.5% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 4.5%.
In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that 29.8% of the population were foreign-born. Of all people aged 5 or older, 63.4% spoke only English at home, 14.8% spoke Spanish, 4.0% spoke other Indo-European languages, 16.2% spoke Asian or Pacific Islander languages, and 1.6% spoke other languages. Of those aged 25 or older, 89.8% were high school graduates and 38.7% had a bachelor's degree.
The median household income was $120,833, and the per capita income was $52,589. About 4.0% of families and 6.5% of the population were below the poverty line.
The Pinole Community Players have been performing in Pinole since 1986.
On February 10, 2019, Pinole has 11,347 registered voters. Of those, 56.1% are registered Democrats, 13.4% are registered Republicans, and 26.4% have declined to state a political party.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Pinole, California”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.