Brookings, OR 1 of 18 Active Retirement Communities Location

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Ivan Gillis

Active Retirement Communities

State: Oregon

City: Brookings

Brookings is a city in Curry County, Oregon, United States. It was named after John E. Brookings, president of the Brookings Lumber and Box Company, which founded the city in 1908. The population was 5,447 at the 2000 census. As of 2007, Brookings had a population of over 6,455 within the city limits. The total population of the Brookings area is over 13,000, which includes Harbor (a CDP), and others. There have been numerous proposals to annex the nearby unincorporated areas into Brookings; while most attempts failed over the years, one large area north of town owned by Borax has succeeded. This development has the potential to add approximately 1000 homes over the next 20 years, although developers expect many of them to be occupied only seasonally.

Due to its location, Brookings is subject to winter (and less frequently summer) temperatures considered unseasonably warm for the Oregon Coast. Temperatures can reach 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit (21 to 27 degrees Celsius) throughout the year. This is due in part to the marine influences from its location on the Pacific Ocean, but mostly from its situation at the foot of the Klamath Mountains, whose winds compress and warm the air flowing onto Brookings. This is called the Brookings effect or Chetco effect. But while area real estate agents and other unobjective sources have dubbed Brookings the "banana belt" of the Oregon coast, this is no Baja California. Heavy rain is common in the winter. Heavy fog is common in the summer.

On September 9, 1942, Mount Emily, near Brookings, became the first site in the continental United States to suffer aerial bombardment in wartime. A Japanese floatplane piloted by Nobuo Fujita launched from submarine I-25 was loaded with incendiary bombs and sent to start massive fires in the dense forests of the Pacific Northwest. The attack caused only minor damage. Fujita would be invited back to Brookings in 1962 and he presented the town his family's 400-year old samurai sword in friendship after the Japanese government was given assurances that he would not be tried as a war criminal. Brookings made him an honorary citizen several days before his death in 1997.

Since the 1980s, Brookings has attracted retirees, largely from California, who have come to form a sizeable minority of the population. Their political influence is felt in routinely voting against new taxes. It is also home for a number of people who commute to jobs in California--mostly at nearby Pelican Bay State Prison.

Since 2006, the Winter Art & Chocolate Festival has been held at the Brookings-Harbor High School, featuring local and regional artists and chocolatiers the second weekend in February.

The Brookings Harbor Festival of the Arts began in 1993. It takes place the third weekend in August on the Boardwalk at the Port of Brookings Harbor.

Income & Housing Costs Numbers:

Males: 2,948

(47.5%)

Females: 3,265

(52.5%)

Median resident age:

43.1 years

Oregon median age:

36.3 years

Estimated median household income in 2008: $38,695 (it was $31,656 in 2000)

Brookings:

$38,695

Oregon:

$50,169

Estimated per capita income in 2008: $21,428

Estimated median house or condo value in 2008: $265,332 (it was $142,900 in 2000)

Brookings:

$265,332

Oregon:

$273,300

Mean prices in 2008: All housing units: $304,089; Detached houses: $306,701; Townhouses or other attached units: $311,127; In 2-unit structures: $235,058; In 3-to-4-unit structures: $172,793; In 5-or-more-unit structures: $339,256; Mobile homes: $102,231

Dec. 2009 cost of living index in Brookings: 98.9 (near average, U.S. average is 100)

In-Depth Facts and Figures as listed below, plus other information:

· Climate Charts

1. Average Temperature

2. Precipitation (Rain)

3. Humidity

4. Wind Speed (MPH)

5. Snowfall

6. Sunshine

7. Cloudy Days

· Tornado Activity History

· Hospitals & Medical

· Airports

· Colleges/Universities