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FACTS & FIGURES FOR BELLINGHAM, WASHINGTON
Bellingham, Washington Bellingham,
Washington is the county
seat of Whatcom
County in the U.S. state of Washington.
It is the largest city in Whatcom County and tenth largest in Washington.
It is situated on Bellingham Bay, which is
protected by Lummi Island, Portage Island, and the
Lummi Peninsula,
and opens onto the Strait of Georgia. It
lies west of Mount Baker and Lake
Whatcom (from which it gets its drinking water) and north of the Chuckanut Mountains
and Skagit Valley. Whatcom
Creek runs through the center of the city. The boundaries of the city
encompass the former towns of Fairhaven (now home to the southern
ferry terminus of the Alaska Marine Highway System), New
Whatcom, and others. Bellingham is home to Whatcom Community
College, Bellingham Technical College, Evergreen Team
Concepts, Trinity
Western, and Western Washington University, which includes, among others Fairhaven College, Huxley
College; and the Woodring College of
Education. The name of Bellingham is
derived from the bay on which the city is situated. George Vancouver, who visited the area
in June 1792, named the bay for Sir
William Bellingham, the controller of the storekeeper's account of the Royal Navy. In 1858, the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush caused
thousands of miners, storekeepers, and scalawags to head north from California. Whatcom grew overnight
from a small northwest mill town to a bustling seaport, the basetown for the
Whatcom Trail, which led to the
Fraser
Canyon goldfields, used in open defiance of
colonial Governor James Douglas's
edict that all entry to the gold colony be made via Victoria, British Columbia. Bellingham was officially
incorporated on November
4, 1903. It was the result of the
consolidation of four towns initially situated around Bellingham Bay: Whatcom,
Sehome, Bellingham, and Fairhaven. A fictionalized account of the history of
Bellingham in this era is "The Living" by Annie
Dillard. Bellingham's climate
can generally be described as "mild." The average yearly high and low
temperatures are 57 and 41 degrees Fahrenheit (14 and 5 °C), respectively.
Although the rainy season can last as long as eight months or more, it is
usually about six months long, leaving Bellingham with a picturesque late spring
and mild, pleasant summer. Bellingham receives an average annual rainfall of
34.8 inches (884 mm). In March 2005, Kiplinger's Personal Finance named Bellingham one of the top retirement cities in the
nation. Purchase price of homes has risen, however
rent has remained relatively stable. Many of the condominiums recently built as
a result of the demand for affordable housing have subsequently become rental
units. Bellingham has seen a
resurgence of real-estate development as house prices climb, caused in part by
new residents moving in to the community. In order to accommodate this growth,
new properties have sprung up all over the city, including the Downtown,
Fairhaven, Happy Valley, Cordata, and Barkley neighborhoods. The city has
reiterated their commitment to developing a wide range of housing options for
all income categories, while retaining the integrity of existing communities.
Annexation of
surrounding farmland and county wilderness has been kept to a minimum due to
public concern for environmental preservation, but several controversies have
risen over the city's decisions to counteract the loss of land by allowing
taller buildings in the city core, major new development on previously
undeveloped land, and a lack of parks and open spaces in some of the more
recently developed areas. Population: Population (year 2000): 67,171. Estimated population in July 2006: 75,150 (+11.9% change)
Median Age--30.4 Years Ancestries: German (19.2%),
English (13.0%), Irish (12.3%), Norwegian (7.5%), Scottish (4.6%), United States
(4.4%). Races in Bellingham:
Income & Housing Costs Numbers: Estimated median household income in 2005: $35,612 (it was $32,530 in 2000)
Estimated median house/condo value in 2005: $252,100 (it was $156,100 in 2000)
Geographic: Elevation: 100
feet Land area: 25.6 square miles.
Population density--2905 per
square mile--average. 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 ·
High Schools ·
Locations of Interest ·
Shopping Centers ·
Churches ·
Lakes/Streams/Rivers/Creeks/Parks ·
Tourist Attractions ·
Banks ·
Housing Costs Information ·
Crime Statistics ·
Radio Stations AM/FM ·
TV Broadcast Stations ·
Discussion Forums For the above information and photos, click this
link: http://www.city-data.com/city/Bellingham-Washington.html Total Tax Burden--Data for Calculation WASHINGTON The state's
tax deferral program works in conjunction with the exemption program. A
senior citizen or disabled person may defer property taxes or special
assessments on their residence if they meet certain age, disability, ownership,
occupancy and income requirements. The state pays the taxes on behalf of
the claimant and files a lien on the property to indicate the state has an
interest in the property. The deferred taxes must be repaid to the state
plus 5% interest when the owner dies, sells or moves from the home, or doesn't
have sufficient equity in the property. Qualified people may participate
in both or one of these programs. Cost of Living Calculators Links: http://cgi.money.cnn.com/tools/costofliving/costofliving.html?step=form&x=36&y=3 http://www.bankrate.com/brm/movecalc.asp http://cityrating.com/costofliving.asp http://www.relocationessentials.com/aff/www/tools/salary/col.aspx http://swz.salary.com/CostofLivingWizard/layoutscripts/coll_start.asp Wikipedia Information Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellingham,_Washington
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