Delano, California

Delano ( ) is a city in Kern County, California, United States. Delano is located about north-northwest of Bakersfield at an elevation of , in the San Joaquin Valley, the southern half of California's Central Valley. Delano is also home to two California state prisons, North Kern State Prison and Kern Valley State Prison. The Voice of America once operated one of its largest, most powerful shortwave broadcast facilities at a station outside Delano at . The Voice of America ceased broadcasts in October 2007, citing a changing political mission, reduced budgets, and changes in technology.

Delano's two school districts currently operate eight elementary schools, three middle schools, three comprehensive high schools and two alternative high schools. The city has its own police department and contracts with the Kern County Fire Department for fire services, EMS services are privately provided by local company, Delano Ambulance Service.

History

thumb|left|[[César Chávez at a United Farmworkers rally in Delano, 1972]]

Delano was founded on July 14, 1869, as a railroad town, not because the railroad passed through the town but because the railroad coming south from San Francisco terminated at Delano. The name was officially given by the Southern Pacific Railroad in honor of Columbus Delano, at the time the Secretary of the Interior (1870–1875) for the United States. The first post office opened in 1874. On September 8, 1965, Larry Itliong and other Filipino leaders led the predominantly Filipino Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee (AWOC) in a "walk off" from table grape farms, now known as the Delano grape strike. The strikers' goal was to improve farm workers' wages and working conditions. The National Farm Workers' Association (NFWA), a largely Hispanic union led by Cesar Chavez, joined the strike within a week. During the strike, the two groups joined forces and formed the United Farm Workers of America (UFW). By 1970, the UFW won a contract with major grape growers across California.

Economy

Major farm employers in Delano include Wonderful Citrus, Columbine Vineyards, Munger Farms, Lucich Farms, and Hronis. Other major employers include Adventist Health Hospital Delano, Walmart, The Home Depot, Vallarta Supermarkets, Delano Joint Union High School District, Delano Union Elementary School District, and the North Kern-South Tulare Hospital District.

Major employers

According to the city's 2021 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:

{| class="wikitable"

! #

! Employer

! # of Employees

| 1

|Kern Valley State Prison

|1,670

|North Kern State Prison

|1,396

|=3

|Delano Union Elementary School District

|900

|=3

|Paramount Citrus

|900

|Adventist Health Delano

|670

|Delano Joint Union High School District

|475

|Walmart

|300

|Vallarta Supermarkets

|255

|City of Delano

|210

|10

|Delano District Skilled Nursing Facility

|184

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of ; over 99% of which is land.

Climate

Delano's climate is typical of the San Joaquin Valley. It is located within a desert climatic zone with Mediterranean features. The city receives of rainfall annually, mainly in the winter. Frequent winter ground fog known regionally as tule fog can obscure vision. Record temperatures range between (2006) and (1990).

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"

|+Delano city, California – Racial and ethnic composition

!Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)

!Pop 2000

!Pop 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |Pop 2020

!% 2000

!% 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020

|White alone (NH)

|3,556

|3,980

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2,391

|9.16%

|7.50%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |4.65%

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|1,997

|4,007

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2,695

|5.14%

|7.55%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |5.24%

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|88

|154

|style='background: #ffffe6; |155

|0.23%

|0.29%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.30%

|Asian alone (NH)

|5,902

|6,436

|style='background: #ffffe6; |7,079

|15.20%

|12.13%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |13.76%

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|12

|22

|style='background: #ffffe6; |35

|0.03%

|0.04%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.07%

|Other race alone (NH)

|86

|77

|style='background: #ffffe6; |118

|0.22%

|0.15%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.23%

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|599

|452

|style='background: #ffffe6; |502

|1.54%

|0.85%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.98%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|26,584

|37,913

|style='background: #ffffe6; |38,453

|68.47%

|71.48%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |74.77%

|Total

|38,824

|53,041

|style='background: #ffffe6; |51,428

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Delano had a population of 51,428 and a population density of . 84.9% of residents lived in urban areas, while 15.1% lived in rural areas.

The median age was 31.7 years. The age distribution was 26.0% under the age of 18, 11.3% aged 18 to 24, 32.7% aged 25 to 44, 21.1% aged 45 to 64, and 8.9% aged 65 or older. For every 100 females, there were 135.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 146.9 males age 18 and over.

There were 11,572 housing units, of which 11,113 (96.0%) were occupied and 4.0% were vacant. Of occupied units, 56.5% were owner-occupied and 43.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.7% and the rental vacancy rate was 3.6%.

The median household income was $61,817, and the per capita income was $19,266. About 14.0% of families and 15.9% of the population were below the poverty line.

Education

The Delano Union School District operates eight elementary schools and three middle schools. The Delano Joint Union High School District provides three comprehensive high schools, a continuation high school, and an adult education center.

Elementary schools

Albany Park Elementary School
Del Vista Math and Science Academy
Fremont Elementary School
Harvest Elementary School
Morningside Elementary School
Nueva Vista Language Academy
Pioneer School
Princeton Street Elementary School
Terrace Elementary School

Middle schools

Almond Tree Middle School
Cecil Avenue Math and Science Academy
La Vina Middle School

Airport

The Delano Municipal Airport is an uncontrolled airfield with a 5,651-foot runway and light aviation services, and is open to the public. There is no scheduled airline service, but the airport serves a variety of other significant users. Many military, air charter, air ambulance, and other flying services operate from the airport on a regular basis.

Events

The Cinco De Mayo Fiesta celebrates Mexican culture with live entertainment and a carnival at Memorial Park. This four-day celebrations commemorates Cinco de Mayo.

Delano is home to the Annual Philippine Weekend festival which celebrates Filipino Culture through performing arts and cultural activities. The festival aims to continue the preservation of the art and history of the Philippines. The festival includes a pork adobo cook-off, grand parade, barrio fiesta, basketball tournament, cultural entertainment, live performance, dance and singing contest, and bingo.

September 16 Celebration

Harvest Holidays off with a golf tournament, softball tournament and 10k run. The Grand Marshal and Queen barbecue is held on Saturday after the Kiddie Parade. Furthermore, the city of Delano, in addition to the Delano Union Elementary School District, host the Harvest Holidays Kiddie Parade, which allows the young ones to be the stars for a day as they wave to the crowds down Main Street. The four day event ends with carnival rides, games, food, and music at Memorial Park.

Community parks

The city of Delano has thirteen parks for families and children to enjoy.

Albany Park
Cecil Park
Cesar Chavez Park
Delano Soccer Park
Delano Skate Park
Heritage Park
Jefferson Park
Kalibo Park
Larry Itliong Park
Martin Luther King Jr. Park
Memorial Park
Morningside Park
Veneto Park

Notable people

Cesar Chavez, activist
Larry Itliong, activist
Leamon King, Olympic runner
Dack Rambo, actor
Lon Spurrier, Olympic runner
Luis Valdez, film director, known for La Bamba
Benita Valente, classical singer (soprano)