Prunedale, California

Prunedale is an unincorporated community in Monterey County, California, United States. It is located north of Salinas at an elevation of .

History

One of the area's earliest settlers was Charles Langley, a Watsonville banker, who also operated the Prunedale post office, These improvements were completed in the early 2000s. In the last few years, with a decline in traffic fatalities, the speed limit was increased to 60 miles per hour via state traffic formulas.

One of the original businesses to inhabit Prunedale was Glenn's. In the 1970s, the Prunedale Shopping Center was built. The Prunedale Senior Citizens' Center was built in 1989 with grant funds secured by then Monterey County Supervisor Marc Del Piero. Meals for seniors and public assistance programs, including a bi-weekly food bank giveaway, continue to be operated from that facility.

Geography

Prunedale is located in northern Monterey County at .

At the 1990 U.S. census, the CDP had an area of , all land.<br> 1990 2000 2010

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Prunedale first appeared as a census designated place in the 1990 U.S. census.

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|+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census

There were 5,914 households; 34.0% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 59.2% were married-couple households, 6.5% were cohabiting couple households, 19.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present, and 14.9% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present. About 17.1% of households were made up of individuals, and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.18. There were 4,564 families (77.2% of households).

There were 6,124 housing units at an average density of , of which 5,914 (96.6%) were occupied. Of these, 78.2% were owner-occupied and 21.8% were occupied by renters. The overall vacancy rate was 3.4%; the homeowner vacancy rate was 0.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 1.7%.

The median household income in 2023 was $106,442, and the per capita income was $42,602. About 3.2% of families and 8.5% of the population were below the poverty line.

2010 census

At the 2010 census Prunedale had a population of 17,560. The population density was . The racial makeup of Prunedale was 11,771 (67.0%) White, 177 (1.0%) African American, 199 (1.1%) Native American, 672 (3.8%) Asian, 58 (0.3%) Pacific Islander, 3,639 (20.7%) from other races, and 1,044 (5.9%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7,322 persons (41.7%).

The census reported that 17,552 people (100% of the population) lived in households, 2 (0%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 6 (0%) were institutionalized.

There were 5,703 households, 2,130 (37.3%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 3,607 (63.2%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 513 (9.0%) had a female householder with no husband present, 323 (5.7%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 340 (6.0%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 54 (0.9%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 923 households (16.2%) were one person and 367 (6.4%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 3.08. There were 4,443 families (77.9% of households); the average family size was 3.45.

The age distribution was 4,348 people (24.8%) under the age of 18, 1,575 people (9.0%) aged 18 to 24, 3,933 people (22.4%) aged 25 to 44, 5,647 people (32.2%) aged 45 to 64, and 2,057 people (11.7%) who were 65 or older. The median age was 40.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 101.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.2 males.

There were 6,047 housing units at an average density of 130.9 per square mile, of the occupied units 4,352 (76.3%) were owner-occupied and 1,351 (23.7%) were rented. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.9%; the rental vacancy rate was 3.8%. 13,101 people (74.6% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 4,451 people (25.3%) lived in rental housing units.

Transportation

Prunedale is served by Monterey–Salinas Transit, with connections to Amtrak at San Jose Diridon station. Caltrans has a park and ride at the intersection of US Route 101 and California State Route 156.

Environmental

In the hills above Prunedale is one of the few known colonies of Yadon's piperia, an endangered species of wild orchid. Royal Oaks Park and Manzanita Park, owned by Monterey County, offer nearby recreation. Much of Prunedale's land is oak reserve to protect the California's native trees.

Gallery

File:101 through Prunedale.JPG|Highway 101 through Prunedale heading north

File:San Miguel Canyon and Prunedale North intersection.JPG|San Miguel Canyon Prunedale North intersection in Prunedale

File:San Miguel Canyon Road.JPG|San Miguel Canyon Road from the 101 overpass in Prunedale

File:101 north of San Miguel Canyon Overpass.JPG|View of 101 heading north from San Miguel Canyon Road overpass in Prunedale

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