White Center, Washington

White Center is a census-designated place (CDP) in King County, Washington, United States. It lies between West Seattle and Burien. The population was 16,631 at the 2020 census.

White Center is sometimes referred to by the nickname "Rat City" due to the historical presence of a military Relocation and Training Center during World War II. The Rat City Rollergirls are a Seattle roller derby team that began training in White Center.

History

Origin of the name

In 1918, local developers George White and Hiram Green decided the name of the community in a coin toss. White won the coin toss, and thereafter the community was called White Center.

Incorporation

White Center is an urbanized area of King County that is not incorporated as part of a city. Seattle has been working towards incorporating the area since the mid-2000s. An area south of White Center, known as North Highline, was annexed by neighboring Burien on April 1, 2010. The Seattle City Council rejected annexation of White Center in 2009, and a measure to annex White Center to Burien was rejected by voters in 2012. Plans to annex White Center got a boost in March 2016 when the state legislature directed that $7 million go to the city of Seattle if it annexes the area. Completing annexation would have required approval by the voters in the area as well as by the Seattle City Council, and would not have been completed before 2017.

The CDP is bordered to the north and west by Seattle, to the east by unincorporated Boulevard Park, and to the south by the city of Burien. Washington State Route 509 forms the eastern border of the White Center CDP. Downtown Seattle is to the north, and the center of Burien is to the south.

The heavily polluted Hicklin Lake is located within White Center.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, White Center had a population of 16,631. The median age was 36.0 years. 22.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 11.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 100.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 97.4 males age 18 and over.

100.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 5,915 households in White Center, of which 32.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 40.2% were married-couple households, 21.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.6% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 24.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Education

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White Center is part of the Highline School District, which covers much of southwestern King County. Elementary schools include Beverly Park Elementary, Mount View Elementary, Southern Heights Elementary, and White Center Heights Elementary. Secondary schools include Rainier Prep Public Charter School, Cascade Middle School, New Start High School, and Evergreen High School.