Aromas, California

Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox settlement Aromas (Spanish for "Scents") is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Monterey County and San Benito County, California, United States. The population was 2,708 at the 2020 census.<ref name="Census 2020"/>

The CDP straddles the border of the two counties, with Monterey County to the west and San Benito County to the east. The Santa Cruz County line is less than a mile to the northwest, and Santa Clara County is about Template:Convert to the north. Its population was almost equally distributed between the two counties with 1,365 in Monterey County<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and 1,343 in San Benito County.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Aromas is one of four CDPs in California that are divided between two or more counties. The others are Kingvale (divided between Placer County and Nevada County), Kirkwood (divided between Alpine County and Amador County), and Tahoma (divided between Placer County and El Dorado County).<ref name="US-CB">U.S. Census Bureau</ref>

History

The settlement was originally known as "Sand Cut", named from the Southern Pacific Railroad tunnel constructed nearby in 1871.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The settlement was renamed Aromas, after Rancho Las Aromitas y Agua Caliente, around 1895.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Geography

Aromas is located in northern Monterey County and northwestern San Benito County at Template:Coord (36.886988, -121.641396).<ref name="GR1">Template:Cite web</ref> Is it bordered to the south by Prunedale. U.S. Route 101 runs along the southeastern edge of the community, leading north Template:Convert to Gilroy and south Template:Convert to Salinas.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the Aromas CDP has a total area of Template:Convert. Template:Convert of it are land and Template:Convert, or 0.22%, are water.<ref name="CenPopGazetteer2022"/> The center of town is on the south side of the valley of the Pajaro River, about Template:Convert southwest of where the river cuts through Pajaro Gap (Chittenden Pass) at the south end of the Santa Cruz Mountains.

Demographics

The 2020 United States census reported that Aromas had a population of 2,708. The population density was Template:Convert. The racial makeup of Aromas was 58.7% White, 0.6% African American, 2.1% Native American, 3.1% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 22.0% from other races, and 13.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 40.8% of the population.

The census reported that 100% of the population lived in households.

There were 910 households, out of which 30.2% included children under the age of 18, 61.2% were married-couple households, 5.9% were cohabiting couple households, 19.2% had a female householder with no partner present, and 13.6% had a male householder with no partner present. 17.4% of households were one person, and 11.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.98. There were 693 families (76.2% of all households).

The age distribution was 17.6% under the age of 18, 7.7% aged 18 to 24, 25.7% aged 25 to 44, 27.7% aged 45 to 64, and 21.3% who were 65Template:Nbspyears of age or older. The median age was 43.9Template:Nbspyears. For every 100 females, there were 102.5 males.

There were 954 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert, of which 910 (95.4%) were occupied. Of these, 79.8% were owner-occupied, and 20.2% were occupied by renters.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Schools

The Aromas-San Juan School District has three schools – Aromas Elementary School, San Juan School and Anzar High School. Aromas has one K-8 school, Aromas Elementary School with less than 400 students, (in 2000). Heather Howell is the current principal of Aromas School.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Anzar High School, which opened in 1994, was named after early area pioneers. Anzar's current principal is Angela Crawley, and the school's total enrollment amounts to 258 students.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Economy

Aromas is home to a Graniterock quarry, with the A.R. Wilson quarry owned and operated by the Watsonville-based company.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Since 1986, Fireclay Tile has been manufacturing architectural tile in Aromas.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

References

• U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey, 2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. U.S. Census website. Retrieved 2013-10-21.

External links

• Aromas at Explore Monterey County
• Aromas-San Juan Unified School District
• Aromas Water District
• Short radio episode of Ygnacio Villegas's writing about "Las Aromas Rancho" from California Legacy Project.