Editing Grand Forks, North Dakota (section)

==Geography==
[[Image:Egf-confluence.jpg|thumb|left|The confluence of the Red and Red Lake Rivers]]
[[Image:redrivergrandforkscairn.jpg|upright|thumb|Flood memorial]]
Grand Forks is {{convert|74|mi|km}} north of the [[Fargo-Moorhead]] area and {{convert|145|mi|km}} south of [[Winnipeg]], [[Manitoba]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.visitgrandforks.com/main.php/meeting_location |title=Travel to Grand Forks, ND and East Grand Forks, MN |access-date=June 5, 2007 |work=Greater Grand Forks Convention & Visitors Bureau |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070530221555/http://www.visitgrandforks.com/main.php/meeting_location <!--Added by H3llBot--> |archive-date=May 30, 2007 }}</ref> Grand Forks is on the western bank of the [[Red River of the North]] in an area known as the [[Red River Valley]]. The term "forks" refers to the forking of the Red River with the [[Red Lake River]] near downtown Grand Forks.<ref name="history"/> According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the city has an area of {{convert|29.318|sqmi|sqkm|2}}, of which {{convert|29.120|sqmi|sqkm|2}} is land and {{convert|0.198|sqmi|sqkm|2}} is water.<ref name="CenPopGazetteer2024"/> Since it is in one of the flattest parts of the world, the city has few differences in elevation.<ref name="redriver"/> There are no lakes within the city limits of Grand Forks, but the meandering Red River and the English Coulee flow through the community and provide some break in the terrain.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.und.nodak.edu/aboutund/landmarks.html |title=Campus landmarks |access-date=June 8, 2007 |work=University of North Dakota |archive-date=December 19, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071219205810/http://www.und.nodak.edu/aboutund/landmarks.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The Red River Valley is the result of an ancient glacier carving its way south during the last ice age. Once the glacier receded, it formed a glacial lake called [[Lake Agassiz]]. The valley is formed from the ancient lake bed. The ancient beaches can still be seen as rolling hills west of the city.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.und.edu/instruct/eng/fkarner/pages/rebound.htm |title=The Red River Valley: Tilted Shorelines and Rebounding Lake Beds |access-date=June 8, 2007 |work=University of North Dakota |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061208044926/http://www.und.edu/instruct/eng/fkarner/pages/rebound.htm |archive-date=December 8, 2006 }}</ref>

===Cityscape===
{{See also|Downtown Grand Forks|University Village, Grand Forks, North Dakota}}
[[File:DowntownGrandForksMap.png|right|upright=1.2|thumb|Map of downtown Grand Forks]]
Grand Forks has several distinct neighborhoods. The area adjacent to the Red River developed first; this is where some of the oldest neighborhoods, including the downtown area, can be found. The area between downtown and the University of North Dakota campus was another early growth area, and historic properties can be found here, as well.

Downtown Grand Forks contains many recognized historic buildings.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.grandforksgov.com/Urban/National_Register.pdf |title=National Register of Historic Places |access-date=December 24, 2005 |work=City of Grand Forks, North Dakota |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131014220915/http://www.grandforksgov.com/Urban/National_Register.pdf |archive-date=October 14, 2013 }}</ref> It is the governmental center of the city and county. It is also used as a gathering place for large community events and festivals. A farmer's market takes place every Saturday from mid-June to mid-September in the Town Square at the corner of 3rd Street S. and DeMers Avenue.<ref name="farmersmarket">{{cite web |url=http://www.visitgrandforks.com/main.php/family |title=Family Fun |access-date=June 5, 2007 |work=Greater Grand Forks Convention & Visitors Bureau |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070530221601/http://www.visitgrandforks.com/main.php/family |archive-date=May 30, 2007 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

In 2006, city leaders and developers announced plans to convert older office buildings into high-end [[Condominium (living space)|condos]] and [[apartment]]s, and to construct new buildings for the same purpose to provide for residents downtown.<ref>{{cite news|last=Tran|first=Tu-Uyen|title=DOWNTOWN GRAND FORKS: Apartment construction to start in October|work=Grand Forks Herald|date=August 11, 2006}}</ref> Directly south of downtown, the streets of the [[Grand Forks Near Southside Historic District|Near Southside Historic District]] are lined with classic houses.<ref name="nearsouthside">{{cite web |url=http://www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com/ND/Grand+Forks/districts.html |title=Grand Forks County – Historic Districts |access-date=June 8, 2007 |work=National Register of Historic Places |archive-date=November 13, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071113042635/http://www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com/ND/Grand+Forks/districts.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Reeves Drive was once one of the city's most fashionable neighborhoods. It has many historic mansions exhibiting several unique architectural styles.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.draves.com/gf/gfreeves.htm |title=Reeves Drive |access-date=June 5, 2007 |work=Draves.com |archive-date=November 13, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201113153207/http://www.draves.com/gf/gfreeves.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> This neighborhood has areas of original granitoid paving, several historic churches, and Lincoln Drive Park. The Near Southside neighborhood has been designated as a "national historic district" and is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].<ref name="nearsouthside"/>

The newer neighborhoods of Grand Forks developed in the city's southern and western parts. The 32nd Avenue South corridor has been the commercial center of the city since 1978, when the [[Columbia Mall (Grand Forks)|Columbia Mall]] opened. Many [[Big-box store|big box]] stores and restaurants are now along the avenue.<ref name="shopping">{{cite web |url=http://www.visitgrandforks.com/main.php/destinations |title=Shopping Destinations in Grand Forks, ND and East Grand Forks, MN |access-date=June 5, 2007 |work=Greater Grand Forks Convention & Visitors Bureau |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070530221443/http://www.visitgrandforks.com/main.php/destinations |archive-date=May 30, 2007 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref> A large strip mall, called the Grand Forks Marketplace, opened in 2001 near the Columbia Mall.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.labelscar.com/north-dakota/south-forks-plaza |title=South Forks Plaza (currently Grand Cities Mall); Grand Forks, North Dakota |date=July 27, 2006 |access-date=June 1, 2020 |archive-date=November 13, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201113153220/http://www.labelscar.com/north-dakota/south-forks-plaza |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[University Village, Grand Forks, North Dakota|University Village]] is a new commercial district built on vacant lands owned by the University of North Dakota.<ref name="shopping"/><ref>{{cite web|author=LeAnna Anderson |url=http://www.undalumni.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?&pid=397&srcid=243#story2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070807221346/http://www.undalumni.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?&pid=397&srcid=243 |archive-date=August 7, 2007 |title=UND's New Neighborhood |access-date=June 11, 2007 |date=September 28, 2000 |publisher=University of North Dakota |url-status=dead }}</ref> The centerpiece of the Village is the Ralph Engelstad Arena, used by the university's [[University of North Dakota men's ice hockey|North Dakota men's ice hockey team]]. All the buildings in the village have been built in a style similar style to those on the nearby UND campus. Restaurants and retail stores, as well as the university bookstore, were developed in the area to stimulate community life. In 2006, the university opened a new wellness center for its students on the village's west side.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wellness.und.edu/?page=16 |title=Wellness Center |access-date=June 8, 2007 |work=University of North Dakota |archive-date=November 13, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201113153212/https://und.edu/student-life/health-wellness.html?page=16 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Climate===
{{Main|Climate of Grand Forks, North Dakota}}

Due to its location in the [[Great Plains]] and its distance from both mountains and oceans, Grand Forks has a [[warm-summer humid continental climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]]: ''Dfb''),<ref name=Peel>{{cite journal |author1=Peel, M. C. |author2=Finlayson, B. L. |author3=McMahon, T. A. |year=2007 |title=Updated world map of the Köppen–Geiger climate classification |journal=Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. |volume=11 |issue=5 |pages=1633–1644 |doi=10.5194/hess-11-1633-2007 |bibcode=2007HESS...11.1633P |url=http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/11/1633/2007/hess-11-1633-2007.pdf |issn=1027-5606 |access-date=May 19, 2015 |archive-date=February 29, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120229181440/http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/11/1633/2007/hess-11-1633-2007.pdf |url-status=live |doi-access=free }}</ref> USDA [[Hardiness zone|Plant Hardiness Zone]] 4a.<ref name=USDA>{{cite map |url= http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/ |title= USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map |publisher= United States Department of Agriculture |access-date= May 10, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140227032333/http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/ |archive-date= February 27, 2014 |url-status= dead }}</ref> It has four very distinct seasons and great variation in temperatures over very short periods of time. Its location in the flat Red River Valley makes the city susceptible to spring flooding from the Red River of the North, and year-round windy conditions.

As there are no nearby mountain ranges or bodies of water to ameliorate the climatic conditions, Grand Forks lies exposed to numerous weather systems, including bitterly cold Arctic high pressure systems. The city has long, very cold, and snowy winters. Summers are often warm to hot and often quite humid with frequent thunderstorms. Although warm weather normally ends soon after [[Labor Day (United States)|Labor Day]], a few warm days sometimes occur as late as October. Spring and autumn are short and highly variable seasons. Record temperature extremes range from {{convert|-43|F|0}} on January 11, 1912, to {{convert|109|F|0}} on July 12, 1936.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.crh.noaa.gov/fgf/scripts/localdata.php?loc=appcli&data=fgfclmyer |title= THE GRAND FORKS UNIV. (NWS) CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR THE YEAR OF 2011 |publisher= National Weather Service |access-date= October 30, 2012 |archive-date= April 29, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130429044208/http://www.crh.noaa.gov/fgf/scripts/localdata.php?loc=appcli&data=fgfclmyer |url-status= live }}</ref>

The daily mean temperatures of the Grand Forks winters are associated with subarctic climates with frequent subzero temperatures. Due to the extended warm period of daily means above {{convert|50|F|C}} from May to September, the city's climate is still classified within the warm-summer humid continental temperature range. Although its summers are warm, Grand Forks has experienced subfreezing temperatures in all 12 months.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather.php3?s=575727&cityname=Grand-Forks-North-Dakota-United-States-of-America|title=Grand Forks North Dakota Temperature Averages|publisher=Weatherbase|access-date=January 29, 2015|archive-date=November 13, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201113153233/http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather.php3?s=575727&cityname=Grand-Forks-North-Dakota-United-States-of-America|url-status=live}}</ref>
{{Grand Forks, North Dakota weatherbox}}