Chandler, Arizona: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 20:32, 17 May 2025

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox settlement

Chandler is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, and a suburb in the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the fourth-most populous city in Arizona, after Mesa, Tucson, and Phoenix. Chandler is considered to be a part of the East Valley.

As of the 2020 census, the population of Chandler was 275,987,<ref name=":Census 2020"/> up from 236,123 at the 2010 census.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite web</ref> Chandler is a commercial and tech hub for corporations like Intel, Northrop Grumman, Wells Fargo, PayPal and Boeing.

History

In 1891, Dr. Alexander John Chandler, a Canadian and the first veterinary surgeon in the Arizona Territory, settled on a ranch south of Mesa and studied irrigation engineering. By 1900, he had acquired Template:Convert of land and began drawing up plans for a town-site on what was then known as the Chandler Ranch. The town-site office opened on May 16, 1912.

The original town-site was bounded by Galveston Street to the north, Frye Road to the south, Hartford Street to the west, and Hamilton Street to the east.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> By 1913, a town center was established, featuring the Hotel San Marcos, which also had the first grass golf course in the state. Chandler High School was established in 1914. Chandler was officially incorporated on February 16, 1920, after 186 residents petitioned the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors to approve incorporation.Template:Citation needed

Most of Chandler's economy was sustained during the Great Depression (though the Depression was to blame for the cancellation of a second San Marcos hotel), but the cotton crash a few years later had a much deeper impact on the city's residents. A. J. Chandler lost his San Marcos hotel to creditors as a result.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later, the founding of Williams Air Force Base in 1941 led to a small surge in population, but Chandler still only held 3,800 people by 1950.Template:Citation needed

By 1980, the population had grown to 30,000, and it has since paced the Phoenix metropolitan area's high rate of growth, with suburban residential areas and commercial use areas swallowing former agricultural plots. The population has nearly doubled in the last twenty years. Some of this growth was fueled by the establishment of manufacturing plants for communications and computing firms such as Microchip, Motorola and Intel.

Geography

According to the 2020 census, Chandler has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert, or 0.11%, are listed as water.<ref name=":Census 2020">Template:Cite web</ref> The center of the city, along Arizona State Route 87, is Template:Convert southeast of Downtown Phoenix.

Chandler is in proximity to/borders the San-Tan mountain range. The San-Tan mountains are in the jurisdiction of the Gila River Indian Community.

Chandler is divided into three parts: North Chandler, West Chandler and South Chandler, each being divided by the Loop 202 (Santan Freeway) and Loop 101 (Price Freeway).

Climate

Template:Weather box

Demographics

Template:US Census population

2020 census

**Chandler, Arizona – Racial and ethnic composition**
Template:Nobold
Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 2000<ref name=2000CensusP004>Template:Cite web</ref>	Pop 2010<ref name=2010CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref>	Template:Partial<ref name=2020CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref>	% 2000	% 2010	Template:Partial
White alone (NH)	121,168	145,724	147,119	68.62%	61.72%	53.31%
Black or African American alone (NH)	5,821	10,580	15,564	3.30%	4.48%	5.64%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	1,628	2,715	3,850	0.92%	1.15%	1.39%
Asian alone (NH)	7,345	19,119	32,710	4.16%	8.10%	11.85%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	222	365	571	0.13%	0.15%	0.21%
Some Other Race alone (NH)	301	369	1,237	0.17%	0.16%	0.45%
Mixed Race or Multi-Racial (NH)	3,037	5,443	12,679	1.72%	2.31%	4.59%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	37,059	51,808	62,257	20.99%	21.94%	22.56%
Total	176,581	236,123	275,987	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

Template:As of American Community Survey estimates, there were 280,684 people and 106,712 households.<ref name=DP02>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=DP05>Template:Cite web</ref> The population density was Template:Convert. There were 113,092 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert.<ref name=Gaz2023>To calculate density we use the land area figure from the places file in Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=B25001>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=DP05/> The racial makeup of the city was 56.0% White, 13.4% Asian, 7.6% Black or African American, 4.4% some other race, 1.0% Native American or Alaskan Native, and 0.1% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, with 17.5% from two or more races.<ref name=DP05/> Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 21.2% of the population.<ref name=DP05/>

Of the 106,712 households, 34.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 24.2% had seniors 65 years or older living with them, 50.7% were married couples living together, 7.4% were couples cohabitating, 18.3% had a male householder with no partner present, and 23.6% had a female householder with no partner present.<ref name=DP02/> The median household size was 2.61 and the median family size was 3.12.<ref name=DP02/>

The age distribution was 23.8% under 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 27.9% from 25 to 44, 26.4% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 or older. The median age was 37.0 years.<ref name=S0101>Template:Cite web</ref> For every 100 females, there were 105.8 males.<ref name=DP05/>

The median income for a household was $98,664, with family households having a median income of $116,362 and non-family households $66,304. The per capita income was $50,247.<ref name=S1901>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=S1902>Template:Cite web</ref> Out of the 279,322 people with a determined poverty status, 7.6% were below the poverty line. Further, 9.3% of minors and 7.6% of seniors were below the poverty line.<ref name=S1701>Template:Cite web</ref>

In the survey, residents self-identified with various ethnic ancestries. People of German descent made up 13.0% of the population of the city, followed by Irish at 10.1%, English at 8.5%, American at 5.7%, Italian at 4.5%, Polish at 1.9%, Scottish at 1.7%, French at 1.6%, Arab at 1.5%, Sub-Saharan African at 1.5%, Norwegian at 1.2%, Dutch at 1.1%, Swedish at 1.0%, French Canadian at 0.6%, Russian at 0.6%, Scotch-Irish at 0.5%, and Greek at 0.5%.<ref name=DP02/>

Economy

Computer chip manufacturer Intel has two locations in Chandler. Other high-technology manufacturing firms have partnerships with Chandler,<ref name="biomed industry"> Template:Cite news </ref> their operations employing approximately 25% of non-government workers in 2007.<ref name="chamber commerce report">Template:Cite web</ref>

Since 2003, more than 2,900 jobs and investments totalling $3 billion have been created along the Price and Santan freeways,<ref name="zoning"> Template:Cite web </ref> in the Price Road Corridor. The Template:Convert Chandler Fashion Center, opened in 2001.

Companies headquartered in Chandler include Keap, Microchip, and Rogers. Bashas' headquarters is in a county island surrounded by Chandler.

Top employers

According to the City of Chandler Economic Development Division,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> leading employers in the city are:

#	Employer	# of Employees
1	Intel	12,000
2	Wells Fargo	5,500
3	Chandler Unified School District	4,900
4	Bank of America	3,600
5	Chandler Regional Medical Center / Dignity Health	2,500
6	Northrop Grumman	2,150
7	Chandler–Gilbert Community College	1,900
8	City of Chandler	1,800
9	Microchip Technology (HQ)	1,700
10	NXP Semiconductors	1,700
11	PayPal	1,500
12	Insight Enterprises	1,400
13	Microchip Technology	1,500
14	Verizon	1,400
15	Bashas' (HQ and Distribution Center)	1,100

Arts and culture

File:Tumbleweed Christmas Tree Chandler Arizona.jpg

A.J. Chandler Park in downtown Chandler contains a tumbleweed Christmas tree during the holidays.

Chandler holds an annual Ostrich Festival at Tumbleweed Park<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> to commemorate when ostrich farms in the area produced plumes for women's hats during the 1910s.Template:Citation needed

Chandler also holds an annual ceremony to light a tree made from tumbleweeds; a ceremony founded in 1957 when Chandler sought an alternative way to decorate the city during the Christmas holidays.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Venues, galleries and museums include:

Chandler Center for the Arts, a 1,500-seat regional performing arts venue, which is shared by the City of Chandler and the Chandler Unified School District.
The Vision Gallery, a fine arts gallery featuring regional artists.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The Arizona Railway Museum, located at Tumbleweed Park.
The Chandler Museum, located near Chandler Fashion Center.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Several sites in Chandler are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including the McCullough–Price House and the San Marcos Hotel.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The Chandler Public Library serves Chandler and the greater East Valley. The main library is in Downtown Chandler, with two branches elsewhere in the city: Sunset, Basha (shared with Basha High School), and Hamilton (shared with Hamilton High School).

Parks and recreation

File:Village of Gila Springs, Chandler, Arizona.jpg

Lake at Village of Gila Springs subdivision, Chandler

Tumbleweed Park hosts the annual Ostrich Festival, the Fourth of July Fireworks Festival and the annual Day of Play. It features a recreational center with equipment suited for fitness.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Hamilton Aquatic Center is a shared-use aquatic facility, located within Hamilton High School's campus.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Nozomi Aquatic Center is a shared-use aquatic facility which includes a 25 yard, 8-lane competition pool.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Veterans Oasis Park is located at the city's highest point, at Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It includes a wildlife preservation and designated horse and walking trails.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Government

City government

Template:See also Chandler is represented by a mayor, a vice mayor and five city council members. The vice mayor is elected by the city council from among its members. The mayor, vice mayor and council members represent the entire city and are not elected from districts or wards.<ref name=":4">Template:Cite web</ref>

Kevin Hartke, a Republican, was elected to his second term as mayor in 2023.<ref name=":4" />

Federal representation

File:Kevin Hartke - 2.20.20.jpg

Kevin Hartke presenting the State of the City in 2020

The north central section of the city and the western "leg" of the city are within Arizona's 4th congressional district, served by Representative Greg Stanton, a Democrat. The rest of Chandler is within Arizona's 5th congressional district, served by Representative Andy Biggs, a Republican.

State representation

Chandler's western "leg" and a small, narrow portion of the adjacent northern part of the city are within Arizona's 18th Legislative District, served by Representatives Denise Epstein and Nancy Gutierrez, and Senator Priya Sundareshan, all Democrats. The rest of the city is in Arizona's 17th Legislative District, served by Representatives Julie Willoughby and Jeff Weninger, and Senator J. D. Mesnard (all Republicans).

Education

Elementary and secondary

File:Chandler Arizona High School 1921.jpg

Chandler High School, built 1921

Chandler is served by the Chandler Unified School District, Kyrene Elementary School District, Tempe Union High School District, Mesa Public Schools, and Gilbert Public Schools. Catholic and charter schools include Basis Schools and Seton Catholic Preparatory.Template:Citation needed

Post-secondary

Post-secondary educational institutions located in Chandler include: The University of Arizona Chandler,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> International Baptist College, and the two-year Chandler-Gilbert Community College, which serves 13,000 students.Template:Cn

Infrastructure

Transportation

Airports

Chandler Municipal Airport is a two-runway general aviation facility. Stellar Airpark is a privately owned municipal airport open to the public.

Freeways and highways

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File:Chandler Regional Medical Center.jpg

Chandler Regional Medical Center, operated by Dignity Health

Chandler is served by three limited access highways:

Loop 202, the Santan Freeway, which divides North and South Chandler.
Loop 101, the Price Freeway, which was fully completed in 2001.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Interstate 10, which runs through the city's westernmost border.