Virginia Beach

Virginia Beach is an independent city located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, on the shores of Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 425,257, making it the most populous city in the Commonwealth.

The city is home to Virginia Wesleyan College, a private liberal arts college (its mailing address is in Norfolk, but the bulk of its campus is in Virginia Beach), and Regent University, a private university founded by Pat Robertson which is almost totally dedicated to graduate education. Robertson's TV talk/news show, The 700 Club, is produced by the Christian Broadcasting Network, whose headquarters and principal studios are on the same parcel of land that houses Regent.

History

The current city was formed in 1963, when the resort town of Virginia Beach absorbed the former Princess Anne County and reorganized as the City of Virginia Beach. The merger was intended to prevent the independent city of Norfolk from annexing more of Virginia Beach.

In 1989, thousands of African-American students arrived on Labor Day Weekend for Greekfest, so named for the Greek alphabet used by the fraternities and sororities involved in the festival. Many people predicted a riot weeks in advance, and this came to pass. Unbiased observers suggest that the city went out of its way to make the students feel unwelcome; that the students rioted not out of anger, but out of a simple greed for the clothing displayed in the shops along the Boardwalk; and that the police were out of control, attacking anyone who was black, looter or not. Two slogans commonly heard in the following weeks were: "It's a black thing; you wouldn't understand" and "It's a cop thing; we'll make you understand." The incident was immortalized by Public Enemy in their song "Welcome to the Terrordome" from their album Fear of a Black Planet (1990). Today, the city hosts the American Music Festival and the Rock and Roll Half-Marathon on Labor Day Weekend with great success and no public disturbances.

The city also recently received major media attention when it hosted the first trial of accused Beltway sniper John Allen Muhammad.

The superstar hip-hop and pop music production duo of Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams, better known as The Neptunes, were both born and raised in Virginia Beach, and operate their recording studio in the city.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1,288.1 km² (497.3 mi²). 643.1 km² (248.3 mi²) of it is land and 645.0 km² (249.0 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 50.07% water.

The city is also listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest pleasure beach in the world.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there are 425,257 people, 154,455 households, and 110,898 families residing in the city. The population density is 661.3/km² (1,712.7/mi²). There are 162,277 housing units at an average density of 252.3/km² (653.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 71.41% White, 18.95% African American, 0.38% Native American, 4.91% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 1.51% from other races, and 2.75% from two or more races. 4.18% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 154,455 households out of which 38.8% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.7% are married couples living together, 12.4% have a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% are non-families. 20.4% of all households are made up of individuals and 5.5% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.70 and the average family size is 3.14.

The age distribution is: 27.5% under the age of 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 34.3% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 8.4% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 33 years. For every 100 females there are 98.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 95.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $48,705, and the median income for a family is $53,242. Males have a median income of $33,756 versus $25,979 for females. The per capita income for the city is $22,365. 6.5% of the population and 5.1% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 8.6% are under the age of 18 and 4.7% are 65 or older.

Virginia Beach is served by Norfolk International Airport, which is located in Norfolk, Virginia and also serves the rest of the Hampton Roads area. According to the United States Census, Virginia Beach is now part of the Virginia Beach Metropolitan Statistical Area. The naming of the area follows the traditional Census Bureau pattern of naming areas after their most populous city; however, the naming does not reflect the actual character of the area. Virginia Beach currently functions more as a giant suburb instead of a central city; the urban core of the metropolitan area lies primarily in Norfolk.