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Renting an Apartment in Longview
What You Should Know
Longview is a city in Cowlitz County, Washington, United States. It is the
principal city of the 'Longview, Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area' which
encompasses all of Cowlitz County. The population was 34,660 at the 2000 census,
with an estimated population of 35,570 as of April 1, 2006. Longview is located
in southwestern Washington, at the junction of the Cowlitz and Columbia rivers.
History
Longview was officially incorporated on February 14, 1924. The city was the
brain-child of Missouri timber baron Robert A. Long, for whom one of the two
high schools in Longview is named. At the time of its conception, Longview was
the only planned city of its magnitude to have ever been conceived of and built
entirely with private funds.
Education
Longview is served by eight public elementary schools (Columbia Heights,
Columbia Valley Gardens, Kessler, Mint Valley, Northlake, Olympic, Robert Gray,
and Saint Helens), three public middle schools (Cascade, Monticello, and Mount
Solo), and two public high schools (Robert Alexander Long aka R. A. Long and
Mark Morris).
Longview is also served by three religious based schools. The Catholic Saint
Rose school serves kindergarten through eighth grade. Three Rivers Christian
School serves kindergarten through twelfth grade. Longview Christian School
serves preschool through sixth grade.
An intense rivalry exists not only between R. A. Long High School and crosstown
Mark Morris High School, but also between Kelso High across the Cowlitz River in
Kelso, WA. The R. A. Long/Mark Morris rivalry culminates every year in so-called
"Civil War" basketball games, the first held at R. A. Long's gymnasium (known
locally as the "Lumberdome"), and the second on Mark Morris's Ted M. Natt court.
Lower Columbia College (LCC), based in Longview, is Washington state's oldest
junior college.
Economy
Manufacturing
With access to the Columbia River, Interstate 5 and the west coast railways,
Longview supports a large and rapidly diversifying manufacturing base. The
abundance of timber around Longview provides the city's two largest employers,
Weyerhaeuser and Longview Fibre with logs. Other major manufacturers in Longview
include NORPAC (newsprint), Pacific Lamination (liquid packaging), Solvay
Chemicals (Peroxide), EquaChlor (Chlorine, Caustic Soda). Smaller operations
include Epson Toyocom , Northwest Hardwoods , Caffall Brothers, Peterson
Manufacturing, JM Huber, Specialty Minerals, and the soon to be in operation
Simpson Timber Company.
Marine Transportation
The Port of Longview, established in 1921, has eight marine terminals handling a
wide range of cargo from windmills, pencil pitch, calcined coke, pulp bales,
lumber, logs and steel. The Port is 66 miles from the Pacific Ocean.
Geography
Location of Longview, Washington
Longview is located at 46°8′34″N, 122°57′20″W (46.142733, -122.955636)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 36.5
km² (14.1 mi²). 35.5 km² (13.7 mi²) of it is land and 1.0 km² (0.4 mi²) of it
(2.84%) is water.
Climate
Being situated in something of a mini-gorge, Longview's climate varies from its
close neighbor, Portland. Summers are warm, averaging about 76 °F with little or
no rain. Located about 80 miles inland across a stretch of relatively flat
ground, the Longview skies can be overcast due to moisture from the Pacific
Coast marine layer. Due to the gorge-like effect, marine pushes on summer
evenings can frequently reach gusts up to 30-40 mph. Fall is usually cooler but
foggy; on some days the fog never clears. By the early-to-mid November, rainfall
begins in typical Northwest fashion. Winter tends to be chilly and rainy, with
occasional violent windstorms or spates of unusually-warm (65-70 degree)
temperatures. This is due to extremely warm air coming from the Pineapple
Express which can drop 3-6 inches of rain in a matter of days. One or two
snowfalls (typically less than six inches—but up to a metre in the surrounding
foothills) happen each year. Spring is warmer, but still a little wet; this is
the most common time for the occasional thunderstorms.
Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 34,660 people, 14,066 households, and
8,931 families residing in the city. The population density was 976.8/km²
(2,530.0/mi²). There were 15,225 housing units at an average density of
429.1/km² (1,111.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 89.35% White, 0.72%
African American, 1.76% Native American, 2.17% Asian, 0.13% Pacific Islander,
2.96% from other races, and 2.92% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of
any race were 5.82% of the population.
There were 14,066 households out of which 30.9% had children under the age of 18
living with them, 46.5% were married couples living together, 12.3% had a female
householder with no husband present, and 36.5% were non-families. 30.1% of all
households were made up of individuals and 12.4% had someone living alone who
was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the
average family size was 2.96.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.0% under the age of 18, 8.9%
from 18 to 24, 27.1% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65
years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there
were 93.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $35,171, and the median income
for a family was $43,869. Males had a median income of $38,972 versus $26,625
for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,559. About 12.3% of
families and 16.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including
25.0% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.
Interesting facts
The song "Longview" by Rock band Greenday has been confused to be named after
the town Longview. The legend is that the Pop-Punk Trio went to Longview's RA
Long High school, and at one of their shows they decided to name it after their
"Home-Town" - Greenday is actually from California.
Longview and its neighbor city Kelso, Washington are two of the few American
cities with 18-and-over casinos.
Longview is the only town in the United States to have a bridge dedicated to
squirrels, the "Nutty Narrows Bridge," which hangs over Louisiana Street in
front of the Longview Public Library.
Media
Media outlets based in Longview include 3 AM radio stations licensed in the
city, and 4 FM stations. KLTV, the local cable access channel, has their
headquarters in downtown Longview, at the corner of 12th Avenue and Washington
Way. Longview's primary newspaper is The Daily News, which won a 1981 Pulitzer
Prize for its coverage of the Mount St. Helens eruption. The Columbia River
Reader newspaper celebrates the community, its entertainment, arts and travel
opportunities of the Lower Columbia River region through stories and photos by
local writers and photographers including Robert Benchley Society Award for
Humor winning author Horace J. Digby, Emmy Award winning photographer Dale
Dimmick, and others.