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City of San Luis Obispo
The city of San Luis Obispo looking east from the top of Bishop Peak.
Flag Seal
Location in San Luis Obispo County and the state of California
Coordinates: 35°16′27″N 120°39′47″W / 35.27417, -120.66306
Country	United States
State	California
County	San Luis Obispo
Government
- Mayor	Dave Romero
Area
- Total	10.8 sq mi (27.7 km²)
- Land	10.7 sq mi (27.6 km²)
- Water	0.2 sq mi (0.5 km²)
Elevation	233 ft (91 m)
Population (2000 census)
- Total	44,174
- Density	4,144.5/sq mi (1,600/km²)
Time zone	PST (UTC-8)
- Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
Area code(s)	805
FIPS code	06-68154
GNIS feature ID	1652788
Website: http://www.slocity.org/

San Luis Obispo (IPA: /sænˈluːɪs əˈbɪspoʊ/; Spanish for St. Louis, the Bishop) is a city in California, located roughly midway between San Francisco and Los Angeles on the Central Coast. The city, referred to locally as SLO or "San Luis," is the county seat of San Luis Obispo County and is adjacent to California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly). As of the 2000 census, the city population was 44,174.

The City of San Luis Obispo serves as the commercial, governmental, and cultural hub of San Luis Obispo County. One of California’s oldest communities, it began with the founding of Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa in 1772 by Father Junípero Serra, on the site of a Chumash village called Tilhini, as the fifth Spanish mission in California's chain of 21 missions. The mission was named after Saint Louis, a thirteenth century bishop of Toulouse, France. It is one of the best preserved examples of Spanish Mission architecture and among the oldest buildings in California. Its bells are unique in that, unlike other California missions, the bell ringer stands in the bellroom with the bells when ringing the cadences.^{[citation needed]}

San Luis Obispo once had a burgeoning Chinatown in the vicinity of Palm St. and Chorro St. Laborers were brought from China by Ah Louis in order to construct the Pacific Coast Railroad, roads connecting San Luis Obispo to Paso Robles and Paso Robles to Cambria, and also the 1884 to 1894 tunneling through Cuesta Grade for the Southern Pacific Railroad.

San Luis Obispo was the last city in the United States to have a gas lamp lighter on its payroll after electricity became the standard for street lights.^{[citation needed]}

San Luis Obispo is located at 35°16'27" North, 120°39'47" West (35.274305, -120.663192)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 10.8 square miles (28.1 km²), of which, 10.7 square miles (27.6 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.5 km²) of it is water. The total area is 1.66% water.

San Luis Obispo is on the West Coast of the United States and in the Central Coast of California. The Pacific Ocean is only about 12 miles west of San Luis Obispo. The Santa Lucia Mountains lie just east of San Luis Obispo.

San Luis Obispo is a seismically active area; there are a number of nearby faults including the San Andreas Fault. The Nine Sisters are a string of hills that partially run though San Luis Obispo. They are geologically noteworthy for being volcanic plugs. Six of the nine peaks are open to the public for recreation.^[1]

San Luis Obispo has a Mediterranean climate.

Cerro San Luis as seen from Bishop's Peak. A montage of two photos taken in September 2006 and March 2007.

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there are 44,174 people, 18,639 households, and 7,697 families residing in the city. The population density is 4,144.5 people per square mile (1,600.0/km²). There are 19,306 housing units at an average density of 1,811.3/sq mi (699.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city is 84.11% White, 1.46% African American, 0.65% Native American, 5.28% Asian, 0.13% Pacific Islander, 4.82% from other races, and 3.55% from two or more races. 11.65% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 18,639 households out of which 17.7% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 31.3% are married couples living together, 7.2% have a female householder with no husband present, and 58.7% are non-families. 32.7% of all households are made up of individuals and 9.5% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.27 and the average family size is 2.86.

In the city the population is spread out with 14.2% under the age of 18, 33.6% from 18 to 24, 23.7% from 25 to 44, 16.5% from 45 to 64, and 12.1% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 26 years. For every 100 females there are 105.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 106.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $31,926, and the median income for a family is $56,319. Males have a median income of $41,915 versus $27,407 for females. The per capita income for the city is $20,386. 26.6% of the population and 7.1% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 9.3% of those under the age of 18 and 4.6% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

San Luis Obispo is an incorporated city, and it is also the county seat of San Luis Obispo County. The City of San Luis Obispo is governed by a mayor who is elected to two year terms and four city council members who are elected to four year terms.^[3] The fire department of San Luis Obispo was first organized in 1872 and now has forty-five full-time firefighters and four fire stations (as of 2007).^[4]

City ordinance prevents businesses, like fast-food restaurants, from building drive-throughs. The city also banned indoor smoking in all public locations, including bars and restaurants, in 1990, making it the first city in the world to do so.^[5]

Downtown San Luis Obispo is centered around the carefully restored Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa. The downtown area also boasts many eclectic shops and boutiques. New downtown shopping centers have been added in recent years, including the Court Street Center. The Court Street Center and Downtown Center include names such as: Gap, Abercrombie and Fitch , Express, Sephora, and Addicted. Many locally owned restaurants can also be found at these centers.

A field station of the Marine Mammal Center is located in San Luis Obispo to support sea rescue and beach stranding rescue operations for this section of the California coast.

Although San Luis Obispo County has sustained enormous growth over the past two decades, San Luis Obispo itself has not because of a slow growth policy. That policy combined with the need for student housing related to the university and the climate that attracts new residents from around the world, have been among factors leading to skyrocketing housing prices. As of January 2006, 7% of San Luis Obispo's residents qualified to buy the median priced home.

Being a college town, a percentage of housing has become accustomed to student use which has, in effect, driven those neighborhoods' rents much higher than they might ordinarily fetch, due to demand. It has become a common practice for the affluent parents of wealthy students to buy a house for their child to live in while they attend college, and then sell it after the student graduates. The university is addressing the housing issue with the construction of new dormitories.

California Polytechnic State University ('Cal Poly' or 'Poly' for short) enrolls approximately 18,500 students.{[1]} Cal Poly's courses include Engineering, Architecture and Environmental Design, Agriculture, Science and Math, Business, and Liberal Arts. The university is currently holding a 15 year winning streak as the best public masters university in the West, and prides in an extremely strong engineering college. Cuesta College is a Community College within a short driving distance of downtown San Luis Obispo. Roughly one-third of San Luis Obispo's population are college age or attending college, giving the city a youthful energy and vitality, although causing many housing problems. The Cal Poly campus is rapidly growing, featuring newly constructed buildings and more advanced technology.

There is one public high school serving the city (San Luis Obispo High School), along with one public continuation high school (Pacific Beach High School) and one private high school. Mission College Preparatory Catholic High School, commonly known as Mission Prep, is a private Roman Catholic school serving grades 9-12. Across the street from Mission Prep is Old Mission School, a Catholic elementary school which serves grades P-8.

San Luis Coastal Unified School District provides public education for students in grades K-12. It has long been among the top performing public school districts in the state.^{[citation needed]} The district operates San Luis Obispo High School and Morro Bay High School (in the nearby city of Morro Bay), providing general education in grades 9-12. Laguna Middle School and Los Osos Middle School (in the nearby community of Los Osos) are the two public middle schools in the district, serving grades seven and eight. Previously, the district had operated San Luis Junior High School, but closed it in 1982.

Morro Street bicycle boulevard

The city is home to San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport which offers private and commercial air service to several major cities. Amtrak provides daily rail transport service here as the terminus of the Pacific Surfliner line and a stop on the Coast Starlight line. Greyhound also maintains a bus terminal in San Luis Obispo.

Public transit includes the city-wide SLO Transit bus lines as well as the county-wide SLO Regional Transit system. Rideshare encourages the use of the local public transit, as well as carpooling and cycling.

Bicycling is increasing as a mode of transportation. The Morro Street Bicycle Boulevard gives priority to bicycle traffic while a special bicycle traffic signal allows bicyclists their own phase in traffic flow. The SLO County Bicycle Coalition offers a free bicycle valet service during the weekly Farmers' Market. In 2007, the city was designated as a Bicycle Friendly Community at the Silver level by the League of American Bicyclists.

The city provides parking in three multistory parking structures downtown. Street parking downtown is metered. The city's innovative Racks with Plaques program has increased bike racks in the downtown area and has cut down on parking congestion.

The city of San Luis Obispo with Bishop Peak on the right and Cerro San Luis on the left.

Because of San Luis Obispo's location halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco, it has long been a stopping point for travelers. In fact, the word motel was coined here when the Motel Inn of San Luis Obispo was established in 1925. Since then, the pleasant year-round climate, pretty scenery, and well-preserved, walkable downtown have made the city a tourist destination in itself.^{[citation needed]}

The Madonna Inn is a famous local landmark. Established by Alex Madonna in 1958, the inn is famously eccentric. The Fremont Theater is a historic Art Deco theater from the 1940s that still plays first run movies on the huge screen. Murals adorn the walls of the main theater where neon swirls light the ceiling. Another destination is Bubblegum Alley. Since about 1960, people have been sticking their chewed gum on the walls of this alley. The doctor's office on the corner of Santa Rosa and Pacific streets is one of very few commercial buildings designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. San Luis also has a Carnegie Library which is now home to San Luis Obispo County Historical Museum.

A sculpture of a child and bear at the Mission in downtown San Luis Obispo. A fish was added after the photograph was taken.

Farmers' Market is a large festival held downtown on Higuera Street every Thursday evening year-round. Live entertainment is featured and local farmers and vendors sell goods and produce. The Farmers' Market was created in 1983 to make use of downtown streets blocked off to end a tradition of teen/collegiate cruising. Farmers and vendors were allowed to set up between barricades as a way to bring people back to the downtown area. Later, all traffic was blocked off, making the downtown Farmers' Market one long "mall," even rerouting part of a state highway to accommodate the street closures. The Farmers' Market brought a great deal of revenue and has become internationally known.^{[citation needed]}

A Mardi Gras parade used to be held in San Luis Obispo, but it has been canceled recently because of difficulties related to crowd control and alcohol consumption. Cal Poly's open house, Poly Royal, was held every April until a 1990 riot of drunken revelers, many visitors to town, caused damage throughout residential neighborhoods and the business district. The university canceled the event for several years before reintroducing a scaled-down Open House. While Poly Royal welcomed the community, the revamped version is designed for students and parents.

San Luis Obispo has been home of several other events, including a stop on the way of the Olympic Flame Relay, the Tour of California bicycle race, Cinco de Mayo celebrations, an annual Mozart festival, held every July, and a long-standing Christmas Parade. Another attraction is the development of Edna Valley into a well-known wine region. Just south of the city, people can spend an afternoon wine tasting several wineries in the area with a very short drive. The wine region extends north beyond Paso Robles (30 miles north) and south to Santa Ynez (70 miles south)

Since June of 2000, the first Thursday of every month is The Bike Happening (also known as Bike Nite) in San Luis Obispo. People gather after the Farmer's Market at the Mission Plaza with their bikes. The bikers then go around on multiple circuits on the main streets of downtown adhering to the traffic laws. The ride is considered a fun/social ride meant to encourage people to get back on their bikes and to have fun. Each Bike Happening has a theme and a large portion of the crowd is in some costume adherent to the theme. Check out the next theme at BikeHappening.org

• Chris Pontius and other members of the MTV show Jackass are 1992 graduates of San Luis Obispo High School.
• Helio Fialho, founder and president of Auspient, Inc. and Uptown Jean Co.
• Jon Anderson, co-founder and lead singer of the progressive rock band Yes.
• Chuck Liddell, Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion.
• Sherwood, an Indie rock band.
• G.D. Spradlin, character actor
• Zac Efron, actor in "High School Musical", "High School Musical 2", and "Summerland", was born here on October 18, 1987.
• Ah Louis, banker and storekeep during San Luis Obispo's rail boom. Chinese laborers built a community of their own in San Luis Obispo while digging the railroad tunnels still in use along Cuesta Grade north of town. SLO's Chinatown revolved around Ah Louis Store and other Palm Street businesses owned and run by Chinese business people. Today, Mee Heng Low chop suey shop is all that remains of the culture, though Chong's Candy Store (across Chorro Street from Ah Louis store) still stands.
• Phyllis and Alex Madonna, founders of the Central Coast's landmark resort hotel, Madonna Inn.
• Allen Fox, 1960s tennis player and author, former Wimbledon quarterfinalist
• Victor Plata, 2004 Olympic Triathlete for U.S.A.
• Peter Buck of R.E.M. lived in San Luis in 1977, he claims he lived with a bunch of hippies and was influenced to move to the city from Athens, Georgia because of Jack Kerouac's writings. He returned to Georgia within a year.
• Chris Seitz is a goalkeeper, (Mayland, No. 4 pick in 2007) for Real Salt Lake of MLS, was born and raised in San Luis Obispo, CA.
• Mike Krukow, former starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. Current sportscaster for the San Francisco Giants baseball team.
• Professional golfers Arron Oberholser and Loren Roberts are native to the city.
• Internationally known painter Joanne Beaule Ruggles, who is also a retired Cal Poly art professor.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

San Luis Obispo, California

• The Tribune, the largest daily newspaper serving all of San Luis Obispo County
• City of San Luis Obispo
• Downtown SLO Association has information about concerts in the plaza and Farmers' Market.
• San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce promotes member business and serves as the city's contracted tourism promoter. Also runs the city's Visitors Center, 1039 Chorro St.
• San Luis Obispo local weather

• San Luis Obispo, California is at coordinates 35°16′28″N 120°39′48″W / 35.274305, -120.663192Coordinates: 35°16′28″N 120°39′48″W / 35.274305, -120.663192

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County seat: San Luis Obispo
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