Meridian

Meridian is a city located in Ada County in the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2020 census, the population of Meridian was 117,635, making it the second largest city in Idaho after Boise. Meridian is considered the state's fastest-growing city and among the fastest- growing cities in the United States. The information in the following sections (Irrigation, Village, Rail Transportation, and Creamery) is found on the displays in the Meridian City Hall Plaza. The majority of Meridian lies on a roughly flat plain in central central Idaho. There is a low bench along the east edge of the city along the Snake River. The city is crossed by several irrigation canals that generally run from the south to the north. The Snake River runs north of the north of Meridian, but the city is visible to the south at the Squawte River, which runs south of the south of Meridian. The town was established in 1891 on the Onweiler farm and was called Hunter. Two years later an I.O.F. lodge was organized and called itself Meridian because it was located on the Boise Meridian and the town was renamed. The Settlers' Irrigation Ditch, 1892, changed the arid region into a productive farming community which was incorporated in 1902. The Union Pacific Railroad spur opened in 1900 and is currently operated by the Boise Valley Railroad. Many industrial customers continue to ship forest, agricultural, and chemical products along this corridor. In 1941, Meridian's status changed from a village to a city.

History

Meridian is the primary city name, but also Eagle, Nampa are acceptable city names or spellings. The official name is Meridian. Meridian was established in 1891 on the Onweiler farm north of the present site and was called Hunter. The Settlers' Irrigation Ditch, 1892, changed the arid region into a productive farming community which was incorporated in 1902. In 1941, Meridian's status changed from a village to a city. The Union Pacific Railroad spur opened in 1900 and is currently operated by the Boise Valley Railroad. The Interurban Company entered into receivership and closed in 1928 after 20 years of providing continuous transportation to neighboring towns. The Ada County Dairymen's cooperative creamery began operation in 1929 and continued through the mid-1940s when it was no longer profitable. The creamery ran 7 days a week for 40 years. Later years saw the Wyeth Laboratories affiliate with the creamery to manufacture SMA baby formula. In 1970, the dairymen shipped their milk to the Caldwell creamery for processing. Many industrial customers continue to ship forest, agricultural, and chemical products along this corridor. The tracks down to Broadway were not used after 1912. The original Meridian town site was filed in 1893 on homestead grant land belonging to Eliza Ann Zenger. Her husband, Christian, filed the plat with county officials and called it Meridian. Around the start of the 20th century, settlers established fruit orchards and prune dryers along the railroad tracks. Local orchard produced many varieties of apples and Italian prunes. The last car would spend the night in Meridian before returning to Boise early the next morning.

Geography

Meridian is located at 43°3651N 116°2356W (43.614229, -116.398963). The majority of Meridian lies on a flat plain, roughly in the north central part of Treasure Valley. The city is crossed by several irrigation canals that generally run from the south east to the north west. Meridian experiences hot and dry summers where temperatures can often exceed 100 °F (38 °C), as well as cold winters with occasional light snowfall. Rainfall is usually infrequent and light, usually averaging less than an inch (25.4 mm) per month. December is the wettest month with an average of 1.55 inches (39 mm) of precipitation, and August is the driest months with 0.24 inches (6.1 mm). Spring and fall are generally temperate. Meridian's climate is characterized as semi-arid with four distinct seasons. The Boise River runs north of the city, and the Snake River runs far south. The Owyhee Mountains are visible to the far south, and Squaw Butte is visible at 5,873 feet (1,790 m) The city has a total area of 26.84 square miles (69.52 km²), of which, 26.79 square miles of land is land and 0.05 sq miles (0.13 km²) is water. It is located in the Treasure Valley, which is home to the Idaho National Guard.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 75,092 people, 25,302 households, and 19,916 families living in the city. There were 12,293 housing units at an average density of 1,042.8 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 96.3% White, 0.7% African American, 1% Native American, 2.2% Asian, 1.1% Pacific Islander, and 2.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.8% of the population. The median income for a household in theCity was $53,276, and the median income. for a family was $57,077. About 4.6% of families and 5.6%. of the residents were below the poverty line, including 7.0% of those under age 18 and 7.6. of those age 65 or over. The average household size was 2.96 and the average family size was 3.33. The city has a population of 75,000, with a population density of 2,803.0 inhabitants per squaremile (1,082.2/km²). The median age in the City was 32.5 years, with 33.4% of residents under the age of 18; 6.6%; 30.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 20.7%; and 8.9%. of residents were 65 years of age or older.

Economy

Blue Cross of Idaho and Scentsy are based in Meridian. The Idaho State Police is headquartered in Meridian and the state police academy is housed on its campus. All police officers statewide are required to attend basic training at the facility. The company also has offices in Boise, Boise, Pocatello and Idaho Springs. The firm's website is www.bluecrossof Idaho.com and the company's Twitter account is @BlueCrossIdaho. For confidential support call the Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90 or visit a local Samaritans branch, see www.samaritans.org for details. In the U.S. call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. For support in the UK, call the helpline on 0800-825-7255 or click here.

Government

Meridian has a mayor that serves four-year terms and received an annual salary of $90,956 in 2018. Meridian has a city council of six members. Every two years, three city council seats are up for re-election. Members of the council serve four- year terms and receive annual compensation of $10,000 as of 2018. The mayor, with the consent of the city council, appoints the following officers: City Attorney, Public Works Director, Fire Chief, Planning Director, Parks and Rec Director, Financial Officer, City Manager. The city council also appoints a city manager and a city attorney to serve on the city's city council. The council also elects the city attorney and the city manager to serve a two-year term, with a four year term of office, for a total of six years. The City Council also selects the mayor's chief of police and chief of fire for a two year term, and the chief of finance for a three-year, four year, two year, and one year, respectively, for the city of Meridian. The average salary for a mayor in Meridian is $89,000, according to the city government's website. The annual salary for the mayor is $100,000 for the council members, and $80,000 to the mayor for the six city council members for the four year terms of office that begin in 2013. The town's mayor is paid $90.9,000 per year, the city says.

Arts and culture

The Clint Eastwood film Bronco Billy (1980) was partially filmed in Meridian. The book series Michael Vey by Richard Paul Evans is partially set in Meridian, with significant events occurring within the area in the first book of the series: The Prisoner of Cell 25. The Meridian Symphony Orchestra celebrated its 20th anniversary season in 200910. Art is on display in the Initial Point Gallery on the third floor of the Meridian City Hall. The gallery is open to the public with free admission. It is located on the ground floor of City Hall, on the corner of the second and third floors of the city hall, and is open from 9am to 5pm daily. For confidential support call the Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90 or visit a local Samaritans branch, see www.samaritans.org for details. In the U.S. call the National Suicide Prevention Line on 1-800-273-8255 or visit http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/. In the UK, contact the Samaritans in the following countries: England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Scotland on the  “The Samaritans,” “For confidential support, call ”’’ ‘‘ ’ on 0800 ‚’, ‘’ or ‘1-’ in the UK’.

Parks and recreation

Meridian shares boundaries with the largest and 3rd largest cities in Idaho, Boise to the east and Nampa to the west. Meridian Settlers Regional Park hosts free outdoor movies during the summer months. Eagle Island State Park is about 2.5 miles (4.0 km) north of Meridian and includes a man-made lake with a beach, equestrian and hiking trails, fishing, and a water slide. The Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area is south of Meridian. The city's Parks and Rec department manages 17 public parks throughout Meridian including Meridian Settler Regional Park. The Meridian Speedway lies within city limits directly south of Old Town Meridian. It is located on the banks of the Snake River, which runs through the center of the city. It was built in the early 1900s and is one of the oldest speedways in the United States. It has a track and field track, which is located in the city's downtown area. It also has a baseball diamond, which was built during the 1930s and 1940s. Meridian is home to the University of Idaho's football team, the Meridian Bulldogs, which won the NCAA Division I championship in 2007 and 2008. The University of Utah's football program is based in Meridian and won the state championship in 2008 and 2009. The U.S. National Football League has a team called the Meridian Thunderbirds, which competes in the Western Division of the Western Football League. The team has a speedway that is located near the city center.

Education

The West Ada School District serves the city and is the largest in the state. Meridian is part of the Boise metropolitan area. The city is home to the West Ada High School and West Ada Middle School. The West Ada Elementary School is located in the city. The Meridian High School is the city's only high school. It is located on the west side of the city, near the Idaho-Idaho border. It was founded in 1903 and is known as the "West Ada" School District. The school district is one of the oldest in the U.S. and has more than 4,000 students. It also serves as the home of the West Boise High School, which was established in 1903, and the Ada County School District, which opened in 1910. The Ada County Medical Examiner's Office is based in Meridian, Idaho, and serves the town of West Ada. It has been named after Ada County, where the city is located, since the late 19th century.

Infrastructure

The majority of the city lies north of I-84. Streets are named with a north, south, east or west prefix. The major roads are Chinden (Highway 20/26), McMillan, Ustick, Cherry (west of Meridian) or Fairview (east of Meridian), Franklin, Overland, Victory, and Amity. A railroad line runs east/west and lies between Pine and Franklin. The line was formerly owned by Union Pacific, but Boise Valley Railroad now owns the line, running trains on weekdays from Boise to Nampa. Many residents identify which section of theCity they live in by the closest intersection of major roads that are generally laid out in square miles. In the older section of. the city, there are numbered streets up to 15th Street to the west and up to 5th Street. to the east. The city's industrial areas are concentrated along this railroad line with some other industrial areas near the east side of the. city south west of the intersection of Fairview and Eagle. It is the only city in the state that has a city center with a population of more than 100,000. It was the site of the U.S. Civil War Battle of Meridian, which took place in 1859. The Battle of the Meridian River was fought from 1859 to 1864. The town is located on the banks of the Boise River, which runs through the center of the town. It has been named after the town's namesake, Meridian.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Meridian, Ada County, Idaho = 65.3. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 20. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 89. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Meridian = 4.1 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 117,635 individuals with a median age of 31.9 age the population grows by 85.94% in Meridian, Ada County, Idaho population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 3,462.9 residents per square mile of area (1,337.1/km²). There are average 2.91 people per household in the 22,184 households with an average household income of $64,688 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 9.80% of the available work force and has dropped -5.64% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 18.92%. The number of physicians in Meridian per 100,000 population = 266.7.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Meridian = 9.8 inches and the annual snowfall = 11.9 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 61. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 211. 88 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 20.2 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 68, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Meridian, Ada County, Idaho which are owned by the occupant = 80.21%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 9 years with median home cost = $177,410 and home appreciation of -16.07%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $9.80 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $3,134 per student. There are 23.2 students for each teacher in the school, 792 students for each Librarian and 450 students for each Counselor. 8.14% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 21.42% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 6.04% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).