Adelanto (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

for "Advance") is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

San Bernardino County San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 2,181, ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, United States. It is approximately northwest of

Victorville Victorville is a city in Victor Valley in San Bernardino County, California. Its population as of the 2020 census was 134,810. History In 1858, Aaron G. Lane came to what is now known as Victorville and founded a waystation called "Lane's Cro ...

in the

Victor Valley The Victor Valley is a valley in the Mojave Desert and subregion of the Inland Empire, in San Bernardino County in Southern California. It is located east of the Mojave's Antelope Valley, north of the Cajon Pass and the San Bernardino Valley, ...

area of the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily in ...

, in the northern region of the

Inland Empire The Inland Empire (IE) is a metropolitan area and region inland of and adjacent to coastal Southern California, centering around the cities of San Bernardino and Riverside, and bordering Los Angeles County to the west. It includes the cities o ...

.Linthicum, Kate;
Los Angeles Times.com: "Small town with several detention centers debates if it needs another"
18 November 2014. The population was 31,765 at the 2010 census.

History

Adelanto was founded in 1915 by E. H. Richardson, the inventor of what became the

Hotpoint Hotpoint is a British brand of domestic appliances. Ownership of the brand is split between American company Whirlpool, which has the rights in Europe, and Chinese company Haier, which has the rights in the Americas through its purchase of GE A ...

electric iron. He sold his patent and purchased land for $75,000. He had planned to develop one of the first planned communities in Southern California. The name ''Adelanto'' means 'progress' or 'advance' in Spanish, and was first given to the post office that was established on the site in 1917. Richardson subdivided his land into one-acre plots, which he hoped to sell to veterans with respiratory ailments suffered during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. He also hoped to build a respiratory hospital. Richardson never fully realized his dream, but his planning laid the foundation for the present day City of Adelanto. Acres of

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

fruit trees once grew in the city, which became known in the state for its fresh fruit and cider. The orchards thrived until the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

, when they were replaced by poultry ranches. As the wartime emergency developed early in 1941, the Victorville Army Air Field was established with land within the Adelanto sphere of influence. In September 1950, the air field was named

George Air Force Base George Air Force Base was a United States Air Force base located within the city limits, 8 miles northwest, of central Victorville, California, about 75 miles northeast of Los Angeles, California. Established by the United States Army Air C ...

in honor of the late

Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

Harold H. George Harold Huston George (14 September 1892 – 29 April 1942) was a general officer in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. He began his military career before World War I when he enlisted as a private in the 3rd New York Infantry ...

. Adelanto continued as a "community services district" until 1970, when the city incorporated, and Adelanto became San Bernardino County's then smallest city. The city became a charter city in November 1992. Adelanto had a card room called the Hi Desert Casino which operated from 1975 to 1997. The casino was located across from city hall at the corner of Air Expressway and U.S. Highway 395. It boasted a fine restaurant and bar and people came from all over San Bernardino County to play cards.

Geography

Adelanto is in the

of the south-central

, north of the

Cajon Pass Cajon Pass (; Spanish: ''Puerto del Cajón'' or ''Paso del Cajón'') is a mountain pass between the San Bernardino Mountains to the east and the San Gabriel Mountains to the west in Southern California. Created by the movements of the San Andreas ...

and

San Bernardino Valley The San Bernardino Valley ( es, Valle de San Bernardino) is a valley in Southern California located at the south base of the Transverse Ranges. It is bordered on the north by the eastern San Gabriel Mountains and the San Bernardino Mountains; ...

.Adelanto location coordinates: (34.575990, -117.432713); According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the city has a total area of . of it is land and of it (0.03%) is water. The average elevation of the city is .

Climate

According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, Adelanto has a

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi-ar ...

, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps.

Demographics

2010

The

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

reported that Adelanto had a population of 31,765. The population density was . The racial makeup of Adelanto was 13,909 (43.8%)

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

(17.0% Non-Hispanic White), 6,511 (20.5%)

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 411 (1.3%) Native American, 617 (1.9%)

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 194 (0.6%)

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

, 8,337 (26.2%) from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1,786 (5.6%) from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 18,513 persons (58.3%). The Census reported that 30,012 people (94.5% of the population) lived in households, 30 (0.1%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 1,723 (5.4%) were institutionalized. There were 7,809 households, out of which 4,959 (63.5%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 4,000 (51.2%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 1,857 (23.8%) had a female householder with no husband present, 722 (9.2%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 769 (9.8%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 58 (0.7%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 910 households (11.7%) were made up of individuals, and 209 (2.7%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.84. There were 6,579

families Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideal ...

(84.2% of all households); the average family size was 4.11. The population was spread out, with 11,807 people (37.2%) under the age of 18, 3,916 people (12.3%) aged 18 to 24, 9,287 people (29.2%) aged 25 to 44, 5,358 people (16.9%) aged 45 to 64, and 1,397 people (4.4%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 25.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 105.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 106.6 males. There were 9,086 housing units at an average density of , of which 4,513 (57.8%) were owner-occupied, and 3,296 (42.2%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 6.6%; the rental vacancy rate was 12.3%. 16,825 people (53.0% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 13,187 people (41.5%) lived in rental housing units. According to the 2010 United States Census, Adelanto had a median household income of $41,113, with 32.0% of the population living below the federal poverty line.

2000

As of the 2000

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

, there were 18,130 people, 4,714 households, and 3,841 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 338.7 inhabitants per square mile (130.8/km). There were 5,547 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 50.5%

, 13.1%

, 1.6% Native American, 1.6%

, 0.2%

, 26.6% from

, and 6.5% from two or more races.

of any race were 45.8% of the population. There were 4,714 households, out of which 56.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.6% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 17.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.5% were non-families. 14.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 3.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.5 and the average family size was 3.9. The population had 38.0% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 35.2% from 25 to 44, 12.6% from 45 to 64, and 5.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 27 years. For every 100 females, there were 115.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 123.0 males. The median income for a household in the city was $31,594, and the median income for a family was $35,254. Males had a median income of $33,971 versus $25,807 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $10,053. About 21.4% of families and 24.5% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 30.0% of those under age 18 and 12.8% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Historically Adelanto was a fruit-growing town.Devine, Jimi.
Pot to replace prison economy in California town

Archive
. ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...

''. February 23, 2016. Retrieved on February 25, 2016. Prior to 1992, much of the economy was related to the

. After its closure the city began having economic difficulties. The openings of several area prisons began in 1991, and the city government approved the construction of two private prisons. The prisons were not required to hire people within the Adelanto city limits.Tinoco, Matt.
Inside the Small California Town with a Lot of Prisons, but Not Much Opportunity

Archive
. ''

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...

''. February 3, 2015. Retrieved on February 25, 2016. The city, as of 2016, collects $160,000 annually in total from the prisons within the city limits. That year Jimi Devine of the ''

'' wrote that the prisons "had mixed effects on the community for 25 years." Matt Tinoco of ''

'' wrote that "the prisons have failed to stimulate lasting growth in Adelanto" and that "all ultimately ended up contributing little to the city's coffers." Tinoco further stated that Adelanto had an "image as one big jail." The privately owned

Adelanto Detention Center Adelanto Detention Facility is a privately operated immigration detention center in Adelanto, San Bernardino County, California. Owned and operated by the GEO Group, it consists of two separate facilities: East, which was an existing prison ...

, run by the

GEO Group The GEO Group, Inc. (GEO) is a publicly traded C corporation that invests in private prisons and mental health facilities in North America, Australia, South Africa, and the United Kingdom. Headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida, the company's f ...

to house immigrant detainees, was built in Adelanto in 1991 as a state prison. In 2014, when a private developer proposed another prison, the city council approved a development agreement with the private developer that under California subdivision law allows the city to negotiate terms to provide additional benefits to the city. The city had little latitude to deny the private project as the land was appropriately zoned for use as a prison. The city has only a few retail stores and restaurants. A bed tax contributes about $200,000 annually from the detention facilities. The small city has struggled as tax revenue fell far short of the city budget. In 2013, they closed a fire station and laid off a quarter of the town's staff. Residents though turned down a nearly 8% utility users tax in November 2013.

Cannabis

Upon the legalization of the sale and distribution of

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: ''Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternatively ...

in 2016, marijuana cultivation was considered a possible new source of revenue for the city. Companies must be licensed by the local agency and the state to grow, test, or sell cannabis and the city may authorize none or only some of these activities. Local governments may not prohibit adults, who are in compliance with state laws, from growing, using, or transporting marijuana for personal use. The city decided to allow multiple types of marijuana businesses, including cultivation, manufacturing and retail sales. By 2019, two cannabis dispensaries were serving recreational users as the city council considered proposed changes to the city's cannabis laws to generate additional revenue to help close the city budget gap. The city is the only Victor Valley municipality to allow storefront cannabis dispensaries. A indoor cultivation facility was opened in 2019 by the California arm of Tikun Olam.

Federal prisons

Federal prisons of the

Federal Bureau of Prisons The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Justice that is responsible for the care, custody, and control of incarcerated individuals who have committed federal crimes; that i ...

near Adelanto: *

United States Penitentiary, Victorville The United States Penitentiary, Victorville, CA (USP Victorville) is a high-security United States federal prison for male inmates in California. It is part of the Federal Correctional Complex, Victorville (FCC Victorville) and is operated by the ...

Federal Correctional Institution, Victorville The Federal Correctional Institution, Victorville (FCI Victorville Medium I & II) are two medium-security United States federal prisons for male inmates in Victorville, California. Part of the Victorville Federal Prison Complex, it is operated by ...

(on portions of the former

)

Arts and culture

Established in 1921 as part of the San Bernardino County's library system, the Adelanto Library began in the office of a fruit company.

El Mirage Dry Lake El Mirage Lake is a dry lake bed in the northwestern Victor Valley of the central Mojave Desert, within San Bernardino County, California. The lake is located about west-northwest of the town of Adelanto and north of Highway 18 in San Bernard ...

, west of Adelanto, has been used for filming movies and television commercials, most notably the opening sequence of the later episodes of the TV series ''

Sky King ''Sky King'' was an American radio and television series. Its lead character was Arizona rancher and aircraft pilot Schuyler "Sky" King. The series had strong Western elements. King usually captured criminals and spies and found lost hikers, ...

''.

Sports

From 1991 to 2016, the city was home to the

High Desert Mavericks The High Desert Mavericks were an American Minor League Baseball team in Adelanto, California, that played their home games at Heritage Field at Stater Bros. Stadium. They played in the Class A-Advanced California League. The franchise had eight ...

, a Minor League Baseball team of the

Class A-Advanced High-A (officially Class High-A, formerly known as Class A-Advanced, and sometimes abbreviated "A+" in writing) is the third-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States and Canada, below Triple-A and Double-A, and abov ...

California League The California League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in California. Having been classified at various levels throughout its existence, it operated at Class A-Advanced from 1990 until its demotion to Single-A following Major Leag ...

. For the 2017 season, the

Pecos League Pecos may refer to: Places * Pecos River, rises near Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States * Pecos, Texas, a city in Reeves County, Texas, United States * Pecos County, Texas, named for the Pecos River ** Pecos Spring, a spring * Pecos, New Mexico, ...

established the High Desert Yardbirds to fill the void at Adelanto Stadium. The team closed their last season at the stadium in 2019. Present day, the National Premier Soccer League has used the site for High Desert Elite FC matches.

Government

In the state legislature, Adelanto is in , and in . In the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

, Adelanto is in .

Education

Adelanto has its own school district, the

Adelanto Elementary School District Adelanto Elementary School District (AESD) is an elementary and middle school-only school district in San Bernardino County, California. It is headquartered in Adelanto. It serves Adelanto and portions of Victorville. Students at the high schoo ...

(AESD), for preschool, elementary and middle school levels. It has six elementary schools, four combined K-7/K-8 schools, and three middle schools. High school-aged students attend schools in the

Victor Valley Union High School District Victor Valley Union High School District (VVUHSD) is a school district in the Victor Valley of San Bernardino County, southern California. It serves grades 7-12 in the Victor Valley region of the Mojave Desert, including the towns of Victorville ...

(VVUSD), including

Adelanto High School Adelanto High School is a comprehensive high school of the Victor Valley Union High School District, in Adelanto, California, in the Inland Empire region. The mascot of the athletic teams is the Saints. History It was the first high school to be ...

, the first high school in Adelanto city limits, or in the neighboring Snowline Joint Unified School District centered in Phelan. Charter schools include: *Taylion Academy *Mojave River Academy *Desert Trails Preparatory Academy - Formed in 2013 after a

parent trigger A parent trigger is a legal maneuver through which parents can change the administration of a poorly performing public school—most notably, by transforming it into a charter school. The first parent trigger law was passed by the California leg ...

law was used to remove Desert Trails Elementary from AESD controlYarbrough, Beau.
Adelanto will not renew charter for Desert Trails parent trigger school
" ''

San Bernardino Sun ''The San Bernardino Sun'' is a paid daily newspaper in San Bernardino County. Founded in 1894, it has significant circulation in neighboring Riverside County, and serves most of the Inland Empire in Southern California, with a circulation area s ...

''. December 1, 2015. Retrieved on May 8, 2016.

Infrastructure

Until 2001, Adelanto had its own police department, which was disbanded due to corruption, but now contracts with the

San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department The San Bernardino County Sheriff-Coroner's Department (SBSD) serves San Bernardino County, California, which is geographically the largest county in the United States (excluding Alaska's boroughs) and is headquartered in San Bernardino city. ...

for police services.Kelly, David (March 26, 2008
"A low ebb for high desert's Adelanto"
''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' The Adelanto Substation is on

US Highway 395 U.S. Route 395 (US 395) is a U.S. Route in the western United States. The southern terminus of the route is in the Mojave Desert at Interstate 15 near Hesperia. The northern terminus is at the Canada–US border near Laurier, where the road be ...

and Bartlett Avenue. The station provides full service law enforcement for the City of Adelanto, and unincorporated areas of the Victor Valley such as Phelan,

Lucerne Valley Lucerne Valley is a census-designated place (CDP) and valley landform in the southern Mojave Desert, in western San Bernardino County, California. Geography The geographic valley is defined by the surrounding Granite Mountains, Ord Mountains, ...

, and

Spring Valley Lake Spring Valley Lake is a census-designated place in the Victor Valley of the Mojave Desert, within San Bernardino County, California, San Bernardino County, California. It is located in Victorville, California, Victorville on the Mojave River. Geog ...

. The former regional station (next to the Victorville Courthouse), serving unincorporated areas of the Victor Valley, was consolidated into the Adelanto Station in 2009. Until 1999, fire protection was provided by the city's own fire department. The city now contracts with the San Bernardino County Fire Department. There is one station within the city limits providing paramedic service as well as fire and rescue services. Ambulance and patient transportation is provided by American Medical Response.

References

External links

*
Adelanto North 2035 Sustainable Community Plan
{{Authority control Cities in San Bernardino County, California Populated places in the Mojave Desert Victor Valley Populated places established in 1970 1970 establishments in California Incorporated cities and towns in California