Marietta-Alderwood is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) in

Whatcom County, Washington Whatcom County (, ) is a County (United States), county located in the northwestern corner of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, bordered by the Lower Mainland (the Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley Regional Districts) of the ...

, United States. The population was 3,906 at the 2010 census. Parts of Marietta-Alderwood were annexed into Bellingham in 2019, while the rest remains an

unincorporated area An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the CDP has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it (19.54%) is water.

Climate

This region experiences warm (but not hot) and dry summers, with no average monthly temperatures above 71.6 °F. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Marietta-Alderwood has a

warm-summer Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 3,594 people, 1,517 households, and 929 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 1,606 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 84.20%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 1.11%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 3.84% Native American, 5.04% Asian, 0.39%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, 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 th ...

, 2.84% from other races, and 2.59% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 5.98% of the population. There were 1,517 households, out of which 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.5% were married couples living together, 11.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.7% were non-families. 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.90. In the CDP, the age distribution of the population shows 23.0% under the age of 18, 12.2% from 18 to 24, 30.2% from 25 to 44, 23.8% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 101.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.9 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $39,902, and the median income for a family was $43,194. Males had a median income of $35,875 versus $27,167 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the CDP was $21,322. About 11.3% of families and 15.6% 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 ...

, including 25.5% of those under age 18 and 8.2% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Most of the CDP is in the

Bellingham School District Bellingham School District No. 501 (operating as Bellingham Public Schools) is a public school district serving Bellingham, Washington. The district enrolls nearly 12,000 students across its schools and programs, and is the fourth-largest empl ...

. A portion is in the

Ferndale School District Ferndale School District is a primary and secondary education school district located in Ferndale, Washington. FSD serves over 5000 students (Oct, 2012) in the city of Ferndale and surrounding areas including Custer, Lummi Island, and portions ...

. Within the CDP, the Bellingham SD portion is zoned to Alderwood Elementary School, Shuksan Middle School, and

Squalicum High School Squalicum High School (SqHS or SQHS) is a public school in Bellingham, Washington, United States, and is part of the Bellingham School District. The school serves the northeast population of Bellingham, including the area surrounding Lake Wha ...

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Washington (state) Census-designated places in Whatcom County, Washington