Alamosa County
History and Geography
Alamosa means “cottonwood grove” and was originally
given to a creek within the County by Spanish pioneers.
The name was next given to the City and finally to the
County itself. Alamosa County was formally carved from
the northern portions of Conequos and Costilla counties
in 1913. The County has a total area of 724 square miles
with only about one square mile of this land area as
water. Alamosa County is located in south central
Colorado at an average elevation of 7,544 feet. County
development was originally influenced in the late 19th
century by mining, agriculture and timber harvesting.
Alamosa became a major commerce hub of the San Luis
Valley as it received products from external markets and
exported significant quantities of agricultural
products.
The Rio Grande National Forest, and ample recreation
opportunities associated with the San Luis Valley, has
been attracting new residents and visitors for nearly a
century. Not only a provider of recreation, the forests
are also a key economic resource. The Rio Grande
National Forest first came under government control in
1891 with the authorization of the Timber Reserves Act
in 1891. The Great Sand Dunes National Monument was
originally established by Herbert Hoover in 1932. On
November 22, 2000, Congress passed the Great Sand Dunes
National Park and Preserve Act of 2000, which authorized
the expansion of the national monument into a national
park almost four times its original size. As part of the
Act of 2000, roughly 42,000 acres of national forest
wilderness area were immediately transferred to National
Park Service (NPS) management, and were renamed the
Great Sand Dunes National Preserve. The San Luis Lakes
State Park also offers outstanding outdoor recreation on
the valley floor.
Demographics
In 2010, there were 16,953 residents in Alamosa County,
nearly half of whom live in the City of Alamosa. The
County’s Hispanic/Latino heritage is reflected in the
large number of individuals identifying themselves as
members of this group in the 2000 U.S. Census: 41.4
percent of the County population; 46.8 percent of the
City population; 54.4 percent of the population of east
Alamosa; but only 18.7 percent of the population of the
Town of Hooper. This ethnic concentration is further
reflected as 70.1 percent of the total population in
south Alamosa with only 32.3 percent of the total
population residing in north Alamosa.
The rural areas of the County are dominated by
single-family housing units, including mobile homes.
Conversely, most multi-family structures are located in
the urban areas of Alamosa and east Alamosa. Within the
City, 28 percent of all housing units are located in
multi-family structures, but only 5.2 percent of total
units are located in such structures in east Alamosa.
For the remainder of the County, only 1.5 percent of
total units are located in multi-family structures. The
housing vacancy rate is lower in the City (7.5 percent)
compared to the County (10.2 percent), with a high rate
of 15.6 percent for the Town of Hooper. Within the urban
sub-areas, the East Alamosa CDP had a housing vacancy
rate of 9.2 percent, the area south of the railroad
tracks had a vacancy rate of 9.3 percent and the area
north of the railroad tracks had a vacancy rate of only
6.4 percent.
Economy
The Alamosa area is a regional service hub and provides
a variety of shopping and other professional services to
many residents in surrounding towns and counties and
this is reflected in the regional and national services
categories providing 20 percent of the employment and 22
percent of the income. Finally, tourism and government
make up reasonably sizeable components of the economy
with 15 percent of County employment and 10 percent of
basic revenues derived from tourist-related activities
and slightly smaller amounts attributed to government
jobs and services. Despite being an economic hub for the
San Luis Valley, per capita income is $15,037 and
approximately 21 percent of the population lives below
the national poverty line.
Education
Public schools in Alamosa County are primarily served by
two districts: Alamosa RE-11J and Sangre De Cristo
RE-22J. As of 2006, enrollment in RE-11J was 2,148
students and 335 in the RE-22 district for a total of
2,483 pupils in the County. Total district enrollment
has been dropping by approximately 1.7 percent per year
since 2000, although the Sangre De Cristo district has
increased slightly every year over the same time period.
Alamosa County is home to Adams State College, founded
in 1921, a bachelor and master degree-granting college.
Other Resources
http://www.alamosacounty.org
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