Community Profile
Ukiah, incorporated in 1876, operates a full range of municipal functions including public safety, public works, community development and community services. Furthermore, the City of Ukiah provides electric, water and wastewater utilities for its residents and operates an airport, golf course, museum and conference center.
Location
Ukiah is located along the busy Highway 101 corridor, just two hours north of the Golden Gate Bridge. It is a perfect hub between the Bay Area and the Oregon border, and is also situated near the east/west intersection of Highway 20 and Highway 101, providing access to the Central Valley and Coast.
Population
Our population, 16,075, can be deceiving. As the Mendocino County seat and the business/education/shopping center for much of Mendocino, Lake, and even Sonoma Counties, our weekday population can be as much as 40,000 or more.
Lifestyle and recreation
Ukiah is the only place where you can sip wine from America’s greenest wine region or sample a locally brewed ale, hike among some of the tallest redwood trees in the world, and relax in a naturally warm and carbonated mineral spring...all in one day. Ukiah is where the rolling vineyards, pear orchards and giant redwoods converge. It’s a place where year-round events draw locals and visitors together, and where the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well.
A bustling restaurant scene anchors the historic downtown and features long- time favorites as well as a highly acclaimed unique sushi restaurant, artisan pizza from a wood–fired oven, and Zagat-rated “locavore” cuisine.
Ukiah is centrally located to over 30 wineries and has many other local attractions including the Grace Hudson Museum, 16 parks, the County’s only 18- hole golf course, municipal swimming pools and sports complexes, Lake Mendocino for boating, fishing hiking and camping, thousands of acres of BLM land for recreation and off-road vehicles, and more.
Small Business
The City of Ukiah believes that small businesses are the foundation for economic vitality in our community. These businesses provide a rich and diverse experience and create a unique atmosphere that is essential to the fabric and preservation of our “small town.” In fact, preservation of the distinct character of our business district can form the definition of its uniqueness and a sense of place for our families, friends and tourists alike. As such, we strive to provide services and resources that facilitate the retention and success of our small businesses.
Local Economy and Employment
Ukiah serves a population of over 104,000 within a half- hour radius. This allows the city to have services, shopping and dining beyond what most cities our size would be able to offer. Leakage studies and sales tax data demonstrate that Ukiah effectively serves more than just our residents– and also shows that we can support even more sales-tax generating business. The largest employment sectors are in sales/ administration and service, together comprising 47% of the local area jobs.
Education
Ukiah area offers big-city educational opportunities in a small-town environment. Ukiah Unified School District offers traditional public schools, as well as a Spanish-immersion elementary school, a Montessori- based charter school, a Waldorf-based charter school, an independent study-focused charter school, and more. Other options include a private Waldorf school, a private Catholic K-8 school, and the Instilling Goodness/Developing Virtue Buddhist School.
University of California Davis’s Hopland Research and Extension Center (HREC) is one of nine Research and Extension Centers operated by the UC Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, which is administratively separate from the UC campuses.
Mendocino College, founded in 1973, is in Ukiah and is part of the Mendocino-Lake Community College District. The 127-acre campus enrolls about 5,155 students and employs 55 full-time and 200 adjunct faculty members.
Dominican University, known for their innovative and highly-regarded curriculum, prepares students for careers in education with a number of Master of Science in Education programs.
Sonoma State University offers an upper-division extension program in Ukiah leading to a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies, with an emphasis on American Studies.