Cedar Hill, Texas

Infobox Settlement
official_name = City of Cedar Hill, Texas
other_name =
native_name =
nickname = The Hill Country of Dallas County
settlement_type = City
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image_caption = Cedar Hill water tower
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map_caption = Location of Cedar Hill in Dallas County, Texas


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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = Texas
subdivision_type2 = Counties
subdivision_name2 = Dallas, Ellis
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leader_title = Mayor
leader_name = Rob Franke
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unit_pref = Imperial
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area_total_km2 = 91.3
area_land_km2 = 91.0
area_water_km2 = 0.3
area_total_sq_mi = 35.2
area_land_sq_mi = 35.1
area_water_sq_mi = 0.1
area_water_percent = 0.26
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population_as_of = 2000
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population_total = 32093
population_density_km2 = 352.5
population_density_sq_mi = 913.0
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timezone = CST
utc_offset = -6
timezone_DST = CDT
utc_offset_DST = -5
latd = 32 |latm = 35 |lats = 18 |latNS = N
longd = 96 |longm = 56 |longs = 50 |longEW = W
elevation_footnotes =
elevation_m = 253
elevation_ft = 830
postal_code_type = ZIP codes
postal_code = 75104, 75106
area_code = 972
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 48-13492GR|2
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 1332440GR|3
website = http://ci.cedarhill.tx.us/
footnotes =

Cedar Hill is a city in Dallas and Ellis Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It lies sixteen miles from downtown Dallas and is adjoined by Joe Pool Lake and Cedar Hill State Park to its west.

Early in its history, Cedar Hill served as the temporary county seat of Dallas County and lay along a branch of the "Chisholm Trail". In "1856" a tornado swept through the town killing nine people and destroying most of its buildings. The seat of the county was moved to Dallas not long after.

Cedar Hill is part of the Best Southwest area, which includes Cedar Hill, DeSoto, Duncanville, and Lancaster.

Geography

Cedar Hill is located at coor dms|32|35|18|N|96|56|50|W|city (32.588454, -96.947325)GR|1. Adjacent cities are: Grand Prairie to the southwest, west, and northwest; Dallas to the north; Duncanville to the north and northeast; DeSoto to the northeast and east; Glenn Heights and Ovilla to the southeast; and Midlothian to the south. Most of the city of Cedar Hill is in Dallas County, but a small southern section of the city spills over into Ellis County.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 35.2 square miles (91.3 km²), of which, 35.2 square miles (91.0 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (0.26%) is water.

Because of its elevation many local radio and TV stations have their antennas located there. It has the highest concentration of such antennas in the country. Pulse-Doppler weather radar equipment for tracking tornadoes are also attached to these steel antennas that reach several thousand feet into the air and whose blinking lights appear like Christmas trees at night.

It is sometimes referred to as the "hill country of Dallas" (in comparison to the "hill country" surrounding Austin and San Antonio). The city is full of native, eastern red cedar evergreen trees and stands at an elevation of about convert|800|ft|m above sea level--the highest point in a straight line from the Red River at the Texas-Oklahoma border to the Gulf Coast.

The "Austin chalk" limestone uplift on which most of Cedar Hill is spread is covered with "gumbo"-cleche-clay topsoil from a few inches to many feet. The western edge of the city, primarily the Lake Ridge neighborhood, falls below the limestone uplift on the Eagle Ford shale strata surrounding Joe Pool Lake. Home foundation problems--similar to those in Irving's Las Colinas neighborhood to the north and built on the same strata--await those who fail to take precautions in building on expansive soil lying over the Eagle Ford formation. As noted in the demographics below (and like some of the cities immediately surrounding it such as Duncanville and DeSoto), the city is significantly diverse compared to other cities around Dallas which tend to be predominantly of one ethnic origin or another. In the last few years, the city has been booming with new construction as urban sprawl spreads south of Dallas.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 32,093 people, 10,748 households, and 8,738 families residing in the city. The population density was 913.0 people per square mile (352.5/km²). There were 11,075 housing units at an average density of 315.1/sq mi (121.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 56.67% White, 33.61% African American, 0.50% Native American, 1.98% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 4.87% from other races, and 2.32% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 11.91% of the population.

Demographics in southwest Dallas County have changed substantially since the late 1990s. For decades, south Dallas areas like Oak Cliff were predominantly African American communities and African Americans were the largest minority group in the Dallas area. However, Hispanics became the largest minority for the first time in 2000. As large numbers of Hispanics have moved into poorer, south Dallas areas like Oak Cliff, more affluent African Americans have moved further south into cities like Cedar Hill, Duncanville, DeSoto, Lancaster and to a lesser extent in county-border cities like Ovilla and Red Oak. While the White population has been relatively static, the African American population in Cedar Hill has risen dramatically. Even the demographics of Cedar Hill's most affluent neighborhood, Lake Ridge (a Master Planned Community), has changed in step with the city as a whole. As of 2007, African Americans outnumber Whites almost five to one in the Cedar Hill Independent School District.

As of 2000 There were 10,748 households out of which 49.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.8% were married couples living together, 14.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.7% were non-families. 15.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 2.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.96 and the average family size was 3.30.

In the city the population was spread out with 32.6% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 35.8% from 25 to 44, 19.2% from 45 to 64, and 4.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 91.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $60,136, and the median income for a family was $63,416. Males had a median income of $41,360 versus $32,207 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,389. About 4.2% of families and 5.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.7% of those under age 18 and 6.5% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Most of the city is served by the Cedar Hill Independent School District. Some of it is served by Duncanville Independent School District and the Midlothian Independent School District.

The Cedar Hill ISD portion is served by Cedar Hill High School. The Duncanville ISD portion is served by Duncanville High School. The Midlothian ISD portion is served by Midlothian High School. Trinity Christian School - Cedar Hill (affiliated with a local Assemblies of God church) also serves the area.

On December 23, 2006 the 16-0 Cedar Hill High School Longhorn football team won its first state championship, defeating Cypress Falls (of the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District) 51-17 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. William Cole, who would eventually sign with Oklahoma State, was the star of the game, rushing for nearly convert|300|yd and 3 touchdowns. Cole earned the Offensive MVP honors, and linebacker Chris Francis brought home the Defensive MVP award.

Northwood University serves as a 4 year post-secondary institution. The school is private and is nestled in the hills and woods on the east side of Joe Pool Lake.

Economic Development

Since the year 2000, the city of Cedar Hill has had a major economic boom in retail. The opening of The Plaza at Cedar Hill, in the fall of the year 2000, began the growth. This 260,000 SF retail center included a variety of large and small stores including: Old Navy, Pier One, Macaroni Grill, David's Seafood, Chili's, Hobby Lobby and Office Max.

Later that year, The Cedar Hill Crossing was built. This large retail area, included anchors like Home Depot, Kohl's, Staples and Bennigan's. A few years later in the year 2003, Cedar Village was built. This 70 acre retail center is part of a master plan that includes linking a new city hall and historic Main Street district to innovative retail, residential, office and entertainment developments. The Village includes retail frontage along US Hwy 67, restaurants, office space and a stand-alone 100,000 SF JC Penney, and an Ultimate Electronics, which was later changed to a 24 Hour Fitness.

A few months later, the Pleasant Run Towne Crossing was built. This retail area giant first opened in 2003 with 409,000 SF of retail including anchors like SuperTarget, Circuit City, Sports Authority, and Bed Bath & Beyond. Restaurants that have sprouted up on nearby pad sites are Joe's Crab Shack, Saltgrass Steakhouse and Panera Bread. A couple of years later, Cedar Hill Pointe was built. Cedar Hill Pointe, which opened in 2005, includes Best Buy, Rooms to Go Beds, Wolf Camera and other retail stores. There will also be a Holiday Inn Express, built there in 2008.

Cedar Hill is also home of the Boxcar Club, a restaurant and bar that is partially constructed from an old railroad box car. The club hosts many charitable events and has annual crawfish boils and pig roasts. The club is also the starting point for the annual "Dicky Bob's Frog Run" which had over 200 participants in 2007. [http://boxcarclub.com/images/BoxcarFrogRunFront2007.jpg]

By this time, Cedar Hill was the main site for retail, but there were still many developments being planned. The biggest development is an upscale open-air shopping mall called Uptown Village. The 725,000 SF shopping center will include three anchoring department stores (Dillard's, Barnes & Noble, and Dick's Sporting Goods), 75 additional stores, and six fine-dining restaurants. Some of the stores include Hollister Co., American Eagle Outfitters, Victoria's Secret, Aeropostale, Finish Line, Foot Locker, Champs Sports, Game Stop, and is still in the talks with Macy's. Uptown Village at Cedar Hill opened on March 12, 2008.

Future Developments

Many developments that are being planned in Cedar Hill, are scheduled to open in 2008. One of them is an all new government center, which is located on Uptown Boulevard in front of the Cinemark. This 115,000 SF facility will house city offices, school administration offices, and the police department. It will also provide 23,000 SF of shared meeting, office, and community space.

Cedar Hill Town Center phases II and IV will also be completed in the year 2008. Phase II will include an 88,000 SF Academy Sports and Outdoors. Phase IV will include a 3-story 75,000 SF office building. East of the office building there will be a 6-story 147 room Hyatt Place Hotel and Convention Center. The construction for this project is scheduled to start in January 2008 and should be finished in the early part of 2009. All of these places will also be located on Uptown Boulevard.

References

External links

* [http://ci.cedarhill.tx.us/ Cedar Hill official website]
* [http://www.wadeemmert.com/ Wade Emmert, City Council Member]
* [http://www.cedarhillchamber.org/ Cedar Hill Chamber of Commerce]
* [http://www.cedarhill.org/ Cedar Hill Economic Development Corporation]
* [http://www.chisd.com Cedar Hill Independent School District]
* [http://www.chisd.com/CHfoundation/index.htm Cedar Hill ISD Education Foundation]
* [http://www.uptownvillageatcedarhill.com/ Uptown Village official website]
* [http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/view/CC/hfc4.html Hand book of Texas Online article about Cedar Hill]
* [http://www.cedarhillstatepark.org/ Cedar Hill State Park]
* [http://www.joe-pool-lake.org/ Joe Pool Lake]