Welcome to the most Southwesterly City
Imperial Beach is a beach city in San Diego County, California, United States. The population was 29,992 at the 2006 census. The city is the most southern beach city in Southern California and the West Coast of the United States. It is located 14.1 miles south of downtown San Diego and 3 miles northwest of downtown Tijuana, Mexico. Imperial Beach is part of the San Diego – Tijuana metropolitan area, an area with over 5 million people.
Imperial Beach is located at 32°34′42″N 117°7′2″W / 32.57833°N 117.11722°W / 32.57833; -117.11722 (32.578255, -117.117111) making it the most southwesterly city in the continental United States. The city has a mediterranean climate with summer temperatures often in the upper 70's. Because of the comfortable year round temperatures many homes in Imperial Beach are built without air conditioning. Imperial Beach is mostly or partly sunny 263 days of the year, with the wettest months in winter.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.7 km² (4.5 mi²). 11.1 km² (4.3 mi²) of it is land and 0.6 km² (0.2 mi²) of it (5.53%) is water. The city occupies the extreme southwest corner of the continental United States: bordered by the Pacific Ocean on the west and Mexico on the south. Nearby Coronado, California borders Imperial Beach to the north. Imperial Beach operates under a Mayor-council government and provides city fire department services but is policed by the San Diego County Sheriff's Department. San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) provides bus and paratransit services to the city from throughout San Diego County. MTS also provides service to San Diego International Airport (Lindbergh Field) from Imperial Beach. The city is one of five Port member cities making up the Port of San Diego.
Imperial Beach has undergone a significant makeover in the last ten years to become more visitor-friendly and commercially viable. In 2004, the City of Imperial Beach began implementing an ambitious community redevelopment plan to improve the commercial corridor along Palm Avenue and Seacoast Drive.
Imperial Beach is home to the The Tijuana Estuary, a National Estuarine Research Reserve and State Park. The estuary located off Seacoast Drive and Imperial Beach Boulevard is home to many endangered birds and wildlife. This estuary marks the place where the fresh water Tijuana River enters the salt water Pacific Ocean. It is the largest salt water marsh in Southern California. Nearby Border Field State Park signifies the most southern beach on the west coast and allows beachgoers in the United States to correspond verbally with beachgoers in Mexico.
The city encompasses just over 6 miles of beach including a dog beach and employs a year round lifeguard staff. Surfing is also popular in Imperial Beach with activities concentrated north and south of the Imperial Beach Pier and in front of the Tijuana Estuary at the famed Boca Rio beach break. The area around Imperial Beach Pier known as Pier Plaza showcases plaques placed on surfboard benches that tell the story of how the cities big waves had an impact on surfing from 1937 to the 1950's.
Imperial Beach also boasts a high military population and is home to the US Navy's Naval Outlying Landing Field Imperial Beach also known as NOLF Imperial Beach.
All this info can be seen @ Wikipedia.org