Apple Valley, Minnesota

Apple Valley is a city in northwestern Dakota County in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and a suburb of the Twin Cities. It was incorporated in 1969, and was known before that as Lebanon Township. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 49,084, making it the 18th most populous city in Minnesota. Apple Valley is home to the Minnesota Zoo, a nationally famous zoological garden that houses hundreds of animals from several distinct climatological zones. In 2010, Money Magazine named Apple Valley the 20th best place to live in the United States, up from 24th in 2008 and 28th in 2007.

According to local developer Henry Broback, Lebanon Township was renamed Apple Valley because "...when you drive east on (County Road) 42 and turn to enter Lebanon, it reminded them of Apple Valley, California, which was a nice community."

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 17.7 square miles (45.9 km²). 17.3 square miles (44.9 km²) of it is land and 0.4 square miles (1.0 km²) of it (2.14%) is water. The city's geography is rolling, with elevation from the lowest to the highest points in the city varying by a hundred feet or more. The downtown area and its adjacent residential district (which formed the original core of the city when it was incorporated) are in a shallow valley. The first four houses were built by Art and Hank Broback. Orin Thompson contracted a company to determine where the next growth in the Twin Cities would be. It was one-half of a mile from County Road 42 and Cedar Avenue. Thompson bought the first houses and streets from the Brobacks. The firm that selected this area was in Apple Valley, California, so Thompson took that name for the development.

Interstate Highway 35E, Cedar Avenue, and County Road 42 are three of the main routes in the city.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 45,527 people, 16,344 households, and 12,405 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,625.5 people per square mile (1,013.7/km²). There were 16,536 housing units at an average density of 953.6 per square mile (368.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 91.81% White, 1.91% African American, 0.29% Native American, 3.39% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.88% from other races, and 1.69% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.00% of the population.

There were 16,344 households out of which 42.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.7% were married couples living together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.1% were non-families. 19.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.77 and the average family size was 3.21.

In the city the population was spread out with 29.7% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 33.1% from 25 to 44, 24.4% from 45 to 64, and 5.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.4 males. For several years, the city's population was among the fastest growing in Minnesota, but it has virtually exhausted the amount of additional buildable land within city limits, and so its growth has slowed considerably since 1990.

The median income for a household in the city was $69,752, and the median income for a family was $79,335 (these figures had risen to $76,789 and $86,874 respectively as of a 2007 estimate ). Males had a median income of $50,636 versus $33,315 for females. The per capita income for the city was $29,477. About 1.1% of families and 2.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.0% of those under age 18 and 3.8% of those age 65 or over.

Apple Valley is in Minnesota's 2nd congressional district, represented by John Kline, a Republican, scoring 2.8% progressive on a range of issues and 88% conservative based on 2006 House votes. Apple Valley is represented in the Minnesota Legislature by State Senator Chris Gerlach (Republican, District 37), Representative Tara Mack (Republican, District 37A), and Representative Phil Sterner (DFL, District 37B).

Education
There are six elementary, three middle and three high schools in the city, all operated by Independent School District 196. In addition to the two comprehensive high schools, Apple Valley is home to a high school-level magnet school, the School of Environmental Studies. In fall 2007, Independent School District 196 opened three elementary school-level magnet schools: Cedar Park Elementary, which will become a Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) magnet; Diamond Path Elementary, which will have an International Studies theme, and Glacier Hills Elementary, with an Arts and Science theme. Some students attend public schools in other school districts chosen by their families under Minnesota's open enrollment statute.

Famous residents

 * Arden Cho, a model and actress who also displays her singing and songwriting talent on YouTube
 * Matt Demaray, two-time NCAA Division I individual wrestling champion
 * David Fischer, an American ice hockey defenseman for the Montreal Canadiens
 * Karl Goehring, a goaltender for the Manitoba Moose
 * Bobby Jensen, Grow with Kare host on KARE-TV
 * Erik Jensen, an actor who played the main district attorney on CSI and appeared on Law & Order as well as in the films The Dark Half and Blair Witch 2
 * Jarrod Johnson, a reality television participant who appeared on TLC in six episodes of the series Sheer Dallas
 * Trevor Laws, an American football defensive tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles
 * Dave Lee, a WCCO Radio show morning host
 * Rhys Lloyd, a kicker for the Carolina Panthers
 * Mike Lundin, a defenseman for the Tampa Bay Lightning
 * Derek Rackley, tight end and long snapper for the Seattle Seahawks
 * Bob Reed, bass player for the 1960s surf rock band The Trashmen
 * Brett Rogers, Mixed Martial Arts fighter
 * Reggie Rolle, an actor who portrayed the Green Ranger in Power Rangers: Lost Galaxy
 * Nicholas Sadler, an actor who has appeared in the films Scent of a Woman, Disclosure, Mobsters, as well as the TV shows The Cosby Show and ER
 * Dan Setzler, a reality television participant who appeared on Road Rules: Northern Trail (among other reality spinoffs)
 * Dan Sexton, an ice hockey forward for the Anaheim Ducks
 * Eric Strobel, a member of the 1980 U.S.A. Olympic hockey team
 * Maria Thayer, an actress who has appeared in sitcoms Strangers with Candy and Will & Grace, as well as in the films Hitch and Accepted
 * Lindsey Vonn (née Kildow), Olympic skier
 * Erik Westrum, former NHL hockey player