A Coast Guard City is a United States municipality designated as such by the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard on application of the local civilian government. It is an honorary designation intended to recognize communities of special importance to the U.S. Coast Guard. As of October 2024, 34 cities have been designated as "Coast Guard Cities." [1]
Designation as a Coast Guard City is made by the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard on advice of a review board and upon application by a municipal government. [2] [3] According to the U.S. Coast Guard, applications are expected to demonstrate an applicant jurisdiction's ability to meet a multi-part criteria that can include: erection of monuments and memorials to the Coast Guard, organization of civic celebrations on the anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Coast Guard, offer of special recognition and merchandise discounts to Coast Guard personnel by the local business community, providing support to local U.S. Coast Guard Morale, Welfare and Recreation initiatives. [4] [5]
Designation as a Coast Guard City is for a five-year period, but can be renewed indefinitely conditioned on the city continuing to meet the criteria. [4]
The Coast Guard City program was established by the United States Congress in 1998 to recognize cities where military assets of the United States Coast Guard are located and which demonstrate support to Coast Guard personnel stationed there. [6] The first city so designated was Grand Haven, Michigan. [7] [8]
The authorizing legislation for the Coast Guard City program provides that: [9]
The Commandant of the Coast Guard may recognize the community of Grand Haven, Michigan, as "Coast Guard City, USA". If the Commandant desires to recognize any other community in the same manner or any other community requests such recognition from the Coast Guard, the Commandant shall notify the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives 90 days prior to approving such recognition.
| City name | State | Date designated |
|---|---|---|
| Grand Haven [10] | Michigan | November 13, 1998 |
| Eureka [10] | California | June 3, 2000 |
| Mobile [10] | Alabama | July 4, 2002 |
| Wilmington [10] | North Carolina | July 25, 2003 |
| Newport [10] | Oregon | March 28, 2005 |
| Alameda [10] | California | April 14, 2006 |
| Kodiak [10] | Alaska | September 15, 2007 |
| Rockland [10] | Maine | June 16, 2008 |
| Portsmouth [10] | Virginia | November 17, 2009 |
| Traverse City [10] | Michigan | April 7, 2010 |
| Astoria [10] | Oregon | May 1, 2010 |
| Sitka [10] | Alaska | February 14, 2011 |
| Clearwater [10] | Florida | December 23, 2011 |
| Newburyport [10] | Massachusetts | December 23, 2011 |
| Sturgeon Bay [10] | Wisconsin | January 23, 2014 |
| Camden County [10] | Georgia | January 23, 2014 |
| Cape May [11] | New Jersey | May 8, 2015 |
| Elizabeth City [12] | North Carolina | May 29, 2015 |
| New London [13] | Connecticut | May 24, 2015 |
| Carteret County [11] | North Carolina | July 7, 2015 |
| San Diego [14] | California | February 23, 2017 |
| Florence [15] | Oregon | August 16, 2017 |
| New York [16] | New York | February 4, 2018 |
| Chatham County [17] | Georgia | October 18, 2018 |
| Cordova [1] | Alaska | September 30, 2019 |
| Westport [1] [18] | Washington | September 30, 2019 |
| Valdez [1] | Alaska | April 7, 2021 |
| Key West [1] | Florida | August 4, 2022 |
| Bay County [1] | Florida | May 15, 2023 |
| Homer [1] | Alaska | May 22, 2023 |
| Garibaldi [1] | Oregon | December 17, 2023 |
| Charleston [1] | South Carolina | January 26, 2024 |
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San Diego becomes the nation's 21st "Coast Guard City" and the largest metropolis on the list.
On Aug. 16, Florence will officially join Newport and Astoria in receiving the official designation as a Coast Guard City, becoming one of only three cities in Oregon – and only the 24th such city in the nation.
