El Cenizo, Texas

For the census-designated place in Starr County, see El Cenizo, Starr County, Texas.

El Cenizo, Texas
City
Location of El Cenizo, within Webb County, TX
El Cenizo Location of El Cenizo in Texas Show map of Texas El Cenizo Location of El Cenizo in the US Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 27°19′42″N99°29′48″W / 27.32833°N 99.49667°W / 27.32833; -99.49667
Country	United States
State	Texas
County	Webb
Government
• Type	City Commission
• Mayor	Elsa Degollado
• Commissioner	Salvador Hernandez
Area [1]
•  City	0.53 sq mi (1.37 km2)
• Land	0.52 sq mi (1.33 km2)
• Water	0.01 sq mi (0.04 km2)  1.4%
• Metro	161.76 sq mi (418.96 km2)
Elevation [2]	390 ft (120 m)
Population  (2020)
•  City	2,540
• Density	4,800/sq mi (1,900/km2)
•  Metro	636,516
• Metro density	3,900/sq mi (1,500/km2)
	metro area includes Laredo, Texas, Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Rio Bravo, Texas, El Cenizo, Texas, Laredo Ranchettes, Texas. Larga Vista, Texas, Ranchos Penitas West, Texas, & La Presa, Texas
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CST)
Zip Code	78043
Area code	+1-956
FIPS code	48-22905 [3]
GNIS feature ID	1377764 [2]
Website	http://www.cityofelcenizo.com/
Nearby airports: Laredo: Laredo International Airport KLRD LRD Nuevo Laredo: Quetzalcoatl International Airport MMNL NLD

El Cenizo is a city in Webb County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,540 at the 2020 census. ^[4] El Cenizo is the third-largest city in Webb County. It is located about 20 miles south of the county seat of Laredo.

History

For many years, El Cenizo existed only informally as an impoverished colonia . The city was incorporated in 1989. ^[5]

In 1999 ^[6] and again in May 2006, ^[7] El Cenizo gained national attention when it was widely reported that the city had Spanish as its official language. In an interview on a national cable news network held on May 23, 2006, its mayor defended the decision, but said that official business was now conducted in both English and Spanish. He also said that while he supported English as the common and unifying language of the United States, he believed that any attempt to make English the "official" national language would have a discriminatory effect against bilingual programs.^{[ citation needed ]}

On May 12, 2017, following the passage of SB4, a bill in the Texas Legislature intended to crack down on sanctuary cities, El Cenizo filed a lawsuit claiming that the bill illegally commandeers local officials to enforce federal immigration law. ^[5] On June 7, 2017, El Cenizo's lawsuit was consolidated with lawsuits filed by much larger cities including San Antonio, Austin, and Dallas, with El Cenizo as the lead plaintiff. ^[8]

Geography

El Cenizo is located at 27°19′42″N99°29′48″W / 27.32833°N 99.49667°W / 27.32833; -99.49667 (27.328442, –99.496658). ^[9]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 0.5 square miles (1.4 km²), of which 0.5 square miles (1.3 km²) is land and 1.89% is covered by water.

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1990	1,399		—
2000	3,545		153.4%
2010	3,273		−7.7%
2020	2,540		−22.4%
U.S. Decennial Census [10]

2020 census

El Cenizo racial composition ^[4]
(NH = Non-Hispanic) ^[a]

Race	Number	Percentage
White (NH)	53	2.09%
Black or African American (NH)	3	0.12%
Some Other Race (NH)	1	0.04%
Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH)	3	0.12%
Hispanic or Latino	2,480	97.64%
Total	2,540

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,540 people, 789 households, and 605 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the census ^[3] of 2000, 3,545 people, 730 households, and 680 families resided in the city. The population density was 6,919.6 inhabitants per square mile (2,671.7/km²). The 811 housing units averaged 1,583.0/sq mi (614.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 80.73% White, 0.28% African American, 1.07% Native American, 0.06% Asian, 14.67% from other races, and 3.19% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 98.90% of the population.

Of the 730 households, 72.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.8% were married couples living together, 19.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 6.8% were not families; 6.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 3.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.86 and the average family size was 5.04.

In the city, the population was distributed as 48.9% under the age of 18, 11.2% from 18 to 24, 25.2% from 25 to 44, 10.9% from 45 to 64, and 3.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 18 years. For every 100 females, there were 102.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $13,333, and for a family was $13,438. Males had a median income of $14,200 versus $10,625 for females. The per capita income for the city was $3,610. About 66.3% of families and 68.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 74.3% of those under age 18 and 60.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

El Cenizo is served by the United Independent School District. ^[12]

El Cenizo is zoned to Kennedy-Zapata Elementary School (unincorporated Webb County), ^[13] Salvador Garcia Middle School (Rio Bravo), ^[14] and Lyndon B. Johnson High School (Laredo). ^[15] Kennedy-Zapata is adjacent to El Cenizo. ^[16]

The designated community college for Webb County is Laredo Community College. ^[17]

Government

El Cenizo is a Type C General Law city. It has a city commission form of government, which includes a mayor and two city commissioners elected at large. The city is currently governed by Mayor Elsa Degollado. ^[5]

Parks and recreation

Webb County operates the El Cenizo Community Center. ^[18]

References

1. "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
2. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: El Cenizo, Texas
3. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 31, 2008.
4. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
5. Burnett, John (May 12, 2017). "Tiny And Defiant, Texas Town Launches Headfirst Into 'Show Me Your Papers' Debate". NPR . Retrieved June 21, 2017.
6. "Texas town makes Spanish official". Reuters. August 14, 1999. Archived from the original on September 25, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
7. "Consensus in Spanish-only Texas town says English-only national anthem". Associated Press. May 19, 2006. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
8. Limón, Elvia; Wilonsky, Robert (June 8, 2017). "Dallas Joins Lawsuit Over Sanctuary Cities Bill". Governing . Retrieved June 21, 2017.
9. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
10. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
11. "About the Hispanic Population and its Origin". www.census.gov. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
12. "SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP (2020 CENSUS): Webb County, TX" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau . Retrieved April 19, 2021. - 2010 map
13. "School Boundary Map". Kennedy-Zapata Elementary School. Retrieved August 29, 2022. - PDF map
14. "School Boundary Map". Salvador Garcia Middle School. Retrieved August 29, 2022. - PDF map
15. "School Boundary Map". Lyndon B. Johnson High School . Retrieved August 29, 2022. - PDF map
16. "City of El Cenizo Corporate Limits" (PDF). Webb County, Texas . Retrieved August 30, 2022.
17. Texas Education Code Sec. 130.185. LAREDO COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA.
18. "El Cenizo Community Center". Webb County, Texas . Retrieved August 30, 2022. Address: 3519 Cecilia Ln, El Cenizo, Texas

1. Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race. ^[11]

External links

• Texas portal

• City of El Cenizo