Clay

	City of Clay
Incorporated	2000
Population	9,700
Mayor	Charles Webster
School district	Jefferson County Schools
Government	Clay City Council; Center Point Fire District; Jefferson County Sheriff's Office
Web site	clayalabama.com
	Locate with Google Maps

Clay (incorporated in 2000) is a city of 9,700 encompassing 10.0 square miles directly northeast of Birmingham in Jefferson County. It adjoins Trussville to the southeast and Pinson to the northwest and is traversed by Old Springville Road and Deerfoot Parkway. The City of Clay was incorporated on June 6, 2000, and the area is primarily residential with commercial establishments clustered at the Old Springville Road and Deerfoot Parkway intersection.

The city of Clay claims to be the "Source of the Cahaba."

Clay's mayor is Charles Webster. The city is most well known in the region as the home of Clay-Chalkville High School, which, along with Clay-Chalkville Middle School, and Clay Elementary School are part of the Jefferson County School System. On May 8, 2007, Clay voters turned down a proposed property tax increase that would have allowed Clay to form its own school district. On July 21, 2014, the Clay City Council passed a five-millage ad valorem property tax increase, the highest allowed by state law that does not require a popular vote. The taxes are initially earmarked for school district, which will require an additional 10-mil increase voted on by city residents. If that does not pass, the 5-mil passed in 2014 will go to the public safety fund, to start a city police force.

Demographics

Welcome sign to Clay

As of the of the 2010 Census, there were 9,708 people residing in the city's 3,799 housing units, indicating an average household of 2.55 persons. The population density was 970.8/mi², with housing units at an average density of 379.9/mi². The racial makeup of the community was 84.1% White and 13.3% African-American. 1.31% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

In 2000, there were 1,636 households in the community, of which 49.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 76.4% were married couples living together, 8.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 13.1% were non-families. 11.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.02 and the average family size was 3.26.

In the community the population was spread out with 30.7% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 33.6% from 25 to 44, 22.4% from 45 to 64, and 5.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 98.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.9 males.

The median income for a household in the community was $61,042, and the median income for a family was $64,798. Males had a median income of $40,092 versus $28,787 for females. The per capita income for the community was $21,323. About 3.9% of families and 4.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.3% of those under age 18 and 11.7% of those age 65 or over.

The Jefferson County Board of Equalization evaluated 3,061 homes in Clay and determined that their average market value for 2007 was $166,163, a 3.4% increase since 2006.

Government

The city of Clay is governed by a Mayor and five member City Council, elected at-large. The mayor's office and council chambers are located at Clay City Hall at 2441 Old Springville Road, built in 2012. Prior to that, the council met at the Clay Community Center.

The city maintains the Clay Public Library, founded in 2009. The Clay Department of Parks and Recreation operates Bryant Park, Clay City Park, and Cosby Lake Park. The Clay Department of Public Works maintains public property, including city streets. For trash pick-up the city contracts with Republic Services.

Since the city's incorporation, it has contracted for police services with the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office. Properties in Clay are within the Center Point Fire District.

References

Cason, Mike (November 13, 2012) "Clay City Council set to hold first meeting in new City Hall." The Birmingham News
Weyhrich, Lee (July 22, 2014) "School system, police force possible goals after Clay OKs property tax." Trussville Tribune