Butte, Alaska

Butte, Alaska
CDP
Location in Matanuska-Susitna Borough and the state of Alaska. Location in Matanuska-Susitna Borough and the state of Alaska.
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	Alaska
Borough	Matanuska-Susitna
Government
• Borough mayor	Vern Halter
• State senator	Bill Stoltze (R)
• State rep.	Cathy Tilton (R)
Area
• Total	41 sq mi (106.3 km2)
• Land	40.3 sq mi (104.3 km2)
• Water	0.7 sq mi (1.9 km2)
Elevation	92 ft (28 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	3,246
Time zone	Alaska (AKST) (UTC-9)
• Summer (DST)	AKDT (UTC-8)
Area code(s)	907
FIPS code	02-09710
GNIS feature ID	1416898

Butte is a census-designated place (CDP) in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska, United States. It is part of the Anchorage, Alaska Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the 2010 census the population was 3,246. Butte is located between the Matanuska River and the Knik River approximately 5 miles (8 km) southeast of Palmer. It is accessible via the Old Glenn Highway.

Education

The Butte has its own elementary school, although the closest high school is Palmer High School.

Recreation

The town of Butte surrounds the gelogical formation, Bodenburg Butte, from which the town draws it's name. There are two hikes to the 900 ft summit which offer 360 degree views of the surrounding Matanuska Valley and distant Knik Glacier.

Located within town, is the Knik River Public Use Area (KRPUA) provides for a full-spectrum of outdoor recreational opportunities, and is open to motorized and non-motorized recreational pursuits. Activities common to the area include riding of off-highway vehicles (OHV's), hunting, fishing, trapping, target shooting, boating, flying planes, horseback riding, biking, hiking, camping, and wildlife viewing.

Butte is also home to the Alaska Raceway Park which been operating for over 50 years. The track holds races from Mother’s Day until Labor Day and most weekends in between.

Economy

The economic backbone of the Butte is a substancial agriculture network of producing farms as well as the State of Alaska Plant Materials Center. Organic and conventional farms in the area supply a bounty of produce to the local farmers markets of the surrounding areas.

A variety of other small businesses in the area include equestrian centers, coffee shops and restaurants, a boatbuilder, and a reindeer farm.

Geography

Butte is located at (61.548030, -149.026617).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 41.0 square miles (106 km²), of which, 40.3 square miles (104 km²) of it is land and 0.7 square miles (1.8 km²) of it (1.80%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,561 people, 884 households, and 671 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 63.6 people per square mile (24.5/km²). There were 964 housing units at an average density of 23.9/sq mi (9.2/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 92.50% White, 0.51% Black or African American, 2.89% Native American, 0.12% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 0.51% from other races, and 3.40% from two or more races. 1.25% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 884 households out of which 37.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.6% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.0% were non-families. 19.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.89 and the average family size was 3.28.

In the CDP the population was spread out with 30.5% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 25.7% from 45 to 64, and 7.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 106.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 106.7 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $55,573, and the median income for a family was $58,796. Males had a median income of $46,298 versus $32,933 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $22,522. About 7.2% of families and 9.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.8% of those under age 18 and 3.5% of those age 65 or over.