Benicia, California

Main	Births etc

City of Benicia
—  City  —
California's third capitol at Benicia. The Senate chambers on first floor, and the Assembly chambers above
Motto: "It's better in Benicia!"
Location of Benicia in Solano County, California. Location of Benicia in Solano County, California.
<div style="position: absolute; top: %; left: 212.7%; height: 0; width: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"> City of Benicia Location in the United States
Country	United States
State	California
County	Solano
Incorporated	March 27, 1850
Government
• Mayor	Elizabeth Patterson
• State senator	Lois Wolk   (D)
• Assemblymember	Susan Bonilla   (D)
• U. S. rep.	Mike Thompson   (D)
Area
• Total	15.72 sq mi (40.71 km2)
• Land	12.93 sq mi (33.49 km2)
• Water	2.79 sq mi (7.23 km2)  17.75%
Elevation	26 ft (8 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	26,997
• Estimate (2016)	28,174
• Density	2,179.13/sq mi (841.37/km2)
Time zone	Pacific (UTC−8)
• Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC−7)
ZIP code	94510
Area code	707
FIPS code	06-05290
GNIS feature IDs	0277472, 2409833
Website	ci.benicia.ca.us

Benicia ( /bəˈniːʃə/ bə-NEE-shə; bə-NI-shə; Spanish pronunciation: [beˈnisja]) is a waterside city in Solano County, California, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. It served as the state capital for nearly thirteen months from 1853 to 1854. The population was 26,997 at the 2010 census. The city is located along the north bank of the Carquinez Strait. Benicia is just east of Vallejo and across the strait from Martinez. Elizabeth Patterson has served as Mayor of Benicia since 2007.

The town is divided into four areas: the East Side (east of First Street), the West Side (west of First Street), Southampton (north of 780), and the industrial park. Most of the town's older homes are on the east and west sides. Southampton contains primarily single-family housing developments and condominiums, most of which were built between 1970 and 2000. The East Side includes the Benicia Arsenal, a former United States Army armory, which was bought by the city and is now used for a variety of purposes, most notably as live-work spaces for artists. The Arsenal is home to several historic (ca. 1860) landmark buildings such as The Clock Tower, the Camel Barn, and the Jefferson Street Mansion. The industrial park lies to the northeast of the residential areas of the city, and includes the Valero oil refinery. The Benicia State Recreation Area is on the far west edge of the city.

The main retail area in Benicia is First Street, which attracts out-of-town antique and boutique shoppers and those seeking small-town, historic charm. In 1987 Benicia was selected to participate in the California Main Street Program.

Connections to Benicia include Interstate 680 from Martinez to the south and Cordelia Junction (Fairfield) to the north, and Interstate 780, Columbus Parkway, and other local roads from Vallejo to the west. Amtrak also runs past the city north towards Sacramento, but the nearest train station lies in Martinez across the Carquinez Strait. Railroad tracks carrying Amtrak and Union Pacific Railroad lines cross the strait alongside the Benicia–Martinez Bridge.