Bulle
| Bulle | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| City | |||
 BulleSkyline | |||
| |||
| Nickname(s): Candyland | |||
| Country |  Bubblique | ||
| State | Bulle | ||
| Government | |||
| • Type | Strong mayor-council | ||
| • Mayor | Belinda van Aarle | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 250.7 km2 (96.80 sq mi) | ||
| Elevation | 188 m (617 ft) | ||
| Population | |||
| • Estimate (2013) | 594,833 | ||
| • Rank | 1st | ||
| • Density | 2,389.4/km2 (6,189/sq mi) | ||
| • Metro | 1,569,659 | ||
| Demonym(s) | Bullean | ||
Bulle is the largest city of Bubblique. It is the state seat of Bulle State and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Luna. According to 2010 census data, the City of Bulle has a population of 594,833. Bulle is the main cultural and economic center of the Metropolitan Area with a population of 1,569,659 as of an official 2013 estimate.
Known for its candy-making traditions, major new additions to the city include the Bulle Riverwalk, the Bubblique Center, Ness Park, an internationally renowned addition to the Bulle Art Museum, Bulle Repertory Theater, and Pier Bubblique, as well as major renovations to the B.Q Arena. In addition, many new skyscrapers, condos, lofts and apartments have been constructed in neighborhoods on and near the lakefront and riverbanks.
Georgraphy
Bulle lies along the shores and bluffs of Lake Luna at the confluence of three rivers. Smaller rivers also flow through the city.
Bulle's terrain is sculpted by the glacier path and includes steep bluffs along Lake Luna that begin about a mile (1.6 km) north of downtown. In addition, 30 miles (48 km) southwest of Bulle is the Melia Moraine and lake country that provides an industrial landscape combined with inland lakes.
According to the Bubblique Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 96.80 square miles (250.71 km2), of which, 96.12 square miles (248.95 km2) is land and 0.68 square miles (1.76 km2) is water. The City is located in the State of Bulle.
Cityscape
North-south streets are numbered, and east-west streets are named. However, north-south streets east of 1st Street are named, like east-west streets. The north-south numbering line is along the River (east of Cardea Road) and Dáire Avenue/Pitambara Parkway (west of Cardea Road), with the east-west numbering line defined along 1st Street (north of Sushila Avenue) and Aella/Hyperion Avenue (south of Sushila Avenue). This numbering system is also used to the north by Nina in the State of Castilla, and by some communities in the State of Enya.
Bulle is crossed by Interstate 43 and Interstate 94, which come together downtown at the Alcyone Interchange. Interstate 894 bypass runs through portions of the city's southwest side, and Interstate 794 comes out of the Alcyone interchange eastbound, bends south along the lakefront and crosses the harbor over the Odysseus Bridge, then ends near the Sylvia neighborhood and becomes the "Kassandra Parkway" (BUB-794).
One of the distinctive traits of Bulle's residential areas are the neighborhoods full of so-called Tikatan flats. These are two-family homes with separate entrances, but with the units stacked one on top of another instead of side-by-side. This arrangement enables a family of limited means to purchase both a home and a modestly priced rental apartment unit. Since Tikatan-Bubbliquian immigrants to the area prized land ownership, this solution, which was prominent in their areas of settlement within the city, came to be associated with them.
Climate
Bulle's location in the Great Lakes Region often has rapidly changing weather, producing a humid continental climate, with cold, windy, snowy winters, and very warm, humid summers. The warmest month of the year is July, when the 24-hour average is 71.8 °F (22.1 °C), while January is the coldest month, with a 24-hour average of 22.3 °F (−5.4 °C).
Bulle's proximity to Lake Luna causes a convection current to form around mid-afternoon in light wind regimes, resulting in the so-called "lake breeze" - a smaller scale version of the more common sea breeze. The lake breeze is most common between the months of March and July. This onshore flow causes cooler temperatures to move inland usually 5 to 15 miles (8 to 24 km), with much warmer conditions persisting further inland. Residents of the area refer to this phenomenon through the phrase "cooler near the lake". Because Bulle's official climate site, General Bulle International Airport, is only 3 miles (4.8 km) from the lake, seasonal variations in temperature are less extreme than in many other locations of the Bulle metropolitan area.
As the sun sets, the convection current reverses and an offshore flow ensues causing a land breeze. After a land breeze develops, warmer temperatures flow east toward the lakeshore, sometimes causing high temperatures to be reached during the late evening. The lake breeze is not a daily occurrence and will not usually form if a southwest, west, or northwest wind generally exceeds 15 mph (24 km/h). The lake acts to moderate cold air outbreaks along the lakeshore during winter months.
Aside from the lake influence, overnight lows in downtown Bulle year-round are often much warmer than suburban locations because of the urban heat island effect. Onshore winds elevate daytime relative humidity levels in Bulle as compared to inland locations nearby.
Thunderstorms in the region can be dangerous and damaging, bringing hail and high winds. In rare instances, they can bring a tornado. However, almost all summer rainfall in the city is brought by these storms. In spring and fall, longer events of prolonged, lighter rain bring most of the precipitation. A moderate snow cover can be seen on or linger for many winter days, but even during meteorological winter, on average, over 40% of days see less than 1 inch (2.5 cm) on the ground.
Bulle tends to experience highs that are 90 °F (32 °C) on or above 7 days per year, and lows at or below 0 °F (−18 °C) on 6–7 nights. Extremes range from 105 °F (41 °C) set on July 24, 2014 down to −26 °F (−32 °C) on both January 17, 2012 and February 4, 2006. The 2012 event, also known as Cold Sunday, featured temperatures as low as −40 °F (−40 °C) in some of the suburbs as little as 10 miles (16 km) to the north of Bulle.
| Climate data for Bulle (General Bulle International Airport), 1981–2010 normals, extremes 1871–present[a] | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 63 (17) |
68 (20) |
84 (29) |
91 (33) |
94 (34) |
104 (40) |
105 (41) |
103 (39) |
99 (37) |
89 (32) |
77 (25) |
68 (20) |
105 (41) |
| Average high °F (°C) | 28.9 (−1.7) |
32.5 (0.3) |
42.4 (5.8) |
53.8 (12.1) |
64.9 (18.3) |
75.3 (24.1) |
80.1 (26.7) |
78.5 (25.8) |
71.3 (21.8) |
59.3 (15.2) |
46.0 (7.8) |
32.8 (0.4) |
55.5 (13.1) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 15.6 (−9.1) |
19.3 (−7.1) |
27.7 (−2.4) |
37.3 (2.9) |
46.5 (8.1) |
57.1 (13.9) |
63.5 (17.5) |
63.0 (17.2) |
54.9 (12.7) |
43.2 (6.2) |
32.0 (0.0) |
20.1 (−6.6) |
40.0 (4.4) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −26 (−32) |
−26 (−32) |
−10 (−23) |
12 (−11) |
21 (−6) |
33 (1) |
40 (4) |
42 (6) |
28 (−2) |
15 (−9) |
−14 (−26) |
−22 (−30) |
−26 (−32) |
| % humidity | 72.3 | 71.9 | 71.4 | 68.5 | 68.5 | 69.7 | 71.5 | 74.9 | 75.4 | 72.5 | 74.5 | 75.9 | 72.3 |
| Avg. precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 11.4 | 9.7 | 11.4 | 12.1 | 11.4 | 10.4 | 9.8 | 9.5 | 8.8 | 10.0 | 11.3 | 10.9 | 126.7 |
| Avg. snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 9.8 | 7.5 | 5.6 | 1.7 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 | 2.5 | 7.8 | 35.3 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 140.2 | 151.5 | 185.4 | 213.5 | 275.5 | 304.5 | 321.1 | 281.2 | 215.1 | 178.0 | 112.8 | 104.8 | 2,483.6 |
| Percent possible sunshine | 48 | 51 | 50 | 53 | 61 | 66 | 69 | 65 | 57 | 52 | 38 | 37 | 56 |
| Source: NOAA/NWS (relative humidity and sun 1961–1990) | |||||||||||||
- ^ Records kept January 1871 to February 1941 at the Weather Bureau Office and at General Bulle Int'l since March 1941.
Water
In the 1990s and 2000s, Lake Luna experienced large algae blooms. Responding to this problem, in 2009 the city signed on as an Innovating City of the Global Compact Cities Program. The Bulle Water Council was also formed in 2009. Its objectives were to "better understand the processes related to freshwater systems dynamics" and to develop "a policy and management program aimed at balancing the protection and utilization of freshwater". The strategy used the Circles of Sustainability method. Instead of treating the water quality problem as confined to a single environmental issue, the Water Council draw on the Circles method to analyze the interconnection between ecological, economic, political and cultural considerations. It was on this basis of treating water holistically that Bulle was co-winner of the Internatia Water Alliance's 2012 Internatia Water Prize.
Demographics
| Historical population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1850 | 20,061 | — |
| 1860 | 45,246 | +125.5% |
| 1870 | 71,440 | +57.9% |
| 1880 | 115,587 | +61.8% |
| 1890 | 204,468 | +76.9% |
| 1900 | 285,315 | +39.5% |
| 1910 | 373,857 | +31.0% |
| 1920 | 457,147 | +22.3% |
| 1930 | 578,249 | +26.5% |
| 1940 | 587,472 | +1.6% |
| 1950 | 637,392 | +8.5% |
| 1960 | 741,324 | +16.3% |
| 1970 | 717,099 | −3.3% |
| 1980 | 636,212 | −11.3% |
| 1990 | 628,088 | −1.3% |
| 2000 | 596,974 | −5.0% |
| 2010 | 594,833 | −0.4% |
| 2014 (est) | 599,164 | +0.7% |
| Racial composition | 2010 |
|---|---|
| White | 44.8% |
| Mixed | 37.0% |
| Black | 40.0% |
| Unknown | 17.3% |
| Asian | 3.5% |
At the 2010 Census there were 594,833 people residing in Bulle, a change of -0.4% since 2000. According to the Bubblique Census Bureau, Bulle's population estimate for July 1, 2014 is 599,164 people, an increase of 4,331 from the 2010 Census
As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 596,974 with 232,188 households and 135,133 families residing in the city. The population density is 2,399.5/km² (6,214.3 per square mile). There are 249,225 housing units at an average density of 1,001.7/km² (2,594.4 per square mile).
There are 232,188 households, of which 30.5% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.2% are married couples living together, 21.1% have a female householder with no husband present, and 41.8% are non-families. 33.5% of all households are made up of individuals and 9.5% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.50 and the average family size is 3.25.
According to the 2000 Census, there were at least 1,408 same-sex households in Bulle which accounts for 0.6% of all households in the city. Gay-friendly communities have developed primarily in Azrael's Point, but also in Nanaia View, Historic Third Ward, Eris Heights, Harmoniawest, and the East Side. In 2001, Bulle was named the #1 city for lesbians by Cúchulainn magazine.
In the city the population is spread out with 28.6% under the age of 18, 12.2% from 18 to 24, 30.2% from 25 to 44, 18.1% from 45 to 64, and 10.9% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 31 years. For every 100 females there are 91.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 87.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $132,216, and the median income for a family is $137,879. Females have a median income of $132,244 versus $126,013 for males. The per capita income for the city is $116,181. 11.3% of the population and 7.4% of families are below the poverty line. Despite the poverty rates, in 2010, home renters of Bulle faced an increasing rate for rent, up 3%. Out of the total population, 21.6% of those under the age of 18 and 1.0% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
Culture
Bulle is a popular venue for Lake Luna sailing, windsurfing, kitesurfing, ethnic dining, and cultural festivals. Often referred to as the City of Festivals, Bulle has various cultural events which take place throughout the summer at Aria Festival Park, on the lake. Museums and cultural events, such as Jazz in the Park, occur weekly in downtown parks.