Fun Facts
Thinking big and looking forward has always been a part of what makes Santa Clara unique. Discover some fun facts about Santa Clara's history
Best Of Bay Area Athletes
Known around the world for our renowned sports facilities has led to a number of influential athletes. Learn about some famous Bay Area residents!
Make the Move Living in Santa Clara
Ready to make the move to Santa Clara? Here's 9 things you should know:
Santa Clara was given its name from the Mission Santa Clara de Asis, one of the many missions that the Spanish created during their rule in California. Although the mission was founded in 1777, the city was not officially incorporated until 1852, about two years after California received statehood. The city is part of the San Jose metropolitan area which is contiguous with the San Francisco metropolitan area, making Santa Clara a component of one of the most heavily populated areas in the United States.
Santa Clara is located in the center of the Silicon Valley, northwest of San Jose, and 50 minutes southeast of San Francisco. The city is a past winner of the National Civic League's coveted "All-America City Award". In addition, the community is home to five Fortune 1000 business headquarters. Headquarters and practice facility for the San Francisco 49ers. Other nearby professional sports team includes NHL’s San José Sharks, MLB’s San Francisco Giants, and NBA’s Golden State Warriors
The Santa Clara Swim Club, with more athletes inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame than any club in the world, has developed 46 Olympians, 34 of them medalists. They have earned 51 Olympic gold medals, 17 Olympic silver medals and 11 Olympic bronze medals. These Olympians include Mark Spitz, Pablo Morales, Claudia Kolb, Don Schollander, Keena Rothhammer, Tom Wilkens and many more outstanding swimmers
What historians believe was the "first true road" in California, The Alameda between Santa Clara and San Jose, was designated by the White House Millennium Council as one of the 50 Community Millennium Trails in California.
Awards
City of Santa Clara Finance Department Recognized with Distinguished Budget Presentation Award: The award represents a significant achievement by the entity. It reflects the commitment of the governing body and staff to meeting the highest principles of governmental budgeting. In order to receive the budget award, the entity had to satisfy nationally recognized guidelines for effective budget presentation. These guidelines are designed to assess how well an entity's budget serves as: a policy document, a financial plan, an operations guide, a communications device.
Silicon Valley Power Recognized as a Smart Energy Provider:Silicon Valley Power earned a Smart Energy Provider (SEP) designation from the American Public Power Association (APPA) for demonstrating a commitment to and proficiency in energy efficiency, distributed generation and environmental initiatives that support the goal of providing safe, reliable, low-cost and sustainable electric service.
2021 American Public Works Association Project of the Year Award for Environmental / Parks Category:The Reed & Grant Sports Park Project was awarded with the Project of the Year Award for the Environment/Parks (>$25M) Category from the American Public Works Association Silicon Valley Chapter.
2021 Award for Excellence in Information Technology Practices from the Municipal Information Systems Association of California (MISAC):The MISAC award recognizes the City for implementing information technology practices that excel in creative and efficient uses of local government resources. The award signifies that the City has met or exceeded MISAC standards in the technology-focused areas of Budget and Strategic Planning, Purchasing, Operations and Staffing, Customer Satisfaction, Internet, Project Management, Professional Development and Training, Disaster Preparation and Recovery, Policies and Procedures, Security, and GIS.