Stockton is a culturally and ethnically diverse community which continues to grow gradually. With a population of 280,000, Stockton is considered the 13th biggest city in California. Sixty miles to the west is San Francisco Bay, and 83 miles west is San Francisco itself. The city is in a somewhat central location, with Sacramento situated just forty five miles to the south. The San Joaquin Delta waterway unites the San Joaquin and Sacramento Rivers to San Francisco Bay.
Recently, the city of Stockton has experienced a huge economic growth with a special focus on revitalizing the downtown area. There are several projects either being built or currently planned, like for instance housing, retail, apartments, an indoor arena, a hotel and a baseball stadium. The arena will host four major sports teams: California Cougars Soccer, Stockton Ports Minor Baseball, Stockton Lightning Area2 Football and the Stockton Thunder Hockey. At the gateways of the city, Stockton is building various entertainment and retail centers. In 2003 the City Centre Cinemas, the 16 screen movie theatre, was developed.
Initially, the financial system within Stockton was nearly exclusively agriculturally based. Nonetheless, as time has passed the city has diversified, with telecommunication and manufacturing plants becoming more common. The strong ties with agriculture would slowly become more and more essential while the concentration on attempting to find a renewable energy increases.
Low-cost land, as well as the nearness to the state and interstate, are some of the main reasons why companies like Pac-West Telecommunications, Golden state Lumber Company and Duraflame have built their regional operations in Stockton. The city is even ideal for those companies based on renewable energy; amongst the largest receivers of wind turbines is the Port of Stockton. There is a very reliable and efficient rail system in the city, which helps to make the distribution of goods go smoothly. Even with the ethanol and bio-diesel plants constructed close to the Port, there is still over 2000 acres of free space obtainable
The city of Stockton is now currently developing green sustainable resources. The High Schools and other educational institutions are working together with the local governments so as to help in the education process handling renewable energy. The hope is there is a fast solution to the declining supply of oil.