The City of Soledad is located in southern Monterey County along the State Highway 101 corridor. Unlike the Monterey Peninsula, Soledad and the surrounding Salinas Valley communities are reliant upon agriculture and small industry for their economic foundations.

Soledad is the fastest growing community in Monterey County. Over 900 new housing units have been built since 1995, but many of the City's residents commute outside of the City for work because jobs are not available in Soledad. They also shop out of town. Soledad does not have a modern supermarket-anchored shopping center. Its retail consists solely of a small freeway commercial interchange with fast-food establishments plus its older downtown. Soledad's downtown retail establishments have lower sales than similar merchants in other parts of Monterey County. The formula restaurants and motels in the South interchange area of Soledad have fared much better.

Most of Soledad's industrial activity also occurs in the South part of the City. Like retail, there is strong potential for industrial development, but as of now, that potential has not been met. This is now changing. Salinas is the hub of industrial activity along the Highway 101 corridor, but is quickly running out of vacant industrial land. Soledad, 25 minutes south of Salinas, can potentially capture some of the Salinas demand. In addition, growing local industries such as wineries are creating potential needs for distribution, preparation and other services that industrial development could meet.

Downtown Soledad

Of prime importance to the City of Soledad is a revitalized, retail abundant downtown. Currently, downtown merchants tend to be small and local serving. There is no reason why downtown merchants cannot continue to be such, but expanded services and increased competition in the Salinas Valley will only continue to erode sales. A healthy downtown Soledad will be dependent on how well it can be competitive in serving both the upwardly mobile suburban consumers and its large Hispanic market.

The Hispanic Market in Soledad

Census data shows that 74 percent of households in Soledad are Hispanic. This is over 86 percent of the total population. Surrounding communities also have large Hispanic majorities. Tapping into this market will be key for downtown Soledad merchants. Income for Hispanic households in Soledad and nearby Greenfield Gonzales are listed in Table 10.

Household estimates are from U.S. Census 2000 census tracts and cover those tracts that overlap with Soledad, Greenfield and Gonzales and include large spaces outside of the city or town limits. Income estimates are from the 1990 U.S. Census and have been adjusted for inflation.