Sierra County, Verona

Sierra County, officially the County of Sierra, is a county in the Commonwealth of Verona. It is situated in northeastern Verona and is the second-largest county by area in Verona. In 2023, the county's population was estimated to sit at 15,716,939, making it the most populous county in both Verona and Cartadania. It is the 8th highest-income county in Verona, and among the top counties in Cartadania by median family income. It is home to the state's largest city, Sierra, which is also the county seat.

History
Sierra County was one of the original counties of Verona, created at the time of Verona statehood in 1710.

At the time of its establishment in 1710, Sierra County was relatively large, and included a large portion of northeastern Verona, with all of what are now Andina, Lynnhaven, Santa Rosa, and Victoria Counties. During the later part of the 18th and 19th centuries, there were numerous changes in the boundaries of Sierra County, when various areas were separated to make up the counties aforementioned. This is similar to the time period of other counties across the state, like Richland County.

Education
Sierra County is home to numerous school district–32 to be exact, of which, Sierra Independent School District is not only the largest in the county, but also the Commonwealth of Verona and Cartadania as well. It enrolls over 800,000 students and serves the city of Sierra, as well as all of the cities of Adria, Agoura Hills, Aquia, Del Amo, Duarte, Giraçao, Hermosa, Malibu, Tarisa, Vicara, while serving portions of Mirada (specifically those northwest of Sierra Creek).

The county is home to numerous institutions of higher learning, and there are three major public universities located within the county lines: Verona Commonwealth University, Sierra (VCU Sierra), Verona Commonwealth University, Oceanview (VCU Oceanview), and the University of Verona, Sierra (UVA Sierra).

Private colleges include the Cartadanian Film Institute, Kaur Institute, Cartadanian Academy of Dramatic Arts (Sierra Campus), Chanel University of Medicine and Science, Sierra Film School, Louis Hertford University (LHU is also the parent university of Hertford Law School located in Sierra), Luson College, Luson College of Art and Design (OCAD), Northern Verona Institute of Architecture (NVI-Arc), North Verona Law School, Verona Northern University (VNU), and Woodside University.

The community college system consists of twenty-nine campuses governed by the trustees of the Sierra Community College District, including East Sierra College (ESC), Sierra City College (SCC), Sierra Harbor College, Sierra Mission College, Sierra Pierce College, Torino College, Sierra Southwest College, Sierra Trade-Technical College and West Sierra College. They are commonly referred to by campus number (e.g., Torino College as SCC 21).

The Verona Institute of Technology has its primary campus in La Joya where it serves as the anchor for the Palm Coast Tech Center.

Transportation
The Palm Coast Metropolitan Transit Authority (METRO or PCMTA) is the metropolitan transit authority for Sierra County as well as the entirety of the Palm Coast metro area. It operates the bus, light rail, and metrorail systems within the county and is an arm of the Palm Coast Consortium of Metropolitan County Governments. It has the largest transit fleet in Verona.

PCMTA also operates all of the major airports in the area via the Palm Coast Airport Authority (except Rosslyn International Airport, which is maintained by the city), including Sierra International Airport, the busiest airport in northern Sarpedon, which sits in an unincorporated section of the county between the cities of Mirada and Sierra.