Sierra County, Verona

Sierra County
County
Comarca de Sierra
From top down, left to right: Downtown Sierra; Sierra County Superior Court; Old Republic Gardens; Sierra Beachfront; Bridgeland-Miramar Canal; Eastern Verona Medical Center; and the Rio Azulejo near Vermillion Park
Flag Seal Logo of Sierra County
Country	Cartadania
State	Verona
Region	Northeast Verona
Metro area	Palm Coast
Formed	2 November 1630
County seat	Sierra
Largest city	Sierra
Incorporated cities	31
Government
• Body	Board of Supervisors
• Chair	Remon Najara (SDP)
• Chair Pro Tem	Gaspar Banbela (SDP)
• Board of Supervisors	Supervisors Alvar Pellicer (SDP) Ursula Corvacho (SDP) Gaspar Banbela (SDP) Remon Najara (SDP) João Sandino (UCP) Isabel Villaseca (SDP) Dionisa Menata (PP) Juanica Xerez (PRS) Lucas Vizcargui (UCP)
• Chief Executive Officer	Garaçia Vegil
Area
• Total	19,325.6 km2 (7,461.7 sq mi)
• Land	19,172.2 km2 (7,402.4 sq mi)
• Water	153.4 km2 (59.2 sq mi)
• Rank	2nd
Population  (2020)
• Total	15,716,939
• Density	810/km2 (2,100/sq mi)
Area code(s)	213/326/804, 770, 932
Website	Sierra County Website

Sierra County, officially the County of Sierra (Cartadanian: Comarca de Sierra), is a county located in northeastern Verona and covers an area of 19,325.6 square kilometers (7,461.7 sq mi). It is the second-largest county in Verona, after Prince Lucás County, and is bordered by four other counties, namely Lynnhaven County to the northwest, Victoria County to the west, Andina County to the southwest, and Santa Rosa County to the south. Sierra County is the most populous county in both Verona and Cartadania, with an estimated population of 15,716,939. The county is also among the top counties in Cartadania in terms of median family income, ranking 8th in Verona. The county's economy is diverse, with significant contributions from industries such as technology, healthcare, and finance. Agriculture is also an important sector in the county, with crops such as almonds, walnuts, and peaches being major products, grown mostly in the southern portions of the county.

The county is home to the city of Sierra, which is also the county seat. Sierra is the largest city in the state, with a population of over 8 million people. It is a major economic and cultural center, with a thriving arts and music scene. It is also home to several prestigious universities, including the University of Verona, Sierra, Verona Commonwealth University, Oceanview, and Verona Commonwealth University, Sierra. Sierra County boasts a diverse landscape, with the foothills of the Serra Affiada mountain range dominating the western part of the county. The center-western and southern part of the county is characterized by rolling hills and fertile valleys, while the eastern parts are more low-lying savanna.

History

Sierra County has a long history as one of the original counties of Verona, dating back to its establishment in 1630 at the time of Verona's statehood. Its early boundaries encompassed a vast swath of northeastern Verona, including what are now Andina, Lynnhaven, Santa Rosa, and Victoria Counties. In the late 18th and 19th centuries, however, Sierra County underwent a series of boundary changes, resulting in the creation of the aforementioned counties. This period of change was not unique to Sierra County, as many other counties across the state, such as Richland County, also experienced similar shifts during this time.

Sierra County's area was 191 percent larger in 1689 than it is today, covering the entire modern-day Palm Coast metropolitan area. Lynnhaven County was the first county to be separated from Sierra County sixty years after statehood in 1690. As the population continued to grow, further sections were split off to form portions of Victoria County in 1878 and Andina County in 1894, as well as to organize Santa Rosa County in 1901. Despite these boundary changes, Sierra County remains the second-largest county in Verona

Sierra County, along with the other original counties of Verona, was divided into smaller administrative divisions called prefectures. These prefectures were often composed of multiple old communities, which eventually merged to form modern-day municipalities such as Sierra and other cities within the county. This system of prefectures persisted until 1701. They were:

• Adira Prefecture
• Agoura Prefecture
• Alvaria Prefecture
• Arvotta Prefecture
• Cerana Prefecture
• Dominion Prefecture
• Esteza Prefecture
• Terralagoa Prefecture
• Mirada Prefecture
• Saratoga Prefecture
• Sierra Prefecture
• Torino Prefecture
• Valdesan Prefecture
• Vetera Prefecture
• Westwood Prefecture

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.