Kennewick, Washington

Kennewick, Washington
City
City of Kennewick
Aerial view of Kennewick from above the Columbia River near the Blue Bridge.
Location of Kennewick, Washington
Kennewick, Washington Location in the United States
Coordinates: 46°12′13″N 119°9′33″W / 46.20361°N 119.15917°W / 46.20361; -119.15917
Country	United States
State	Washington
County	Benton
Government
• Type	Council–manager
• Mayor	Bill McKay[1]
• City manager	Erin Erdman[2]
Area [3]
• City	28.84 sq mi (74.70 km2)
• Land	27.45 sq mi (71.09 km2)
• Water	1.39 sq mi (3.61 km2)
Elevation	407 ft (124 m)
Population  (2020)[5]
• City	83,921
• Estimate  (2022)[6]	84,750
• Rank	US: 411th WA: 14th
• Density	3,072.86/sq mi (1,186.42/km2)
• Urban	255,401 (US: 158th)[4]
• Urban density	2,276.0/sq mi (878.8/km2)
• Metro	310,000 (US: 166th)
• CSA	366,206 (US: 103rd)
• Columbia River Valley	310,000
Time zone	UTC−8 (Pacific (PST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−7 (PDT)
ZIP Codes	99336–99338
Area code	509
FIPS code	53-35275
GNIS feature ID	1512347[7]
Website	go2kennewick.com

Kennewick (/ˈkɛnəwɪk/) is a city in Benton County in the U.S. state of Washington. It is located along the southwest bank of the Columbia River, just southeast of the confluence of the Columbia and Yakima rivers and across from the confluence of the Columbia and Snake rivers. It is the most populous of the three cities collectively referred to as the Tri-Cities (the others being Pasco and Richland). The United States Census Bureau estimated the population to be 84,750 as of 2022,^[8] up from 83,921 at the 2020 United States Census.

The discovery of Kennewick Man along the banks of the Columbia River provides evidence of Native Americans' settlement of the area for at least 9,000 years.^[9] American settlers began moving into the region in the late 19th century as transportation infrastructure was built to connect Kennewick to other settlements along the Columbia River. The construction of the Hanford Site at Richland accelerated the city's growth in the 1940s as workers from around the country came to participate in the Manhattan Project. While Hanford and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory continue to be major sources of employment,^[10] the city's economy has diversified over time and Kennewick today hosts offices for Amazon and Lamb Weston.^[11][12]