Sutton is a very small town located in the state of Alaska. With a population of 1,778 people and just one neighborhood, Sutton is the 39th largest community in Alaska.
Unlike some towns where white-collar or blue-collar occupations dominate the local economy, Sutton is neither predominantly one nor the other. Instead, it has a mixed workforce of both white- and blue-collar jobs. Overall, Sutton is a town of service providers, professionals, and managers. There are especially a lot of people living in Sutton who work in management occupations (12.28%), maintenance occupations (8.19%), and healthcare (7.41%).
There are quite a few people in the armed forces living in Sutton, and when you visit or drive around town, you will see military people in and out of uniform, shopping, enjoying life, and being part of the community.
A relatively large number of people in Sutton telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 13.93% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.
Another notable thing is that Sutton is a major vacation destination. Much of the town’s population is seasonal: many people own second homes and only live there part-time, during the vacation season. The effect on the local economy is that many of the businesses are dependent on tourist dollars, and may operate only during the high season. As the vacation season ends, Sutton’s population drops significantly, such that year-round residents will notice that the city is a much quieter place to live.
The town is relatively quiet, having a combination of lower population density and few of those groups of people who have a tendency to be noisy. For example, Sutton has relatively fewer families with younger children, and/or college students. Combined, this makes Sutton a pretty quiet place to live overall. If you like quiet, you will probably enjoy it here.
One downside of living in Sutton, however, is that residents on average have to contend with a long commute, spending on average 31.80 minutes every day commuting to work.
Being a small town, Sutton does not have a public transit system used by locals to get to and from work.
The citizens of Sutton are slightly less educated than the national average of 21.84% for the average city or town: 16.43% of adults in Sutton have a bachelor's degree or advanced degree
The per capita income in Sutton in 2022 was $32,478, which is lower middle income relative to Alaska, and middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $129,912 for a family of four. However, Sutton contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
Sutton is a very ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Sutton home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Sutton residents report their race to be White, followed by Native American. Important ancestries of people in Sutton include German, Irish, Norwegian, English, and Italian.
The most common language spoken in Sutton is English. Other important languages spoken here include Italian and Native American languages.
The way a neighborhood looks and feels when you walk or drive around it, from its setting, its buildings, and its flavor, can make all the difference. This neighborhood has some really cool things about the way it looks and feels as revealed by NeighborhoodScout's exclusive research. This might include anything from the housing stock to the types of households living here to how people get around.
Unpopulated, and rural, the neighborhood is one of the least crowded neighborhoods in all of America. If you like open space, no traffic, and lots of room, this neighborhood may be just what you are looking for. According to NeighborhoodScout's leading research, this neighborhood is less densely populated than 99.6% of the neighborhoods in America. One of the notable things about is that it is one of the quietest neighborhoods in America, according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis and quantitative rating of quietness. When you are here, you will find it to be very quiet. If quiet and peaceful are your cup of tea, you may have found a great place for you.
In addition, vacant homes and apartments are a significant characteristic of this neighborhood. In fact, with 61.8% of the residential real estate vacant, the neighborhood claims the distinction of having a higher vacancy rate than 99.4% of the neighborhoods in America. This can either be because much of the property is seasonally occupied, like in many vacation areas, or that much of the real estate is more permanently abandoned.
The neighborhood has a greater proportion of government workers living in it than 97.5% of the neighborhoods in America, according to NeighborhoodScout's exclusive analysis. This is a unique feature of this neighborhood, and one that shapes its character.
Furthermore, with 2.7% of employed workers living in the neighborhood active in the military, this neighborhood has the distinction of having a higher proportion of people in the military than 97.3% of American neighborhoods. This is a major shaper of the neighborhood's culture and character.
More people in choose to walk to work each day (10.8%) than almost any neighborhood in America. If you are attracted to the idea of being able to walk to work, this neighborhood could be a good choice.
Did you know that the neighborhood has more Native American and Norwegian ancestry people living in it than nearly any neighborhood in America? It's true! In fact, 15.9% of this neighborhood's residents have Native American ancestry and 5.5% have Norwegian ancestry.
is also pretty special linguistically. Significantly, 3.9% of its residents five years old and above primarily speak Native American languages at home. While this may seem like a small percentage, it is higher than 99.6% of the neighborhoods in America.
How wealthy a neighborhood is, from very wealthy, to middle income, to low income is very formative with regard to the personality and character of a neighborhood. Equally important is the rate of people, particularly children, who live below the federal poverty line. In some wealthy gated communities, the areas immediately surrounding can have high rates of childhood poverty, which indicates other social issues. NeighborhoodScout's analysis reveals both aspects of income and poverty for this neighborhood.
The neighbors in the neighborhood in Sutton are lower-middle income, making it a below average income neighborhood. NeighborhoodScout's research shows that this neighborhood has an income lower than 64.8% of U.S. neighborhoods. With 10.7% of the children here below the federal poverty line, this neighborhood has a higher rate of childhood poverty than 50.9% of U.S. neighborhoods.
The old saying "you are what you eat" is true. But it is also true that you are what you do for a living. The types of occupations your neighbors have shape their character, and together as a group, their collective occupations shape the culture of a place.
In the neighborhood, 41.1% of the working population is employed in executive, management, and professional occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants, with 26.5% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in manufacturing and laborer occupations (23.8%), and 15.6% in government jobs, whether they are in local, state, or federal positions.
The languages spoken by people in this neighborhood are diverse. These are tabulated as the languages people preferentially speak when they are at home with their families. The most common language spoken in the neighborhood is English, spoken by 94.1% of households. Other important languages spoken here include Italian and Native American languages.
Culture is the shared learned behavior of peoples. Undeniably, different ethnicities and ancestries have different cultural traditions, and as a result, neighborhoods with concentrations of residents of one or another ethnicities or ancestries will express those cultures. It is what makes the North End in Boston so fun to visit for the Italian restaurants, bakeries, culture, and charm, and similarly, why people enjoy visiting Chinatown in San Francisco.
In the neighborhood in Sutton, AK, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as German (18.2%). There are also a number of people of Native American ancestry (15.9%), and residents who report Irish roots (13.6%), and some of the residents are also of Norwegian ancestry (5.5%), along with some English ancestry residents (4.7%), among others.
How you get to work – car, bus, train or other means – and how much of your day it takes to do so is a large quality of life and financial issue. Especially with gasoline prices rising and expected to continue doing so, the length and means of one's commute can be a financial burden. Some neighborhoods are physically located so that many residents have to drive in their own car, others are set up so many walk to work, or can take a train, bus, or bike. The greatest number of commuters in neighborhood spend under 15 minutes commuting one-way to work (35.3% of working residents), one of the shortest commutes across America.
Here most residents (53.6%) drive alone in a private automobile to get to work. In addition, quite a number also carpool with coworkers, friends, or neighbors to get to work (21.7%) and 10.8% of residents also hop out the door and walk to work for their daily commute. In a neighborhood like this, as in most of the nation, many residents find owning a car useful for getting to work.