The City of Watervliet is north of Albany, New York and is at the east border of the Town of Colonie. The city is also known as "the Arsenal City." Watervliet is also the home of Gus' Hot Dogs, a famous local eatery.
As of the census of 2000, there were 10,207 people, 4,665 households, and 2,547 families residing in the city. The population density was 7,608.0 people per square mile (2,941.0/km²). There were 5,116 housing units at an average density of 3,813.3/sq mi (1,474.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.00% White, 3.87% African American, 0.18% Native American, 1.34% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 1.21% from other races, and 1.33% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.62% of the population.
There were 4,665 households out of which 26.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.9% were married couples living together, 16.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 45.4% were non-families. 38.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.18 and the average family size was 2.91.
In the city the population was spread out with 23.7% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 88.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $32,910, and the median income for a family was $38,735. Males had a median income of $31,656 versus $26,083 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,294. About 12.3% of families and 13.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.7% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.