U.S. Census Data Released – Trends Evident

Tuesday’s release of the U.S. Census data for Michigan resulted in numerous trends, most notably the City of Detroit’s population falling to century-old numbers, as well as population shifts out of urban areas and generally west.

From 2000 to 2010, the City of Detroit lost more than 25 percent of its population, falling from 980,000 to 714,000. Once the 5^th largest city in the United States, falling only behind New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Philadelphia and boasting a population of 1.8 million people (circa 1950), the 2010 census numbers place Detroit somewhere around the 20^th largest city.

Sterling Heights was the only true “urban center” (city with 100,000 or more residents) that witnessed a population increase according to the new numbers. Flint, Saginaw, Pontiac, and even Grand Rapids (still the state’s 2^nd largest city) saw population drops. While population centers seemed to shrink, the data showed a shift to far outlying suburbs. The central Michigan area seemed to be among the areas enjoying increased population – Livingston, Clinton, and Isabella counties being three of the five with double-digit growth. Wayne County lost 11.7 percent of its population.

Among other implications, the census data present significant challenges to members of the House and Senate redistricting committees, charged with redrawing the lines for legislative districts. Given the numbers, the City of Detroit, for example, stands to lose as many as three House seats and two Senate seats.

Labels: census data

posted by PAA Online , Friday, March 25, 2011 12:33 PM
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