Why does Alaska as a whole, have a very low population? (Anchorage: real estate, living)

[It is 57 below zero]

Alaska is a very big state, almost twice the size of Texas. This is kind of annoying to me because Alaska is a place I would really like to live. Only about 750,000 people live in the entire state.

There aren't really any major cities in Alaska. What I find really strange is the large difference between the largest and second largest place: Anchorage has just over 200,000 people, while the next largest, Fairbanks, has only 30,000 people, meaning that Anchorage isn't even surrounded by any average-sized suburbs (between 50,000-100,000 population)

The majority of Alaska is comprised of small, rural towns of less than 1,000 people, far apart from anything major, and some of them have no road connection which explains why things are expensive in those places.

Why does the state have so few people, as large as it is, but not one big city?

How would you feel about having additional major cities built in Alaska? It's an idea I've thought about for the longest. Would that make it more likely for people to live there?

And why do half the people that move there, don't last longer than two years or so before they disappear?

[boulevardofdef]

Alaska as a whole has a very high population. Its population density is six times higher than the Yukon, the Canadian territory it borders.

[It is 57 below zero]

Originally Posted by boulevardofdef

Alaska as a whole has a very high population. Its population density is six times higher than the Yukon, the Canadian territory it borders.

I do understand that, but Alaska's population, as a state, is the third lowest of all 50 states. In other words, it ranks 48th in population of the states, and has a density so sparse that each resident there could have their own square mile of land.

[AKStafford]

Cities don't just get built... There has to be a reason... Almost nothing is manufactured here. Most jobs are government or resource extraction. And resource extraction (mining, logging, fishing, oil, etc) is fought tooth and nail by the environmentalists. Or in the case of fishing, a lot of the industry is actually based in Seattle, Washington.
With government spending on both the state and federal level being restricted, I predict our population will be shrinking over the next decade.
No one is stopping people from moving here... So why does it bug you that we have a small population?
Have you ever visited? Spend some time here and you'll get a better understanding why Alaska isn't for everyone.

[AKStafford]

Originally Posted by It is 57 below zero

There aren't really any major cities in Alaska. What I find really strange is the large difference between the largest and second largest place: Anchorage has just over 200,000 people, while the next largest, Fairbanks, has only 30,000 people, meaning that Anchorage isn't even surrounded by any average-sized suburbs (between 50,000-100,000 population)

The majority of Alaska is comprised of small, rural towns of less than 1,000 people, far apart from anything major, and some of them have no road connection which explains why things are expensive in those places.

Why does the state have so few people, as large as it is, but not one big city?

And actually I think the Municipality of Anchorage has a population over 300,000. To the north, the Matanuska-Susitna Borough has a population of about 90,000 people. Most of those are centered around Wasilla & Palmer.
Why isn't Anchorage bigger? Buildlable land is in short supply. It's bordered on the south by the Turnagain Arm, to the west by the Cook Inlet, to the east by Chugiak State Park and to the north by Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. That's part of why the MatSu Valley to the north has grown so much. It's people who commute to Anchorage.

[riceme]

I think most of us are happy that there isn't a higher population or population density here. I know I am, and my friends and family are as well.

[denverian]

Originally Posted by riceme

I think most of us are happy that there isn't a higher population or population density here. I know I am, and my friends and family are as well.

That's what I was thinking. People don't move to Alaska for an urban experience. That, and the weather isn't something most people can deal with. I've been to Anchorage and Fairbanks and would go back for summer vacation, but could never live there. But many people there absolutely love it!

[Metlakatla]

Originally Posted by It is 57 below zero

And why do half the people that move there, don't last longer than two years or so before they disappear?

I'd be interested in knowing where you got this stat, if it's a stat. I don't think it's true. There's a lot of people coming and going in and out of Alaska, but most of them are in the military or seasonal workers.

[It is 57 below zero]

Originally Posted by AKStafford

And actually I think the Municipality of Anchorage has a population over 300,000. To the north, the Matanuska-Susitna Borough has a population of about 90,000 people. Most of those are centered around Wasilla & Palmer.
Why isn't Anchorage bigger? Buildlable land is in short supply. It's bordered on the south by the Turnagain Arm, to the west by the Cook Inlet, to the east by Chugiak State Park and to the north by Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. That's part of why the MatSu Valley to the north has grown so much. It's people who commute to Anchorage.

"Why isn't Anchorage bigger?" <---- Anchorage has about 1,000 square miles of land by definition, but only about 200 of those square miles are occupied. So speaking logically, Anchorage could grow to about 700,000 people and still maintain the same density rate. You said that buildable land was in short supply, and there's plenty of land to the right of the Anchorage city limits that's not occupied by anything.

The Mat-Su region could at least have a city of 100,000 in it, and then it could be an Anchorage suburb.

Originally Posted by AKStafford

Cities don't just get built... There has to be a reason... Almost nothing is manufactured here. Most jobs are government or resource extraction. And resource extraction (mining, logging, fishing, oil, etc) is fought tooth and nail by the environmentalists. No one is stopping people from moving here... So why does it bug you that we have a small population?

Because I've always liked cold weather, and I would like to live somewhere where it doesn't get above 70F too often, but I also wouldn't want to live somewhere that is far from any major businesses or services, or anywhere that's not spacious.

Although some people here have said they like living where they are with a low population, one can at least find an unused land space like far from most other cities, and build a big city off of that without disturbing the rest of the state, and some people would probably visit the major city there and may even attract more people.

Does Alaska have the typical average full-time jobs you would find anywhere else? Such as working as a doctor, store manager, office jobs, policeman, real estate agent, etc? You said that most jobs are based on goverment and resources, which suggests that there aren't many regular jobs there. Since the cost of living there is high, do people there get paid a lot to even things out?

[HannahTravels]

The above post is 100% true. OP, have you ever visited Alaska in the summertime? It always seems like every third person I talk to is only in for the tourist season. That coupled with a big military population causes natural turnover.

Aside from that, many people move here from the lower 48 and realize that it is extremely difficult and expensive to visit family. It isn't unusual for me to spend $1,000+ per person to fly to Chicago (the closest airport to my family) and it is often a 16+ hour day of travel. For me, as a young person, it is doable. My grandmother who is 80 is certainly never going to make that trek though so myself and many others are limited to only seeing relatives once every year. I think that wears on a lot of people, which can lead to a high turnover rate.

As for the other stuff, take your pick of reasons. Build-able land is expensive and you have some serious wilderness to contend with when building. Someone above mentioned Anchorage and the geographic features that limit it growing. Other cities, like Juneau, are the same. Juneau is 40 miles (or something like that) long and only has 30,000 people. It is such a long, narrow city because the mountains basically rise right out of the ocean, which means every building has to be within a few blocks of the water. There is also the high cost of shipping in goods/materials, no roads, extreme weather conditions, etc. Lots of contributing factors to the low population.