[GraniteStater]

I was doing a little research on demographics and it seems like Omaha has a rather high percentage of the population in the metro area that is under 18 and under 5 compared with other cities in the Midwest and Great Plains. Cities like Minneapolis, Chicago, Sioux Falls, St. Louis, and Madison seem to have a slightly older population with a lower total percentage of the population that is under age 18 in the core metro counties.

Here are some questions to ponder:
Does the relatively cheap real estate prices compared with other areas of the US create an advantage for families to move to the Omaha MSA from other areas of the country?
Are more people moving into the Omaha MSA due to the local economy?
Is Omaha more conservative than other larger metro areas in the Midwest and Great Plains, and attract more individuals from rural areas that come from larger families?
What are your opinions?

[mattpoulsen]

Hmm. I don't know...it could be a result of a lot of things. I would possibly buy your argument for Minneapolis, Chicago, and St. Louis, but the Sioux Falls one kind of makes me wonder.

But I'm sure affordable housing is a major factor. I also wouldn't really argue with the "larger family" argument, but, again, there is Sioux Falls.

[GraniteStater]

Here is some comparable data between Sioux Falls and Omaha.

I will present the demographics of the two core counties in each metro area:

Sioux Falls:
Minnehaha County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau
Lincoln County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau

Omaha:
Douglas County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau
Sarpy County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau

Omaha still has a higher percentage in the under 18 and under 5 age category for both counties compared with Sioux Falls.

[star_gazer]

Check the percentage of Catholics in Omaha... compared to those others cities.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by star_gazer

Check the percentage of Catholics in Omaha... compared to those others cities.

Pittsburgh, PA has a large percentage of Catholics, but they have some of the oldest demographics of any metro area outside of Florida. However, Pittsburgh has interesting demographics today due to the economic conditions there in the 70s and 80s when a lot of middle aged people left. This has continued to leave the city with more elderly people than other metro areas in my opinion.

[star_gazer]

Of course I was joking... although Omaha does have a fairly sizeable Catholic population (how does Salt Lake Cities percentage of youth look? ).

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by star_gazer

Of course I was joking... although Omaha does have a fairly sizeable Catholic population (how does Salt Lake Cities percentage of youth look? ).

Here is the demographic information for one of the most conservative counties in the country. (Remember that this is just a census estimate)
Utah County
Utah County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau

[mattpoulsen]

Plains,

I don't doubt your stats. I brought up Sioux Falls because the "affordable housing" and "conservative culture" would seem to apply equally (if not more) to Sioux Falls as it does Omaha.

[tpabes]

Well, I agree great family town and cost of living. Another reason, to be blunt and try to be Pg-13, Omaha has some of the highest STD rates in the country, especially among young people. Maybe Omahan's like to get down and dirty a little more! But with this and lack of education or lack of responsibility, maybe a few extra children are born. Probably a stupid obersavtion, but I could see where that could put our numbers over other cities.

Another blunt obersvation, Omaha has a decent hispanic population. Hispanic's seem to have larger families than other groups of people.

They link is for Douglas County, so Boys Town would also contribute to that stat.

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by mattpoulsen

Plains,

I don't doubt your stats. I brought up Sioux Falls because the "affordable housing" and "conservative culture" would seem to apply equally (if not more) to Sioux Falls as it does Omaha.

I agree with that. Other Plains cities that fit into this category would be:
Watertown, SD
Fargo, ND
Grand Forks, ND
Bismarck, ND
Lincoln, NE
Topeka, KS
Wichita, KS
Tulsa, OK
Oklahoma City, OK