Kansas is not growing much (Wichita, Topeka: 2015, apartment complexes, rentals)

[kcmo]

I posted this in the KC forum, but thought I would see what the excuses are for such slow growth in Kansas. Even Johnson County can no longer offset the rest of the state.

Whatever Brownback has tried, it has failed.


2016 Population stats out.

Metro KC grew very modestly at about 1% in the last year.

2016
KC Metro CSA 2,446,396
KC Metro MSA 2,104,509

KC Metro Missouri side growth 1.01% (added 12,385 new residents)
KC Metro Kansas side growth .89% (added 7,660 new residents)

The entire states:
Missouri 6,093,000 (added 16,796 new residents)
Kansas 2,907,289 (added 568 new residents)


https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2...ies-total.html

[AnywhereElse]

I think KS doesn't have the resources to provide as incentives to have businesses move in, and part of that is the absence of residents of working age, not to mention that anyone that e-verifies might have an issue recruiting also.

I learned quite a bite in one of the cities I lived in from the man that did economic development. You need cash incentives, workers available and also "quality of life". The snag is that any company relocating would either need to bring employees (they will want "amenities") or recruit locally.

Also, in my many years in Kansas, a popular idea here is keeping things the same. "Outsiders" aren't particularly welcome and insiders like keeping away the competition.

Kansas has SO many older people, most of the younger people are anchor babies anymore as no one else can afford to have children if they are paying out of their own pocket.

Taxes are too high for what we have now. Every business that has come into town is either retail (fail as incomes are low and much of our money is going out of the country) and fastfood joints.

Kansas is what it is and has always been. It works for those that don't need or want more than the life their parents and grandparents had, and there is nothing wrong with that.

[WyoNewk]

Could it be that oil drilling is way down in Kansas? It's normally been in the top dozen or so oil-producing states, but drilling has come to a crawl. That affects a lot of rural Kansas.

In my state of Wyoming, reduced mineral production (oil, gas, coal, uranium) has been devastating. The state has lost population, for the first time in more than a quarter century. I'm in the heart of Wyoming's Powder River coal mining, where massive mine layoffs have driven workers to other states.

[GraniteStater]

It is regressive taxation, negative job growth, and bad government. Kansas also can't retain large segments of its population due to a lack of any dynamic cities that appeal to younger people and professionals other than the KC metro area. One could make the case that phenomenon is common in many lower populated states, but it is the lowest growth state in percentage terms in the Great Plains region. Strong negative domestic out-migration is the main driving factor, and explains the no change in population between 2015-16.

[augentier]

Let's see..there's nothing to do here. Reefer Madness type of laws against cannabis are a big turn off to a lot of people. The few "cities" leave a lot to be desired, and the overall mindset of the state is pretty intolerant to anything new or different.

I live in a small town (about 15k) north of Wichita. A lot of money is in this town and some people try to open new shops and restaurants but nothing ever lasts. All we get are more fast food and crappy mexican restaurants. And hotels. The wages are low and rent is rising.

I'm really looking forward to leaving again lol

[Mattks]

Originally Posted by GraniteStater

It is regressive taxation, negative job growth, and bad government. Kansas also can't retain large segments of its population due to a lack of any dynamic cities that appeal to younger people and professionals other than the KC metro area. One could make the case that phenomenon is common in many lower populated states, but it is the lowest growth state in percentage terms in the Great Plains region. Strong negative domestic out-migration is the main driving factor, and explains the no change in population between 2015-16.

I think you hit the nail on the head. Kansas just doesn't have many cities or towns that appeal to young people, and many of those young people leave the state or head to JOCO. Kansas used to be able to appeal to families looking for good schools and low crime, but those aren't as great as they used to be.

The rural migration patterns in Kansas are similar to other rural states, but the regional towns and cities are seeing little to no growth, which tells me most people are migrating out of state.

Topeka was on a bit of a roll recently with new companies coming in, but we just got hit pretty hard with Payless Shoes heading towards bankruptcy and a major call center shuttering 300 jobs. 500 jobs gone in a month.

[Mathguy]

I hate to mention it but by show of hands how many of you understand what a multivariate analysis is? Surely Granite doesn't and neither does KCMO.

Granite, KCMO feel free to correct me and explain how your comments incorporate this because it seems like you suddenly decided a single year and one or two causes are of course the reason.

I'm sure we would all be enlightened to see the rational process by which you reached your conclusion.

[kcmo]

The numbers for Kansas are pretty extreme and have been trending that way for some time now, no matter how you try to justify it.

[Mathguy]

Originally Posted by kcmo

The numbers for Kansas are pretty extreme and have been trending that way for some time now, no matter how you try to justify it.

Translation: I can spell math, I just have no idea how to apply it.

But hey, if I bang on things for a while and it tells me what I want to hear? Then well it's valid statistical analysis that doesn't require any education or ability.

Are you related to Brownback?

[empires228]

I'll throw out the same post I did on the KC forum.

Even with the bad state economy, Kansas has a significantly higher number of rural counties that rely solely on farming, have no manufacturing base (and some never really did), and have been declining since the dust bowl while missouri has population centers around Joplin, Columbia, St. Joseph, St. Louis, Springfield Cape Girardeau, etc that help distribute people throughout the state instead of all but one of its metro areas being shoved into its northeastern corner. It's no different than Colorado's swath of dying counties with the state's growth isolated to the Pueblo-Northern Colorado front range area, or the declines seen in Texas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma panhandles as well as Michigan's UP. The census is also showing Finney County, KS as having a loss despite several new apartment units, duplexes, and over 60 homes having been constructed and occupied over the last few years in Garden City alone with a decent number of homes having been constructed outside of town in Towns Riverview, and a few homes going up in Holcomb, Southwind, and Sagebrush. People are living in Hotels in Ford and Finney County because there aren't enough rentals. The census also admittedly botched the last Finney County count in 2010 and owned up to it (as I've apparently posted above). It doesn't make any sense for finney county to supposedly have lost 50 people when the new high school is already over crowded and one of the larger apartment complexes is adding an unplanned fourth phase to meet the demand since the existing six units have a waiting list of around 70 people. I agree with the census on the majority of the other counties on there, but not the one where the census admittedly screwed up and the numbers still don't reflect what's going on countywide.

Originally Posted by Mattks

I think you hit the nail on the head. Kansas just doesn't have many cities or towns that appeal to young people, and many of those young people leave the state or head to JOCO. Kansas used to be able to appeal to families looking for good schools and low crime, but those aren't as great as they used to be.

The rural migration patterns in Kansas are similar to other rural states, but the regional towns and cities are seeing little to no growth, which tells me most people are migrating out of state.

Topeka was on a bit of a roll recently with new companies coming in, but we just got hit pretty hard with Payless Shoes heading towards bankruptcy and a major call center shuttering 300 jobs. 500 jobs gone in a month.

Part of the issue with the regional centers is that I don't believe their estimates are on for some counties like Ellis, Finney, and Ford that are fairly stable and seeing new housing come up at a decent pace for rural america, and our Southeast Corner was decimated all at once with major employers leaving the Parsons, Coffeyville, Pittsburg, and Fort Scott areas all at once, but that area of the state seems to enjoy living in the past and wants their historical wartime and pre-wartime industries to return. Emporia and Great Bend also give off an air of being indifferent and complacent in regards to the overall stagnation that've had for a long time. Compared to Garden City, Dodge City, Hays, Manhattan, Lawrence, and Junction City, those two don't appear to be trying to do anything to raise quality of life and bring in new jobs. Garden City landed the large DFA plant that should be open within the next year and both GC and GB have intermodal parks under construction. The one in GC is being built as a partnership between the city, KDOT, TP&L (a local logistics company that moved from Wyoming), and BNSF. I don't know who is all involved in the GB project outside of KDOT or what the plans are there. In Garden City it will involve redeveloping the ConAgra plant. They already have three tenants in Windriver Grain, TP&L, and DFA with more expected to come in to serve the needs of the DFA plant. The DFA plant is also supposedly going to pay salaries of around $55,000-$60,000 a year, so that's not bad at all.

I'm not going to put out any public support or show a lack of support for the Sunflower Power Plant expansion that might be back on the table. That's all hinging on if Colorado still wants to buy the power from the new plant anyways.