2010 Census results thread for Texas (Houston, Dallas: neighborhoods, buy, living in)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I could've told you guys that Killeen was going to past Waco soon. Everyone kept believing it would take at least 5 to 10 years. Killeen is growing very quickly.
I was thinking, I wonder what the commute patterns are for Hill, Bosque, Limestone and Falls counties. A metro area is determined by that, and I know that many people in those counties work in Waco. I wouldn't be surprised if the Waco MSA gets another county or two in the near future. Falls and Bosque would more than likely be the 2. Hill would be up in the air with their proximity to Dallas and Waco.
Though Killeen officially surpassed Waco in population, according to the 2010 U.S. census count, a Baylor University professor argued that the milestone bears little significance on the cities’ prospects, apart from bragging rights.
“It’s just not a factor,” economist Tom Kelly said. “The elements of their growth are entirely different from ours.”
“It’s really hard to make a fast comparison with Killeen and anywhere else,” Kelly added, because of the huge effect of Fort Hood on the city’s economy.
“If you have a war, they have a bunch of people. If you don’t have a war, they don’t have a bunch,” he said. “If the base is down, the economy withers.”
Bell County Judge Jon Burrows said people are quick to dismiss Killeen and Bell County growth by chalking it up purely to military population.
“People always kind of assume Fort Hood is the driver on growth,” Burrows said.
He said 29,600 people live on post at Fort Hood, down 4,000 from 2000.
He acknowledged the combined number of military personnel living on and off post probably has increased in the past decade.
Nevertheless, he said, “I think it’s more expansion from the south, and the (Interstate) 35 corridor.”
“Commuting to Austin is doable,” he said, “and there’s a lower cost of living here certainly than if you’re living in the Austin area.”
While Bell County grew rapidly along I-35, it boomed around Fort Hood.
Killeen grew 47 percent to nearly 128,000, Harker Heights was up 54 percent and Nolanville nearly doubled.
The three cities are all on U.S. Highway 190 off the interstate.
In terms of industry, Kelly said “Waco’s more competitive with Temple.”
But, when it comes to recruiting quality workers, he said Waco’s challenge doesn’t come from a regional rival.
“It’s San Antonio, Houston, Dallas, Austin and Fort Worth,” he said. “A person graduates from college and they’re not sure where to go, so they go to the big cities, where there are higher-paying jobs and more entertainment for young people.”
But in terms of political influence, Bell County’s 30 percent growth is important.
It means the county will continue to have control of two seats in the State House.
McLennan County, which grew 10 percent, stands to lose the majority share of the population of one of the two House seats in the county.
In that sense, Baylor demographer Charles Tolbert said “the size of a place really matters.”
Count questions
Tolbert said it also makes no difference when it comes to redistricting if the size of an area is boosted by a military installation like Fort Hood or a university like Baylor, where many people have the option of voting at a home location.
David Guinn, a redistricting expert and Baylor Law School professor, said the issue of who gets counted in the census is already the subject of debate and even some legal challenges.
Guinn rattled off some of the points of contention: “Wait a minute, they not only counted citizens, they counted illegal aliens, they counted legal aliens, they got children who aren’t going to vote . . . and every little county in Texas has a penitentiary?”
Hidalgo County is suing the Census for under-counted population!
Census results show 774,000 in the county but CO Judge says way over 1 million live in the county!
County to ask for census adjustment | county, edinburg, adjustment - TheMonitor.com (http://www.themonitor.com/news/county-47346-edinburg-adjustment.html - broken link)
“Commuting to Austin is doable,” he said, “and there’s a lower cost of living here certainly than if you’re living in the Austin area.”
Considering Killeen is growing Southward and really, that's the only way they can grow, it is becoming more interacted with the Austin metro area. Many of the older GI's always lived in the Round Rock, North Austin, Georgetown area and commuted to Fort Hood on a daily basis. It's only about a 30-45 minute trip. And now with the extension of SH 195, many more will make that commute and vice versa because I knew plenty that chose to live in Killeen but work in Austin.
That said, Killeen has to attract more industries and more higher income if they want to continue to be successful. It's a good start that they got the 4 year A&M system university and it's by the largest airport in the Waco-Temple-Killeen area.
Greater Houston's growth is shifting primarly to the burbs moreso than it has in the past. Thats where I drew the paralell to DFW. Dallas has had to struggle with it for years, Houston is now beginning to struggle with it, and Fort Worth/Austin will be struggleing with it one day too. There comes a point in a cities life where the burbs start to take more than they normally do and thats not even specific to Texas. Cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, and Miami have also had to deal with that for years. Thats my only point.
Pretty much true. A person on SSP said that the inner loop only increased to 469,000 people. Less than 13,000 from the last census. The inner loop is what most considering the actual "city" and urban part of Houston and most if not all of everything outside 610 is suburban. Less than 13,000 moved to the "urban" part of Houston. Keep in mind that Houston metro grew by over 1 million and the city only grew by 150,000? That is a big difference.
Pretty much true. A person on SSP said that the inner loop only increased to 469,000 people. Less than 13,000 from the last census. The inner loop is what most considering the actual "city" and urban part of Houston and most if not all of everything outside 610 is suburban. Less than 13,000 moved to the "urban" part of Houston. Keep in mind that Houston metro grew by over 1 million and the city only grew by 150,000? That is a big difference.
It shouldnt surprise anyone. Lets face it, people who move to Texas are not looking for an urban enviroment for the most part. People move to San Francisco, Chicago, Philly, New York, Boston, and DC for urbanity. People who move to Texas want their single family detached home in a safe neighborhood with good schools. As far as Dallas and Houston are concerned people who are living in the city (black and white) who make a decent income dont want to be there anymore. They want their safe neighborhood in their bubble, but they want the city ammenities that comes with being near a major city.
And guess what? Im no exception to this. I lived in Chicago for a while and I loved it, but for the long haul, I want my piece of surburbia.
Location: Austin, TX/Chicago, IL/Houston, TX/Washington, DC
10,138 posts, read 16,031,388 times
Reputation: 4047
Quote:
Originally Posted by Spade
Pretty much true. A person on SSP said that the inner loop only increased to 469,000 people. Less than 13,000 from the last census. The inner loop is what most considering the actual "city" and urban part of Houston and most if not all of everything outside 610 is suburban. Less than 13,000 moved to the "urban" part of Houston. Keep in mind that Houston metro grew by over 1 million and the city only grew by 150,000? That is a big difference.
The city of Houston is actually going to challenge the US Census. They claimed that the entire East Side of Houston bleed population from 2000 to 2010, and the city has it confirmed that the entire city population is no less than 2.2 Million with absolutely no population loss in the East End of the city.
Excerpt:
Quote:
The city of Houston will ask the U.S. Census Bureau to change its official count, raising questions about whether some apartment complexes or even entire neighborhoods were missed.
Houston's population is 2,099,451, according to Census data released last week. That's more than 100,000 fewer people than earlier estimates, and slightly below the 2.1 million that triggers an expansion of City Council to 16 members.
Houston's suburbs are different than Dallas's too. Dallas's are more powerful entities, they have more name recognition, more notoriety in general. I'm not going to take anything away from all of this and stuff but a large amount of Houston's population lives in neither suburbs nor Houston, a major portion of its population also resides in unincorporated areas, of which can be annexed into Houston at any given point.
Houston's suburbs, if you look at their land area, are 1/3rd (or 1/2) the land area of Dallas's on average, if they were given the same land area, they would have the same population as Dallas's suburbs too, essentially the same thing just different layout in a different metro. Which is why all of Houston & Dallas's suburbs are around the same when it comes to density. But yeah, the city in general is keeping up with its metro area in terms of suburbs and it would be nicer if the city saw more infill than the metro did, but it probably wont reverse any time soon.
Houston: 2.1 Million in the city- 6 Million in the MSA
Chicago: 2.7 Million in the city- 9.4 Million in the MSA
Los Angeles: 3.8 Million in the city- 12.7 Million in the MSA
^^^I dont disagree, however its still the same deal in Houston. The urban parts of the city are stagnant and the suburban areas (of Houston and the burbs themselves) are booming beyond belief. Give it some time and Houston will have a couple of suburbs that will be as powerful as what DFW has. The flip side of that coin is that it will come at the expense of the city of Houston.
^^^I dont disagree, however its still the same deal in Houston. The urban parts of the city are stagnant and the suburban areas (of Houston and the burbs themselves) are booming beyond belief. Give it some time and Houston will have a couple of suburbs that will be as powerful as what DFW has. The flip side of that coin is that it will come at the expense of the city of Houston.
Well, the Inner Loop (only 95 square miles) still grew by 13,000 in a decade. That's still a good amount, especially considering the entire City of Dallas only grew by 9,000. But, Houston is about 15 to 20 years behind Dallas in suburb growth. Luckily for Houston though, it could annex many new suburban style homes and commercial districts, unlike Dallas, which never had that luxury of annexing a Plano, for example (or commercial districts along the freeways in Plano, leaving the residential alone).
Well, the Inner Loop (only 95 square miles) still grew by 13,000 in a decade. That's still a good amount, especially considering the entire City of Dallas only grew by 9,000. But, Houston is about 15 to 20 years behind Dallas in suburb growth. Luckily for Houston though, it could annex many new suburban style homes and commercial districts, unlike Dallas, which never had that luxury of annexing a Plano, for example (or commercial districts along the freeways in Plano, leaving the residential alone).
That isnt the point. This a competition between Dallas and Houston. Just because Houston annexes a neighborhood doesnt make it urban. Houston could annex Katy and Katy would still not be even the slightest bit urban. Just because it reads "Houston" on the adress, doesnt make it urban. Just about everything outside 610 (and a lot of stuff inside it too) in Houston is suburban.
Which brings me back to my point that the largest draw for people coming into Texas are the suburban areas. They are bigger draws than Dallas or the urban parts of Houston. Thats just the way it is. Overall, the people that move to Texas would rather live in Sugar Land or Frisco than inner loop Houston or Dallas. Its undeniable. The only exception to the rule seems to be immigrants from Mexico and Central America which flood Houston and Dallas at a much higher rate.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
