2013 Ohio Metro Area Population Estimates




2013 Ohio metro area population estimates

The US Census released the latest population estimates for metropolitan/micropolitan areas as well as counties for the year July 1, 2012 to July 1, 2013. Here is what they found for Columbus and Ohio metros.

2013 Metro Population, Highest to Lowest
1. Cincinnati: 2,137,406
2. Cleveland: 2,064,725
3. Columbus: 1,967,066
4. Dayton: 802,489
5. Akron: 705,686
6. Toledo: 608,145
7. Youngstown: 555,506
8. Canton: 403,707
9. Springfield: 136,167
10. Mansfield: 121,773
11. Lima: 105,298

2012-2013 Total Population Change, Highest to Lowest
1. Columbus: +22,129
2. Cincinnati: +8,097
3. Akron: +729
4. Canton: +28
5. Cleveland: -14
6. Lima: -31
7. Springfield: -268
8. Toledo: -336
9. Dayton: -696
10. Mansfield: -812
11. Youngstown: -2,989

Columbus leads the pack, and by a lot. Some interesting notes about these numbers is that half of the 8 major metros are growing. Also of significance is that Cleveland barely lost at all, which may indicate that the losses there are slowing down.

Now let’s take a look at where the population changes for these metros are coming from.

Total Metro Births, 2012-2013, Highest to Lowest
1. Cincinnati: +27,366
2. Columbus: +26,464
3. Cleveland: +23,204
4. Dayton: +9,407
5. Akron: +7,548
6. Toledo: +7,198
7. Youngstown: +5,459
8. Canton: +4,349
9. Springfield: +1,577
10. Mansfield: +1,362
11. Lima: +1,245

Total Metro Deaths, 2012-2013, Highest to Lowest
1. Cleveland: -20,326
2. Cincinnati: -18,365
3. Columbus: -14,765
4. Dayton: -7,812
5. Akron: -6,784
6. Youngstown: -6,781
7. Toledo: -5,700
8. Canton: -4,119
9. Springfield: -1,612
10. Mansfield: -1,289
11. Lima: -1,045

Total Metro Natural Growth (Births vs. Deaths), 2012-2013, Highest to Lowest
1. Columbus: +11,699
2. Cincinnati: +9,001
3. Cleveland: +2,878
4. Dayton: +1,595
5. Toledo: +1,498
6. Akron: +764
7. Canton: +230
8. Lima: +200
9. Mansfield: +73
10. Springfield: -35
11. Youngstown: -1,322

Natural growth is a vital part of the growth picture for any place. For Columbus, it is roughly 50% of it’s total annual growth. For places like Youngstown, with more deaths than births, it just contributes to overall decline.

Total Metro Domestic Migration, 2012-2013, Highest to Lowest
1. Columbus: +5,749
2. Canton: -275
3. Lima: -308
4. Springfield: -343
5. Mansfield: -943
6. Akron: -1,011
7. Youngstown: -1,691
8. Toledo: -2,575
9. Dayton: -3,415
10. Cincinnati: -3,894
11. Cleveland: -5,581

Total Metro International Migration, 2012-2013, Highest to Lowest
1. Columbus: +4,689
2. Cleveland: +3,698
3. Cincinnati: +3,326
4. Dayton: +1,148
5. Akron: +1,051
6. Toledo: +674
7. Canton: +261
8. Youngstown: +185
9. Springfield: +78
10. Lima: +75
11. Mansfield: +23

Total Metro Migration, 2012-2013, Highest to Lowest
1. Columbus: +10,438
2. Akron: +40
3. Canton: -14
4. Lima: -233
5. Springfield: -265
6. Cincinnati: -568
7. Mansfield: -920
8. Youngstown: -1,506
9. Cleveland: -1,883
10. Toledo: -1,901
11. Dayton: -2,267

The 2nd most important part of the growth rate, migration, is also pretty bad for most metros. Only Columbus is seeing a decent rate of growth, particularly domestically.

One final question is… how are these metro growth rates changing over time? That’s a bit harder to answer, as metro boundaries change so often that it’s more difficult to determine comparable rates decade to decade. However, this is what I came up with.

Average Annual Metro Growth By Decade
Akron

1970s: -1,891
1980s: -275
1990s: +3,739
2000s: +824
2010s: +622
Cincinnati
1970s: +6,119
1980s: +9,111
1990s: +16,474
2000s: +12,052
2010s: +7,609
Cleveland
1970s: -15,108
1980s: -8,090
1990s: +4,624
2000s: -7,090
2010s: -4,172
Columbus
1970s: +9,953
1980s: +13,487
1990s: +20,752
2000s: +22,384
2010s: +21,697
Dayton
1970s: -2,246
1980s: +1,377
1990s: +432
2000s: -665
2010s: +1,089
Lima
1970s: +110
1980s: -249
1990s: -128
2000s: -214
2010s: -337
Mansfield
1970s: +121
1980s: -509
1990s: -272
2000s: -438
2010s: -901
Springfield
1970s: -688
1980s: -270
1990s: -280
2000s: -641
2010s: -722
Toledo
1970s: +1,350
1980s: -278
1990s: +503
2000s: -776
2010s: -619
Youngstown
1970s: -470
1980s: -4,605
1990s: -1,064
2000s: -3,719
2010s: -3,422

Some improved, especially the larger metros. Smaller ones tended to do worse over time.

For more information, click on the below links:
Metro Area Demographics
Columbus vs. Other Places
US Census



Before and After Franklinton



*Some photos have been updated since the time of the original post.

Before: South Central Avenue, looking north, during the flood of January 21-24, 1959.
Before and After Franklinton
After: 2015

The 1959 flood was the 2nd worst in the history of Franklinton after the 1913 disaster. The Frank Road crest on the Scioto River came on January 22, 1959 and was 27.22 ft, 3.22 ft above flood stage and a few feet below the 1913 crest. This crest would not cause serious flooding in Franklinton today, as the Franklinton Floodwall, completed in 2004, will protect the area to crests of up to 30.9 ft. Few people know that, prior to the wall’s completion, federal guidelines prohibited almost all types of construction in Franklinton, a contributing factor in the gradual decline it faced after the 1950s.

Before: Bellows Avenue Elementary on Bellows Avenue in 1922.

After: 2017

Bellows Elementary was opened in 1905 and barely escaped destruction during the I-70/315 highway construction. The building remained a school through the 1970s before closing and being sold by the city in 1984. It has remained vacant since then. Recent proposals to turn it into apartments, particularly as Franklinton has begun a massive revitalization, and the building has received a new roof, so further deterioration has been stopped for now. The building, however, is threatened by possible demolition once the 70/71 split is reconstructed in sometime in the mid-2020s.

Before: The Columbus Heating and Ventilation Company building at 433 W. Town Street in 1916.

After: 2016

The Columbus Heating and Ventilating Company began in 1903 and still exists in the city, although obviously not at its original location. It later served as factories and parts of the complex were even used to enrich uranium for the Manhattan Project. The old building eventually went into severe disrepair and most of the roof had collapsed by the time it was demolished in 2011 as one of the first steps in the area’s rebirth. Multiple redevelopment plans have come and gone for the site, but so far, nothing has come of them.

Before: Mt. Carmel Hospital, looking southwest on Davis, in 1909.

After: 2018

Mt. Carmel was originally known as Hawkes Hospital. The first section was completed in 1886, with later expansions in 1891 and 1908. Eventually, the old structures were deemed outdated for modern hospital purposes, and the entire complex was demolished in the late 1940s. Today, the site is very different, with the current buildings built on top of the old Davis and State Street intersection. The hospital moved most services to a new location in Grove City in recent years, with plans to demolish part of the complex to create a new mixed-use development.

For thousands more before and after photos from all parts of the city, click here:
Historic Building Database