I’ve seen several articles across the internet lately questioning the idea that Millennials and young adults prefer density and urban areas. I decided to see how this played out in Franklin County overall. I first looked at the total population aged 20-34 in the year 2000 and the year 2015 by Census Tract. Here were the maps for those years.
After looking at the numbers for both years, I came up with this map for how that age group had changed in the 2000-2015 period.
Unfortunately, some tracts, particularly in the eastern suburban areas, did not exist in 2000, and so I was not able to figure out the change for them during the period. The rest of the map, however, shows that the strongest growth in this age group was not only inside 270, but closest to Downtown and central corridors along Broad and High Streets. These maps don’t tell us about the relationship between those changes and the population density of the census tracts. So I went further and broke the tracts into increments of density to see where the strongest growth was occurring.
With a few exceptions, there appears to be a correlation between average 20-34 aged population growth and the density of the census tracts it occurs in. This suggests that this age group, at least in Franklin County, prefers areas with moderate to high density, which typically translates to urban living.
The 2016 population estimates came out this morning from the Census. Nationally, it seems that overall growth rates slowed down from where they were the year prior, and there were some surprising results in a few cases.
First, let’s take a look at the core counties for Columbus and its peer/Midwest counterparts nationally. The core city is in parenthesis. 2010—————————————————2015———————————2016 1. Cook (Chicago): 5,194,675————-1. Cook: 5,224,823————-1. Cook: 5,203,499 2. Clark (Las Vegas): 1,951,269———-2. Clark: 2,109,289————-2. Clark: 2,155,664 3. Wayne (Detroit): 1,820,584————-3. Santa Clara: 1,910,105—-3. Bexar: 1,928,680 4. Santa Clara (San Jose): 1,781,642—4. Bexar: 1,895,482—4. Santa Clara: 1,919,402 5. Bexar (San Antonio): 1,714,773——-5. Wayne: 1,757,062———5. Wayne: 1,749,366 6. Sacramento (Sac.): 1,418,788–6. Sacramento: 1,496,664–6. Sacramento: 1,414,460 7. Cuyahoga (Cleveland): 1,280,122—7. Orange: 1,284,864——–7. Orange: 1,314,367 8. Allegheny (Pittsburgh): 1,223,348—8. Cuyahoga: 1,255,025—-8. Franklin: 1,264,518 9. Franklin (Columbus): 1,163,414—–9. Franklin: 1,250,269—–9. Cuyahoga: 1,249,352 10. Hennepin (Minn.): 1,152,425—10. Allegheny: 1,229,298—-10. Hennepin: 1,232,483 11. Orange (Orlando): 1,145,951—11. Hennepin: 1,220,459—-11. Allegheny: 1,225,365 12. Travis (Austin): 1,024,266——12. Travis: 1,174,818——12. Travis: 1,199,323 13. Milwaukee (Mil): 947,735–13. Mecklenburg: 1,033,466–13. Mecklenburg: 1,054,835 14. Mecklenburg (Charl.): 919,628–14. Milwaukee: 956,314—14. Milwaukee: 951,448 15. Marion (Indianapolis): 903,393—15. Marion: 938,058———–15. Marion: 941,229 16. Hamilton (Cincinnati): 802,374—16. Hamilton: 807,748——–16. Hamilton: 809,099 17. Multnomah (Portland): 735,334–17. Multnomah: 789,125—17. Multnomah: 799,766 18. Jackson (Kansas City): 674,158–18. Jackson: 686,373——-18. Jackson: 691,801 19. Davidson (Nashville): 626,667—19. Davidson: 678,323——-19. Davidson: 684,410 20. Providence (Providence): 626,671–20. Kent: 636,095———20. Kent: 642,173 21. Kent (Grand Rapids): 602,622–21. Providence: 632,488—-21. Providence: 633,673 22. Summit (Akron): 541,781———22. Douglas: 549,168——–22. Douglas: 554,995 23. Montgomery (Dayton): 535,153–23. Summit: 541,316——–23. Summit: 540,300 24. Douglas (Omaha): 517,110–24. Montgomery: 531,567——24. Dane: 531,273 25. Sedgwick (Wichita): 498,365–25. Dane: 522,878———–25. Montgomery: 531,239 26. Dane (Madison): 488,073——-26. Sedgwick: 510,360——26. Sedgwick: 511,995 27. Lucas (Toledo): 441,815——–27. Polk: 466,688————–27. Polk: 474,045 28. Virginia Beach (VB): 437,994–28. Virginia Beach: 451,854–28. Vir. Beach: 452,602 29. Polk (Des Moines): 430,640—-29. Lucas: 433,496————-29. Lucas: 432,488 30. Allen (Fort Wayne): 355,359—30. Allen: 368,040————-30. Allen: 370,404 31. St. Louis (St. Louis): 319,294–31. St. Louis: 314,875———31. St. Louis: 311,404 32. Lancaster (Lincoln): 285,407—32. Lancaster: 305,705——-32. Lancaster: 309,637 33. Mahoning (Youngstown): 238,823–33. Mahoning: 231,767–33. Mahoning: 230,008
Franklin County moved up one spot to 8th most populated core county of the group.
A little more than 4 years ago, I posted numbers on the recovery of Ohio downtowns, and what that might mean for the future. That post has proven to be one of the site’s most popular. I figured it was time to take a look at their continuing changes.
You can see by the chart for the 1950 Boundary population, the urban core of each city, that all 3-Cs suffered population losses post-1950. However, the rate of losses gradually declined, and 2 of the cities, Columbus and Cincinnati, appear to be growing in this boundary since at least 2010. Cleveland continues to lose.
This is shown further by the chart below.
As far as the actual Downtowns of each, here are the population trends.
For the most part, population declines in the 3-Cs peaked around 1980, give or take a decade. Since then, all of them have seen increases, with Cleveland seeing the most rapid increase and Cincinnati the least. Columbus has seen steady, but increasingly rapid growth with each subsequent decade since 1980.
The US Census recently released 2015 census tract population density data, including census tract population density. I figured midway through the decade would be a good point to update where these stand because they give greater insight in smaller-scale population changes. I looked at all the census tracts in Franklin County and came up with the following map series.
First, the population in 2015.
Next, the population density of tracts in 2010, as reference.
And now 2015.
On the surface, it’s difficult to see the changes, but put side by side, you can tell there have been a lot of increases across the county. To make this more visible, I made the following maps.
You can see that some of the strongest density increases occurred around Downtown and the Short North, New Albany, parts of the Campus area, and Dublin.
The map above gives a straightforward look at where the density increased and decreased. As you can see, the increases FAR outweighed the decreases. Most of the latter were scattered except across the Far South Side and parts of the Whitehall area.
Here were the top 20 most dense census tracts in 2015. 1. 1810: 29,508.2 South Campus/Victorian Village 2. 1121: 25,287.9 Main Campus 3. 13: 21,961.4 Campus/Indianola Terrace 4. 1110: 18168.6 North Campus/Tuttle Park 5. 10: 17386.3 Campus/SoHud 6. 12: 16,981.9 Campus/Iuka Ravine 7. 20: 13,030.5 Short North/Victorian Village 8. 17: 12,872.3 Weinland Park 9. 6: 12,153.6 Old North Columbus 10. 21: 10,853.5 Short North/High Street 11. 8163: 10,255.3 Lincoln Village/Southwest Columbus 12: 4810: 9,557.4 South Central Hilltop 13. 47: 9,492.7 North Central Hilltop 14. 6352: 9,434.0 Northwest Columbus/Henderson Road 15. 57: 9,257.4 Brewery District/South German Village 16. 5: 9,177.9 Old North Columbus 17. 6933: 9,090.9 Forest Park East 18. 16: 8,980.5 Weinland Park 19. 4620: 8,928.6 North Central Hilltop 20. 1820: 8743.3 Victorian Village
It’s obvious that the High Street corridor is the most dense of the city, racking up most of the top 20.
Now here are the 20 tracts with the largest density increases 2010-2015. 1. 1121: 4,375.9 2. 6: 2,178.5 3. 21: 1,934.9 4. 22: 1,478.1 5. 40: 1,107.7 South Downtown 6. 1820: 1,044.1 7. 20: 921.7 8. 38: 904.3 Old Towne East 9. 5: 861.2 10. 210: 833.9 Clintonville 11. 32: 751.1 Arena District West/West Victorian Village 12. 730: 736.9 13. 7551: 656.0 Somerset/South Easton 14. 7951: 610.4 West Columbus 15. 6372: 574.6 Hayden Falls/Sawmill Road 16. 7209: 514 New Albany 17. 7395: 497.6 Blacklick/East Broad 18. 10: 492.8 19. 8230: 449.3 Westland 20. 710: 447.3 West-Central Linden
And finally, the top 20 largest declines 2010-2015. 1. 13: -2,964.3 2. 12: -1,625.1 3. 42: -1,620.8 Scioto Peninsula/East Franklinton 4. 920: -902.2 Northeast Linden 5. 17: -775.4 6. 50: -554.4 Franklinton 7. 61: -485.7 South High Street 8. 59: -441.9 Near South Side/Deshler Park 9. 4620: -380.4 10. 720: -380.2 11. 4610: -335.4 12. 820: -305.4 North Linden 13. 7721: -305.2 North Linden 14. 45: -258.1 North Hilltop 15. 60: -253.2 Vassor Village 16. 810: North Central Linden 17. 7532: -240.3 Morse Road/Easton 18. 2520: -240.1 Near East Side/King-Lincoln 19. 47: -206.6 20. 9333: -194.9 Linwood
So there you have it. The Census Tract Maps page gives demographic and population data for census tracts going back to 1930.
In the 2nd post related to the recently-released Censusdemographic data, I’ll look at Columbus city diversity and how it’s been changing since 2005, as well as how it compares to other regional and national peers.
Rank by City of Total White, non-Hispanic Population by Year 2005————————————–2010————————————-2015 1. Chicago, IL: 819,215————1. Chicago: 853,910—————1. Chicago: 879,318 2. Indianapolis, IN: 491,044——2. Indianapolis: 482,195———–2. Columbus: 491,602 3. Columbus: 442,958————-3. Columbus: 470,971————-3. Indianapolis: 479,376 4. Portland, OR: 382,033———-4. Portland: 417,876—————4. Portland: 449,552 5. San Antonio, TX: 356,420—–5. Austin: 384,065——————5. Austin: 444,638 6. Austin, TX: 347,013————-6. San Antonio: 351,420———-6. Nashville: 365,542 7. Nashville, TN: 314,518——–7. Nashville: 339,030————–7. San Antonio: 364,707 8. Charlotte, NC: 302,789——-8. Charlotte: 331,357—————8. Charlotte: 356,507 9. Virginia Beach, VA: 290,891–9. Virginia Beach: 282,812——9. Omaha: 293,631 10. San Jose, CA: 281,822—–10. Las Vegas: 280,604——-10. Virginia Beach: 281,686 11. Las Vegas, NV: 281,679—-11. Omaha: 277,606————–11. Las Vegas: 278,444 12. Omaha, NE: 267,685——–12. San Jose: 265,311————12. San Jose: 268,948 13. Kansas City, MO: 249,123—13. Kansas City: 247,473——13. Kansas City: 261,360 14. Milwaukee, WI: 219,891——14. Minneapolis: 242,848——14. Minneapolis: 243,709 15. Minneapolis, MN: 216,975—-15. Milwaukee: 221,514——-15. Milwaukee: 216,755 16. Toledo: 183,746—————–16. Pittsburgh: 203,622——–16. Pittsburgh: 192,187 17. Pittsburgh, PA: 180,725——-17. Toledo: 177,341————17. Toledo: 164,305 18. Sacramento, CA: 160,599—-18. Sacramento: 165,610—–18. Sacramento: 155,784 19. Cleveland: 147,359————19. Cincinnati: 143,120——–19. Cincinnati: 147,360 20. St. Louis, MO: 143,590——–20. Cleveland: 137,977——–20. St. Louis: 138,178 21. Cincinnati: 138,486————-21. St. Louis: 134,146———-21. Cleveland: 133,998 22. Akron: 128,976——————22. Akron: 120,800————22. Grand Rapids: 119,128 23. Grand Rapids, MI: 113,791—23. Grand Rapids: 104,636—-23. Akron: 117,587 24. Orlando, FL: 92,326————24. Orlando: 96,867————24. Orlando: 102,822 25. Detroit, MI: 77,163————–25. Dayton: 72,663————-25. Dayton: 75,539 26. Dayton: 67,581——————26. Providence: 64,284——-26. Detroit: 64,511 27. Providence, RI: 64,223——–27. Detroit: 55,298————-27. Providence: 61,492
Columbus moved from 3rd to 2nd over the 10-year period for total White, non-Hispanic population.
Rank by City of Total Black, non-Hispanic Population by Year 2005—————————————–2010———————————2015 1. Chicago: 938,097—————–1. Chicago: 895,294———–1. Chicago: 834,048 2. Detroit: 683,999——————–2. Detroit: 587,707————-2. Detroit: 536,527 3. Milwaukee: 222,040————–3. Charlotte: 251,274———-3. Charlotte: 282,456 4. Cleveland: 221,797—————4. Milwaukee: 230,473——–4. Indianapolis: 234,338 5. Charlotte: 205,216—————-5. Indianapolis: 226,314——-5. Columbus: 233,320 6. Indianapolis: 193,948————6. Columbus: 216,486———6. Milwaukee: 231,304 7. Columbus: 179,197—————7. Cleveland: 208,528———7. Cleveland: 194,350 8. St. Louis: 168,768—————-8. Nashville: 171,104———–8. Nashville: 178,293 9. Nashville: 148,051—————-9. St. Louis: 157,382———–9. St. Louis: 146,925 10. Kansas City: 131,694———-10. Kansas City: 138,461—–10. Kansas City: 140,515 11. Cincinnati: 131,010————-11. Cincinnati: 131,909——–11. Cincinnati: 125,621 12. Pittsburgh: 81,758————–12. Virginia Beach: 79,583—-12. San Antonio: 98,876 13. Virginia Beach: 80,004——–13. San Antonio: 79,307——13. Virginia Beach: 85,867 14. Orlando: 73,736—————–14. Toledo: 75,033————-14. Minneapolis: 78,861 15. Toledo: 72,190——————-15. Pittsburgh: 71,539——–15. Toledo: 76,173 16. Sacramento: 71,452————16. Orlando: 70,988————16. Pittsburgh: 73,012 17. San Antonio: 70,723————17. Minneapolis: 63,749——17. Las Vegas: 68,777 18. Dayton: 60,196——————-18. Sacramento: 61,976——18. Austin: 68,061 19. Akron: 59,810——————–19. Austin: 61,833————–19. Sacramento: 63,477 20. Las Vegas: 59,780————–20. Dayton: 61,402————-20. Orlando: 61,955 21. Austin: 59,583——————-21. Akron: 60,653—————-21. Akron: 58,716 22. Minneapolis: 57,499————22. Las Vegas: 60,187———22. Omaha: 57,546 23. Omaha: 50,333——————23. Omaha: 55,086————-23. Dayton: 51,896 24. Grand Rapids: 40,408———24. Grand Rapids: 41,848—–24. Portland: 35,362 25. Portland: 30,828—————25. Portland: 37,355————-25. Grand Rapids: 32,423 26. San Jose: 27,446————–26. San Jose: 29,831———–26. San Jose: 30,068 27. Providence: 18,794————27. Providence: 19,265——–27. Providence: 21,484
Columbus moved up from 7th to 5th in total Black, non-Hispanic during the period.
Rank by City of Total Asian, non-Hispanic Population by Year 2005————————————-2010——————————————2015 1. San Jose: 269,186————–1. San Jose: 303,227—————–1. San Jose: 355,777 2. Chicago: 127,686—————-2. Chicago: 148,280——————2. Chicago: 166,771 3. Sacramento: 80,307————3. Sacramento: 84,556————-3. Sacramento: 88,422 4. Portland: 36,278—————–4. Austin: 46,575———————-4. Austin: 69,696 5. Austin: 35,239——————–5. Portland: 43,185——————-5. Charlotte: 50,142 6. Columbus: 27,125—————6. Las Vegas: 37,406—————-6. Portland: 49,811 7. Las Vegas: 25,077————–7. Charlotte: 37,181——————7. Columbus: 42,933 8. Charlotte: 23,356—————-8. Columbus: 35,468—————-8. San Antonio: 41,988 9. Virginia Beach: 22,501———9. San Antonio: 29,200————-9. Las Vegas: 41,782 10. San Antonio: 20,492———10. Virginia Beach: 27,303—–10. Virginia Beach: 28,358 11. Minneapolis: 20,189———-11. Milwaukee: 22,670————11. Minneapolis: 26,958 12. Milwaukee: 19,596————12. Minneapolis: 21,426———–12. Indianapolis: 25,264 13. Nashville: 16,943—————13. Indianapolis: 17,137———-13. Milwaukee: 22,497 14. Indianapolis: 12,312———–14. Nashville: 17,045————–14. Nashville: 20,577 15. Providence: 10,751————15. Pittsburgh: 12,036————-15. Pittsburgh: 18,067 16. Pittsburgh: 10,727————–16. Providence: 11,497———–16. Omaha: 15,243 17. Kansas City: 10,674———-17. Kansas City: 10,263———–17. Kansas City: 13,552 18. Detroit: 9,577——————-18. St. Louis: 8,717—————–18. Providence: 10,842 19. St. Louis: 7,046—————–19. Omaha: 8,397——————19. St. Louis: 8,920 20. Omaha: 6,971——————20. Orlando: 7,870——————20. Detroit: 8,790 21. Cincinnati: 6,874—————21. Detroit: 6,549——————–21. Akron: 8,006 22. Cleveland: 6,289————–22. Cincinnati: 5,938—————–22. Orlando: 7,949 23. Orlando: 5,528—————–23. Cleveland: 5,392—————–23. Cleveland: 7,874 24. Toledo: 4,150——————-24. Akron: 4,567———————-24. Cincinnati: 6,259 25. Akron: 3,497——————–25. Grand Rapids: 3,695———–25. Toledo: 5,008 26. Grand Rapids: 2,847———26. Toledo: 3,125——————-26. Grand Rapids: 4,451 27. Dayton: 1,827——————27. Dayton: 1,231——————-27. Dayton: 1,548
Columbus fell from 6th to 7th in Asian, non-Hispanic population.
Rank by City of Total Hispanic Population by Year 2005——————————————–2010————————————2015 1. Chicago: 778,234—————1. San Antonio: 853,654———-1. San Antonio: 937,607 2. San Antonio: 735,458———–2. Chicago: 763,968—————2. Chicago: 787,725 3. San Jose: 279,420————–3. San Jose: 318,389————–3. San Jose: 331,232 4. Austin: 223,361——————4. Austin: 288,130——————4. Austin: 327,680 5. Las Vegas: 153,813————5. Las Vegas: 181,923————-5. Las Vegas: 204,913 6. Sacramento: 111,559———6. Sacramento: 124,461———–6. Sacramento: 150,153 7. Milwaukee: 80,945————-7. Milwaukee: 104,619————-7. Charlotte: 113,731 8. Providence: 60,008————-8. Charlotte: 96,246—————-8. Milwaukee: 110,335 9. Charlotte: 58,466—————9. Indianapolis: 78,467————-9. Orlando: 89,306 10. Indianapolis: 47,764———10. Providence: 76,645————10. Indianapolis: 83,426 11. Detroit: 46,993—————–11. Nashville: 61,212————–11. Providence: 77,968 12. Orlando: 43,978—————12. Portland: 58,986—————12. Nashville: 67,526 13. Portland: 43,324—————13. Orlando: 56,061—————13. Omaha: 63,516 14. Omaha: 39,674—————–14. Omaha: 53,661—————14. Portland: 61,064 15. Nashville: 37,463—————15. Kansas City: 49,800———15. Detroit: 53,980 16. Minneapolis: 37,017———–16. Detroit: 45,580—————-16. Columbus: 46,855 17. Kansas City: 35,995———–17. Columbus: 43,276————17. Kansas City: 46,037 18. Grand Rapids: 32,368———18. Cleveland: 36,067———-18. Cleveland: 40,603 19. Cleveland: 32,085————–19. Minneapolis: 34,504——-19. Minneapolis: 39,981 20. Columbus: 24,607———–20. Grand Rapids: 30,659——20. Virginia Beach: 36,309 21. Virginia Beach: 20,803——–21. Virginia Beach: 29,206—-21. Grand Rapids: 31,282 22. Toledo: 18,404——————22. Toledo: 21,346————–22. Toledo: 23,614 23. St. Louis: 8,268—————–23. St. Louis: 11,207————-23. St. Louis: 12,261 24. Pittsburgh: 5,018—————24. Cincinnati: 8,710————-24. Pittsburgh: 9,266 25. Cincinnati: 3,855—————25. Pittsburgh: 7,282————-25. Cincinnati: 9,121 26. Akron: 3,485——————–26. Akron: 3,990——————-26. Dayton: 4,945 27. Dayton: 1,693——————-27. Dayton: 3,180—————–27. Akron: 3,684
Columbus moved up from 20th to 16th in the total Hispanic population.
Rank by City of Total Other, non-Hispanic Population by Year 2005——————————————-2010———————————————–2015 1. Chicago: 38,694—————1. Chicago: 37,379————————–1. Chicago: 54,694 2. San Jose: 29,456————2. San Jose: 32,439————————2. San Jose: 40,894 3. Sacramento: 21,370———-3. Sacramento: 30,900——————-3. Portland: 36,398 4. Portland: 21,164————–4. Portland: 28,027————————4. Columbus: 34,357 5. Indianapolis: 20,242———-5. Las Vegas: 24,521—————–5. Sacramento: 32,909 6. Columbus: 20,096————-6. Columbus: 23,738——————6. Las Vegas: 29,853 7. San Antonio: 19,130———-7. San Antonio: 20,778—————7. San Antonio: 26,646 8. Minneapolis: 18,580———-8. Minneapolis: 20,753—————-8. Indianapolis: 26,019 9. Detroit: 18,324—————–9. Virginia Beach: 20,268————-9. Charlotte: 24,285 10. Las Vegas: 18,304———-10. Indianapolis: 20,086————–10. Nashville: 22,658 11. Virginia Beach: 16,685—-11. Charlotte: 18,360——————11. Austin: 21,765 12. Milwaukee: 14,476———-12. Detroit: 16,776——————–12. Minneapolis: 21,426 13. Kansas City: 13,399——–13. Milwaukee: 16,311———–13. Virginia Beach: 20,525 14. Austin: 13,261—————-14. Omaha: 15,519—————-14. Milwaukee: 19,263 15. Charlotte: 11,771————-15. Austin: 14,915—————–15. Omaha: 13,951 16. Omaha: 8,552—————–16. Kansas City: 14,668———-16. Kansas City: 13,897 17. Toledo: 7,447——————17. Nashville: 14,227————-17. Detroit: 13,316 18. Cincinnati: 7,315————–18. Pittsburgh: 12,080————18. Pittsburgh: 11,853 19. Cleveland: 7,004————–19. Toledo: 10,134—————-19. Cleveland: 11,234 20. Providence: 6,488————-20. Akron: 9,020——————20. Toledo: 10,678 21. Pittsburgh: 6,138————–21. Cleveland: 8,276—————21. Cincinnati: 10,176 22. St. Louis: 6,058—————-22. St. Louis: 7,704—————22. Akron: 9,560 23. Orlando: 5,731—————–23. Grand Rapids: 7,376——-23. St. Louis: 9,401 24. Nashville: 5,687—————24. Orlando: 7,251————–24. Orlando: 8,885 25. Akron: 4,431——————–25. Cincinnati: 7,230———–25. Grand Rapids: 7,815 26. Grand Rapids: 4,154———26. Providence: 6,471———-26. Providence: 7,418 27. Dayton: 1,382——————27. Dayton: 3,025—————27. Dayton: 6,669
Finally, Columbus moved up from 6th to 4th in the total of Other, non-Hispanic population. Overall, Columbus ranks fairly well in totals vs. its peers, as one might expect given that it is one of the largest cities in the grouping. However, to truly find out how it compares with these other cities, you have to look at percentages, which tells how much of the city’s populationis made up of each group. Columbus had the 8th highest White, non-Hispanic % of total population of the city in 2015.
Columbus had the 12th highest Black, non-Hispanic % of total population.
Columbus also had the 12th highest Asian, non-Hispanic % of total population.
Columbus ranks poorly with Hispanics in the group, having only the 22nd highest % of population.
Finally, Columbus ranks 8th again in Other, non-Hispanic % of population.
So what’s the final ranking for where Columbus is with diversity compared to its peers? To find out, I assigned points based on ranked position in each 5 racial categories. The final total determined where the cities ranked overall.
So based on this, Columbus is the 6th most racially diverse city of the 27 cities measured. This is no doubt surprising, but not so much when you get to the numbers.
*Note: Normally, Youngstown would be included, but the data was not available.
