Thread: Ups and Downs for Older Cities in Population Report

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

July 10, 2008
Ups and Downs for Older Cities in Population Report
By SAM ROBERTS
In a modest reversal, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Diego and some of the nation’s other older cities registered small gains in population in the year ending July 2007, while others slowed their declines, according to census figures released Thursday.

Growth slackened in some booming Sun Belt cities. Still, that region was home to 9 of the 10 cities registering the largest numerical gains in population. The only one outside the region — New York — ranked sixth in numerical growth from July 1, 2006 to July 1, 2007. The city gained about 24,000 residents in that period, increasing its population to 8.3 million. The annual gain was somewhat less than earlier in the decade. New York City’s population has expanded by 265,000 since 2000, more than any other American city.

The city has not decided whether to dispute the latest census estimates, which it has successfully challenged in the past to win more federal aid, said Arun Peter Lobo, a demographer with the Department of City Planning. “More than a quarter of a million since 2000 is pretty respectable,â€

[quote]“It looks like a combination of factors is driving this,â€